Announcing the Court TV Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest

A dark alley. A shadowy figure. A bloody dagger that disappears from the scene. How does YOUR crime novel begin?

Gather is thrilled to announce The Court TV Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest – an unpublished mystery/crime fictionwriter’s chance at a dream. One talented Gather member will have the opportunity to win a publishing and exclusive distribution contract with Borders, plus a $5000 cash advance! The only crime would be not to enter.

Here’s How It Works: From October 1 through November 11, aspiring mystery/crime writers can submit a full-length fiction manuscript for consideration. Throughout the contest, authors will post their 1st chapters of their manuscript in the Court TV Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest group. These chapters will be rated by the Gather community and the Gather Editorial Team, and five finalists will be selected through two rounds of rating. (See our rating guidelines.) One Grand Prize Winner will then be chosen for publication by a panel of judges, some of which are bestselling authors in the genre!

So if you’re dying to get your mystery/crime novel into bookstores, enter The Court TV Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest. Don’t have the perfect murder mystery ready to go? Readers are needed, too! In the weeks to come, you can join other readers and writers to help rate each chilling entry. Help hunt down the next bestseller.

Need some inspiration? Tune in to “Murder by the Book” premiering November 5^th at 10pm ET/PT on Court TV.

Program Details:

Submission Period: October 1 – November 11, 2007
From October 1 through November 11, mystery/crime fiction authors can post their 1^st chapter of their manuscript in the Court TV Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest group (courttv.gather.com), and email their full manuscripts to courttv@gatherinc.com.

Round 1 Voting: November 15 – December 9,2007
Reading and rating entrants’ first chapters officially begins on November 15. At the end of the Round 1 voting period, 25 writers will advance to the next round of the competition – 15 based on the most “10” ratings from Gather members, and 10 selected by the Gather Editorial Team. Votes cast before November 15 or after December 9 will not be considered. The 25 semifinalists will be announced on December 13.

Round 2: December 13, 2007 – January 2, 2008                                         
The 25 remaining novelists will post their second chapters in the Court TV Search for the Next Great Crime Writer Contest group, where the Gather community and Editorial Team will narrow the pool down to five finalists. The five finalists will be announced on January 7, 2008.

Round 3: January 7 – February 4, 2008                                                      
The Grand Prize Judging Panel will review the complete manuscripts of the five finalists and select the Grand Prize-winning author.

Grand Prize Winner Announced: on or around February 4, 2008 on the last episode of Murder by the Book

The Grand Prize Judging Panel:

·         David Baldacci, bestselling author

·         Sandra Brown, bestselling author

·         Harlan Coben, bestselling author

·         Bill Adams, Buyer, Borders, Inc.

·         Cathy Lashinsky, Buyer, Borders, Inc.

            ·         Tom Gerace, Founder & CEO, Gather.com 


Contact Member Support at support@gather.com