News & Reviews

WORD: Delacorte Press announces 26th Annual Contest for a First Young Adult Novel
Edited Press Release

Authors who write young adult novels have a contest to enter that could see them making their publishing debut with Delacorte Press Books, a division of Random House. The publisher announced that for the twenty-sixth year running, it will hold a contest with the prize of a book contract (on the Publisher’s standard form) for a hardcover and a paperback edition.

Entries will be judged by the editors of Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers. The prize will be awarded on the basis of originality, style, and creativity. The contest’s winner will get an advance and royalties, awarded annually to encourage the writing of contemporary young adult fiction. The award consists of $1,500 in cash and a $7,500 advance against royalties.

If you’re still working on your novel, no worries: Manuscripts must be postmarked after October 1, 2007, but no later than December 31, 2007. Authors can submit their novels of 100 to 224 pages to:

Delacorte Press Contest
Random House, Inc.
1745 Broadway, 9th Floor
New York, New York 10019

The contest is open to U.S. and Canadian writers who have not previously published a young adult novel. Delacorte Press is also running a similar contest for authors who write books for middle grade readers (ages 9-12). The deadline for that contest is creeping up soon: Manuscripts must be postmarked after April 1, 2007, but no later than June 30, 2007. For further details on both contests, check out this page at the Random House website.

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