Fiction Contest
The 2012 Leapfrog Fiction Contest is open for entries from January 15 through May 1, 2012.
We are delighted to announce that our finalist judge this year will be Lev Raphael.
By popular request, we will be including a children's fiction division again, for middle-grade and young adult fiction. Also by popular request, the adult division will be open to science fiction as well as literary and mainstream fiction. Please follow the entry guidelines given below. Any questions on the contest should be sent to fictioncontest@leapfrogpress.com
What to Enter
The contest is for Adult Fiction and Children's Fiction (middle grade an YA only). Any novella- or novel-length work of fiction, including short-story collections, not previously published* is eligible. The minimum length is 22,000 words; there is no maximum length.
* Previously self-published books that have no more than 200 copies in circulation will be considered "unpublished" and may be submitted. Short stories that have been published in literary journals may be included in collections.
1. Email fictioncontest@leapfrogpress.com. The subject line should read "Adult contest entry: manuscript title" or "Children's contest entry: manuscript title" (please use actual manuscript title). Please use the full title, or as much as possible. In the body of the message, include your full name, address, email address, and the book's title. Please do not include any biographical information.Attach your entire manuscript as a single text, Word, or PDF document. Use the title of the manuscript as the file name. Please do not call your file "mybook.doc" or "leapfrog.doc" or "manuscript1.doc" etc., as it will be indistinguishable from the 10s of other submissions so titled. Please do not use your title's initials, as this causes lots of confusion around here.
If illustrations are included, make sure the file size is not greater than 2 MB. If your file is larger than that, please email for instructions on how to send. Note that any images must be black and white.
Manuscript format: we are not picky. Just make it readable. It is important that no personal information be included in the attached file: Please do not put your name or address in the page headers or on a title page. Use only the book's title as identification.
We have lifted the restriction on the number of manuscripts from any one author, since a number of authors wanted to submit multiple manuscripts in the past. Multiple submissions will be judged separately; the judges will not know they are from the same author. Note that we do not encourage more than two manuscripts from one author. Much as we'd love the opportunity to read your additional manuscripts, we encourage authors to submit to multiple contests, and not put all their resources (i.e., contest fees) into a single contest.
2. Entry fee: the entry fee is $30. This can be paid through PayPal, or by check to:
Leapfrog 2012 Fiction Contest, PO Box 505, Fredonia, NY 14063.
If mailing a check, please be sure your name, address, and manuscript title are on the check or legible on the envelope, or else written on a piece of paper enclosed. This allows us to match checks with entries.
To pay with PayPal, click on the button below.
You will receive an email acknowledgment when your manuscript is received. Please allow two or three days for the acknowledgment. If you have not heard from us within three days, please let us know. Questions may also be sent to leapfrog@leapfrogpress.com.
Judges include Leapfrog Press editors and author Lev Raphael.
All judging is done "blind": the judges have no information except the manuscript itself and its title. Judging is done in several rounds. Manuscripts that are placed in the "awards" category will be divided into Honorable Mention, Semifinalist, and Finalist categories. These will be announced in May or early June. The first-prize winner will then be chosen from among the finalist manuscripts.
Lev Raphael is the author of 20 books, including novels, memoirs, and story collections. He has published reviews in papers such as The Washington Post and The Detroit Free Press, and articles and essays in numerous publications. Prizes include the Harvey Swados Fiction Prize, the Reed Smith Fiction Prize and International Quarterly's Prize for Innovative Prose. Read more about Lev Raphael here.
First Prize: publication contract offer from Leapfrog Press, with an advance payment, plus the finalist awards (see below).
Finalists: $150 and two critiques of the manuscript from contest judges; permanent listing on the Leapfrog Press contest page as a contest finalist, along with short author bio and description of the book.
Semi-Finalist: Choice of a free Leapfrog book; permanent listing on the Web site
Honorable Mention: listing on the Leapfrog Press Web site.
We encourage winners of all contests to inform us of any publicity/contracts/reviews of their entries. We will be happy to post that information on our Web site and in our newsletter.