About the Contest

This contest is over.

MAL x HF Writing Contest is coming back in 2022!

Can't wait? Start writing on Honeyfeed now!

Semi-Finals
Finals
Round 1
10/3~10/9
Round 2
10/10~10/16
Round 3
10/17~10/23
Round 4
10/24~10/30
Round 5
10/31~11/6
Finals
Round 5
11/14~11/30

Have you ever dreamt about one of your stories being adapted into manga? Thought of the perfect plot, but weren't sure how to get published?

MyAnimeList is collaborating with Honeyfeed to help you realize that dream and debut with your very own manga—published by Kodansha in Japan! From web novel to manga, your writing journey begins here.

Honeyfeed is an English web novel writing platform with thousands of anime-inspired stories, making it the best place for you to submit chapters to your new web novel. Once submissions close, the MyAnimeList community will decide which web novels they think are the best. Top winners have the chance to see their hard work come to life with illustrations in manga form. And who knows? If your story is well received, maybe it could even be adapted into anime someday...

So what are you waiting for? It's time to get writing!

Entry Period: July 5 to September 5, 2021
Public Voting (Semi-finals): October 3 to November 6, 2021
Public Voting (Finals): November 14 to November 30, 2021
Winner Announced: December 12, 2021

Prize

Grand prize

$5,000USD

2nd place

$3,000USD

3rd place

$2,000USD

The top three winning stories may be eligible to receive a manga adaptation published in Japan by Kodansha.

Major Works by Kodansha

Please note that the above works are not examples of manga based on web novels nor will the authors be involved with comicalization of the winners’ stories.

Public Voting, Semi-Finals
(October 3 to November 6)

Voting periods will be one week long for each prompt category. During this week, the 10 judge-selected novels in that category will be posted to a special voting page inside the MyAnimeList Android and iOS apps. Votes will only be collected using the app.

Prompt 1: October 3 to October 9, 2021

Prompt 2: October 10 to October 16, 2021

Prompt 3: October 17 to October 23, 2021

Prompt 4: October 24 to October 30, 2021

Prompt 5: October 31 to November 6, 2021

The top two novels with the most votes in each prompt category will advance to the next round.

Public Voting, Finals
(November 14 to November 30)

This voting round will consist of the two best novels from each prompt category (10 novels total). Voting will last for two weeks to give users ample time to read all novels. Votes will be collected using the MyAnimeList Android and iOS apps only.

Winners will be announced on December 12, 2021.

Check Finalists.

How to Enter

Details

(July 5 to September 5)

1

Go to honeyfeed.fm and log into your account or create a new one.

2

Once logged in, click "Create Your Novel" on the top menu bar, and then the "Create Novel" button on the My Novels page.

3

Fill in your novel's title, synopsis and set your novel's genre(s). Please note that to participate in this contest, the maturity rating of your novel must be "All audiences".

4

In the "Note from author" field, you must write in the contest prompt and theme you selected for your contest novel. You can see an example here. Please note that leaving this area blank will automatically disqualify you from the contest.

5

Before saving and continuing, make sure to check the checkbox located next to "Would you like to submit this novel to the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest?"

6

Write your first chapter and submit it.

7

After submitting your first chapter, please make sure your novel appears under the newly published novels for the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest section in Honeyfeed.

8

Do submit new chapters to Honeyfeed as you complete them. Don't just post all your chapters at once! This is one of the judging criteria.

9

After successfully following these steps, your novel and all the chapters under it will now be participating in the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest. Good luck!

Eligibility Checklist

  • English only. Novels written in other languages will be removed from the Honeyfeed site.
  • Novels must follow a prompt and one corresponding theme. The prompt and theme must be written clearly in the "Note from author" field. An example is given below.
  • Completed novels must contain 45,000 words minimum to 190,000 words maximum.
  • Novels must be set to "Completed" on the Honeyfeed site before the entry period ends. This means your story must come to a conclusion before September 5, 2021.
  • Note that changing the status of the novel or editing the novel to add content after September 5 will result in disqualification. Minor grammar edits will be permitted until September 25, 2021.
  • No re-posts, rewrites, spin-offs, fanfics, collaborations, or plagiarism. The novel must be entirely your own original work created for this contest and posted only to Honeyfeed for the duration of the contest.
  • Novels must be suitable for ages 13+ and be set to the "All audience" setting in Honeyfeed. No heavy ecchi or soft porn.
  • Authors must be 18 years old on or before September 5, 2021.
  • Read the Judging Criteria and Contest Rules for full details.

