Success stories
Our writers go on to publishing contracts with major publishers.

Anna Brook-Mitchell, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed a two-book deal with Pan Macmillan for her debut novel, Motherfaker, a ‘hilarious and heartfelt’ debut about a child-free-by-choice teacher who decides to fake a pregnancy to get a year off work.

Publishing director Katie Loughnane snapped up Motherfaker in a 48-hour pre-empt, and rights have also sold in Germany and Hungary.

Anna was introduced to her agent Jemima Forrester at DHA through The Novelry’s bespoke submission service.

Anna says: “I joined The Novelry after I’d finished my first draft. I wanted to make sure that I was giving my novel the best chance possible and getting to work with an experienced editor was such a selling point for me. What I didn’t realize was how much of an anchor The Novelry would become while I edited my manuscript — joining a Zoom or re-watching a lesson when I needed some motivation, feeling part of the community of other writers, and getting much-needed pep talks from the amazing writing coaches. Best of all, though, was getting to work with incredible editor Josie, who believed in my book from the get-go and gave such thoughtful feedback on my submission package and then, later on, my full manuscript. Josie handled my querying process via the submission service brilliantly and was such a cheerleader for me and my book, meaning that when the offers started coming in, I really felt like we’d achieved it together.

“I’m so grateful to the entire team at The Novelry and I am thrilled that they introduced me to my fantastic literary agent Jemima at DHA — it still feels very surreal to get to say that!”

In a significant six-figure, two-book pre-empt, Grand Central (Hachette) has bought the U.S. rights, and Atlantic imprint Corvus has acquired U.K. and Commonwealth rights, to One Moment, the ‘heart-wrenching and uplifting’ debut novel by The Novelry graduate Becky Hunter.

Becky says: “I found The Novelry at a time when I was ready to give up. I was feeling very low on confidence and knew I’d be my own worst enemy if left to my own devices. Signing up to The Novelry’s course was just the thing I needed—it provided me with structure, support and encouragement. I was inspired to get writing and keep going, and the course made me think more deeply about plot and character, so that I had a finished manuscript that needed relatively little editorial change when I got to the end. The coaching sessions kept me on track and helped me work through plot kinks along the way and I felt like I had a real champion through the whole process.”

Brisa Carleton, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed a book deal with Grand Central Publishing, an imprint of Hachette.

Brisa’s novel Last Call at The Savoy is pitched for readers of Josie Silver and Fiona Davis and is set at the legendary London hotel. A story of sisterhood and second chances, it follows a young writer who helps uncover the history of the famed American Bar’s first (and forgotten) female bartender, Ada Coleman.

Brisa was introduced to her literary agent Rebecca Scherer at Jane Rotrosen Agency through The Novelry’s bespoke submission service.

Brisa says: “I am so grateful to everyone at The Novelry for their exceptional guidance throughout the writing process of my debut novel. From the moment I joined to the completion of the program, I felt fortunate to have their brilliant, enthusiastic, and inspiring coaches and editors by my side. Their insightful feedback allowed me to grow as a writer and their unwavering support and encouragement made this entire process a true joy.”

Simon & Schuster has acquired and published The Fog by The Novelry graduate Brooke Hardwick.

In The Fog, Kate arrives on the wild, remote island of Rathlin in the freezing Irish Channel for a ten-day writers’ retreat. Plagued by memories she can’t unravel and desperate to understand the breakdown of her marriage, Kate is determined to leave the retreat with answers. As the retreat’s director uses techniques that tap into the eerie mythology of the island, Kate becomes increasingly fascinated by him and her surrounds. But as the temperature plummets and the strange therapy intensifies, her memories unspool. Triggered into a series of disturbing flashbacks, Kate realizes her past hides a frightening truth, but can she trust her own mind? Faced with dark secrets and duplicity, Kate must unlock the answers she’s so desperate to find—and survive the danger she has unwittingly walked into.

Brooke was introduced to her agent Euan Thorneycroft at A.M. Heath through The Novelry’s bespoke submission service.

Brooke says: “I googled “the best online writing course in the world” and found The Novelry. The coaching sessions brought me life! I inhaled the course material and embarked on a disciplined approach to writing. In 100 days, I’d written the first draft! From that point, The Novelry became my touchstone. I logged into their social platform daily, Zoomed with world-renowned authors, agents and editors, and developed invaluable support networks with other novelists. I wrote. I re-wrote.

“Signing up was the best decision of my writing career.”

Trapeze, an imprint of Hachette, will publish Fifty Minutes, the ‘powerful and engrossing’ debut novel by The Novelry graduate Carla Jenkins.

