Castle Quay Best New Canadian Manuscript Contest 2024

Castle Quay Books and The World Guild 

Best New Canadian Manuscript Contest

Contest opened from Monday, January 30 until March 31

This Award is Awarded Annually and is Sponsored by Castle Quay Books (CQB) and The Word Guild

Competition Purpose

To encourage Canadian authors or authors living in Canada to write nonfiction or fiction books expressing Christian faith/doctrine in a clear, original and inspiring way. To generate attention to the work of The Word Guild and excitement for authors through an association with these two organizations.

Eligibility

  1. The contest is open to any professional or non-professional writer (published or unpublished).
  2. The manuscript submitted may not be under contract with any other publishing company nor may it have been submitted to other publishers for consideration.
  3. The contest is open to all Christians.
  4. The contest is open to Canadian citizens (including Canadian citizens living abroad) and to non-Canadians living in Canada who have legal permanent resident status.
  5. The contest is open to original manuscripts only and works may not have been published previously, including self-published.
  6. Members of the Word Guild staff and a new judging panel (Best New Canadian Manuscript Contest), administrative committee and their immediate family members are not eligible.
  7. For the purposes of this competition, the author who has written and submitted a manuscript to the contest that was written for a company as part of his or her job will not qualify unless the person owns the copyright as the author’s own work.

Prize

  • The winning manuscript will be acknowledged by Write Canada and The Word Guild at the annual gala awards evening and thereafter published by Castle Quay Books Canada the year following their win.
  • The manuscript printing and publishing rights will become the property of Castle Quay Books for purposes of publishing and distribution in all hard copy and electronic forms.
  • The author may be required to rewrite portions of the manuscript as determined by the editors of Castle Quay Books
  • The author will receive a standard author’s contract with standard royalties for all versions of the work. Castle Quay Books retains the right to award a $1,000 cash prize in lieu of a publishing contract if in the judgment of CQB and The Word Guild the winning manuscript is not worthy of publishing.
  • The winning author will receive publicity through media releases and other materials sent to Canadian Christian media, bookstores, church libraries, etc. The winner will be announced during The Word Guild Word Awards Celebration each year and will be published the following year.
  • The official launch of the published manuscript will be part of the Word Guild Word Awards Celebration or the Write Canada conference the year following the win.

Entry Fee

  • Members: $60 CAD + HST (per title and/or category entered)
  • Non Members: $75 CAD + HST (per title and/or category entered)

Rules for submission

  • Manuscripts are submitted through The Word Awards entry form.
  • You must also submit a one-paged synopsis (see below for formatting)
  • Only one entry per writer is permitted
  • Must be an original, never-before-published, completed manuscript of book length (no less than 25,000 words and no more than 90,000 words) written in English by the contestant.
  • All entries MUST follow standard format. Any entries that do not follow the following format will be disqualified, and entry fees will not be returned:
  • May be in any genre except poetry or plays

Format for the Manuscript:

  • Submissions must be in Times New Roman 12-point font for all text including any footnotes or endnotes (titles, chapter headings, etc. are excepted)
  • Pages should be numbered sequentially
  • Double-spaced lines
  • Margins of at least 1″ (2.5 cm) at left, right, top and bottom
  • Include cover page listing manuscript title, word count, author name
  • Target readership may be adults, young adults or children
  • Target readership may be Christian believers or mainstream/secular/unchurched readers
  • A manuscript that was previously submitted in this contest may be resubmitted one time if significant rewriting and revision has been done by the author. Please enclose an additional page describing the significant changes, or highlight them, so that judges can determine which sections have been rewritten.
  • The manuscript may not be simultaneously submitted to another book publisher anywhere in the world while it is being considered for this contest. An entrant who is not named on the short list of finalists may submit the manuscript elsewhere after the short list is announced. Short-listed contestants who are not contacted by the publisher within seven days after the announcement of the winner may submit the manuscript elsewhere. Should employ a style that is positive (i.e., not destructive or accusatory) and objective (i.e., based on defendable facts and interpretation of biblical text; not highly subjective or ethereal) in presenting Christian faith
  • Should set forth Christian truths and biblical information in a manner that is both fresh and clearly expressed, avoiding religious jargon, poorly explained biblical allusions or Christian “shorthand” that may confuse non-Christians.
  • May address complex and often ambiguous issues – such as the changing shape and structure of families, racism and prejudice, the search for spiritual fulfillment, evolving roles for men and women, poverty and unemployment, aging – in ways that are honest, open-minded and compassionate.
  • Must not violate the rights of any third party.
  • Must follow the Chicago Style Guide format
  • All manuscripts must be submitted online.

Format for the Synopsis: