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OCTOBER NEWSLETTER

By 20th October 2018No Comments

The SHORTLIST will be announced on 1st November

Submissions Catchup

A lot has happened since we closed for entries in July.  The team has been reading solidly since then, and gradually calling in novels that we’d like to read in full.

The quality has been phenomenal, hailing from all around the world too. So many thrilling stories, interesting settings and some brilliant writing!

We’ve had a good mix of published, self-published and unpublished work, which is really heartening to see.

As the shortlist announcement date draws near, our discussions get more heated as we weigh up the pros and cons of each title.  Keep an eye on the website and press announcements when the time comes to see who made the final six…

A Huge Thank You…

To everyone who has supported Staunch in our first year, and a special thanks to all entrants who recently took part in our Entrant Survey, giving us vital feedback.

Together, you’ve shown overwhelming levels of support for the prize, along with a few suggestions that we will try to incorporate next time.

 

WEBSITE UPDATES

We’ve made some exciting new additions to the Staunch website.

First up, we now have a brand new ‘Donate’ section live on-site, so if any kind folk would like to help us out with running costs, it’s now easy to do so!

Currently, Staunch is a not-for-profit organisation and any donations made are very much appreciated. They’ll go towards making the Staunch experience as valuable as possible for the writers involved.

We have also added a brand new Recommendations section and hope our followers will find some things of interest, whether writers or not.

 

STAUNCH RECOMMENDS…

Sohaila Abdulali

First up is an extraordinary book by Sohaila Abdulali – ‘What We Talk About When We Talk About Rape’. An uncomfortable title, but a highly informed, questioning and in some cases, damning look at the whole subject.

As a survivor of gang rape who was the first Indian woman to speak out publically about her ordeal, Sohaila is uniquely placed to present her challenging ideas about rape in general, rapists in particular, and what drives them, how other women have dealt with their assault (or not) or taken decades to share it. All currently very topical issues.

Though wide-ranging, it’s a very personal book, too, detailing an experience that shaped her life, her outlook and her empathy with other victims, but which she refuses to let define her.

Read More… 

Byte The Book

Also recommended is Byte the Book, a London-based networking organisation that also has a strong online community, geared towards all things publishing, digital and bookish.

Founded by digital publishing expert Justine Solomons, members are treated to frequent panels and networking events in London and at book fairs around the world.

A directory enables members to promote themselves or their services, and to support each other in their writing and publishing endeavours.

Read More…

A note for unpublished entries…

For those of you who might have been concerned that unpublished work wouldn’t fare well in a competition next to published novels, please be reassured.

We wanted to offer access to the broadest range of writers, including those who may not have found the traditional route to publication worked for them. We have read those entries with great attention, and in the full understanding that they won’t have been through professional editing and proofing. Some people were still polishing their work, and were given time to finish.

After the awards, we will be happy to forward suitable unpublished entries(first 5000 words) in answer to enquiries from agents or publishers. Authors will be contacted first for their permission.

Fancy Sponsoring Staunch?

We are looking for sponsors to support us as we go into the new year! If you know anyone, corporate or individual, who might like to partner with us, do put them in touch.

Thanks for reading,

Bridget Lawless
And The Staunch Book Prize Team