2024 WriteMentor Novel and Picture Book Awards
Sponsored by Bonnier Books UK, the WriteMentor 2024 Novel & Picture Book Award is looking for new writing talent in both children’s and young adult fiction.
Now in its sixth year, the Awards are focusing on four categories: Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade, and Young Adult.
Winners from each category will be selected by editors from Bonnier Books UK’s Children division and four leading literary agents from both the UK and the US. Each winner will receive a £250 cash prize and one-year free membership to the Hub, WriteMentor’s online membership platform.
Winners will be announced by WriteMentor and Bonnier Books UK during an online awards ceremony in 2024.
ENTER THE 2024 WRITEMENTOR NOVEL AND PICTURE BOOK AWARDS
“All of us on the children’s team are so proud to be supporting the WriteMentor Novel and Picture Book Awards – and to get a thrilling first look at the incredible emerging talent putting their stories forward. We’re excited to discover new voices, perspectives and untold adventures for young readers everywhere – and our editors are already itching to get stuck in and read the submissions!”
Helen Wicks, Managing Director of Children’s Trade at Bonnier Books UK
Meet the shortlist judging panel
Hear from our judges
“I’ll be looking out for texts that feel truly child-centred and empowering, perhaps with an unexpected twist or angle. I know it’s not going to be easy to pick just one!”
Alice Williams, Picture Books category judge
“I can’t wait to see all the brilliant submissions and new voices that come our way. I’d really like to encourage those from underrepresented groups, backgrounds and experiences to submit their stories too. But for anyone submitting, I love stories that have heart and are child-focussed. There may be a lovable main character or deal with themes/experiences in new or unexpected ways. And lastly, I love funny and light-hearted stories – a good laugh, for the sake of a good laugh!”
Amelia Warren, Commissioning Editor for Picture Books at Templar Books
“I can’t wait to read the entries. I’d love to see a high concept fantasy adventure, but also love a funny heart-warming narrative. Having said that, I like to be surprised and so look forward to whatever lands on my desk!”
Becky Bagnell, Middle Grade category judge
“I can’t wait to meet the outstanding talent I know will feature on the shortlist across genres though I’m particularly hoping for a YA voice that feels fresh and original. Good luck to all entrants!”
Kesia Lupo, Young Adult category judge
“I am thrilled to be joining the judging panel for this year’s Write Mentor Picture Book and Children’s Novel Award. Young fiction has a vital and exciting role to play in the children’s book market and I can’t wait to see what the entrants in this category will dream up for us.”
Lauren Gardner, agent at Bell Lomax Moreton
“The experience was fantastic. The WriteMentor team and Stuart show so much care for everybody in the way they announce results and the advice they offer to help deal with each stage. Also, the WriteMentor community on Twitter is just amazing. Everyone is so welcoming and kind, and they’re always ready to celebrate and support each other. I feel so very lucky to be amongst many brilliant writers. The standard is so high every year and the results are so close.”
Saira Shah, 2023 Picture Book award winner, now represented by Peters Fraser + Dunlop
Prizes
Picture Book winner: £250 plus 1-year membership to the WriteMentor Hub
Chapter Book winner: £250 plus 1-year membership to the WriteMentor Hub
Middle Grade winner: £250 plus 1-year membership to the WriteMentor Hub
Young Adult winner: £250 plus 1-year membership to the WriteMentor Hub
How to enter
WriteMentor invites all unpublished and unagented authors aged 18 and above to submit their Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade or Young Adult fiction to the 2024 Novel & Picture Book Awards.
The awards are open internationally for completed works written in English.
Entrants can submit any genre of Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade, or Young Adult fiction:
- For Picture Books, please submit a completed manuscript in a single Word document.
- For novels (Chapter Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult), please submit the first 3,000 words for your novel and a one-page synopsis in a single Word document.
Entry fee is £12 with a limited number of concessions.
Please ensure you read the rules below before entering.
“I’ve entered the WriteMentor Novel Award pretty much every year since it first began and it’s changed a lot in that time – for the better, in my opinion. I have truly appreciated all the thought, care and consideration Stuart has put in to organising it with entrants’ mental health at the forefront.”
Cate Haynes, 2023 Novel Award winner
Key dates
Submissions are open from Monday 11 December 2023 until 11:59pm on Thursday 1st February 2024.
The longlist and shortlist will be announced in February 2024 and the winners during an online awards ceremony later in the year.
Enter the WriteMentor Novel and Picture Book Awards
Rules
Entries for complete manuscripts only – Picture Book, Chapter Books, Middle Grade and Young Adult of any genre. You may enter as many novels/texts as you wish.
You cannot be agented or traditionally published. Self-published novels are eligible. Independently published writers, who have not received an advance, may enter, but not with a published novel.
For Picture Book writers, send us the whole manuscript, with a short synopsis at the start (a pitch would suffice). No artwork or illustrations please. Text only. Ideal word count is between 500-1000 words.
For Novel writers, submit a synopsis (single-spaced) and then first 3,000 words (1.5 or double-spaced) in the same word document.
Word limit is not negotiable and if you exceed this, your entry will not be read. We suggest finishing at a suitable point before 3000 rather than mid-sentence. A great 2000-word entry, that finishes on a great cliff-hanger is probably more effective than a 2997 word entry that stops in the middle of a scene.
