Archive for category Competitions
Amazon Ratings
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Markets, Successes on December 15, 2025
As we approach Christmas and the end of the year, I’d like to say a heartfelt thank you for your continued support. Most of the time, the writing life is a hard slog. Having people ‘on side’ makes a massive difference to the morale. Thank you!
The Interior of Waterstones in Bradford
At the beginning of December, Out of Control received its 1000th Amazon rating – which I think is cause for celebration. Little Museum of Hope has 1035 ratings and Waiting for A Bright New Future is creeping up behind them with 809 ratings. Thank you to anyone who has read and rated or reviewed any of my books – it makes a difference in several ways: a positive rating or review gives the author a boost and helps the book gain visibility on Amazon, which in turn may increase sales and sway a publisher into re-signing an author for further books.
The lovely people at Farnham Literary Festival have asked me to remind you that the closing date for their ‘First Five Pages’ competition is 31st December 2025 and it’s fast approaching. There is a first prize of £1000!
And here is a submissions opportunity for the New Year. Bending The Arc, a Thrutopia Magazine, will be open for submissions from Monday 12th January until Sunday 1st February. The magazine wants stories, poems, and essays which ‘bend the arc of the possible towards a thriving future on earth’. Their Substack account has more specific details.
I’ve mentioned the New Street Authors’ Collective before. They have produced a Collection of Beginnings. This allows readers to try a new author or genre without monetary risk and it’s available free of charge. The opening to my psychological thriller The Promise can be found by scrolling down to page 10, if you fancy giving it a try.
A couple of weeks ago I was in Bradford for the weekend and finally got to visit the town’s branch of Waterstones. I’d seen many pictures of the store’s interior on social media and it didn’t disappoint in real life. And it’s got a cafe where you can peruse your purchases! What more could a reader want?
Finally, I’d like to wish you a very happy Christmas and a healthy 2026. See you in the New Year!
Bedsit Three – 10th Anniversary
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Books, Competitions, Successes on October 26, 2025
Today is a landmark day for me, so I’m doing a bit of my own trumpet-blowing. Drum roll, please!
My first novel, Bedsit Three, was published ten years ago, on 26th October 2015.
Applause please!
It won a small competition and the prize was publication through Amazon in paperback and on Kindle. It was also shortlisted in two other competitions. That book is still selling (only 99p on Kindle!) and also being read by those with a Kindle Unlimited subscription. Bedsit Three is a thrilling ‘why-dunnit’ and the competition organiser, Michael Barton, said this: “This novel is well-constructed and well-written. But it’s also far more than that. It’s a book that elicits emotional reaction, drawing the reader into the story and placing him or her in the middle of the action page after page. Be prepared for a sleepless night, because you won’t want to put it down until you get to the end.”
Publication of Bedsit Three was a tiny, hardly noticeable happening in the publishing world but it was a real confidence boost to me and since then I’ve had a further four novels published.
The Promise was published in 2018 in partnership with the Book Guild. When the rights reverted back to me, I independently published it on Kindle. A limited number of paperback copies are available directly from me.
In autumn 2022 I signed a 3-book deal with Choc Lit (which became part of Joffe Books six months later) and they published my next three novels: Little Museum of Hope, Waiting for a Bright New Future and Out of Control. These are all uplifting women’s fiction with a mature main character and a little bit of romance.
Earlier this year I signed a further 2-book deal with Choc Lit/Joffe and the first of those will be out in 2026.
I owe a huge thanks to Michael Barton and the other organisers of the Ian Govan Award for choosing Bedsit Three as their competition winner and thus giving me the confidence to continue along the path to become a novelist.
Note to other writers: Never underestimate the power and benefits of entering even the smallest competition.
First Five Pages Competition
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Events, Short Story on September 25, 2025
The lovely people at Farnham Literary Festival have asked me to publicise their Farnham’s First Five Pages Competition. 
Entrants must submit the first 5 pages of their novel plus a 250-word synopsis. The novel does not already have to be finished. There is no set theme or style of writing, but entries should be unpublished and original.
The prizes are:
First place – THE PARIS PRIZE FOR FICTION (sponsored by best-selling author B.A. Paris) – £1000 and a critique
Second place – £300
Third place – £200
There is a £10 fee per submission and entrants must be unpublished (self-published is acceptable).
Closing date is Wednesday 31 December 2025 – so plenty of time to get writing!
As always, please check the full terms and conditions before entering.
Good luck and enjoy!
Farnham Literary Festival also a run Flash Fiction competition if something shorter is more your thing.
Editing, Podcasting and a Flash Fiction Competition
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Self-publishing, Writing on October 17, 2024
I’ve been buried deep in structural edits for the past month. 
