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The Black List, known for its annual list of most-liked unproduced screenplays and its screenplay submission service, is expanding into accepting completed novels, regardless of publication status.
Randy Winston, former director of writing programs at the Center for Fiction and former fiction editor at Slice Literary Magazine, will oversee The Black List's expansion into fiction.
Writers will be able to showcase completed novels on blcklst.com, pay for feedback from The Black List's experienced readers and submit manuscripts to various fiction programs.
As part of the fiction effort, the Unpublished Novel Award will give $10,000 grants to support authors on the journey to publication in genres including Children's & Young Adult, Crime & Mystery, Horror, Literary Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy and Thriller & Suspense.
"The Black List's core mission has always been discovering, supporting, and amplifying exceptional writing - providing it with the platform and visibility that it deserves based on its merit," said Black List Founder and CEO Franklin Leonard. "Expanding into fiction is a natural progression. Right now, there are brilliant writers around the world who don't have access to high-quality, accountable feedback, and whose work goes unseen for reasons entirely unrelated to how good it is. That's a massive market failure, and it changes today. I have no doubt that The Black List will find exceptional manuscripts that will become enormously popular published novels and film and television adaptations."
"Randy's resume and reputation in the book world speak for themselves," added Leonard. "But the work he's done since joining the team in February should make absolutely everyone excited about the future."
Judges for the 2025 Unpublished Novel Award include LeVar Burton, Roxane Gay, Radhika Jones, Tessa Thompson, Mike Flanagan and more.
Meanwhile, the Black List will partner with Simon Kinberg's Genre Films to identify an outstanding unpublished manuscript that will receive an 18-month option for $25,000. The Manuscript Partnership is open to all genres, with a "particular emphasis on character-driven work in the elevated sci-fi, espionage thriller, and action-adventure space."
Additional offerings geared to fiction writers will include an online educational series with industry guests and additional fiction partnerships.
CAA literary agent Mollie Glick said in a statement about the announcement, "I've long admired the way The Black List has separated the wheat from the chaff in the film world and am so excited to have this new tool to utilize on the book side."
Author Jennifer Egan said, "The expansion of The Black List into books is thrilling news for those of us who adore fiction and want to champion its cultural celebration. I couldn't be happier about this!"
Since its launch in 2021, the Black List's website has hosted more than 100,000 scripts and evaluated more than 130,000 submissions. It also offers mentorship, workshops, production funds and financial grants. More than 400 scripts from the Black List survey have been produced, winning four Best Picture Oscars and 12 Best Screenplay Oscars since 2007.
