Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards

Here’s some exciting news. The 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award has just been announced. If you feel your manuscript is ready, have a shot. The rules are here. 

The Grand Prize Winner gets a publishing contract with an advance of $50,000 with Amazon Publishing. You could also get contracts with advances of $15,000 if you are one of the five finalists. Winning this contest, I need hardly say, can change your fortunes as a writer.

The competition works like this:

• The first step is to create a CreateSpace account if you don’t have one. You can’t proceed without this.
• It kicks off on February 16 but send in your entry early as they consider the first 10,000 entries only, though you have time till March 2, 2014. I guess they would get the first 10,000 well before the stipulated closing date.
• Submit your entry in one of these genres:

1. General Fiction
2. Mystery/Thriller
3. Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror
4. Romance
5. Young Adult Fiction

• You are required to upload your pitch, excerpts and completed manuscript at the time of entering the contest. I discovered this when I sent in my entry.
• In the initial round, the focus is on your pitch, which should not exceed 300 words. If the panel of editors/judges feels your pitch has grabbed their attention and they want to see more, your entry could be amongst the top 400 in each genre to move to Round 2.
• In Round 2, your excerpts of between 3,000 to 5,000 words are judged. The top 100 in each genre will be selected for the Quarter Finals.
• In the Quarter Finals, reviewers will read your manuscript and the best five in each of the genres will make it to the Semi Finals. Your manuscript should be between 50,000 to 125,000 words.
• The Semi Finals will determine if you are one of the five finalists, with one being selected for each of the genres.
• The Finals will be voted for by Amazon customers. All five finalists will get the First Prize with one amongst them getting the Grand Prize.

Send in your entry as soon as you can so as not to be disappointed. You could get valuable feedback on your work and if it is really good, you could go on to win one of the big prizes.  This appears to be a wonderful opportunity to publish your novel.

Go for it. You have nothing to lose. There is no entry fee anyway. I wish you the best in your efforts.