This has involved improving character arcs, deepening internal conflict rather than relying on external conflict and trying to ensure that my secondary characters remain sympathetic throughout the book. After doing the major changes, I downloaded the document to my ancient Kindle to read, and I scribbled notes about all the additional things that needed changing. The manuscript is now covered in my scarlet Microsoft Word ‘track changes’ deletions, amendments and insertions. I wish my editor much luck in deciphering it all!
This is the third novel of my three book contract with Choc Lit and, at the moment, I don’t know what comes next. It may be time to branch out. Watch this space!
In other news, I have taken part in my first ever podcast. I chatted with Natalie from the US Fiction and Friends podcast for nearly an hour. It’s amazing how the time flies when you’re talking about reading, favourite books, authors and, of course, writing. The podcast is available on YouTube, Apple and Spotify.
I am also now part of New Street Authors and have my very own page on the NSA website. New Street Authors is a collective of indie authors with links to the Birmingham (UK) area. Regular readers of this blog will recall that I published several books independently prior to my career with Choc Lit. These books are still alive and kicking on Amazon and, therefore, I’m keeping up to date with developments in that area.
Finally, the New Writers Flash Fiction Competition 2025 is now open for entries of up to 300 words. The entry fee is £10 and first prize is a generous £1,100! Second place gets £300 and the third placed writer will receive £200. £1 from every entry will be donated to the writing charity, First Story. Closing date is Friday 31st January 2025.
In my next post, crime writer Claire Sheldon will be answering five questions about writing.
Flash Fiction Opportunities
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Markets, Short Story on September 10, 2024
Sometimes, in the midst of trying to churn out a novel, hook an agent or sell ourselves to a publisher, we forget about the fun side of writing. We overlook what drew us to pick up a pen in the first place.
Many years ago, short pieces of writing attracted me to this industry. I loved the satisfaction of sending a reader’s letter to a magazine, often swiftly followed by seeing it in print and receiving a small cheque in the post. Next came magazine articles and short stories. There were rejections aplenty but they helped build the thick skin and determination which are essential to all writers. And when the acceptances came, they were all the sweeter because of those previous failures.
Nowadays I rarely write short pieces and I miss the satisfaction of regularly finishing something, sending it out into the world and carrying within me the hope that it will find success. If a piece missed it’s target, I was disappointed but not distraught. The amount of time ‘wasted’ writing the story was not huge and by then I always had at least one other thing ‘out there’ and the hope that it would land on the right desk at the right time.
It’s different with novels. They take a LONG time to write, publishers and agents take a LONG time to respond and when the coveted acceptance finally arrives, it’s a LONG time before the book is actually published. I think that’s why flash and short fiction opportunities keep catching my eye. I’m tempted to take a break from the long game and have a bit of fun with something short!
Here’s a few of the things that have caught my eye:
Flash Frog
Flash Frog are looking for stories of up to 1,000 words. The website says: “We like our stories like we like our dart frogs: small, brightly colored, and deadly to the touch.” Flash Frog publishes a new story every week, accompanied by specially created artwork. Payment is $25 per story.
Seaside Gothic
Seaside Gothic is based in the UK and does what it says on the tin i.e. it publishes short pieces of seaside gothic literature. If, like me, you’ve never come across this genre, a full definition is on the Seaside Gothic website. The magazine’s next open reading period is 7th to 13th October 2024 and they pay £0.01/word. Full details are on their submission page.
New Writers Book Review Competition 2024
This one closes 30th September 2024 – so be quick! First prize is £50 and there is a limit of 1,000 words. Entry is free but you must subscribe to the New Writers e-newsletter. N.B. The novel or poetry collection you review must be published and available to purchase in the UK. And it must be the first novel or poetry collection published by that writer (but can have been published prior to 2024). See the competition website page for full details.
If you want to read some short fiction and play judge/editor by deciding whether or not that piece was successful in the big wide world, you might enjoy Hit or Miss? 33 Coffee Break Stories. 
A Bit of Glamour!
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Events, Poetry on May 24, 2024
Contrary to popular belief, an author’s life is more hard slog than glitzy glamour but once in a blue moon we do get the chance to raise a glass and to nibble canapes. One such occasion arose this week for me – my first ever publisher’s party.
All the Joffe Books partygoers!
Joffe Books (of which Choc Lit are part) held a garden party in London to celebrate their tenth birthday. It took place at the swish Six Park Place next to Green Park. We Choc Lit authors met in a pub beforehand and made our grand party entrance en masse (safety in numbers!).
There were bubbles, nibbles and lots of chat. 
