West Dean and Myriad Editions are pleased to announce the launch of a new competition for writers. The winner will be entitled to a one week writing retreat, with full board, at West Dean College, situated in an area of outstanding natural beauty six miles north of Chichester, South East England. The winning entry will be an extract from a work in progress – novel, collection of short stories or script – and will be chosen purely on the strength and promise of the writing by a panel of expert judges:

Sue Eckstein, author of The Cloths of Heaven and BBC Radio 4 playwright

Greg Mosse, writer and tutor of creative writing courses at West Dean

Hannah Westland, literary agent at Rogers, Coleridge & White

Ed Wood, editor of Waterstone’s Books Quarterly magazine

Vicky Blunden, fiction editor at Myriad Editions

The prize is designed to allow the winner the chance to write undisturbed in the luxurious surroundings of West Dean. He or she will also have the chance to discuss their work with Myriad’s Fiction Editor Vicky Blunden.

The shortlist will be announced in May 2010.

West Dean College

Nestled within the South Downs near Chichester is the 6,400 acre West Dean Estate which is home to West Dean. The peace and tranquillity of the landscape, coupled with the exciting and rich cultural and artistic history of the College and its founder, patron and poet Edward James, offers a stimulating atmosphere to get you writing.

West Dean’s creative writing programme is run by Greg and Kate Mosse, both successful writers and experienced teachers. Kate is the author of the bestselling novels Labyrinth and Sepulchre, co-founder of the Orange Prize for Fiction and the presenter of Radio 4’s ‘A Good Read’. Greg Mosse has published works of history, science fiction, children’s stories and literary translation.

How to Enter

The competition is open to all writers of prose fiction, previously published or otherwise.

Submissions of a one-page synopsis (no more than 300 words) and up to 10,000 words of a narrative work in progress (novel, short story collection or script) should be sent to Myriad’s Fiction Editor Vicky Blunden as a word document or PDF: vicky@myriadeditions.com

Submissions should be attached to a covering email of introduction, with a brief author biography, and the subject line should read “West Dean Competition”.

The closing date is 28th February 2010.

The shortlist and the winner will be announced in May 2010.

Conditions of entry

1. The competition is open to any nationality and any age group.
2. All writers, whether previously published or unpublished may enter.
3. The limit for all submissions is 10,000 words.
4. Work submitted must be previously unpublished, original and in English.
5. Work must be double-spaced, and submitted as a word doc or pdf.
6. Only one entry per person is allowed.
7. Entries must be received by 28th February.
8. The judges’ decision is final. No discussion concerning the judges’ decision will be entered into.
9. The competition is not open to employees of Myriad Editions or West Dean College, nor to authors previously published by Myriad.
10. Failure to meet the conditions of entry will mean that a submission is automatically disqualified from the competition.
11. Shortlisted authors will be notified by email in May and announced at an event in May 2010.
12. The prize is not exchangeable.
13. The date of the Writing Retreat must be within one year of the announcement of the winner, and is to be arranged with West Dean College, subject to availability.