Cheshire Novel Prize Kids

I am delighted to share that while I did not win the Cheshire Novel Prize Kids competition 2025, I did make the shortlist of 9 out of nearly a thousand entries, so I’m pretty happy with that. Here’s the backstory.

Many of you may remember that I was feeling very low at the end of 2024. I was in a slump. I’d spent over two years sending two YA novels out to literary agents, and although both received much positive feedback, I had not enticed any agent to make an offer of representation. I also learned I was unsuccessful in my funding application to hire a professional editor and mentor, and that my short story didn’t get chosen to be in an anthology I was really excited about. I’d begun work on a third YA novel but it didn’t feel right and I couldn’t summon the enthusiasm to keep writing. I was miserable every day, seeing others’ success became unbearable, and I was ready to give up trying to get published.

Then, I had an idea for a fun Middle Grade story for readers aged 9-11. It was the perfect palate cleanser. I sat down and words flowed through my fingertips onto my document. Even though I hadn’t finished writing the novel by the application deadline, a writer friend (Hi, Ross!) encouraged me to enter, and my sister (Hi, Megan!) generously paid my entry fee. I had no expectations of winning (or even being listed), but I hoped to get some valuable feedback (for those who might not know, Cheshire Novel Prize gives feedback to every entrant to let them know why their entry didn’t make it through to the next stage of the competition).

While I waited for the longlist to be announced, I finished writing the book. I wrote the final words of my first draft on Thursday 27th February. The longlist announcement was made on Friday 28th February.

I did not expect to be longlisted. My sister sent me a screenshot of the snippets on X captioned ‘Is this you?’ It was indeed me, but I knew not all the snippets posted were chosen for the longlist. I received that message on my lunch break and had to wait until the end of my work day to see whether my story had made it through. It was the longest afternoon ever but my wait was rewarded by receiving good news. I was blown away! It was such a boost to make the longlist after nearly giving up on writing altogether. Of course, I then spent that weekend feverishly editing to send my full manuscript for consideration for the shortlist. You can imagine how pleased I was that I stuck to my deadline and finished writing it!

A few weeks later, I was, again, very surprised to make the shortlist. I was on a daytrip with my husband, which had gotten off to a terrible start after I had a panic attack in the restaurant I chose for brunch. I couldn’t eat the meal. I was trying to calm down, sitting on a bench in the sunshine, when Sara Cox called with the good news. Needless to say, the day drastically and immediately improved.

When I entered this competition, I had no expectations of winning, or even listing. Yet on making the shortlist, I really wanted to beat the other 8 finalists to the top spot. I am disappointed that I didn’t win, but I’m optimistic that being shortlisted will make my story stand out to agents when I begin querying, and I’ll still receive the valuable feedback I was hoping for, plus it’s given me a huge confidence boost. Thanks so much to the people who encouraged and supported me to enter, and thanks to Sara Cox, the judges, and all the readers of the competition for making this possible. You guys rock.

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