Madeleine Milburn is delighted to be one of the judges of the Bluepencilagency First Novel Award 2018.
Having received submissions from unpublished writers without representation from all over the world, and in all genres, Madeleine, along with the other judge (bestselling author Fiona Mitchell) announced a longlist of 25 titles to recognise the talent and breadth of entries submitted. The cast of this year’s longlisted novels come from all walks of life: they include a sex doll, a colony of women designed to breed, a collector of good and evil thoughts in the underground, a hit man, stranded prisoners on an island, a survivalist cult, vampires and slaves – among much more.
Those shortlisted will be asked to submit an additional 15,000 words to their original 5,000 word opening extract. The prizes for the winner and runner up include an introduction to Madeleine, as well as £1,250 in cash and an editorial report.
Many congratulations to the authors of the following 25 outstanding titles:
A Ton of Feathers
Breeder
Collision
Dark Water
Doll
Dr Wolfe’s Gazelle
Female Fireflies
In Plain Sight
Junk Folk
Leave Me Slow
Little Comrade
Living in Twilight
Mute
My Poor Deluded Girl
Nobody Move
Statistics of Colour
The Echoes
The Master Thief
The Midnight Order
The Silent German
The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls
The shortlist will be announced within the next month, and the names of the writers on the longlist will be announced along with the winners on 31st November.
