Phil W. Bayles

“Good news, everyone!“

Last time I mentioned that I’ve been submitting my writing to online competitions. Well, one of those was a novel contest by New2theScene; a brilliant website designed to showcase fledgling authors and their work.

About a month ago, I submitted a 3,000-word extract and a one-page synopsis for The Ferri Man: a comic fantasy novel I’ve been working at, on and off, for about four years now. Hundreds of writers submitted entries covering all sorts of different genres.

And I made it to the final three.

That’s right: I am officially a shortlisted writer!

I know I’ve said before that the most important step in becoming a writer is calling myself a writer. But I’d be lying if I said that it isn’t nice to hear it from someone else as well.

Special thanks to Richard Howitt from New2theScene, and all the judges, for considering my work and providing some really invaluable feedback.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got a novel to finish.

Let me know if you’d like to hear a little more about the story, or read that 3,000-word excerpt that I entered. I’m always on the lookout for beta readers.