Searchlight Awards
@writingawards
A competition for un-agented YA and children’s authors, dedicated to discovering exceptional new voices and connecting them with literary agents. Exciting update on Thursday 18th June!
If you’re working on your entry this week we hope it’s going well. #writingcommunity
Your novel could be the one they’re waiting for. 🤞 #writercommunity
If you’re polishing your Novel Prize entry, there’s a little perk to sending it in early. We’re so excited to read what you’ve been working on. 🙂 #writingcommunity
We’re so excited to share who will be choosing the longlist, shortlist and winner for this year’s novel prize. #writingcommunity
If you’d like to apply for a sponsored place, just send us an email. We’ll let you know if a place is available and send a voucher code to use on the entry form. Best of luck with the competition! #writingcommunity
We love this moment every year - when we open for entries. Are you working on a YA or children’s novel you might enter? #writingcommunity
AGENT NEWS. Not one but two offers of representation for our fabulous Best Novel Opening 2024 shortlistee @mcalvani.bsky.social . Wow! Mayra has now signed with the equally fabulous @keslupo.bsky.social of @maasslitagency.bsky.social . What a perfect match! Huge congrats, Mayra.
Our super-talented listee Amanda Addison has been shortlisted for The New Angle Prize 2025 with her YA novel Looking for Lucie. We are so proud of her. ❤️
Our Winners’ Gallery for Best Novel Opening and Best Picture Book Text 2024 is now live! See who won, read short extracts of the stories… Congratulations to all! 👏👏👏 www.searchlightawards.co.uk/winners-gall...
The moment we sent out our Agent/Publisher Pitch Book of Winning Stories @gavin-crippin.bsky.social started getting interest. ‘Such a great voice!’ was the general opinion. Things moved at lightning speed and we’re delighted to say that Gavin has now accepted representation. Fantastic news! 🥳
BOOK NEWS - We’re seeing Olivia Wakeford’s book EVERYWHERE! 🥳 Back in 2021 My Dog was one of our competition entries and our readers fell in love with it. ❤️Since then Olivia’s joined our reading team and she’s brilliant at selecting stories for the longlist, too. Massive congrats, Olivia.
Tom Lancaster has been crowned the winner of Best Picture Book Text 2024. Our judge Lorna Hemingway of Bell Lomax Moreton said Bamboo Hullabaloo was ‘a joy to read aloud due to its excellent rhyme and fast paced nature’. Many congratulations, Tom! 🥳⭐️🍾
Announcing the long-awaited results of Best Picture Book Text 2024. Huge congratulations to our final 10! Thank you to all the writers who entered this competition. It has been a privilege and a pleasure to read your stories. www.searchlightawards.co.uk/best-childre...
Longlistees, we will be emailing you the results of Best Novel Opening and Best Picture Book Text 2024 tomorrow - ahead of the official announcement on Friday. You are all superstars and, whether you are shortlisted or not, we believe in your stories. Best of luck!
Couldn’t be happier! The winner of our Best Chapter Book 2024 competition - Sophie Clarke with Gracie, Dave and The God of Dogs - has accepted representation from Lucy Irvine of PFD. Such brilliant news! 🥳
BOOK NEWS! Delighted to be able to share with you that Mina the Mighty (shortlisted in our 2022 Best Picture Book Text competition) will be published in March. It was an absolute favourite with our readers. So happy for @nadineholland.bsky.social . 🥳👏
BOOK NEWS - Thrilled that The Go Away Rain Dance is to published! It’s by our wonderful shortlistee (and now competition reader) @clairelewiswrites.bsky.social . Claire not only wrote the picture book but illustrated it, too. So, so talented! ⭐️
Over the moon to finally see this absolutely gorgeous picture book. It’s by our super-talented listee (and more recently competition reader) @hazelgardner.bsky.social . Penguin and Pup are sooo loveable. I can see why Macmillan asked for a series! ❤️
Our 2024 competitions are now closed for judging. Good luck, everyone. 🍀🤞
Competition closing this Sunday at 23.59pm, UK time. Good luck, everyone! 🍀🤞 www.searchlightawards.co.uk/competitions/
Just a little reminder that our competition closes this Sunday at 23.59pm, UK time. For everyone working hard to submit before the deadline you can do it! www.searchlightawards.co.uk/competitions/
We’re seeing our entrant badges popping up all over social media 🙂. If you see one please join us in wishing the writer good luck. We know how hard everyone works on their stories and we like to celebrate every entry. www.searchlightawards.co.uk/competitions/
Could you be our winner? Just over one week left to enter - go for it! Please share with your writer friends. We don’t want anyone to miss the deadline. Thank you! www.searchlightawards.co.uk/competitions/
This year we’ve introduced an amazing 2nd place prize for Best Picture Book Text 2024. It’s a detailed editorial review of the manuscript from top editor Natascha Biebow, MBE. Natascha has over 30 years experience commissioning and editing picture books. www.searchlightawards.co.uk/competitions/
CLOSING SOON! Just over 2 weeks left to enter. First prize: cash award and a call with our agent judge. Second prize: editorial feedback. All shortlisted entries: featured in our coveted Agent/Publisher Pitch Book of Winning Stories. www.searchlightawards.co.uk/competitions/