TLC Free Reads: Have Your Manuscript Assessed For Free
Date:
28/09/2012
Times:
5pm
Prices:
Free to enter
Location:
Writers' Centre Norwich
An opportunity to have your work read by a professional from The Literary Consultancy for free.
Register for a Free Read
Description
Could your manuscript do with a professional reading service?
Apply for a FREE Read with The Literary Consultancy.
‘I was very grateful for the opportunity to be read and taken seriously, and to receive professional, unbiased feedback. Thank you.’
Winner, 2010/11
My feedback from TLC [was] incredibly useful, perceptive and accurate in terms of improvements that can be made. I am now starting to rewrite with the benefit of this excellent advice.’
Tina Meyer, Winner, 2011/12
If you're a serious writer writing in the East of England, then TLC Free Reads might well be for you. Through this scheme we can offer you the opportunity to have your work read and reported back on by a professional from The Literary Consultancy.
The Literary Consultancy is the UK’s leading manuscript assessment service, providing expert, market-aware editorial advice to writers at all levels writing in English.
An assessment of your manuscript could really help you progress; giving you sage industry advice and the Holy Grail – honest, constructive feedback. We would like to offer this scheme to writers in the East of England on low incomes
(for what counts as a ‘low income’ see below).
TLC Free Reads is open to writers of prose (fiction, children’s, narrative non-fiction and short stories), poetry, and scripts for TV, Film, Radio or Theatre. This is a competitive process. Winners will be selected based on artistic merit and the authors of the highest quality manuscripts notified by Monday 5th November.
Founded in 1996, The Literary Consultancy is recommended by Arts Council England and major publishing houses, and holds a strong track record of helping writers get into print.
Deadline for entries: 5pm, Friday 28th September 2012
Winners will be notified by: Monday 5th November 2012
To apply:
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Read all of the information on this page before applying online.
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If you already have an account with us, enter your username and password, register your information, acquire your 'ticket' and complete the questionnaire online (please note that this is a free service - you will not be charged at any point).
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You will receive a 'ticket' by email with a booking reference number and further instructions. Please ensure you open this ticket and read all of the information.
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Send us three copies of a short covering letter saying why a Free Read would be useful to you at this stage in your career as a writer and addressing your qualification in the low income criteria.
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Three copies of a short sample of the work that you want to be assessed by TLC (no more than 3 pages for prose, 75 lines for poetry, 10 pages for scripts).
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You will send these to: TLC Free Reads, Writers’ Centre Norwich, 14 Princes Street, Norwich, NR3 1AE.
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Deadline for receipt of entries is 5pm on Friday 28th September 2012. Only entries received by this time will be accepted. We will not accept postmarked entries if they arrive late.
Applicants must
• Submit an extract from the same work you would submit for a free read.
• Be aged 16 or older.
• Be resident in the East of England (Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk).
• Submit an application in English.
• Submit single-authored works only.
• Enter under their own name and home address; pen names and c/o addresses will not be eligible.
• Ensure their entry is received by the closing date (Friday 28th September 2012). Entries postmarked with the closing date will not be accepted.
• Be prepared to submit their final manuscript to The Literary Consultancy by 22nd February 2013.
Applicants must not
• Be, or have been, studying for an academic qualification in creative writing during academic year 2011/12 or 2012/13.
• Have previously benefited from TLC Free Reads within the last three years.
• Have previously been published (in anything other than an anthology or pamphlet) or have had a script professionally produced.
• Be employees of Writers’ Centre Norwich.
• Submit more than one entry.
All submissions must be typewritten and (excluding poetry) should be double-spaced, in a 12pt font, and printed on one side of the A4 page. Each page should be marked with your contact details.
APPLICATION FAQs
What should I put on my covering letter?
Covering letters should comprise a short explanation of why a Free Read would be useful to you at this stage in your career as a writer and addressing your qualification in the low-income criterion. It should be no more than one side of A4 and include information about any writing courses you have been on and any experience with publishers or agents that you have had.
What does ‘low-income’ mean?
Low-income is not a fixed criteria. The categories listed below are not the only qualification criteria that we will accept. If you feel you are on a low income – whatever the circumstances - we encourage you to apply. All applicants should explain their qualification under the low income criteria within the cover letter.
Low-income categories:
Job Seeker’s Allowance
Disability Benefit
Income Support
Working Tax Credit
Student
Over 60
Other
If you fall into any of the above categories (excluding ‘other’), you’ll need to submit photocopied proof of status with your application.
How will winners be selected?
Winners will be selected on the quality of the work submitted, with consideration also given to how useful we feel a Free Read could be at this particular stage of your writing career.
Who will judge entries?
Entries will be judged by Writers’ Centre Norwich.
If you are chosen as one of our TLC Free Reads winners, you can choose for your entry to be submitted in any of the following categories:
Books
Up to 50 pages
Up to 100 pages
100-215 pages
216-300 pages
Over 300 pages
Children’s Picture Books
Up to 4000 words
Short Stories
Up to 3000 words
Additional words can be added (per 2000 words) as required
Poetry
Up to 300 lines
Additional lines (per 100) can be added as required
Treatments
Up to 10 pages
11-30 pages
31-50 pages
Additional pages can be added as required
Scripts
Up to 30 pages
31-60 pages
61-90 pages
91-120 pages
Additional pages can be added as required
TLC Free Reads further Information.
The Literary Consultancy Free Reads (funded by Arts Council England) enables a number of talented low income writers to benefit from TLC’s normal manuscript appraisal service. Writers’ Centre Norwich manages Free Reads in the East of England.
Terms and conditions:
• WCN will only ever use personal details for the purposes of administering this competition, and will not publish them or share them with any third party without prior permission.
• These terms and conditions are governed by the laws of England and Wales
For more information on The Literary Consultancy and their regular manuscript assessment service, see their website.