Carla was introduced to her agent Madeleine Milburn at Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency through The Novelry’s bespoke submission service.

Carla says: “From the initial idea for my novel to the point of getting agent representation, The Novelry were on hand with support and advice. The dream was always to get an agent and so to receive interest from several was mind-blowing—to have Madeleine Milburn within that list was more than I could have hoped for. I’m thrilled!”

Catherine Greer, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed a publication deal Allen & Unwin for her new novel, The Bittersweet Bakery Café. Every major publisher in Australia requested Catherine’s full manuscript, and she signed with Annette Barlow, the publisher of worldwide bestseller Kate Morton. Catherine took The Finished Novel Course at The Novelry.

Penguin Random House has published A Poisoner’s Tale by The Novelry graduate Cathryn Kemp, a dark and gripping feminist retelling of the spellbinding legend of the notorious Italian Poisoner, Giulia Tofana.

Commissioning editor Olamide Olatjuni-Bello at Transworld had this to say: “Cathryn is a brilliant writer and has done such an amazing job with giving Giulia back her voice, helping us understand the complexity of her world and motivations. I am delighted to be publishing A Poisoner’s Tale and can’t wait for readers to meet Giulia.”

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Emma Nanami Strenner’s debut novel, My Other Heart, is a Read With Jenna pick on the Today Show! Jenna B. Hager says: “This novel is full of motherhood and friendship and identity and loss—I fell in love with each character and was grasping for more with every chapter.”‍

Penguin Random House published My Other Heart by The Novelry graduate, Emma Nanami Strenner—a sweeping and heartfelt story about finding your roots across borders and beyond blood ties. Jenna Bush Hager says: “I love this book so much. It’s the story of mothers, daughters, friendship. It’s full of heart and full of twists. I could not put it down.”

Emma says: “I love The Novelry, I regularly dip in and out and find it a wonderful community.”

Emmeline Fernandez has signed with agent Liza DeBlock at Greenstone Literary Agency for her debut novel, A Little Grace. Emmeline is a graduate of The Novelry and was introduced to her agent through our bespoke submission service.

In A Little Grace, a gruesome discovery of a body in the woods sets three strangers on an unexpected collision course: a sheriff on his first murder case, a tormented brother, and a mother on the run—perfect for fans of The God of the Woods and All the Colors of the Dark.

Emmeline says: “When I started The Novelry, my only goal was to finally put on the page an idea I’d been turning over for six years, to do justice to the story in my head. Working with Kate Riordan and Amanda Reynolds helped me do exactly that. Without ever reading a word of my work in progress, they understood what I was trying to achieve and pushed me to find new ways to get there.

“I was so proud of that first draft that I even began to imagine a far-off world in which I might be published. Then I started working with editors Sorcha Rose and Tash Barsby. Their carefully considered advice and thoughtful edits helped transform my manuscript into something I could never have imagined—a real novel, and a better one than the one I’d originally set out to write. They supported not only my work but me as an author, including introducing me to an agent who believed in my book more than I did.

“At every stage of the process, I felt supported and championed by the whole team at The Novelry, and I’m so glad I made this leap for myself.”

Hannah Choi Paul has signed with agent Nicole Cunningham at Trellis Literary Management for their debut novel, Hyori.

In Hyori, a former morgue assistant receives a package from her dead mentor, Frankie, and is pulled back into the homicide case that ended their friendship: the murder of eighteen-year-old Heaven Kim. The deeper back into the case she goes, the more unstable her sense of self becomes, until she must face the fact that she’s the only person who can restore justice—and that doing so may unravel the fragile identity she has constructed as a wife and mother. Hannah Choi Paul is a graduate of The Novelry and was introduced to their agent through our bespoke submission service.

Hannah says: “For a long time, I worked alone. In 2025, I decided to change that—investing in myself and my writing through The Novelry's Big Edit and the UMA. That decision led me to my wonderful literary agent, Nicole Cunningham at Trellis Literary Management. I'm deeply grateful to The Novelry team for helping me get here. It's a dream come true!”

Jane Mansour, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed with literary agent Hannah Todd at Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency.

Jane says: “The Novelry gave me the time and structure to write. The daily lessons helped me bash out a messy first draft. I then did The Big Edit, which guided me through the self-editing process, and helped me think about submission to agents. I found the workshops a great space to ask questions and focus on elements of plot and pace, especially when I was in the depths of structural edits.”

Jane has spent the last two decades working in the Employment and Adult Skills sectors in the U.K., U.S. and Australia.

Janet Change, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed with literary agent Hellie Ogden at WME's books division for her debut novel, Girl Dinner—a compulsive bookclub novel with a horror twist about Connie, a downtrodden personal assistant who attends culinary school in Paris and slowly becomes a cannibal.

