Our Flagship First 500 Novel Competition is open for entries!
Have you got a novel opening that will grab readers?
Then we want to read it! Enter our competition and your first 500 words could change your writing career.
What do you need? Just the beginning of a work of fiction or narrative non-fiction – the start of a story that could go on to captivate readers, agents, and publishers alike.
Eight finalists, chosen by our judges, will read their piece in a live online event on 17 December at 7pm GMT in front of a panel of literary agents and publishers.
One winner, chosen by the audience, will receive over £4,000 worth of prizes.
No experience needed. Just great writing!
What we’re looking for
We’re looking for openings that grab us from the very first line and make us want more! You can enter any genre (including memoir, non-fiction, or children’s) – as long as it’s your opening 500 words.
A winning entry includes:
- Hint of plot – Even in 500 words, show a story taking shape to spark curiosity.
- Quality of writing – We’re looking for writing that flows well, is easy to read, and makes an impression.
- Voice and characters – Bring characters to life and let your unique voice shine.
- Captivating opening – Hook us from the first lines.
You will also have to opportunity to upgrade and get 250 words of feedback on your first 500 words. This upgrade is limited to 50 entries and will be available to purchase on the entry submission page.
The Winner's Prize
The overall winner will receive an incredible package to kickstart their writing journey
A professional edit
Receive a full structural manuscript assessment from a professional book editor to give your work the best chance of success.
A fully funded place on a short tutored course
Get intensive expert feedback and support with a fully-funded place on selected shorter tutored writing courses.
One year of Premium Membership
Never write alone again: Get access to live writing workshops, feedback opportunities, monthly literary agent Q&As and more
A phone call with a literary agent
Perfect your submission pack with personalised feedback from a literary agent via a 15-minute phone call.
A lifetime licence for The Novel Factory
Get the ultimate writing companion. This novel-writing software helps you plan, organise and write your novel.
Publishing credit towards Gatekeeper Press
Win a $1,000 USD credit (equal to roughly £750) toward any Gatekeeper Press publishing package.
Runner-up Prizes
Even if you don’t take the top spot, being a finalist comes with fantastic rewards to celebrate your achievement. You’ll get official recognition as a finalist, expert feedback from our literary agent judging panel, plus one year of a standard annual license for The Novel Factory (worth $220).
First 500 Novel Writing Competition Judges
John Baker
Literary Agent • Peters Fraser + Dunlop
- Bio
John Baker is a genre fiction agent, specialising in fantasy, science fiction, horror and commercial crime and thriller for adult and YA readers.
During his career, John’s authors have won the Future Worlds Prize, the Imagined Futures Prize, been shortlisted for the Bradford Bose Prize, the Jhalak Prize, the Fab Prize, the BFSA, the BFA, the Shirley Jackson Awards, the Stoker Awards, have been featured on the Sunday Times & USA Today Bestseller Charts and have been adapted for global cinematic release by Oscar-winning collaborators.
Laura Williams
Literary Agent • Greene & Heaton
- Bio
Laura has been working in publishing since 2011 and represents a broad list of adult fiction, as well as select children’s fiction and adult non-fiction. She reads widely across literary, upmarket and book club fiction, including historical, romance, gothic, horror, thriller, and mystery, and she also has experience handling contemporary young adult and middle grade fiction. In non-fiction, she looks for memoir and narrative non-fiction, with a particular interest in books on mental health, untold stories, and true crime.
Jon Curzon
Literary Agent • Selby Howard
- Bio
Jon represents literary fiction and non-fiction titles that start conversations and spark ideas. From debut fiction, memoir and nature writing to science, history and biography, his emphasis is always towards writers whose work is intelligent and original. His authors – including Ondaatje and Laurel Prize-winning Pascale Petit, Kyra Wilder, Emily Wells, Alice Maddicott, Adam Sharp, McKitterick Prize-winning Anietie Isong – have been published in the UK, US, Germany, France, India, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain and elsewhere; they have been reviewed and featured in the Guardian, The New York Times, The Telegraph, The Times, the TLS, The New Yorker, and on Channel 4 News. Jon also freelance edits for clients including Jericho Writers and Curtis Brown Creative.
Victoria Pepe
Publishing Director • Simon and Schuster
- Bio
Victoria Pepe has worked in publishing for almost twenty years, first at Little, Brown Book Group, and most recently at Amazon Publishing, where she publishes bestselling authors such as Amanda Prowse, Imogen Clark, T.E. Kinsey, and Andy Maslen. She’s also been a literary scout, working with publishers across the world, and has taught a creative writing course for commercial fiction.
The Judging Process
All entries are anonymised and first read by the Jericho Writers team. If you’re new to us, you can meet our wonderful team of writers and passionate readers here.
