Textnovelblog

TEXTNOVEL.COM ANNOUNCES SEMI-FINALISTS IN DORCHESTER "NEXT BEST CELLER" ROMANCE WRITING CONTEST

PARK CITY, Utah, November 3, 2009—Textnovel.com announced the Semi-Finalists for the current Dorchester “Next Best Celler” Romance Writing Contest, which combines a live, serial publication model with a unique voting and ranking system to help identify top new novelists and fiction writers.  The Semi-Finalists are as follows:

1.    Manhunt

2.    Muse Struck

3.    Lancelot’s Lady

4.    Stay

5.    Death’s Angel

6.    Forever Freed

7.    Confessions of the World’s Oldest Shotgun Bride

8.    Fae Nights

9.    How to Lose a Demon in 10 Days

10. What She Was Missing

11. Courting Demons

12. Daughter of Fire

13. Enchantment

14. Vampire Vacation

15. Redeeming Characters

16. Enchanted Season

17. Death Waylaid: Passion of the Psychic

18. Primitive Nights

19. Tossing the Gloves: How to Love a Hockey Player

20. Highland Magic

21. The Hooded Man

 

These Semi-Finalists were chosen based on total votes and subscriptions, as well as meeting all the other requirements of the contest, which are available at www.textnovel.com.  The Dorchester Editorial Team will select 10 Finalists from among these Semi-Finalists and should announce the Finalists on or about November 16th.  After the Finalists are announced, they will have the opportunity to submit a bio, a synopsis of their novel and a complete manuscript to Dorchester.   The Dorchester Editorial Team plans to review all Finalist submissions and announce the winner by the end of January 2010.  The winner will receive the $2,000 prize as an advance and a publishing contract with Dorchester. 

ABOUT DORCHESTER PUBLISHING
Dorchester Publishing has published mass market books since 1971, making it the oldest independent mass market publisher in America. Known for its collection of best-selling romance novels, Dorchester also publishes award-winning horror, thrillers and western titles, as well as the Hard Case Crime line of pulp-style mysteries. In addition, Dorchester distributes the bestselling Family Doctor series of health guides in the US and Canada. Website: http://www.dorchesterpub.com

ABOUT TEXTNOVEL

Textnovel (www.textnovel.com) is a social network for authors and readers of serial fiction and the first English language cell phone novel website, allowing members to write and read fiction with their cellphones or computers, using text messaging, email and online tools. Textnovel runs contests for fiction writers, allowing them to demonstrate the market potential of their work through its unique serial publication and voting format.  Textnovel is sponsored by the Soper Literary Agency (www.soperagency.com).

© 2009 Textnovel.  All rights reserved.

Library Journal Article Mentions Textnovel.com in Article on Future of Reading

Go here to read this excellent and thorough article, which was written by Tom Peters, and makes the point that sites like Textnovel are paving the way for a new generation of writers and readers and changing the way we interact with books and literture.  Among other things, Mr. Peters point out that "reports of the death of reading are premature. Readers are resilient and inventive."

THE COURIER CHOSEN AS CO-WINNER OF 2009 TEXTNOVEL GRAND PRIZE

PARK CITY, Utah, October 29, 2009—Textnovel.com, LLC today announced that “The Courier” was the co-winner of the 2009 Grand Prize.  The author is WJ Howard.  This Award carries a $500 cash prize.

Stan Soper, founder of Textnovel.com, commented, “We are pleased to announce that The Courier was co-winner of our 2009 Grand Prize.  This novel is a paranormal fantasy involving an out of work software engineer with an attitude who takes a job as a courier, only to find himself in the middle of a war between good and evil.  I look forward to working with Ms. Howard to help her finish this novel and prepare it for submission to potential publishers.”

WJ Howard commented, “Looking back, I’m so glad I entered The Courier in Textnovel’s literary contest.  The journey to becoming a co-winner has been incredibly rewarding both personally and professionally.  Thanks to my family and friends for
supporting me through the process and for being equally excited about my success.  And a special thanks to Textnovel and its members for recognizing The Courier and for providing a supportive online environment where writers can help each other grow.I am so excited to be awarded this prize. Thanks to all my readers who took the time to vote and subscribe. And a big thanks to Textnovel for seeing the market potential of this work!”

WJ Howard has chosen the Soper Literary Agency as her exclusive literary agent to represent The Courier to potential publishers.  Interested parties can contact Stan Soper at stans@soperagency.com. 

 

 ABOUT TEXTNOVEL

Textnovel (www.textnovel.com) is a social network for authors and readers of serial fiction and the first English language cell phone novel website, allowing members to write and read fiction with their cellphones or computers, using text messaging, email and online tools. Textnovel runs contests for fiction writers, allowing them to demonstrate the market potential of their work through its unique serial publication and voting format.  Textnovel is sponsored by the Soper Literary Agency (www.soperagency.com) .

 

 

© 2009 Textnovel.com.  All rights reserved.

