First Chapter + Synopsis Competition​

First Chapter + Synopsis Competition

Deadline January 31st, 2025.

Results will be published in April, 2025. 

Have you completed the first draft of your novel? Are you ready to pass it on to a fresh pair of eyes, to see if you are on the right track? Is your all-important first chapter ready for submission to an agent? Whatever your plans, your first chapter must shine – it must grab your readers or quickly lose their interest.

Joanna Swainson

The winning entry will be read by literary agent Joanna Swainson of the Hardman & Swainson Agency. Joanna is looking for originality and distinctive voices. For complex, larger-than-life characters and stories that will stay with the reader forever. Stories that surprise, and keep on surprising. As Joanna says, she will know what she’s looking for when she sees it!

First Prize: £500 + an appraisal

All short-listed entrants will receive a free appraisal:

Entry Fee: £18

Appraisals – for an extra fee, we will write a comprehensive appraisal of your chapter.

Winning entries will be published on our website, subject to the author’s permission

Submit Here