Use 12″ and a plain font like Times New Roman. Put page numbers in the footer.
Name your document in the format of ‘TITLE.docx’ – i.e. ‘THEHOBBIT.docx’ with the title of the manuscript in the header.
Do not put your name anywhere on the document or in the name of the uploaded document, as entries are read anonymously. The ONLY place your name should be is in the name field on the form. If you notice on your confirmation email that the document title includes your name, do not worry. We will manually rename the file before it’s passed onto the readers.
Use the link at the top of the entry form page to pay your entry fee.
All entries will be sent digitally. We are committed to being green and want to keep costs for writers down, so mail entries will not be allowed.
If you are unable to pay the entry fee, simply type CONCESSION in the box on the entry form. You do not need to provide any evidence or explanation for this. However, we are limiting the free entries this year to 30 and one FREE entry per person.
If you are long listed for the novel award, we will contact you after the announcement to ask for your full manuscript. Please send this within 7 days. If you are shortlisted, we will forward your full manuscript onto our judges.
All announcements will happen via the site, so do sign up to our mailing list and follow us on social media.
Award success stories
Sophia Payne won the 2020 WriteMentor Picture Book Award with Faruq and the Wiri Wiri, now published by Templar Books
Sean Dooley won the 2021 WriteMentor Novel Award and is now represented by Caroline Wakeman Literary Agency
Chris Galvin shortlisted for 2021 WriteMentor Novel Award and is represented by David Higham Associates
Louse Finch’s novel The Eternal Return of Clara Hart, runner-up in the 2020 WriteMentor Novel Award, is now published by Little Island
Aoife Doyle won the 2021 WriteMentor Novel Award and is now represented by Peters Fraser + Dunlop
Sue Cunningham won the 2020 WriteMentor Novel Award and is now published by Scholastic
Alexandra Page‘s winning book for the 2019 WriteMentor Novel Award, Wish You Was, is now published with Walker Books
Kathryn Foxfield‘s novel, Good Girls Die First, runner-up in the 2019 WriteMentor Novel Award, is now published by Scholastic
Amy Borg, shortlisted in the 2019 WriteMentor Novel Award, is now represented by Sara O’ Keeffe
FAQs
I entered last year – can I enter again?
Absolutely.
Will I get the same readers?
It’s unlikely, as our pool of readers does change a little, and the odds of getting the same readers as last time are very slim.
Can I enter more than one novel/text?
Yes, enter as many as you like, but each one will need its own entry form and fee.
Will I get a confirmation email when I enter?
Yes, it will be emailed to the address that you input on the entry form. Do check junk/spam folders before enquiring.
I don’t have Word – how can I submit a .doc or .docx file?
If you do not have word, then you can paste your entry into Google Docs, then download the file as a .doc or .docx. We have nearly 50 people judging in total, many of which will not be able to access files sent in other formats.
What happens if I sign with an agent during the reading/judging period?
Send us an email, or a message via the contact form, and you will need to withdraw from the day of signing your contract.
Should I include my prologue?
Simple answer. If your prologue is good, include it! Seriously, this is your call, but our experience is that when you only have 3000 words to grab our attention, and if your prologue isn’t in the main storyline, it might be worth considering leaving it out.
Do I HAVE to do a synopsis?
YES! We understand the agony, but don’t fret – simply hit us with a blow-by-blow account of the main things that happen in the story – 1 page, single spaced – and that will work fine. Ultimately you won’t miss out on being listed due a poor synopsis, but you will due to a poor chapter 1, so focus on that.
I’m only a few words over 3000, can I just enter them?
Sorry, but no. Only way to ensure absolutely fairness is to apply this upper limit rigidly. Most writers will spend hours editing and cutting, or choosing to end earlier to make the limit, so you should, too. Worth noting that a 2000-word extract that is great is just as likely to get listed as a 2999 word extract, and it’s unlikely the latter will finish in a place that is perfect for making your reader want more. That is the priority over a few extra words.
Which age category should I put down?
Hard for us to answer, but the general rule is kids tend to read 2 years up. So, if your main character is 12, you’re looking at a 10-year-old reader.
Am I guaranteed to sign with an agent if I’m shortlisted?
No. But a large % of our longlisted and shortlisted authors from previous years are now with agents, and we have a several published authors from that group, too. We offer no guarantees, performing well in a novel award means you have impressed many adult and kid readers and is a good sign that your story has appeal.
You used to give feedback – can I pay extra for this?
Unfortunately, the time demand and the sheer number of entries (more than 1000 last year) meant we had to take away this option for now. However, we will be offering this in our other award, the Novel in Development Award.
I’ve entered. What should I do while I wait?
Take care of yourself. Take a break. Do something else. Write something else. Forget about the competition and set a reminder for the day of the longlist announcement. Casually browse the list when it’s announced, without expectation or hope, and if you’re not there, at least you’ve been working on something new and won’t be too disappointed. If you are on there, then it’s a nice surprise and welcome boost. This year we will email everyone at the same time with the outcome. We will then publicly announce later, to give those receiving the news time to process this before posts are made on social media etc. But the absolute priority is you, and your mental health and wellbeing, so please enter, then forget about it. Writing a long game and is not about 1 individual competition or moment in time – keep up the good habit of submitting and moving on and it will benefit you in the long run.