Hmmm

Here's the judging process of Amazon/Penguin...

First Round: Amazon editors will review a 300 word Pitch of each entry. The top 1000 entries in each category (2000 total entries) will move on to the second round.

Second Round: The field will be narrowed to 250 entries in each category (500 total entries) by Amazon top customer reviewers from ratings of a 5000 word excerpt.

Quarterfinals: Publishers Weekly reviewers will read the full manuscript of each quarterfinalist, and based on their review scores, the top 50 in each category (100 total entries) will move on to the Semifinals.

Semifinals: Penguin USA editors will read the full manuscript and review all accompanying data for each semifinalist and will then select three finalists in each category (six total finalists).

Finals: Amazon customers will vote on the three finalists in each category resulting in two grand prize winners.

I'm perhaps a little worried about that first round, since it's all based on the pitch. I think the pitch is good, but it's so subjective, who knows? The second round could be worrisome, too. Will the 5000-word excerpt be enough? I'm more optimistic after the second round; but getting there is going to be challenging.

Hope? Joke.

I answered the door over the weekend wearing my green "Audacity of Joke" t-shirt, and the delivery guy saw that, liked it, and treated me an impassioned riff about the current administration, the past administration, and the one before that. He was on fire. Populist anger, right at my doorstep! I just listened, gave him a few "Yeah, things are pretty fucked up." I wasn't about to get into a political discussion that morning with the Peapod grocery guy, so I just let him shpiel, nodding politely. People are so pissed off right now, they don't even necessarily know which way to go, only that they're pissed. The fascinating thing for me was after this fiery diatribe, he said "You know, I'm not political or anything; I'm not right- or left-wing." I thought it was interesting, since he was getting a lot of his stuff from various right-wing radio broadcasters. The inchoate fury among Americans is palpable -- a 21st century version of "Network" -- "I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not gonna take it, anymore. Things have got to change!"

The funny thing is that, the night before, I thought "Hmm, I should change my tee shirt, just in case it provokes the delivery guy." I honestly thought that. It didn't provoke him, though; it inspired him. He saw it, said "Joke. Yeah, the joke's on us, right?" And I nodded, agreed that it was (embittered by last week's Supreme Court decision about corporate political speech).

Amazon/Penguin

So, I entered a novel in the Amazon/Penguin Books Breakthrough Novel Competition. We'll see what happens. First round of eliminations is at the end of next month. I think I should make the quarterfinals, but we'll see how it goes. With my luck, I may get axed early, who knows? But fingers crossed. I'll keep you posted.