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Publisher launches website for aspiring writers(The Herald Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) ITIS the stamped addressed envelope that no aspiring writer wants to see - the return of a lovingly crafted manuscript from a publisher, who has no desire to print it. But the traditional rejection letter to the dejected writer could be rendered obsolete with the advent of a new website to be launched by one of the world's leading publishers, which will offer aspiring novelists a new route to see their work in print. HarperCollins UK is to launch the website, www. authonomy. com, for new authors to share their work. They can upload manuscripts to the site for others to read and critique, and HarperCollins has said it will guarantee the most popular ones will be considered for publication. Victoria Barnsley, the chief executive and publisher of HarperCollins UK, said: "Very often we hear from budding authors who tell us their script was loved by their family, book group or wide circle of friends. "Authonomy is an opportunity for these authors to woo a large audience, get an army of support behind them, and test whether their work has got what it takes to make it." The site will launch early next year, initially by the UK branch of HarperCollins but with the intention of becoming a global programme in the future. HarperCollins describes the initiative as "ground-breaking". The route to being published is notoriously difficult for new writers. The process of gaining a literary agent, or being noticed by a publisher, is often lengthy and frustrating, and even successful authors have had their work rejected many times over. JK Rowling was dismissed by 12 publishers before her Harry Potter tales were picked up by Bloomsbury. The internet is becoming a tool for aspiring writers, either by "publishing" their first words on personal blogs, or by submitting work to online journals and magazines, or short story sites such as www. pulp. net, an online publishing site supported by the Arts Council in England. LINKS www. authonomy. com Copyright 2007 Newsquest Media Group Ltd, Source: The Financial Times Limited |