Publishers Hooded Man Media Launches A New Comic Creators Talent Search Competition With Caliburn Prize Fund

Hooded Man Media – comic book creator and author Tony Lee’s publisher – have today launched an all new talent search funding opportunity form unpublished cimic book creators through The Caliburn Prize initiative.

This £2,500 grant aims to seek out and nurture the next generation of UK based comic book creators out there by giving the would be winners a financial launch pad. Conceived by the aforementioned Tony Lee, he said of this new prize fund:

“When I started in comics, it was a different world. I was able to walk into a publisher with experience in other media under my belt, but many of today’s creators don’t have the same advantages I did, as the industry has massively changed over the last twenty years, and the doors I entered through are now boarded up. The prize fund is a way to help the next generation of comic creators find their own route into the room where it happens.”

Taking its name from the mythical sword wielded by King Arthur, the Caliburn Prize runs from February 9th until 31st May 2023, with the winner being announced at the 2023 London Film & Comic Con on July 8th.

As well as the prize money, the winning individual creator, or creative team, will get a free table and hotel at the 2024 London Film & Comic Con, thanks to organisers Showmasters Events, a year’s membership of both the Comic Book Legal Defence Fund (CBLDF) and the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), thanks to assistance from both organisations. That, and an hour-long zoom call with Oriana Leckert, Director of Publishing and Comics Outreach for Kickstarter.

The prize is open to all unpublished UK-based comic creators, with an end goal of supporting the winners in completing their first finished book. To be considered, entrants must submit a p

Here’s more on how to enter:

“To be considered, entrants must submit a project containing eight pages of finished comic, a finished cover with logo, a one-page synopsis of the story and a one-page biography list of all creators involved. After the close of submissions, the shortlisted candidates will move on to a judging panel of award-winning writers, artists, editors, publishers, and literary agents before a decision is made, and the winner will be announced at the London Film & Comic Con on July 8th, 2023.”

Lee added:

“This is a prize that can change the trajectory of the winner, as they not only get the funds to help finish the book, but thanks to Showmasters Events they have a place they can reveal it, and with the Comic Book Legal Defence Fund, the Alliance of Independent Authors and Oriana Leckert, with her Kickstarter knowledge, they can progress the project to the next level.”

Furthermore, this new funding opportunity is close to Lee’s heart, having been created to honour the memory of Lee’s mother, Doreen Lee, who died of cancer in 2004.

“Mum was my biggest supporter when I started, and always looked for ways she could help me. I got my first Marvel work shortly before she passed, and it was one of the greatest feelings in my life to show her the finished book, but the enthusiasm and advice she gave me back then is still felt and used now, all these years later.” – Tony Lee

For more information on the Caliburn Prize, including submission guidelines, the list of judges and a Frequently Asked Questions section, visit www.caliburnprize.com. For more information on Hooded Man Media, visit www.hoodedmanmedia.com