Contest Prompts & Themes

Writing prompts will act as public voting categories, so your novel must follow one of the five prompts below. They cannot be mixed and matched.

After you've chosen a prompt, you must choose at least one of the corresponding themes. Your novel can have up to five themes total: one from your writing prompt category and four of your choosing.

Prompt Impossible Romance Survivor Slaughter My New Life As A... When the Clock Strikes Midnight Who Needs Plot
Themes (pick at least one) #Comedy #Horror #Anthropomorphism #Mystery #Slice of Life
#Drama #War #Parody #Crime #Travels
#Harem #Alien #Fantasy #MindGames #School
#Revenge #Doomsday #Mythology #Supernatural #Cafe
#Historical #Post-Apocalyptic #Sci-Fi #Suspense #Work

Remember, your chosen prompt and theme must be written clearly in the "Note from author" field of your novel on Honeyfeed. For example:

Judging Criteria
(September 6 to September 26)

All novel entries submitted to the contest will be narrowed down to 50 total (10 from each prompt) before the public voting phase. Judges will be using the following criteria to select novels for the next round.

Post frequency

  • Novel chapters are not posted all at once.
  • New chapters are posted in consistent intervals.

Writing & Storytelling

  • Has an appealing synopsis.
  • Is written with good structure and pacing.
  • Contains interesting characters and good world-building.
  • Chapters are decent length: not too short or long.
  • Has good English grammar.

Marketability

  • Has an engaging cover. (Not limited to artistic talent.)
  • Contains marketable content in Japan.
  • Appeals to a wide range of audiences (ages, genres, countries).
  • Content is easily translatable to anime or manga.
  • Open to expansion (e.g. more volumes, seasons, open endings).

Public Engagement

  • Receives positive reader response: e.g. comments, returning readers, different reactions.
  • The author interacts with readers in the comments.

Want more public engagement? Use your social media accounts (e.g. post new chapter schedules, create promos) or join Honeyfeed's Discord and interact with other authors.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q I've never written a web novel before. Can I still enter?

A Yes! If you are confident in your storytelling abilities and your English grammar, we welcome writers of all levels to participate, even if it is your first time writing.

Q Can I enter the contest even if I am not 18 years of age or older?

A No. Due to legal restrictions, authors must be 18 years old on or before September 5, 2021.

Q Do I have to use the same MAL username in Honeyfeed?

ANo, not necessarily.

Q Can I submit one of my previously written web novels to the contest if it matches one of the prompts?

A No. Please only write and submit new original novels made with this contest in mind. If our moderators find a novel that has been posted on another website before or during the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest, the novel will be automatically disqualified.

QCan I submit multiple novels?

A Yes, in fact, we encourage you to! You can submit more than one novel to the contest, whether it be under the same prompt or a different prompt; as long as the stories are different. Just remember that all submissions must be completed by September 5, 2021.

Q During the voting phases, will my Honeyfeed reactions count towards the votes?

A No. Only votes cast through the MyAnimeList mobile apps will be counted during the voting phases. Honeyfeed reactions, Twitter likes or any sort of voting done through any other platform will not count. Please make sure to download the MAL app before October 3, 2021, if you would like to participate in voting.

Q If I were to win, how would I receive my prize money?

A Prize money will be paid via bank transfer in USD.

Q What do you mean by "may be eligible" to receive a manga adaptation?

A The Japanese publisher Kodansha will receive a Japanese translation of the top three winning stories from this contest. It is possible Kodansha will decide all three web novels are good material for possible publication; it is also possible they decide none of the novels are marketable. Thus, even if your novel wins, manga adaptation cannot be guaranteed.

