We are delighted to reveal the shortlist for the Best Unpublished Manuscript category of the 2018 Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize.

The five-strong shortlist is as follows:

Dan Cross CAESAR OF MERCENARIES (UK/Colombia)
Newton Fisher THE DIFFERENCES (UK)
Linda Spurr PATHWAY TO THE GODS (UK)
Bill Swiggs BLOOD ON THE WATTLE (Australia)
Alex Usher KATIE HOPE AND THE ETERNAL EMPRESS (USA)

Of the five titles shortlisted for Best Unpublished Manuscript, one will receive the Writer’s Adventure Research Award. The award is a £7,500 grant to support the writer to travel to undertake research for their next novel. The five writers also all receive support to develop their shortlisted manuscripts from literary consultant, David Llewelyn.

David Llewelyn had high praise for the strong field of entrants:

'I was very pleasantly surprised at the overall quality of writing displayed by the 250 plus entrants, and was also encouraged at the expansive approach to the broad range of narratives that came under the heading of "adventure" writing.'

'All five on the shortlist show very good understanding of the technicalities of novel writing, particularly with reference to narrative flow and pace, which are essential elements of adventure writing. As such they are close to being ready for submission to agents and publishers, and I look forward to working with these authors in the coming months.'

The Prize is an incubator for aspiring adventure writers. We received entries from over 30 countries across the world, highlighting the number of people who enjoy reading and writing adventure stories. We believe these writers need an opportunity to showcase their work and receive the necessary support to develop their writing. The 2016 winning manuscript, The Hum of the Sun by South African writer Kirsten Miller, has now been published by Kwela Books. 

The winner of this year’s Best Unpublished Manuscript will be announced at an awards ceremony on 20th September 2018, at London’s Stationers’ Hall, alongside the winner of the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize, published award. You can see the published shortlist, here.

For more information on the shortlisted authors over the coming months, follow The Wilbur and Niso Smith Foundation on Facebook and Twitter.