Each month on YouWriteOn.com fiction editors from Random House, publisher of writers such as John Grisham & Bill Bryson, and Orion, publisher of writers such as Ian Rankin, read and feedback on the highest rated stories on the YouWriteOn Top Ten chart.


The three highest rated novel openings in the YouWriteOn Top Ten at the start of each month receive an indepth critique from Random House or Orion if they haven't previously received a longer indepth critique. For stories that have received an indepth critique previously, they can upload their story again six months after they get a indepth critique if they wish to try and qualify again for another indepth critique. This gives further opportunity for professional feedback after development, while giving other talented new writers fresh opportunities to get professional feedback.

The other stories in the top ten at the start of each month, including novel openings and short stories, receive a mini-review from fiction editors at Random House or Orion. They can qualify for two of these if the same story upload should feature in the top ten again on the 1st day of a subsequent month. The following are the mini-reviews from Orion this month:


Click here to view all the Top Ten Stories this year

The Last Ward by Susan Howe
I thought this was a deftly told and sensitive exploration of the dilemma that faces so many people when their loved ones are taken into care. You laid bare the inherent fears felt by many: that you are forced to put your faith into total strangers that they will look after their patients because you are unable to, but there is an underlying sense of paranoia that to the nurses and doctors, they are merely a body taking up a bed. I liked how you interspersed Lily’s unexpressed fears into the narrative, giving her a voice that eventually does get heard. Congratulations on a well-written and thought-provoking story that will undoubtedly strike a chord with a lot of readers.

Through the Eyes of Douglas by Darren Guest
Despite Douglas’s many vices, he is an endearing and likeable protagonist. You explore some big themes, such as: justice, retribution and karma, and you highlight how the issue of ‘justice’ is never black and white. I thought that the uneasy alliance and friendship that forms between Douglas and Prince was wonderfully depicted and, like Douglas, you presented a complex and multi-faceted character in Prince who otherwise could so easily be dismissed as a crazed convict. Even a decade later, it is clear that, despite having pulled his life together, Douglas is still haunted by the demons of his past. Congratulations on an engrossing and provocative opening to your novel.

The Silver Nutshell by S Cairns
I really liked the intimate tone to this, one that is both welcoming and inviting. You really draw the reader in and quickly immerse them in your fictional world. The period detail is vividly brought to life, and I was impressed with the strength of the characterisation. I really felt for Imogen in those early scenes, and how in one moment, life as she knows it will never be the same again. The change in character narration and the time and setting worked effectively, and really had me turning the pages. Congratulations on an original and absorbing opening section to your novel.

I would also like to thank the Orion editor for their comments on The Silver Nutshell. It is a very encouraging review and at the grace of god(ot) has arrived on a wet, grey morning when the clouds of doubt had once mor begun to settle.

I am resolved again to complete the draft's I have spawned and to chivvy them along to a final edit. All this in the face of characters who taunt me from the page as I type...

'It is a singular surprise to me that you have not abandoned this enterprise' Imogens bemusement is evident.

'Scott, I cant help but feel that you imagine me to be rather two-dimensional and, dare I say it, slightly sterotyped?' she continues.

'We both know there is a lot more to me than you are letting on. Dont we?'

This last comment is a challenge and stirred by her mockery, I feel a fresh energy re-vitalise me.

Come on Immy. Lets do this thing!!!!