Q I entered the contest, but didn’t win. Can I use this novel to enter a different contest/re-post it on a different website?

A Yes, absolutely! After the contest is done, you are free to post the novel where you like. The restriction from posting on other websites will be lifted after December 12, 2021.

Q Will there be more contests like this one in the future?

A We hope so! Follow our official social media accounts for updates on future contests (related or unrelated).

Official MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest Rules

No purchase necessary to enter or win.

BY ENTERING OR OTHERWISE PARTICIPATING IN THIS WRITING CONTEST, ALL ENTRANTS AND OTHER PARTICIPANTS AGREE TO ABIDE BY THESE OFFICIAL WRITING CONTEST RULES, WHICH ARE FINAL AND BINDING ON ALL MATTERS PERTAINING TO THIS CONTEST.

1. Sponsors. This writing contest is sponsored by MyAnimeList Co., Ltd. ("MyAnimeList" or "MAL") in collaboration with qdopp, Inc. d/b/a Honeyfeed ("Honeyfeed") (MAL and Honeyfeed may sometimes be referred to together herein as "Sponsors"). The contest is void in whole or in part where prohibited by law.

2. Eligibility. This writing contest is open only to individuals who have registered accounts with MAL and Honeyfeed and are 18 years of age or older at time of entry. Sponsors shall have the right at any time to require proof of age and/or eligibility to participate in the contest. Failure to provide such proof or insufficient proof may result in disqualification from the contest in Sponsors’ sole discretion. All information requested by and supplied to Sponsors for the purpose of the contest must be truthful, complete, accurate and in no way misleading. Sponsors reserve the right, in their sole discretion, to disqualify any entrant from the contest should such an entrant at any stage supply unsatisfactory, untruthful, incomplete, inaccurate or misleading information. Sponsors’ employees and their immediate family members are not eligible to participate in this contest.

3. Contest Period. The period for entering the contest begins July 5, 2021 and will continue until September 5, 2021.

4. How to Enter the Contest. There is no purchase necessary to enter the writing contest. To enter this contest, review and follow these Official MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest Rules (the "Official Writing Contest Rules"), and complete the following steps during the contest period:

(a) Sign up for a MyAnimeList account (if you don’t already have one).

(b) Go to honeyfeed.fm and log into your Honeyfeed account or, if you don’t already have one, sign up for a Honeyfeed account and log in.

(c) Once logged in at Honeyfeed, click "Create Your Novel" on the top menu bar, and then the "Create Novel" button on the My Novels page.

(d) Fill in your novel's title, synopsis and set your novel's genre(s). Please note that to participate in this contest, the maturity rating of your novel must be "All audiences".

(e) In the "Note from author" field, you must write in the contest prompt and theme you selected for your contest novel. Please note that leaving this area blank will automatically disqualify you from the contest.

(f) Before saving and continuing, make sure to check in the checkbox located next to "Would you like to submit this novel to the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest?"

(g) Write your first chapter and submit it.

(h) After submitting your first chapter, please make sure your novel appears under the newly published novels for the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest section in Honeyfeed.

(i) Submit new chapters to Honeyfeed as you complete them. Don't just post all your chapters at once! This is one of the judging criteria.

(j) Make sure your novel submissions comply with the "Novel Submission Rules" below.

(k) After successfully following these steps, your novel and all the chapters under it will now be submitted for participation in the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest.

Sponsors assume no responsibility for late submissions or submission failures due to technological or other issues.

You should also follow any other instructions or rules presented to you at the time of entry or submission.

