Operation Bestsellers
Call for Entries Now Open

Some stories begin as ideas. The most powerful stories become worlds.

Operation Bestsellers is The Black Literary Club’s development accelerator for writers and creators ready to take their work seriously. This is not a writing course, nor a publishing deal.

This is a focused sprint to help you turn an idea into something real. Something structured. Something that can be tested, shared, and developed further.

We are looking for stories with potential. Not just to be written, but to be read, built, and expanded.

WHAT THIS IS

Operation Bestsellers is a six-week guided development program for early-stage story ideas, manuscripts, and narrative concepts.

You will work with the Black Literary Club team and advisors to:

• sharpen your core idea

• strengthen your story structure

• develop characters and narrative world

• clarify your voice and positioning

• shape your work into a viable project

By the end of the program, you will have a minimally viable project. A polished piece of work that can be used to test the market potential of your idea. This could be a short story, a first chapter, or a refined concept ready to share.

ADVISORS AND JURY

Participants will be supported and evaluated by a group of advisors and jury members drawn from the Black Literary Club network.

This includes:

• BLC board members

• published authors

• industry experts and past guest speakers

Our past contributors include voices from across the publishing ecosystem, including commissioning editors, literary agents, bestselling authors, and creators building global IP.

Guests and contributors have included:

• Andrea Henry, Commissioning Editor at Pan Macmillan

• Joe Sedgwick, literary agent at The 7th Agency

• Roye Okupe, creator of Iyanu: Child of Wonder

• Mim Eichler Rivas, bestselling collaborative writer

• Meera Ghanshamdas and Jasmina Bidé, Round Table Books

This is not theoretical guidance. It is direct exposure to people actively shaping the industry.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We are looking for submissions that demonstrate:

• original premises

• distinct voices

• compelling characters or story worlds

• cultural relevance

• potential to grow beyond a single book

We are especially interested in ideas that can expand into larger story worlds, series, or multi-format intellectual property. You do not need a finished manuscript. If the idea is strong, that is enough.

WHO THIS IS FOR

This is for you if:

• you have an idea you have not fully developed

• you have started writing but feel stuck

• you want to take your work beyond a hobby

• you are thinking about audience, scale, or long-term potential

This is not for passive interest.

This is for people ready to move.

TIMELINE

Submissions close: April 7

Shortlist notified: April 14

Accelerator begins: May 5

Final jury presentations: June 16

FINAL CALL

Submissions close soon.

If you have a story, idea, or manuscript, now is the time to act.

And if you know someone who should be doing this, send it to them.

Ideas do not move on their own. They move when someone decides to take them seriously.