I’ll be honest: I’ve been sceptical about the value of
entering contests or putting your fiction on sharing/forum sites, at least for getting
attention from publishers. Looks like I was wrong.
Example one: Katherine Webb, author of the novel “The Legacy,”
put the opening chapters on the YouWriteOn website (which is supported by the
Arts Council). Members rated them highly, which earned her a critique from an
editor from the publishers, Orion. That led to a two-book deal with that
publisher. (For information on how to post your material and how the judging
works, see www.youwriteon.com).
Example two: Douglas Jackson developed the story for his
novel “Caligula” on the same site and got a high ranking from the users. It led
to a six-figure deal with Random House.
Example three: Novelist Stuart Neville put a short story of
his on Thuglit.com, an online fiction ezine. It caught the eye of New York
agent Nat Sobel, who asked to see Neville’s first novel, “The Twelve.” It led
to publishing deals in the UK, USA, France, and Japan.
The August issue of Writers’ News notes, “There has recently
been a growth in mainstream publisher interest in peer resourcing sites, and
Random House has also become involved with YouWriteOn to give feedback to
highly rated writers.”
(Need help getting started with your book or other writing project? You'll find it in my book, "Your Writing Coach," published by Nicholas Brealey and available from Amazon and other online and offline retailers now.)