5. Novel Submission Rules. Any novel you submit through this writing contest must comply with the following rules:

  • ・Novels must be written in English only. Novels written in other languages will not be considered and will be removed from the Honeyfeed site.
  • ・Novels must follow a prompt and one corresponding theme (see below). The prompt and theme must be written clearly in the "Note from author" field. An example is given below.
  • ・Completed novels must contain a minimum 45,000 words and may contain up to a maximum of 190,000 words.
  • ・Novels must be set to "Completed" on the Honeyfeed site before the entry period ends. This means your story must come to a conclusion before September 5, 2021.
  • ・Note that changing the status of the novel or editing the novel to add content after September 5, 2021 will result in disqualification. Minor grammar edits will be permitted until September 25, 2021.
  • ・No re-posts, rewrites, spin-offs, fanfics, collaborations, or plagiarism is allowed. Any novel you submit must be entirely your own original work created for this contest and posted only to Honeyfeed for the duration of the contest.
  • ・Novels must be suitable for ages 13+ and be set to the "All audience" setting in Honeyfeed. No extreme violence, gore, heavy ecchi or soft porn is allowed.
  • ・Please also review the Judging Criteria as well.

Contest Prompts & Themes: Writing prompts will act as public voting categories, so your novel must follow one of the five prompts below. They cannot be mixed and matched. After you've chosen a prompt, you must choose at least one of the corresponding themes. Your novel can have up to five themes total: one from your writing prompt category and four of your choosing. Please see the prompts and themes table:
Prompt Impossible Romance Survivor Slaughter My New Life As A... When the Clock Strikes Midnight Who Needs Plot
Themes (pick at least one) #Comedy #Horror #Anthropomorphism #Mystery #Slice of Life
#Drama #War #Parody #Crime #Travels
#Harem #Alien #Fantasy #MindGames #School
#Revenge #Doomsday #Mythology #Supernatural #Cafe
#Historical #Post-Apocalyptic #Sci-Fi #Suspense #Work

Your chosen prompt and theme must be written clearly in the "Note from author" field of your novel on Honeyfeed. For example:

Prompt: Impossible Romance

Theme(s): #Comedy #Drama

My themes: #Desserts #Diet

For any novel submission, you must not submit any content that contains any elements that violate a third party’s copyrights, trademark rights, privacy rights or any other rights. Your novel submission and any other content you submit must comply with MAL’s Terms of Use regarding user content and Honeyfeed’s Terms of Service.

By submitting any novel or other content as part of this contest, you represent, warrant and agree that: (a) you are in compliance with these Official Writing Contest Rules and with MAL’s Terms of Use and Honeyfeed’s Terms of Service; (b) your novel(s) and any other content does not infringe or violate any third party rights; and (c) the novel(s) and any other content does not violate any law.

6. Contest Prizes. Prizes are available for participants who place first, second or third in the contest. The prizes that are available to be won for this contest are the following:

Prize item description: Estimated value: No. of items available to win: Other restrictions:
First place prize (the "Grand Prize"): $5,000 $5,000 1 N/A
Second place prize: $3,000 $3,000 1 N/A
Third place prize: $2,000 $2,000 1 N/A

The top three winning stories submitted may also be selected for possible manga adaptation and publication in Japan by the Japanese publisher, Kodansha. Kodansha will receive a Japanese translation of the top three winning stories from this contest and may, in its sole discretion, decide to adapt and publish one or more of the winning stories. If your novel is selected for adaptation and publication, additional agreement(s) will be required in connection with the adaptation and publication. However, there is no guarantee that a winning novel will be selected for publication, and it is possible that none of them will be selected.

To receive a prize, you may also be required to provide an affidavit of eligibility.

7. Judging Criteria, Selection of Winners and Odds of Winning.Sponsors will review the novel entries for this contest and, once the entry period ends, the novel entries will be narrowed down to a total of 50 (10 from each prompt category discussed above) before moving on to the public voting phase. To narrow the novel entries down to a total of 50, the judges will use the following criteria:

  • Post frequency:
  • • Novel chapters are not posted all at once.
  • • New chapters are posted in consistent intervals.

Writing & Storytelling:

  • • Has an appealing synopsis.
  • • Is written with good structure and pacing.
  • • Contains interesting characters and good world-building.
  • • Chapters are decent length: not too short or long.
  • • Has good English grammar.

Marketability:

  • • Has an engaging cover. (Not limited to artistic talent.)
  • • Contains marketable content in Japan.
  • • Appeals to a wide range of audiences (ages, genres, countries).
  • • Content is easily translatable to anime or manga.
  • • Open to expansion (e.g. more volumes, seasons, open endings).

