The Blackstone Publishing Novel Initiative
The Black List and Blackstone Publishing have announced a new partnership to identify an unpublished manuscript to enter into a $25,000 publishing deal.
This program is open to manuscripts in all genres, but Blackstone is particularly interested in genres that elevate familiar themes from fresh, compelling perspectives, with an emphasis on thrillers, high-concept mysteries and romances, and horror stories.
The Blackstone Publishing Novel Initiative will accept only unpublished manuscript submissions. Self-published novels, regardless of ISBN status and regardless of Black List site evaluation status, will not be considered for the partnership. Manuscripts that are under contract at any point during the consideration process are ineligible.
Timeline
Writers can submit their unpublished manuscript for consideration via the Black List website until June 9, 2026, after which time The Black List will assist Blackstone Publishing in identifying a shortlist of outstanding manuscripts. Details about shortlist timing, as well as an announcement date are forthcoming.
Fee Waivers
General Fee Waivers - Once per year, writers may request a fee waiver for one free month of hosting and one free evaluation. You can access this application via the Fee Waiver tab of your Account Settings. The project PDF that is submitted with your fee waiver application will be immediately matched with a reader. Please plan accordingly!
If you intend to use a fee waiver to ensure your manuscript meets our universal site requirements before opting into consideration for this program, you can manually submit the manuscript via the Programs page once an evaluation is pending.