Got a novel in you? Here's your chance to get published

[KateMumsnet]

First novel competition: If you think you've got a novel in you, but despair of ever being published, stand by: in partnership with renowned literary agency Janklow & Nesbit, we're launching a fantastic competition for unpublished novelists.

Submit the first 8,000 words of your novel - Janklow & Nesbit guarantee to read every single entry. One enormous stumbling block to getting published is simply being noticed - so this really is an amazing opportunity.

The fantastic prize on offer is representation by J&N - setting you firmly on the path to publication: get details of how to enter here.

If you'd like to enter, but could use a bit of bespoke advice, we've organised a one-day Get Published course on Saturday 29 November 2014, where you'll have the chance to pick the brains of the Janklow agents and leading editors - and pick up tips from authors who've already broken through.

What are you waiting for?

Am jealous of those who attended - sadly being on the other side of the world at the time proved an impediment to attending myself!

Great informative day on Saturday! Made me realize I really want to do this ( write ) .

@MythicDay

Hello

(Great to meet you on Saturday, Patrick, was a fab day!)

I've a couple of questions:

1)Should we include a covering letter with our submission?
2)Because of anonymity, Do we include our contact details on the cover sheet of the manuscript, or just put the title on there?

Many thanks

Hi MythicDay, really good to meet you too. In response to your questions:

1. We have asked for a 500 word synopsis to accompany your submission
2. We would like you to include your Mumsnet username on your application. And it would be great if you could include your name please. We promise to keep this confidential.

I hope this helps and good luck with your application.

Hi Patrick,

Is it OK to just use the current Mumsnet username when one submits, or do you need both if we've name-changed? (I'd prefer that my other one remain anonymous, but I'll include it as well if it is necessary).

@emilywrites

Hi Patrick,

Is it OK to just use the current Mumsnet username when one submits, or do you need both if we've name-changed? (I'd prefer that my other one remain anonymous, but I'll include it as well if it is necessary).

Hi emilywrites, the current Mumsnet username is fine.

Hello future bestselling novelists :)

After a really good day at the 'Get Published' Conference on 29th November, I thought it might be nice to create a Facebook group for people who attended, and people who are entering/have entered the competition - somewhere to offer a little bit of support, encouragement, share writing etc, so, I've made a little group. You can find it here if you'd like to join:

www.facebook.com/groups/1522934491309835/

It's a little quiet right now, but hopefully will be a bit more active soon :). New members very welcome - I've made it a closed group for the moment to stop spammers :).

Fay x

A very basic question, looking at the Ts & Cs it says that no one who is an employee of Mumsnet may enter? Does this included Local Editors, I assume not because they are not actually "employed" by Mumsnet but thought it could be a bit ambiguous.

Clarification on this would be great.

Fay can non attendees join? I couldn't make it due to childcare but think is a great idea.

Fay, I was at the conference on November 29, and I think your group is a great idea. Alas, I am too geeky/undisciplined with my time to be on Facebook, otherwise I would have gone there. Anyway, I just wanted to offer encouragement to anyone else who is participating (am reconsidering stance on Facebook as well...).

great idea about the facebook page - I have sent a request to join.

I've just entered the competition and requested to join the Facebook page.

I had the same issue - I just found a suitable stopping point and then included a note at the end to say that this chapter was not finished because of their guidelines. I think they won't read more than 8000 words of any submission and I was worried that they wouldn't even look at it if it didn't fit their criteria.

Just a small point, but now that we've been asked to include our Mumsnet nn, the "Submissions will be anonymous" assurance on the submission instructions page isn't really applicable...

I thought about entering but have decided against it. I write funny chick lit - the winner is bound to be something more literary/'bone clocky' won't it?

Is this a competition for fiction, non-fiction or both? Thanks x

What have you got to lose, DonkeysYears? J&N publish fiction from all different genres - funny chick lit could be a winner!

Question

what if you submitted....and continued to edit for further submissions...edit and edit and now you have a rather different novel in hand?

do I resubmit and risk them not reading either? or just leave it as it is!

Hello, MNHQ, would you mind asking for clarification on a couple of points?

I can't find any mention of minimum/maximum novel word count in your terms and conditions. Has this been stated somewhere? (not the 8,000 words to be submitted)

Also, in the conditions, point 2.(b) states that entrants shall not be "under contract with a publisher for a forthcoming work of fiction... (...the exclusion... does not apply to bloggers or previously published or self-published authors)."

I have been discussing an indie/self-published anthology with some other writers; this would be put out under the small-press umbrella of one of the authors but under a profit-sharing arrangement. It's partly driven by the new EU VAT regulations on cross-border provision of electronic services. However, it is a one-off arrangement, not a publishing contract per se. As a participant in such an anthology, would I still qualify to enter the Mumsnet/Janklow competition?

Many thanks for any information you have on file or are able to get from Janklow & Nesbit!

If MNHQ are going to give some extra info on terms and conditions...

Could you clarify whether entering this competition counts as a standard submission, without any unusual copyright implications, either with Mumsnet or J&N?

I promise I don't sit around in a tinfoil hat, fretting you'll steal my words but isn't there, for example, some clause in the Mumsnet user content agreement that gives the website absolute rights to anything we post? With the term 'irrevocable' written in blood--?

Nothing like that applies to contest entries, does it?

Hello Patrick,

Would it be possible to get some clarification on the synopsis / outline of 500 words? In the original instructions it says 'outline of the remaining chapters' but in the response above it says 'synopsis'.

Sorry to be totally anal but I want to make sure I get it right as each has different implications for how to lay out the document describing the rest of the book.