FAQs

This year we are looking exclusively for books aimed at children aged 7-12. When thinking about if your book is suitable for this age group you may find it helpful to read this article or to explore the following comparative titles:

Ages 5-7

Witchy Boo by Arden Jones and Saoirse Lou

Dino Racers by Andy Day

Isadora Moon by Harriet Muncaster

Ages 7-9

Sleepovers by Jacqueline Wilson

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Anisha, Accidental Detective by Serena Patel

Grimwood Nadia Shireen

Rap Kid by MC Grammar

Ages 9-12

The Swifts by Beth Lincoln

The Secret of Haven Point by Lisette Auton

City of Stolen Magic by Nazneen Ahmed Pathak

The Night I Borrowed Time by Iqbal Hussain

Wonder by R J Palacio

Please note, we are not accepting YA.

If you are working on a book that is not eligible for WriteNow, you can find more support on our Getting Published hub.

Yes. Each year the WriteNow programme focuses on different genres of writing to ensure we can provide writers with specific and tailored support. For the next three years, we’ve decided to focus on children’s writers.

Books create belonging. They help us see each other and understand ourselves. As we collectively focus on inspiring more young people to read for pleasure, representation matters more than ever – and that begins with the authors, illustrators and contributors who bring our books to life.

Taking a longer-term approach will allow us to concentrate our efforts, build momentum from one cohort to the next and support more talented writers from under-represented backgrounds into our children’s publishing pipeline. We’ll continue to monitor the impact of the programme and review the focus for future years.

Yes. This year, WriteNow is specifically open to writers from Black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds and/or lower socio-economic backgrounds.

While WriteNow has evolved over the last decade, the programme’s mission has stayed the same; to seek out, nurture and publish talented writers from under-represented backgrounds.

Each year, Penguin Random House collect voluntary demographic data from all newly contracted authors, and we regularly review this data to understand where progress is being made and where gaps remain. You can view our most recent company-wide data in the 2026 ESG Report.

To inform this decision, we looked at where representation gaps remain in both PRH wide data as well as data specific to our Children’s publishing. This data shows that writers from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, as well as writers from lower socio-economic backgrounds are currently under-represented.

We’ll continue to monitor data to inform the future focus of the programme.

We continue to focus WriteNow on specific genres to provide the best support we can to writers. Unfortunately, this means we are unable to say when we will focus on each genre.

No. We will work with you to prepare your manuscript towards publication but there is no guarantee you will be offered a publishing deal from Penguin.

Penguin are investing time and resource in the writers we'll be supporting through our year-long programme, and so we will ask you to give us the first option (i.e. first refusal) of publishing your book. This means that you must afford us the opportunity to bid for the publishing rights (which will include media rights) to your manuscript before approaching other publishers.

If another publisher makes you an offer first, you'll still need to give Penguin a fair chance to bid for your manuscript and discuss this with us before accepting another offer.

In the event that we cannot reach an agreement after 30 days of good faith negotiations, you'll naturally be entitled to take your manuscript elsewhere or take up any other offers you may have been made.

This first look for both Penguin only applies to writers who join the WriteNow editorial programme, and only on the book you're working on with us. You can view the terms and conditions here.

Yes, we cover travel costs for UK and Republic of Ireland-based writers to attend one-to-one meetings with their editor, so you can focus on developing your manuscript.

WriteNow is designed to seek out and nurture original and exciting new voices in publishing. Every submission we receive is read and considered by experienced professionals without the use of AI and we ask that the ideas, storytelling and writing we assess are your own.

As such, any AI use in submissions must be minimal – entrants must only use AI as a tool, not a creator. AI may be helpful for tasks such as brainstorming, research, or exploring ideas. However, it should not be used to write or create a finished product. The work you submit must be your own creation and craft. Your voice, perspective, judgment, and creative expression must drive the final work throughout your writing process.

We recognise that writers may use assistive technology to support their writing and that this may incorporate the use of AI. Using technology to help you communicate, record, or express your own creative choices for accessibility purposes will not make you ineligible for the programme.

