We run our contests on a three-year rotation. This contest will be open again in 2028.
James River Writers and Richmond magazine recognize the writing talents and entrepreneurial skills of Virginia’s indie authors by continuing The Best Self-Published Novel Contest, which we started in 2014. One first-prize winner will receive $500 and a ticket to the annual James River Writers Conference (worth over $300). The winner is announced in a fall issue of Richmond magazine, in October at the conference, in a press release, and on James River Writers’ social media.
Rules
Richmond magazine and JRW employees, founders, board members, advisory board members, and their immediate family members cannot enter. This includes freelance employees of Richmond magazine. If you have won the contest in the past, you may not re-enter the same book.
Note that this contest is for fiction only.
For a novel to be eligible for this contest, authors need to have paid the full cost of production. During the contest period, writers must submit a digital pdf copy of their self-published novel, including the cover.
Your indie novel must have been published between the dates of April 1, 2022 (our last contest) and February 28, 2025 (the closing date of the 2025 contest).
Novel entries cannot be longer than 125,000 words.
Entries are limited to residents of Virginia, including full-time students at Virginia universities and colleges.
Entry Fee
The entry fee is tiered, based on the length of the manuscript, and needs to be paid via credit card using the online form, below.
For manuscripts up to 85,000 words, the cost is $25.00 for members and $35 for non-members.
For manuscripts of 85,001 words to 125,000 words, the cost is $50 for members and $60 for non-members.
Submissions currently closed. Predicted contest dates will be January 1, 2028 – February 29, 2028.
Deadline: TBA
For each submission, you must complete the Best Self-published Novel Contest entry form and pay the fee online with a credit card.
Judging Criteria
Each entry will be judged on writing quality, editing, layout, cover design, and formatting.
_______________________________________________________
Meet VANESSA RILEY, Our Esteemed Judge for the 2025 Best Self-Published Novel Contest
Vanessa Riley is an acclaimed author known for captivating novels such as Island Queen, a Good Morning America Buzz Pick, and Queen of Exiles, an ABC View Lit Pick. She was honored as the 2024 Georgia Mystery/Detective Author of the Year for Murder in Drury Lane and the 2023 Georgia Literary Fiction Author of the Year for Sister Mother Warrior. Her craft highlights hidden narratives of power, love, and sisterhoods of Black women and women of color in historical fiction, romance, and mystery genres. Her works have received praise from publications like The Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, Publisher Weekly, and The New York Times.
In addition to penning over twenty-five novels, Vanessa holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering from Stanford University and STEM degrees from Penn State, adding a research-oriented approach to her writing while emphasizing inclusive storytelling about the Caribbean, Georgian, and Regency eras.
As a member of Regency Fiction Writers, Crime Writers of Color, Mystery Writers of America, Women’s Fiction Writers Association, Christian Book Lovers Retreat, and the Historical Novel Society, Vanessa advocates for diverse voices. She’s also working to increase Sickle Cell Anemia awareness. When she’s not writing, she can be found baking, crafting her Trinidadian grandma’s recipes, or relaxing on her southern porch sipping caffeine.
_______________________________________________________
FAQ
Can I enter more than one book or a book with more than one volume?
You may enter multiple manuscripts or volumes with an entry fee for each one.
If I entered in a previous year but didn’t win, can I resubmit the same novel?
You may only submit novels that have been published between April 1, 2022 and February 28, 2025.
PAST WINNERS OF THE SELF-PUBLISHED NOVEL CONTEST
Best Self-Published Novel 2022
Winner: Better Left Unsaid, Anne McAneny – see the excerpt published in Richmond magazine HERE.
2nd: Pharaoh’s Forgery, Ellen Butler
3rd: The Secret About Time, Kathryn K. Murphy (pen name for Kathryn Hershberger)
Best Self-Published Novel 2019
Winner: Hitchin, Alexandra Christie
2nd: Ocular Denial by Anne McAneny
Finalists:
Rise and Run, RJ Plant
America’s Last President, George Fellows
Carrying Independence, Karen Chase
Best Self-Published Novel 2014
Winner: The Clever Mill Horse, Jodi Lew-Smith
2nd: Digging to Indochina, Connie Biewald
3rd: When the Moon Has No More Silver, Connie Lapallo
This project was supported [in part] by the Virginia Commission for the Arts, which receives support from the Virginia General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.