Brisbane-based writer, editor and writing teacher, Lauren Daniels, has been announced as one of the Judges of the prestigious writing competition, Hawkeye Publishing Manuscript Development and Publication Prize 2020.
The Hawkeye Publishing Manuscript Development and Publication Prize 2020 awards a $4,500 package to the winner. New, emerging and established indie writers of books are encouraged to apply. Setting itself apart from other competitions, entrants receive feedback on their manuscripts – a rarity in similar competitions because of the time consuming nature of providing feedback.
Daniels believes that “There are plenty of great indie and self-pub reads if you know where to find them”. She sees Hawkeye as a great forum to connect readers with quality-vetted, self-published books.
The experienced writing teacher has these tips for writers planning on entering the Manuscript Competition.
‘Read the submission guidelines. Seriously! Splatterpunk submissions to a Chicken Soup for the Soul comp could send the judges on a bender.’
‘Before you submit, read the whole work aloud. Yes, you heard me. The whole book.’
‘Format like a pro. Use indented paragraphs, double line spaces for scene breaks, and correct dialogue punctuation. Use size 12 Times New Roman.’
While Daniels’ instruction to read an entire manuscript out loud might seem harsh, it is effective. Daniels has edited 80+ published books.
Daniels’ Tips for entrants in The Hawkeye Publishing Manuscript Development and Publication Prize 2020:
‘Kill the cliché. Readers want your twisted mind to serve up its own sweet brand of cool, right into their hands.’
‘Use ‘said’ and ‘asked’. Maybe ‘shouted’,’ Daniels says, something many of us are told not to do. ‘Turn dialogue into auditory imagery that disappears from the eye, into the reader’s ear.’
Entries for The Hawkeye Publishing Manuscript Development and Publication Prize 2020 competition close 6pm Friday 20 December 2019, with the winner to be announced Monday 16 March 2020.
If short stories are more your thing, see the Sydney Hammond Memorial Short Story Writing Competition that closes on 2nd September 2019.
L. E. Daniels is the author of Serpents Wake: A Tale for the Bitten, and the Director of Brisbane Writers Workshop.
Article by Amelie Rohweder.
