We were so thrilled to hear about this one.

Journalist and author, Rebecca Ley, has sold her debut novel, For When I’m Gone, to Orion.

Rebecca came to The Book Edit last year and was matched with one of our editors for a full developmental edit. With the feedback she received, she was able to rework the novel and to secure an agent, Sophie Lambert at Colville and Walsh. Within a few months, she had sold the book to Orion.

Publishing Director at Orion, Clare Hey, has said “Rebecca’s writing is full of hope and joy as well as sadness and loss and I am so excited to be bringing this wonderful novel to readers."

Speaking of her experience with The Book Edit, Rebecca has said “I found it brilliant. It was invaluable to have an experienced editor look at my work before trying to find an agent. the suggestions she made were extremely perceptive and useful in the redrafting process.”

A novel about love, grief and living, For When I’m Gone looks set to make everyone’s heart break next year. Congratulations, Rebecca!

Delighted to be able to share the news that Novel Studio alumna and crime writer, Harriet Tyce, has initiated a fully-funded scholarship for one successful applicant to the course from a low-income household.

The Novel Studio has been running as part of City’s short courses programme since 2004 and has been instrumental in providing a foundation for emerging writers to go on to successful publishing careers. Taught by professional writers and editors, 15 selected students develop their novels over a year. The course has a very strong publication record, including, most recently, Deepa Anappara, Hannah Begbie, Kiare Ladner, Anna Mazzola, R.K. Salters and Harriet.

Professor Andrew Jones, Vice-President (Research and Enterprise) said “City is tremendously proud of the great opportunity The Novel Studio gives to aspiring writers, and the impressive track-record of novelists who have been helped to launch successful careers in fiction. It is one of the jewels of our short-course portfolio and the university is delighted that Harriet has initiated this scholarship.”

The aim of the scholarship is to support a student of talent and potential who might not otherwise be able to accept an offer of a place on the Novel Studio. Applicants to the scholarship will go through the same process as all other applicants but with the addition of a form demonstrating their financial circumstances. The top three applications will be shortlisted and a final winner chosen by a panel, including the course director, course tutors and Harriet.

Harriet was a student on the Novel Studio in 2009/10 and went on to gain a place on the MA Crime Fiction at UEA, where she received a distinction. In 2017 Wildfire pre-empted her debut psychological thriller, Blood Orange, which is being published later this month. Rights to the book have been sold in ten territories around the world, including North America (Grand Central), Germany (Random House), Italy (Mondadori) and Spain (Penguin Random House). Set to be a ‘major debut launch’, and widely tipped as one of thedebuts to read in 2019, Wildfire have described the novel as ‘a stunning piece of psychological suspense...’ with a ‘spectacularly dark and satisfying ending.’

Speaking of her time at City, Harriet said “The Novel Studio course was where I had the privilege of starting my writing career. I’m very excited to work with Emily Pedder in setting up a scholarship to give other writers that same opportunity, and I’m looking forward to seeing the talent that’s going to emerge through it.”

The Novel Studio 2019/20 opens for applications on the 1st February 2019. Full details of how to apply to the scholarship are available here. Great opportunity for budding writers, and a wonderfully generous act.