CHALK GHOST CHOSEN AS CO-WINNER OF 2009 TEXTNOVEL GRAND PRIZE

PARK CITY, Utah, October 29, 2009—Textnovel.com, LLC today announced that “Chalk Ghost” was the co-winner of the 2009 Grand Prize.  The author is Catherine Mambretti.  This Award carries a $500 cash prize.

Stan Soper, founder of Textnovel.com, commented, “We are pleased to announce that Chalk Ghost was co-winner of our 2009 Grand Prize.  This novel is billed as a mystery but reads like a thriller.  It involves a ghost trying to unravel the mystery of her own death, which also turns out to be the only way she can save a young, deaf Chippewa mother named Lily Whitehorse and her infant son who now occupy the same apartment where the ghost died.  I look forward to working with Ms. Mambretti to help her finish the novel and prepare it for submission to potential publishers.”

Catherine Mambretti commented, “I am so excited and grateful to be awarded this prize--it feels a bit like winning the writers' version of "American Idol." Thanks to the innovative creators of the Textnovel.com Contest, I was able to hear how readers felt about Lily Whitehorse and Chalk Ghost while I was writing the story. It was an incredible experience.”

Catherine Mambretti has chosen the Soper Literary Agency as her exclusive literary agent to represent Chalk Ghost to potential publishers.  Interested parties can contact Stan Soper at stans@soperagency.com. 

 

 ABOUT TEXTNOVEL

Textnovel (www.textnovel.com) is a social network for authors and readers of serial fiction and the first English language cell phone novel website, allowing members to write and read fiction with their cellphones or computers, using text messaging, email and online tools. Textnovel runs contests for fiction writers, allowing them to demonstrate the market potential of their work through its unique serial publication and voting format.  Textnovel is sponsored by the Soper Literary Agency (www.soperagency.com) .

 

 

© 2009 Textnovel.com.  All rights reserved.

SECONDHAND MEMORIES RECEIVES 2009 TEXTNOVEL READER’S CHOICE AWARD

PARK CITY, Utah, October 29, 2009—Textnovel.com, LLC today announced that “Secondhand Memories” received its 2009 Reader’s Choice Award.  The author is a 19 year old writer who goes under the pen name “takatsu.” This Award carries a $500 cash prize.

Stan Soper, founder of Textnovel.com, commented, “We are pleased to announce that Secondhand Memories received our 2009 Reader’s Choice Award.  This simple yet elegant story is written in a traditional Japanese cell phone novel style, with short and poetic phrases.  It involves high school love and the tragic loss of memory by a young girl.  The novel was published in serial form over several months and continues to be updated.  During this period, takatsu managed to develop a significant following on Textnovel.com.”

Takatsu commented, “"I can't begin to express how honoured and excited I am to receive such an undeserved prize. At first, I wrote the novel just for fun on my cellphone, to try my hand at introducing the Japanese style novel to North America, but was pleasantly surprised to be overwhelmed with the numerous readers who liked the story. The entire journey has just been amazing! Without my readers and supporters it wouldn't have been possible! And an enormous thanks to Textnovel for the awesome site and experience!"

Takatsu has chosen the Soper Literary Agency as his exclusive literary agent to represent Secondhand Memories to potential publishers.  Interested parties can contact Stan Soper at stans@soperagency.com. 

 

 ABOUT TEXTNOVEL

Textnovel (www.textnovel.com) is a social network for authors and readers of serial fiction and the first English language cell phone novel website, allowing members to write and read fiction with their cellphones or computers, using text messaging, email and online tools. Textnovel runs contests for fiction writers, allowing them to demonstrate the market potential of their work through its unique serial publication and voting format.  Textnovel is sponsored by the Soper Literary Agency (www.soperagency.com).

 

 

© 2009 Textnovel.com.  All rights reserved.

Textnovel Editorial Board Announces Finalists in 2009 Writing Contest

The Textnovel.com Editorial Board is pleased to announce the finalists for the Textnovel 2009 Writing Contest.  These finalists have been writing and publishing novels in serial form and are competing for a $1,000 cash prize and literary agency representation or publication.  The Grand Prize winner should be announced within the next few weeks.  Here they are:

Secondhand Memories

That Which Divides Us All

Strong Coffee

The Courier

Life and Ramblings of a Frontier Doctor

To Those of You Who Have Never Been Afraid

Chalk Ghost 

Seller of Soles

Camouflage

Spitfire

The contest rules for the Textnovel 2009 Writing Contest are here.  The Editorial Board focuses on literary quality and marketing appeal.  Finalists are asked to submit a bio, a synopsis of the entire novel and a manuscript that is as complete as possible.  We plan on announcing the winner soon, so check back often!

Textnovel.com Team

 

New and Improved Reader Only Registration

Now registration at textnovel is easier and works better for readers who just come to vote or read.  Here are some of the new features:

·         Readers don’t have to pick a pen name – if they don’t, textnovel uses their first name (but they can still pick a pen name if they want when they sign up).

·         Private Messaging and Follow Me is turned off by default for readers and for anyone who doesn’t have a story posted –  as soon as a reader subscribes to a story or follows an author, private messaging opens up between that author and that reader (but the reader can still turn it off if they want under My Admin). 

