And The ShortList.com Fiction Competition Winner Is...

Anyone who's ever written a book and then spent at least 15 minutes trying to get it published will know that it's a very very very tough industry out there. Despite our book still remaining firmly in the unpublished pile (it's about this priest who's also a killer but also a detective), we decided to team up with renowned literary agency Greene & Heaton to try and make it a whole load easier for some plucky author.

Last year, we asked you to send in the opening 500-1000 words of your novel with the promise that the best entrant would get an agent for an entire year. After sifting through a hefty postbag (email folder), we came upon a clear winner.

The talented author in question is 36-year-old Karen Archer who lives in London. She impressed us with a teaser of her novel The Savagery of Angels, a psychological thriller set at a boarding school. She will now start working with Greene & Heaton's Chris Wellbelove for the next year.

We would also like to provide pats on the back to IR Newton, Chris Tivey, Rebecca Zanker and Jamie Thomson, who were close behind.