It was great to meet the Joffe/Choc Lit team in person and put faces to names. The weather stayed dry, if not exactly warm and there were ‘going home’ presents of a Joffe birthday mug and tote bag. But the best takeaway of the evening was the feeling of camaraderie between the Choc Lit family of authors and the knowledge that though we may write in our individual garrets, others are going through the same trials and tribulations as us.
Finally, a competition I spotted (that’s right, I haven’t quite unsubscribed from all those newsletters!):
New Writers are running a free-to-enter poetry competition with the theme of ‘Summertime’. Poems can be up to 20 lines long and the closing date is 20th June 2024. First prize is £50 and publication on the NewWriters.org.uk website (and the inaugural issue of the New Writers Anthology) plus a copy of Jordan Hamel’s debut poetry collection.
How to enter: Send entries as attachments (MS Word or PDF) to competitions@newwriters.org.uk and use “Summer Poetry Competition” as the subject of the email. Use your poem’s title as the file name (avoid calling it ‘Summertime’). Ensure your name or other details are not written on the entry (and no need to add a word/line count).
Now all we need is the sunshine back for some summer inspiration!
Some of the ChocLit authors enjoying the party vibe!
Streamlining and Focusing
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Lifestyle, public speaking on May 10, 2024
I’m on a mission to focus my mind and become more productive. But there are hurdles. And the biggest hurdle is email. I’m not talking about personal emails from people I know or from those who want to invite me to speak to their group or who need to contact me personally for some other reason – I love getting those! I’m talking about all those email lists I (willingly!) signed up for which send me down a rabbit hole of clicking whenever they arrive in my inbox.
I’m immediately drawn to the prospect of a holiday in the sun, a designer handbag at a bargain price or the ‘last’ chance to secure £60 off a spa weekend experience. I can spend a good fifteen minutes drilling down into all the detail and then always decide the offer is not as good as the headline promised.
And I’m addicted to those emails filled with writing opportunities and competitions. There is always the feeling that this could be the one action I need to take to catapult me to stardom. So I read all the entry requirements, debate with myself over the entrance fee and then try to work out whether there is enough time to craft something new before the deadline. After wasting all that energy I either decide against entering or I write it on my ‘To Do’ list and don’t look at the list again until the closing date has passed.
If those offending emails never arrived in my inbox, think how much time I would save and how much more productive I could be!
So I am now in the process of unsubscribing as each time-wasting missive arrives. However, the ‘unsubscribe’ option is always buried somewhere near the bottom of the email and I have to try to scroll past all the enticing stuff to get there. I fear it won’t be a quick job.
Please tell me that I’m not the only one who has this problem?
In other news, my author talk, ‘Richard Osman and Me’, is now up and running. It’s gone down well with the community groups I’ve visited so far and some of them even bought books (which is always good). I talk about the real-life inspiration behind Little Museum of Hope, my roller coaster journey to traditional publication and about writing in general. There’s a photo of me in action at the bottom of this post (courtesy of Conrad Palmer).
And today I received a surprise parcel from my publisher ChocLit – a bright new mug to celebrate the bright new cover on Little Museum of Hope (and, if you’re quick, you might catch the Kindle edition still on offer at 99p).
Finally, if you’re passionate about libraries, here’s a competition for you (and, yes, it came from one of those pesky emails!): The Europe Challenge Writing Competition is an opportunity for fiction and non-fiction writers on the theme of ‘How a Library Changed My Life’. 3,000 words maximum and there are 5 prizes of 500 Euros plus the possibility of travelling to Amsterdam for an event and book launch in September 2024. Closing date is May 20, 2024 (so not long!)
A Birthday Relaunch and 2 Book Competitions
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Books, Competitions, Successes on April 30, 2024
Little Museum of Hope was published in April 2023. To celebrate its first birthday, Joffe Books have given it a fantastic new cover. Don’t you love the little cat staring into that beautiful, positive blue sky? 
I feel like that cat is a metaphor for all of us who are looking for a better future after a difficult time. And that is what Little Museum of Hope is all about: shedding reminders of broken relationships and tough times so that we can find renewed enthusiasm for life.
If you want to dip your toe into the Museum, the Kindle edition is currently only 99p! (I don’t know how long that offer will last).
By the way, that new cover matches very nicely with that of Waiting for a Bright New Future. I’m beginning to feel a bit like a brand!
And talking of books – I have a couple of free book-related competitions for you:
Marlborough LitFest is running its annual Love Books Competition. They want to hear about your favourite book, poem or play in 750 words or less. Explain what you love about your chosen read, highlighting key areas of interest, and why you think others should try it. Entry is free. The winner in each age group receives £300 and the runner-up receives £100. The closing date for entries is Friday 28 June 2024.
