Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award 2012

It's that time of the year again to dust off your novel or overhaul it.  The competition is pretty stiff from all over the world but it's a good opportunity to work on your pitches and your excerpts which you'll be sending to agents anyways.  So clean it up and take your best shot, whether your novel is unpublished or self-published.  The question is will readers love it?  

Find out by entering it in the 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award for a chance to win one of two $15,000 publishing contracts with Penguin USA and distribution of your novel on Amazon.com. 

• (23 Jan-5 Feb unless full)  First Round : Amazon editors will review a 300-word pitch of each entry. The top 1,000 entries in each category (2,000 total entries) will move on to the second round.
• (23 Feb) Second Round: The field will be narrowed to 250 entries in each category (500 total entries) by Amazon top customer reviewers from ratings of a 5,000 word excerpt.
• (20 March) Quarterfinals: Publishers Weekly reviewers will read the full manuscript of each quarterfinalist, and based on their review scores, the top 50 in each category (100 total entries) will move on to the semifinals.
• (24 April) Semifinals: Penguin USA editors will read the full manuscript and review all accompanying data for each semifinalist and will then select three finalists in each category (six total finalists).
• (22 May) Finals: Amazon customers will vote on the three finalists in each category resulting in two grand prize winners.
•  June 16th Voting ends. Grand prize winners will be announced.

Last year, one of my novels advanced to Round Two. 
The previous year, another novel also advanced to Round Two.

*Update: The Resurrection of Jonathan Brady just made Round Two 2012, so far (I included the pitch.)

**Update: The Resurrection of Jonathan Brady just advanced to the Quarterfinals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award 2012!

This is also a great way to get your 2012 Leap Year off to a great start.  All the best, and may the best novel win.  Hopefully one of ours.

         --Borneo Expat Writer

*Here are six lessons I learned from joining Amazon competition.

Here are links to some of my author-to-author interviews of first novelists:

Ivy Ngeow author of Cry of the Flying Rhino, winner of the 2016 Proverse Prize.

Golda Mowe author of Iban Dream and Iban Journey.

Preeta Samarasan author of Evening is the Whole Day. 

Chuah Guat Eng,  author of Echoes of Silence and Days of Change. 

Plus:

Five part Maugham and Me series

Beheaded on Road to Nationhood: Sarawak Reclaimed—Part I