Each entry is read by two reader judges on the team and scored out of 10, taking into account the quality of the writing, how your plot is shaping up, and how captivating your opening is.
Once we’ve narrowed it down to a shortlist of 16 writers, these entries are passed on to our external judging panel to select the 8 finalists who will read in the live online final. Finalists will be contact on 9 December 2026.
Even if you don’t make the final, we’ll be announcing the 16 shortlisted entries during the event, as well as providing you with a shiny digital badge to show-off on social media.
How to enter
1. Entry is open to all Premium Members of Jericho Writers or those who have purchased an entry. If your Premium Membership expires during the competition period you must either renew your membership or purchase an entry to remain eligible.
2. The deadline for entry is 23:59 on Monday 30 November, 2026. Late entries will not be considered.
3. To give a chance to new writers, finalists from last year are not eligible. Those currently represented by an agent or with an active traditional publishing deal are also ineligible so as to leave this opportunity for those who need it most.
4. You must be available to attend the live online event at 7:00pm GMT on 17 December, 2026.
5. All entries must be your own unpublished work. To maintain fairness and uphold creative integrity, no AI-generated or AI-written work may be submitted. All submissions must represent the writer’s own original work.
6. Once you’ve purchased your Premium Membership or entry, you will be emailed a link to the competition entry page. If you already have an active Premium Membership, use the button below to go directly to the entry page.
7. Use the form on the entry page to upload your 500 words (to the nearest sentence end) in a word document or PDF. Do not include your name, as judging is done anonymously. You will also be able to upgrade to receive editorial feedback on your 500 words on the entry page, should you wish to do so.
Premium Members you will need to log in first in order to enter the competition for free.
Buy a First 500 entry
£10.00
Not quite ready to join as a member but still want to enter the competition? You can purchase a one-off entry here.
- 1x entry to First 500
- Access to our live online event
- Non-refundable
- No additional membership benefits
OUR LOWEST PRICE EVER | THIS NOVEMBER ONLY
Premium Annual: Pay Upfront
£150.00 30% OFF!
£105.00/year
Our most popular membership plan, get unlimited access to all our content & tools with a one-year subscription.
- Free entry to First 500, our career-changing novel competition
- 8+ live online events every month, including agent Q&As
- Annual query letter review
- Unlimited access to AgentMatch, our database of 1,400+ literary agents
- Weekly writing sprints, prompts and peer feedback
- Monthly ‘Critique Club’ with opportunities for personalised feedback
- 13 self-paced writing courses
- 300+ workshop and Q&A replays
- Exclusive discounts on editorial services & tutored courses
Premium Annual: Pay Monthly
£15.00/month
£10.50/month
Our most popular membership plan, get unlimited access to all our content & tools with a one-year subscription.
- Free entry to First 500, our career-changing novel competition
- 8+ live online events every month, including agent Q&As
- Annual query letter review
- Unlimited access to AgentMatch, our database of 1,400+ literary agents
- Weekly writing sprints, prompts and peer feedback
- Monthly ‘Critique Club’ with opportunities for personalised feedback
- 13 self-paced writing courses
- 300+ workshop and Q&A replays
- Exclusive discounts on editorial services & tutored courses
Tips for entering the First 500 Competition
Special thanks to our sponsors
We’re incredibly grateful to our Bronze Sponsors for supporting this competition and helping make it possible.
From first words to the finale stage
Last year, over 2,000 writers entered the First 500 Novel Competition and our finalists truly shone.
Hear directly from previous finalists about their experience, what they learned, and how far those first 500 words have taken them.
Relive the 2025 Live Final
Come and watch last year’s finalists wow us with their first 500 words and find out the style of feedback our agents and publishers give.
It’s well worth the watch if you want the inside scoop on the type of writing that excites us and makes us vote ‘yes!’
Hear from a previous winner!
We also have a very inspiring success story from Stephanie Torrance, the First 500 winner of 2024 to spur you on.
Stephanie shares how entering the competition gave her confidence, structure, and a major boost in her writing journey. Her story is a brilliant reminder that sometimes, all it takes is 500 words to change everything.
Let’s make this the month your writing really takes off.
Frequently asked
questions
My Premium Membership ends before the competition closes – can I still enter / be shortlisted etc?
No. You must be an active Premium Member at the time of the live final on 17 December, or have purchased a £10 entry. If your membership expires before the final and you have not purchased a £10 entry, you will no longer be eligible, even if you’ve been shortlisted.
Do you accept AI generated entries?
No, we ask that all entries to the First 500 competition are human-authored.
I paid for my entry but haven’t received my submission link via email.
It may take up to 15 minutes for your confirmation email, with the submission link, to reach your inbox. It’s also worth checking your spam just in case, before reaching out to our Writer Support team.
What should my entry include?
Your submission should consist of the first 500 words of your manuscript (to the nearest sentence end).
