Community Chat

[gardenman]

If so, the seventh annual edition of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards has just been announced. It's open to entries ranging in size from 50,000 words to 125,000 words. Entries will start to be accepted on February 16, 2014 and will stay open until March 2, 2014 or until they reach 10,000 entries. The contest typically closes early, but it usually takes ten days to two weeks to get 10,000 entries. The top prize is a publishing contract with an advance worth $50,000 and four first place prizes of a publishing contract with a $15,000 advance. Last year's winner "Timebound" by Rysa Walker is doing very well.

It's a fun contest to enter if you've got a novel you've written. The ABNA community on Amazon is among the most supportive (and the craziest) that I've ever been around. Here's a link to the contest homepage for anyone interested.

http://www.amazon.com/abna

[AuntG]

Nope, don't have the imagination to be an author. There are people on the boards who are very good writers--some would say fiction is their specialty.

[dimin]

I'm going to write it now. I don't have my book ready yet.

[Annabellethecat66]

I wish I'd seen this earlier. I've had a lot of people tell me I should write a book (too lazy) but I do have a daughter who has already written a book and is looking for a publisher.

I will tell her about it. Maybe this will give me the push I need for next year or even help me to aspire to another deadline.

Thanks.

[Annabellethecat66]

I gave the address to my daughter. Thanks!!!

[esmerelda]

gardenman...I think I've read that you've entered before and were a finalist. If you're entering this year, I wish you all the luck! I think I'd enjoy a novel written by you. Your posts here are certainly well written.

Me? No. I enjoy reading. I'll leave the writing to others.

[gardenman]

I'm afraid the luck came too late. I got booted in the pitch round this year along with eight thousand other entrants. I entered a somewhat controversial novel this year that would have needed to find the right judges at each stage to advance far and it clearly didn't find the right judges. The ABNA is a fun contest, but luck plays a huge role in advancing. Colleen Hoover (five time NY Times best seller) was an entrant in the 2012 ABNA and got the boot early only to end up enormously successful after the contest. She was a lot of fun on the ABNA forums in 2012 and was back earlier this season saying how much she missed the contest and wished she could enter again. Fortunately for her however, she's already had her breakthrough.