Public Engagement

  • • Receives positive reader response: e.g. comments, returning readers, different reactions.
  • • The author interacts with readers in the comments.

After the novel entries are narrowed down to 50, the public voting phases will begin as follows:

Public Voting, Semi-Finals (October 3 to November 6, 2021): Voting periods will be one week long for each prompt category. During this week, the 10 judge-selected novels in that prompt category will be posted to a special voting page inside the MyAnimeList Android and iOS apps. Votes will only be collected using the app.

The schedule is anticipated to be the following:

Prompt 1: October 3 to October 9, 2021

Prompt 2: October 10 to October 16, 2021

Prompt 3: October 17 to October 23, 2021

Prompt 4: October 24 to October 30, 2021

Prompt 5: October 31 to November 6, 2021

The top two novels with the most votes in each prompt category will advance to the next phase of public voting.

Public Voting, Finals (November 14 to November 30, 2021): The top two novels from each prompt category (10 novels total) will move on and participate in this voting phase. Voting will last for two weeks to give users ample time to read all 10 novels. Votes will be collected using the MyAnimeList Android and iOS apps only.

The winners will be announced on December 12, 2021.

Odds of Winning: The odds of your novel being selected and included with the 50 novels selected by the judges are dependent upon the number of eligible submissions received by Sponsors, the above-referenced criteria and the judges’ opinions. The odds of your novel being selected in the public voting phases depends on the number of votes received in those phases.

Sponsors may communicate with potential winners at the email address registered with the potential winners’ MyAnimeList or Honeyfeed accounts with further information and any additional requirements to accept the prizes. If a potential winner cannot be contacted within 72 hours, fails to respond to any attempted contact, is in any way not in compliance with these Official Writing Contest Rules, or declines to, does not or cannot accept the prize to be awarded, such potential winner will be disqualified and his/her entry and submission will be declared null and void.

8. Release. By entering this writing contest, you release Sponsors and their affiliates, employees, officers, directors, managers and agents from any liability whatsoever, and waive any and all causes of action, related to any claims, costs, injuries, losses or damages of any kind arising out of or in connection with this contest or transmission, failed transmission or acceptance of any prize (including, without limitation, claims, costs, injuries, losses and damages related to personal injuries, death, damage to or destruction of property, rights of publicity or privacy, defamation or portrayal in a false light, whether intentional or unintentional), whether under a theory of contract, tort (including negligence), warranty or any other theory.

9. Sponsors’ Reservation of Rights. Sponsors reserve the right, in their sole discretion, to terminate, cancel, suspend and/or revise the contest for any or no reason. Sponsors reserve the right in their sole discretion to disqualify any individual in violation of these Official Writing Contest Rules or if Sponsors discover such individual to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the contest or acting in an unlawful or disruptive manner. Sponsors' failure to enforce any term or provision of these Official Writing Contest Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that term or provision.

10.Privacy. Information collected from you in connection with this contest will be used by Sponsors for their administration of the contest, including to verify your eligibility and notify potential winners and to fulfill prizes. In addition, Sponsors may use information collected about you to send you offers or information from us about MAL’s or Honeyfeed’s products and services, or about the products and services of our affiliates and business partners. If you do not wish to receive such offers and information, you may opt-out at any time by following the instructions at the bottom of any promotional email you receive or by following other opt-out instructions provided in the communication. Information collected is otherwise subject to and may be used and shared by Sponsors in accordance with MyAnimeList's Privacy Policy at https://myanimelist.net/about/privacy_policy, Honeyfeed’s Privacy Policy at https://www.honeyfeed.fm/privacy, and applicable law.

11. Contact Information. Please direct any questions or comments regarding the writing contest to Customer Support.

Contact Information

Please direct any questions or feedback about the event to MyAnimeList at Contact Customer Support.

*This campaign is sponsored by MyAnimeList Co.,Ltd and qdopp, Inc.

*Questions about judging criteria, awards, and prizes will not receive responses.