With the dark satirical voice of R. F. Kuang’s Yellowface, it touches on themes of identity and female relationships like in Mona Awad’s Bunny.

Janet was introduced to her agent at WME through The Novelry’s bespoke submission service.

Janet says: “The support from The Novelry has felt like slipping into a warm bath: safe, comfortable, and barely any chance of drowning. The pace of the Ninety Day Novel helped me outrun my doubt (no time for fear when you’re writing 1200 words a day!), and The Big Edit turned my lump of clay/glass/whatever into something cohesive that still felt true to who I was, and not worrisome at all that it ended up being about cannibalism.

“Amanda, Lesley, and Katie were such encouraging coaches, and I don’t have enough words to describe how wonderful Craig and Josie were—and I have a lot of words. (But not TOO many words, thanks to them!) Josie was the most incredible advocate, and I’m so grateful she held my hand as I took my first steps into the publishing world. She and The Novelry will always be a part of my story.

“I am beyond thrilled to sign with Hellie and her team at WME, what an absolute dream come true. The Novelry performs miracles every day, and I’m so lucky that today was my turn. Thank you for believing in me and my book!”

Jennifer Snow has signed with agent Bridget Smith at JABberwocky Literary Agency for her novel, The Dividing Line. Jennifer is a graduate of The Novelry and was introduced to her agent through our bespoke submission service.

The Dividing Line is set in a country cut off from the rest of the world by a magical Line that keeps out the deadly monstrous. When one of the surveyors holding a portion of the Line in her body is murdered, two women—one to plot a course for the Line, the other to construct and hold it—are assigned to replace her segment, but in the course of their work discover much more about the Line than they were ever taught.

Jennifer says: “I joined The Novelry to improve my writing craft intentionally, rather than through trial and error, as I had reached a sticking point in a complicated novel. It has been an experience far beyond my expectations! The Novelry provides structure for the process of creating a story and bringing it to life, from the initial concept to polishing the query letter and synopsis. There are new offerings and workshops every week about every aspect of craft and the publishing industry; online community; genre-specific and cross-genre resources; and the support of book coaches and professional editors”

”My book coach, Andrea Stewart, helped me interrogate my story ideas from their first seeds through the first draft, with energy and humor, and editors Craig Leyanaar, Natasha Qureshi, and Elizabeth Kulhanek challenged me to strengthen my story’s structure, characters, pacing, and tension—not once, but multiple times. Having that feedback and being pushed to continually make the work stronger—that’s the best thing an author can ask for. I’m so glad I found The Novelry and would recommend it to anyone who wants to improve their writing and develop a strong, sustainable practice as an author and storyteller.”

Joss Wyatt, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed with literary agent Marina de Pass at The Soho Agency for her speculative women’s fiction novel, The Man of My Dreams.

Disillusioned at a couples therapy retreat, Lizzy meets her perfect man—in her dreams. But when he comes to life, and takes her husband’s place, she realises there’s more at stake than just her marriage…

Joss was introduced to her agent through The Novelry’s bespoke submission service.

Joss says: “I’ve been writing and querying different novels for years, and signing up to The Novelry has hands-down been the best decision I’ve made in my journey so far. I found the course content particularly incisive, and the writing and editorial coaching helped me evaluate my story from all sorts of new angles.

“The submission process was a breath of fresh air compared to the cold querying I’ve experienced in the past. I genuinely believe I’d still be in the trenches searching for an agent were it not for The Novelry. Not only is the whole team talented and wonderful, but they champion you when you feel like you’ve hit a wall, and bring enthusiasm and ideas to help you find a way over. I am so grateful to Josie, Lizzy, Tash, Emily, Sadé, Mahsuda, Katie, and Kate for all their insights and efforts.

“I started the course hopeful and finished not only a stronger writer but… agented! It’s a dream come true.”

Maggie Bowler, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed with literary agent Clare Coombes at the Liverpool Literary Agency, for her debut novel, In The Picture.

Michael Lawson, a graduate of The Novelry, has signed with literary agent Mia Dakin at Greene & Heaton for his debut novel, The Coast is Queer—a gorgeous LGBTQ romcom set in Gran Canaria featuring drag queens, cheap booze, and a cast of holiday makers getting ready for the Pride parade!

Michael says: “I couldn’t have done it without The Novelry team. Having Libby Page as a mentor and Gillian Holmes as an editor has been a masterclass in writing. Thank you for taking a chance on me on the Octopus Scheme—I CAN’T BELIEVE I HAVE AN AGENT!”