I can’t believe it’s been 8 years since the launch of the World’s Best Story contest. Here’s a fun #ThrowbackThursday…
“How do you make writing and reading just as exciting as singing, sports or fashion?
That is the question I asked myself back in 2005, my brainstorm was to create a unique literary contest which resembled a reality type show that would create excitement for writers and readers just like singing or sports called The Book Idol Canada Contest which I pitched to Laurie MacDonald and Olga Gazdovic of The Laurie & Olga Show on CJAD 800 Radio, Montreal Canada’s #1 News Talk Radio station now part of iHeartRadio, who jumped on board immediately in helping get the word out about the contest on their radio show.
The simple opportunity to have listeners pick the book synopsis they liked the most, have the winner announced “live on the air” was enough to provide the winner with a life and career-changing experience — an engrossing “reality” type show that was both entertaining and virally effective.
After 8 weeks of voting, the winner was announced “live” on air! I was so happy to have successfully pilot tested the contest for 4 years with CJAD Radio’s The Laurie and Olga Show making it the world’s first and only reality show styled literary contest.
The first winner of the 2005 Book Idol Canada contest was Marlene Eisner’s Dead Men Can’t Surf The Net. The winning book was featured in the Lifestyles section of The Suburban newspaper on the same day as Louise Penny‘s Still Life book launch.
To cut to the very heart of the matter, the 2009 Book Idol Canada Contest winner’s book launch at Indigo Chapters can only be classified as a complete and total success!
Here’s a fun clip from the 2009 Book Idol Canada contest winner’s book launch filmed live at Indigo Chapters
From the standing-room-only crowd (not to mention those in the adjacent café!) – nothing could have prepared me for such a first-class, successful day.
With well over 150 launch guests and Indigo employees smiling happily, Julianna’s book flew off the shelves. CJAD 800 Radio hosts Laurie MacDonald and Olga Gazdovic made an in-person appearance to endorse me and the Book Idol Canada Contest and to congratulate our winner.
It was an absolute joy to pitch and negotiate a book deal with publisher McArthur & Company for the 2009 Book Idol Canada winner’s book Mosquitoes of Summer by Julianna Kozma.
A fun branded bag was given as a souvenir and great way to carry home their books.
I wanted to democratize the way stories are discovered and turned into blockbuster franchises believing readers should have power to decide what stories they like and want to read. During the Book Idol Canada Contest, people with a story were invited to submit their synopsis online and then have the public vote by calling in “live on air” or via online on their favorite story based solely on the synopsis – the question was simple, based on the synopsis you just read, would you want to read the story?
In 2013, I re-branded the Book Idol Canada Contest to the World’s Best Story Contest in order to further enhance the blockbuster story potential voting algorithm and create the world’s first and only gamified literary contest. The first edition of World’s Best Story contest in May 2014 and launched live in New York at Book Expo America with sponsors including FastPencil, Beyond the Rack, and iRead Book Tours 
So excited to have had USA Today best selling author Tonya Kappes as a judge.
Thrilled to have had New York Times best-selling author Kate Collins and Bram Stoker Winner Benjamin Kane Ethridge as judges for the World’s Best Story Contest.
With World’s Best Story launch sponsor Fastpencil Courier co-founder CEO Steve Wilson and VP Marketing Kristine Anderson.
It was a full house at the World’s Best Story / Fastpencil Courier booth all 3 days @ Book Expo America New York
By having the general public vote on stories not only on general criteria such as originality and plot, but also have the public “think” like a literary agent or a big shot movie producer and giving them power to really be a judge by voting on the story’s blockbuster potential using a proprietary voting algorithm to rate the story’s potential of success not only as a book but also a video game, movie, tv show, musical, all the way to merchandising.
So happy for our 2014 winner Patti Larsen and her winning story Family Magic.
It has been such an honor and thrill to have had such a list of renowned authors, agents, editors, scholars, as well as publishing/entertainment professionals be part of the World’s Best Story Contest. A -List judges included James Kahn (Star Trek, The Goonies, Xena, Indiana Jones, Star Wars) and the late world wide blockbuster author Warren Adler (The War of the Roses).
Best-selling author, James Kahn‘s original work includes three novels in the New World series: World Enough, and Time (1980), Time’s Dark Laughter (1982), and Timefall (1987). As well as Return of the Jedi, he wrote the novelizations of the films Poltergeist and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. He has was also producer and writer for well-known television series such as Melrose Place and Star Trek: The Next Generation. James has worked with celebrated filmmaker Steven Spielberg, Star Wars creator George Lucas, and renowned sci-fi editor Judy Lynn Del Rey. Star Trek: Voyager (also Supervising Producer) and All My Children (for which he and the writing staff were Emmy-nominated).
The 2014 Worlds Best Story Contest live finale filmed live at the World’s Best Story / FastPencil booth in Toronto at The Toronto International Book Fair in November was a huge hit!
The 2015 edition of the World’s Best Story. Sponsored by Friesen Press iREAD BOOK TOURS Budbud, and YoDough
World’s Best Story was thrilled to have published and promoted the first edition of Swap Club by Lauren Wise.
So thrilled for winner J W Lawson, author of Mummy’s Little Angel published by 2015 World’s Best Story contest sponsor Friesen Press.
The 2017 edition of the World’s Best Story Contest finale via Facebook Instagram and Twitter was a smash hit with a reach of over 2 million via our live finale via Twitter and Instagram.
The amazing World’s Best Story Contest judges…
A “yummy” literary 2017 sponsor YoDough
This unforeseen pandemic has given me the opportunity to create a completely brand new website for World’s Best Story, going back to my original vision of having a fun and exciting place to discover great stories with fun literary themed articles and giveaways.
Let’s get YOUR STORY moving in the right direction!
Vincent & Friends Creative & Literary Packaging helps authors write, publish, promote and package their books, comic books, and graphic novels for adaptation to other media formats such as TV and movies. We work with authors of fiction, nonfiction, and children’s stories from around the world at all stages of literary IP development.
Let’s chat. Contact me today!
