Textnovelblog

TEXTNOVEL PRIZE WINNER “13 TO LIFE” RELEASED BY ST. MARTIN’S PRESS

PARK CITY, Utah, June 22, 2010—Shannon Delany’s first book, “13 to Life,” was officially released by St. Martin’s Griffin today and is available at bookstores everywhere.    It can also be ordered at Barnes & Noble or Amazon and many other online bookstores.

The author got her big break when she won the first-ever online cell phone novel contest in the western world at Textnovel.com.  “I’m a Cyber Cinderella,” Delany confesses. “If it hadn’t been for Textnovel.com, I’d probably still be just poking at my story ideas instead of seeing my first novel—the first in a series being published by a major NYC house—released today.”

13 to Life, which has been called, “your next fiction addiction,” by bestselling author Ann Aguirre and “a new spin on an old legend,” by NYT bestseller Maria V. Snyder is already being enjoyed by readers of all ages. “From nine years old to those in their forties and fifties—it seems like it gives people a much needed escape,” Delany says. “And that’s what I hope it does: Give people an escape and encourage them to ask the questions the narrator, and her behavior, raises.”

So what’s it all about? “13 to Life is a tale of teenage love, loss and—oh, yeah—werewolves,” Delany says with a smirk. “People are quick to say it’s a werewolf story, but really, it’s the story of a girl who has lost someone very dear to her and how she struggles to move forward. When she meets Pietr (pronounced “Peter”) she starts to wake up from the nightmare she’s been wallowing in. And, as she starts to really think about the issues dogging her, she realizes he has issues of his own, including an understanding of tragedy which binds them together.”

Since winning Textnovel’s 2008 contest, things have moved quickly for Delany. “We handled interest from a movie producer and a couple publishers soon after I won. Luckily my winnings included an agent, Stan Soper of Soper Literary Agency, and he handled the interested parties while I typed my fingers off fleshing out the sparse prose style that’s more common in cell phone novels. I wanted 13 to Life to be a quick, consumable read, but in a more traditional style of prose, too. It was a stylistic compromise of sorts. And as soon as I had the manuscript complete, we sent it forward.”

Delany went with St. Martin’s Press (an imprint of Macmillan). “I was impressed with their interest, quick response and communication skills. It’s paid off. I work with some of the very best people in the publishing industry.”

            Michael Homler, editor at St. Martin’s, commented “ Shannon is a wonderful writer.  She gets who she is writing for and keeps things interesting for her characters and her readers.   I think this is the start of what will hopefully be a very popular series.”    

            Stan Soper, founder of Textnovel.com, commented “We have been so excited about Shannon’s book release.  It was an incredible experience to watch her create the first draft of this novel online, with reader input.  She is a very talented author and this is such a great book.  I can’t wait to see how readers and fans react.”

13 to Life was released today (June 22, 2010) from St. Martin’s Griffin. Shannon Delany can be found online here and at her blog and through her Twitter account.

ABOUT ST. MARTIN’S PRESS

St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in the iconic Flatiron Building in New York City. Currently, St. Martin's Press is one of the United States' largest publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under eight imprints, which include St. Martin's Press (mainstream and bestseller books), St. Martin's Griffin (mainstream paperback books, including science fiction and romance), St. Martin's Minotaur (mystery, suspense, and thrillers), Picador (specialty books), Thomas Dunne Books (suspense and mainstream), and Truman Talley Books (business and specialty books).

 

 ABOUT TEXTNOVEL

Textnovel 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.com was founded by Stan Soper, who offers literary agency services to aspiring writers at http://www.soperagency.com.

 

© 2010 Textnovel.  All rights reserved.

October 16 Textnovel.com Press Release

October 16, 2008 (Park City, UT)(I-Newsire).  The craze that swept through Japan and had millions reading entire novels on their cell phone screens is beginning to take root in the USA thanks to Stan Soper, founder of Textnovel.com.

The same craze that swept through Japan has arrived in the States and although the Textnovel.com website is young, the response has been great – people are reading and writing with their cell phones.

Cell phone novels took off in Japan with Yoshi’s "Deep Love." People read on buses and trains, snatching tidbits of stories throughout their day. In Asia the phenomenon was so powerful it created a backwards form of publishing — cell phone and electronic first, then — maybe — books.

Stan Soper was fascinated, "Seeing what was happening in Japan made me realize that cell phones are an underappreciated writing tool." Soper, a sometimes writer himself, invested in developing a unique American website called Textnovel.com. And he hired Americans to create it, keeping at least one technology heavy contract domestic.

From professional freelance writers like Saoirse Redgrave and Heather Schimel to people in the medical and electronics industries like Dr. Lyndon Acosta of the Philipines and reverse logistics principal Chris Tejeda of Massachusetts — it seems Textnovel.com has something for everyone.

“I was skeptical at first,” admits Redgrave, a writer from the Upper Catskills working on Of Storms, Seas and Pirates. “Anytime I see a contest that offers publishing, I rip through the contract. At first, I was a nay-sayer to Textnovel.com, but Textnovel founder Stan Soper was quick to see to my concerns. He made a believer out of me.”

Many people discovered Textnovel through word of mouth. And some folks, like Jenny Ashford of Daytona Beach, Florida, found it while looking online for places to submit her fiction. Ashford says, “I loved how Textnovel made it easy to get fiction out there, and helped make a name and a larger web presence for struggling writers.” Although she works as a graphic designer by day, Ashford has had some short stories published in various webzines. Her horror novel, The Omitted 13th, is still in progress, as are many novels on the website.

Writers, like Mark Leach of Coppell, Texas break their novels into what Leach aptly says are “easy to read pieces that can be explored in a few minutes.” Like other Textnovelists, he says he recognizes that “time-challenged agents, publishers and readers may have little interest in committing to a 17 million-word work” like his novel, “Marienbad My Love.” For Leach, Textnovel.com isn’t just a place to post his writing, earn votes, public support and perhaps win a $1,000 and a publishing contract — “Textnovel is the perfect tool for using the cell phone to promote a new literary work to today’s time-pressed reader.”

Writers and readers can join and use Textnovel for free. They start an account, can create a pseudonym, and choose whether or not to participate in the first Textnovel.com contest. Novels are given movie-like ratings by their authors and categorized by genre. Then the fun really begins! Authors post sections of their work at their convenience from either their computer or their cell phone. 

Originally from New York but now living in Sahuarita, Arizonan, professional freelancer Heather Schimel is working on her Textnovel, “A Testament to Living.” Although she’s been published in a good number of literary magazines and greatly loves poetry, Schimel is working hard to complete her novel. “I post a chapter per week, usually.”

Other writers, registered readers and the curious can vote on novels, giving the “thumbs up” or “thumbs down.” Novels are also reviewed by the public who can post comments.

So what does the future hold for innovative website Textnovel.com? Stan Soper is excited by the prospects. "English teachers have expressed an interest in Textnovel.  Many think that Textnovel might inspire otherwise recalcitrant students to try their hand at writing and have a positive experience."

“This could really be big,” Redgrave says. “Getting in on the ground floor is great. I can’t wait to see where Textnovel is in another year or two.”