My publisher, Joffe Books, is running a competition to celebrate its tenth birthday. Tell them in no more than 50 words your favourite Joffe book of the last ten years. The best entry will win a year’s worth of books (in the form of a £500/$600 Amazon voucher)!
RULES
*The 50 words (well-expressed/heartfelt) can be about any book published by Joffe/Lume/Choc Lit in the last ten years.
*Entries must be a maximum of 50 words. And submitted by email to: readers@joffebooks.com. The email subject should be: “Win a year’s worth of reading” plus your name.
*Entries can be made between 23 April and 31 May.
Happy Reading!
Linktree, Amazon Book Recommendations and a Competition
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Promotion, Resources, Short Story on March 26, 2024
Most writers have a presence on several social media sites as well as an Amazon page, a website and possibly other types of internet presence as well. We want to make ourselves easy to find and contact via whichever channel our readers prefer. However, listing all these links in a profile or biography looks messy, as well as using up valuable characters where there is a length limitation. 
To solve this problem I’ve recently started using Linktree. Linktree provides one link to insert into your bio, profile or social media post. When clicked, the link will take users to a list of all the ways to connect or contact you. To see a working example, click through to my Linktree: https://linktr.ee/sallysjenkins7. There are various price points offered by Linktree but the basic version (which I’m using) is free. If you’re fed up of listing your different internet connection points, it might be worth a try? One piece of advice if you do set it up: I found that the second half of the link (sallysjenkins7 in my case) needs to be first part of your email address.
One of the things included in my Linktree is my Amazon Author Page. Amazon now encourage authors to add book recommendations to their page. These recommendations can include your own books and those of other authors. Amazon says, “If you submit at least three or more new book recommendations, we will consider sending your recommendations to your followers through email and/or push notifications.” For an example of what these recommendations look like, click through to my page and scroll down. It’s then possible to scroll across the page to see all my recommendations. I’ve done six, three of mine and three from other authors.
The New Writers 1000-Word Short Story Competition 2024 is open for entries until April 30th 2024. There is a top prize of £1,000, a second prize of £300 and a third prize of £200. The entry fee is £10.00 and £1.00 from each entry goes to First Story (England’s leading creative writing charity for young people). There is a 1,000 word limit and stories can be on any theme. Remember to check the full terms and conditions before entering. Subscribers to the NewWriters.org.uk monthly newsletter gain access to exclusive free-to-enter micro, flash and poetry competitions (with cash prizes), book giveaways and the latest writing competition listings.
Finally, the cat illustrating this post, was spotted on a holiday to Madeira earlier this month. My daughter thinks he looks evil. What do you think?
All Change at Jenkins Towers …
Posted by Sally Jenkins in Competitions, Events, Lifestyle, Non-writing, public speaking on February 6, 2024
There’s been a bit of stuff going on around here lately, which is making my long held vision of becoming a fulltime writer hover on the horizon. This is NOT because I have suddenly hit the New York bestseller lists and the money is pouring in, although as I write, Kindle Direct Publishing for Absolute Beginners has an orange ‘bestseller’ flag in Amazon’s Electronic Publishing category – which may have disappeared by the time you read this.
119419479 © Monkey Business Images | Dreamstime.com
My current situation has arisen because of redundancy from my part-time job in IT and being at very high risk of losing my library position as well (due to council cuts). On top of this, the gearbox in my old car is making clunky noises and will cost more than the car is worth to replace. So, there’s been a lot to think about and not a lot of writing or blogging has been happening.
However, I have not been totally idle. I’ve been preparing an author talk based around the inspiration for Little Museum of Hope. The first outing for the talk is Friday 9th February at Mere Green library in Sutton Coldfield – I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will be well received!
And on the evening of Friday 23rd February I will be taking part in a Women’s Fiction panel at the Museum of Cannock Chase, organised by the lovely Kim Nash. It’s the first time I’ve been involved in a panel event so it will be an interesting experience.
Moving away from my life, I’ve spotted an unusual ‘competition’ for historical fiction writers from Sapere Books. On their website are a selection of outlines for historical fiction series. Choose one of the briefs and write a synopsis and the first three chapters of the first book in the series. As the prize will be a contract for a five-book series, ideas and outlines for the next four books in the series are also welcomed. The competition appears to be open to all writers, published or unpublished but do check all the details. The closing date is 31st May 2024.
Finally, if you enjoy reviewing WWII sagas, take a look at Helen Yendall’s latest book on Netgalley. I think it might tempt you!
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