New US award for unknown novelists draws critics

NEW YORK, Sep 14 (Reuters) A new literary prize was launched today with a top award of 100,000 dollars for one lucky unpublished U.S. writer, but publishing insiders warned that the 85 dollars entry fee makes it akin to a lottery.

The Sobol Award is seeking as many as 50,000 unpublished fiction manuscripts, but critics say the contest's fee runs counter to industry ethical principles of not charging writers to read their work.

The award was set up by tech entrepreneur Gur Shomron, who said he came up with the idea after failing to find a publisher for his novel, ''NETfold,'' which he self-published last year.

''Nobody is looking for unsolicited manuscripts,'' Shomron told Reuters. ''Most famous writers are discovered by chance ...

I thought there should be a better way.'' Organisers promise to pick a winner who will receive 100,000 dollars with nine other awards totaling an additional 42,000 dollars, and to seek a publishing deal for the winners.

The winner will be announced in September, 2007, and Shomron said he hopes to run the contest annually.

''We are on a treasure hunt for the undiscovered, the original,'' Brigitte Weeks, editorial director of the awards and a respected industry veteran, said on the sobolaward.com Web site, where entries must be submitted.

But Robert Weil, executive editor at New York-based publisher W W Norton, said that despite the involvement of top industry professionals, ''It sounds like a Barnum&Bailey exercise.'' That's because of the entry fee -- which would net 4.25 million dollars if 50,000 entries are submitted, he said.

''I feel extremely sorry for the thousands of eager writers who will pay 85 dollars in the hopes it might get them started on a successful career,'' Weil said. ''I do not think this is a serious way of getting published.'' Would-be writers are better off finding an agent known to editors, said Gary Morris, an agent at New York's David Black Literary Agency. ''People who enter this are paying to enter a lottery,'' he said.

Shomron defended the fees as necessary to cover the costs of hiring librarians and others to read the manuscripts and write critiques promised to every entrant.

Morris and Weil said charging writers to read their works is banned by the Association of Authors' Representatives (AAR) -- a professional association for literary agents.

Reuters VJ VP0110