·         We have added more helpful explanatory text during the signup process to make the process a little more transparent.

·         We have added the ability for someone trying to register to ask to have the confirmation email resent (in case their spam filter is catching it).

Let us know how it goes and whether your friends, family and fans find the process a little easier now.

 

Ranobe Cafe: New Blog Tracking "Light Novels" and "Cell Phone Novels"

Check out this cool new blog called The Ranobe Cafe that tracks the development and publication of light novels in English and has dedicated a weekly column to tracking the top stories on Textnovel. 

Thanks for noticing us, Ranobe Cafe!

Textnovel Upgrades

Dear Textnovellers:

Following is a list of recent significant changes to Textnovel : 

·        Recommend Function – every story page has a Recommend function, where you can share that story with your friends, including everyone in your address book if you want! 

·        My Library Upgrade – after numerous requests, we finally added full control of stories in My Library (in other words, you can delete stories you are following, you can delete invites, and you can delete bookmarks.

·        Add This – We added this cool tool that allows you to share any story on Textnovel via a wide variety of social networking tools, including all of the following:

·         AIM

·         Amazon Wishlist

·         Ask

·         Backflip

·         BallHype

·         Bebo

·         Blogger

·         Blogmarks

·         Buzz

·         Delicious

·         Digg

·         Diigo

·         Email

·         Facebook

·         Fark

·         Faves

·         Favorites

·         FriendFeed

·         Google

·         Hatena

·         Kaboodle

·         kIRTSY

·         Link-a-Gogo

·         LinkedIn

·         Live

·         Menéame

·         Mister Wong

·         Mixx

·         Multiply

·         myAOL

·         MySpace

·         Netvibes

·         Netvouz

·         Newsvine

·         Nujij

·         Plaxo

·         Print

·         Propeller

·         Reddit

·         Segnalo

·         Simpy

·         Slashdot

·         StumbleUpon

·         Stylehive

·         Technorati

·         ThisNext

·         Tip'd

·         Tumblr

·         Twitter

·         TypePad

·         WordPress

·         Y! Bookmarks

·         Yardbarker

Just to give you a heads up, here are a couple of additional changes we are working on:

·        New Look – Textnovel will soon have a new look and upgraded design; this will feature some changes to the Home Page as well, including a feature to highlight new stories and a feature highlighting most popular stories of all time. 

·        Facebook Interconnect – We have been hard at work on a facebook interconnect tool that will allow authors to share their stories (both those they are writing and those they are following) on facebook.  We are still working through minor bugs but are hopeful it will be ready soon.

Textnovel.com Team

More Site Upgrades and Enhancements

Dear Textnovellers:

 

We have failed yet again at keeping all of you upgraded on all of the recent upgrades and enhancements.  Sorry. 

Here is a list of recent significant changes: 

·        Short Description -- we shortened the minimum required characters to 100.  Also, this now allows paragraph breaks. Simply press your return/enter key to insert paragraph breaks. No HTML allowed because of the Craziness that some Textnovellers exhibited with HTML previously!

·        Story Titles -- these are now bold, to maintain consistency.  

·        Bookmark Function -- now you can place a bookmark on any story you are reading.  It shows up in My Library so you can figure out where you left off.  You can delete it there too.

·        New Notification Tools -- you can subscribe to receive email notification when there is a new story in all genres or any specific genre or genres. You can check/uncheck whether to get email or text notification when an author edits a chapter or whether you only want to get new chapters; you can also choose to get the full text of a new chapter in an email.
You can access all of this in "My Admin."

·        Fans, Comments and Votes -- you can now see them on the story detail page or home page (as if you hadn’t noticed!).

·        Private Messages --  Finally!  Now you can send messages to other members!  Go to a member’s profile. Next to their name there is a button that says "Private Message".  Click on it.  (Go ahead, do it.)  Type something meaningful and erudite.  Then press send.  The recipient gets an email in their registered email inbox that includes the text of the message.  To respond, they have to follow the link provided and go to their inbox in My Admin (there is also a link in the upper right corner of My Admin called Inbox).  Here you can respond to messages and delete old ones.  Also, if you don’t want to receive any private messages from anyone, just turn the function off in My Admin under “Manage Private Messages.”

·        Comment Function Improved -- New and Improved!  Now if you click on Comments, you see an open comment text box as well as the previous comments below it.  We had to add Captcha to keep spammers away from YOUR inbox.  But it’s much easier to make comments.  You can also comment on individual chapters now.  Also, comments on stories are now reverse chronological order (most recent first).

·        Delete Chapters and Add Chapters -- this one has been requested by literally dozens of members.  You can delete or add a chapter, which automatically renumbers subsequent chapters.

·        Book Covers -- now display the Story Title and Author for all new stories created.  Still working on getting rid of those bubbles (in the meantime, you have the power to do it yourself by uploading an image as your book cover).

Visit the Forum to see a list of changes we are working on:  http://textnovel.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=156.  We’ll try to keep that one updated more often in the future.

Thanks for continuing to notify us about bugs and for your patience! 

Textnovel.com Team