I bought a £10 entry, but have since joined as a member. Can I get my £10 back?
Yes. As long as the 14 day refund window has passed, we can refund you the £10 entry. You must have an active membership at the time of the live final or you will be disqualified.
Will I get feedback on my entry?
You will only receive feedback if you purchase the feedback upgrade. If you do, you will receive 250 words of written feedback from the Jericho Writers team.
I haven’t got a finished manuscript. Does this matter?
No, we want to champion writers with strong openings, whether they’re only a few chapters in or at the stage of querying a fully polished manuscript. However, bear in mind that if you’re chosen as a finalist or our winner, you will need to claim any prizes within their respective validity periods.
Who is eligible to enter First 500?
We encourage everyone to enter the First 500 Novel Competition, no matter your background or where you are in the world.
However, if you already have an agent or are traditionally published at the time of entry, we ask that you leave this opportunity for those who could most benefit from it.
This also includes any writer who has a contract with a traditional publisher but their book has yet to be published. If you have been previously self-published you are eligible. If you have previously been represented by an agent but are no longer represented, you are eligible for entry. Please check the rules section for the full details.
How does the judging process work?
The Jericho Writers team will judge all entries anonymously, reading the 500 words only with no identifiers. Each entry is read by two reader judges on the team and scored out of 10, taking into account the quality of the writing, how your plot is shaping up, and how captivating your opening is. Once we’ve narrowed it down to a shortlist of 16 writers, these entries are passed on to our external judging panel to select the 8 finalists.
Here’s what we’re looking for in a winning entry:
- Hint of plot – Even in 500 words, show a story taking shape. Introduce conflict or tension to spark curiosity without giving everything away.
- Quality of writing – We’re looking for writing that flows well, is easy to read, and makes an impression. Clear, confident storytelling will stand out.
- Voice and characters – Bring characters to life and let your unique voice shine. Originality and personality help your story stand out.
- Captivating opening – Hook us from the first lines. Whether through a twist, a scene, or your voice, make readers eager to turn the page.
At our live final, the audience will vote on their favourite finalist entry via a live poll, which will decide our winner.
What are the benefits to joining as a member instead of paying for entry?
Joining as a member not only gains you access to this and other competitions, but you will also gain instant access to 280+ hours of masterclasses, our AgentMatch database, video courses for writers, opportunities for feedback from the Jericho Writers team and our monthly live online writing events.
When are the key dates for the First 500 Novel Competition?
- The competition opens for entries Sunday 1 November, 2026.
- The competition closes at 23:59 GMT Monday 30 November, 2026.
- The finalists will be contacted on Wednesday 9 December, 2026.
- The live finale will be held at 19:00 GMT Thursday 17 December, 2026.
Can I enter with a memoir / non fiction/ etc etc?
Yes, we will accept entries from all genres including memoir, non-fiction and children’s.
Does it have to be from the opening of my novel?
Yes, it should be your opening 500 words. If you have a prologue, it should be the first 500 words of that prologue. When it comes to prologues, we always advise that if it’s not strong enough to enter into a competition and you’d rather enter Chapter One, you should consider whether you need the prologue at all.
What format should my entry be?
500 words (to the nearest sentence end) in an easy-to-read font such as Times New Roman, ideally double spaced. You can submit either a Word document or a PDF.
How do I make my entry stand out?
Premium Members can access our Opening Pages Resource Pack via the Jericho Writers Vault and we also have plenty of free articles available in our Blog.
Also, watch the replay of last years final (on this page), for an idea of what has wowed us previously!
I want to enter but can’t afford the entry fee. What can I do?
We try to make everything we do as accessible as possible but totally understand that for some people, paying to enter a competition isn’t financially viable. If this is the case for you, please get in touch at info@jerichowriters.com and we will try our best to make things work.
I am terrified of speaking on camera, help!
We’ll invite you to a practice session before the live event so you can get familiar with the tech. However, if this still sounds scary, you can submit a pre-recorded video or a member of the Jericho Writers’ team can read your work on your behalf.
Will agents and publishers be in attendance?
Yes. Three agents and one publisher will join the panel at the live final. Although they don’t choose the winner (that’s up to the audience) they will give feedback on each finalist’s entry! It’s a great chance to get your work heard by industry experts and hear their feedback.
Can I enter the First 500 Novel Competition if I was shortlisted/a finalist for last year’s First 500?
You can enter First 500 if you have previously entered or been shortlisted before, however, if you were a finalist last year you will not be eligible to enter this year to allow the opportunity to other writers.
Can I enter the First 500 Novel Competition if I was shortlisted/a finalist for Friday Night Live?
Yes – You can enter the First 500 Novel Competition even if you entered or placed in the Friday Night Live competition at the London Festival of Writing.