This year, WriteNow is open to children’s (7-12) fiction writers from Black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds and/or lower socio-economic backgrounds. You do not need to be part of both communities to be eligible.

The programme is specifically designed to support writers from backgrounds that are under-represented in publishing and places are limited, so please consider the eligibility criteria carefully and only apply if they reflect your background. Applicants will be asked to self-identify as meeting the eligibility criteria as part of the application process.

What do we mean by lower socio-economic background?

The Social Mobility Commission recommends the occupation of your main household earner, when you were aged 14, as the best available measure of socio-economic background. We ask applicants to use this as the main measure when considering whether the lower socio-economic background criterion applies to them.

As a guide, please consider whether, at age 14, the main earner in your household:

worked in a technical or craft occupation, such as a motor mechanic, plumber, printer, electrician, gardener or train driver;

worked in a routine, semi-routine, manual or service occupation, such as a postal worker, machine operative, security guard, caretaker, farm worker, catering assistant, sales assistant, HGV driver, cleaner, porter, packer, labourer, waiter/waitress or bar staff; or

was long-term unemployed, meaning they had been unemployed and seeking work for more than a year.

We know that socio-economic background is complex and that parental occupation may not reflect everyone’s circumstances. If the categories above don’t reflect your background, but you were eligible for free school meals or have experience of the care system, you are also eligible to apply.

We are not accepting applications from stand-alone illustrators. You are welcome to apply if you are both a writer and illustrator, but your application will be assessed solely on your writing.

No, not unless you want it to. Providing your application falls into the genre we’re looking for this year; it can be about whatever you want.

After applications have closed, we will publish a blog post giving an overview of common themes and general feedback from the editors involved in the assessment process.

Unfortunately, we can’t give individual feedback to every applicant due to the volume of applications we receive.

If you are successful in your application and are shortlisted, you will receive personalised feedback on your work from one of our editors.

For more advice on how to strengthen your application, check out our top tips for applying for WriteNow.

You don’t need to have a complete manuscript to apply. We ask for a 250-word synopsis + an extract of up to 3,000 words to apply. If you are shortlisted for the year-long editorial programme we will ask for up to 20,000 words of writing (including the 3,000 already submitted).

We are happy to receive applications from writers who have self-published or been published as part of an anthology or by a non-for-profit publisher. We are also happy to receive applications from writers who have been published in another format altogether such as a magazine or newspaper.

We are unable to accept applications from writers who have already had a book published by a commercial, non-academic publisher in the last 10 years.

Yes. The WriteNow application process, workshops, and editorial programme are all free to those taking part.

We recommend submitting your application using Google Chrome. Once your application is submitted, you should be directed to a thank you page. Please note that you will not receive a confirmation email. If you are not directed to the thank you page, email us at writenow@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk to confirm that we have received your application.

Yes. As WriteNow is being run by Penguin in the UK and ROI, our programme is only open to UK and ROI residents. You don't need to have permanent citizenship - just a current and valid UK or ROI address.

If you are currently homeless or do not have a fixed address, but reside in the UK or ROI, please get in touch with the WriteNow team by emailing writenow@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk.

Initial applications

• This year's application window will open at 11am on Wednesday 4^th November.

• Applications close at 11:59pm on Sunday 10th January.

• All valid applicants will be invited to a webinar event to learn more about the publishing industry on Friday 5^th February.

Shortlisting

• All shortlisted applicants will be contacted by Friday 19th March. Writers will be asked to submit a 20,000-word submission by Friday 16^th April.

• Shortlisted writers will receive editorial feedback from a Penguin editor by 14^th May.

Editorial Programme

• A final group of applicants will be invited to join the year-long editorial programme. They will be notified by Friday 4th June .

No. Each applicant may submit only one manuscript per cycle.

We will assess applications based on two factors:

• Quality of writing and originality

• Meeting our desired criteria: as part of your application, we'll ask you to tell us, in your own words, why you feel you fit the eligibility criteria. Your answer will be assessed by a third-party writer development charity, together with members of our Human Resources team.

If you have previously applied but were not longlisted, shortlisted or chosen to join the editorial programme, then you are welcome to apply again.