Down to the Final Two!

We are delighted to announce the Finalists for the 2025 First Page Cage Match! This contest is our way of recreating the experience of live-action slush reading. It’s also a little window into the ins and outs of finding a home for your work.

Here’s what’s happened so far:

The Pulp Lit editors selected the eight entries for the First Page Cage Match that enticed us enough to want to read more. These eight quarter-finalist authors then sent along the first ten pages of their manuscripts.

The editors then selected the four ten-page entries that made at least two of the three of us want to read more, resulting in our four semi-finalists. These four semi-finalist authors then sent us the first thirty pages of their manuscripts.

Now from these four, the Pulp Lit editors have chosen the two thirty-page entries that pulled us along inexorably. And it was no easy task! All four novel starts were engaging, original, and well written. After much deliberation, here are the results.

The Finalists

Sounding the Dark by Angela Kenyon

With beautiful prose, good pacing, and a clear conflict with great character moments, it was an easy choice to put this piece forward to the final round. We all want to see what happens to Larkin next!

Medusa Gorgon, Lady Detective by Sandra Kasturi

Mel felt storytelling was strong, the chick noir tone sustained, and the mystery well laid out. She did feel that it might work better in present tense for an even more noir feel and to make the flashbacks stand out. The introduction of other mythologies seemed a bit jarring to Jenn and Sierra, but the humour and readability kept them wanting to find out more about the world.

Congratulations to all of our participating authors, and thank you for trusting us with your work!

Stay tuned to the PulpFemme Newsletter to discover which of these finalists will be announced as our winner…

And for all the latest from Pulp Literature, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Bluesky, or sign up for our newsletter.

Keep the presses rolling!

Our 2025 Pulp Literature Silent Auction is open until the 29th of November. Bid now on prizes ranging from books to writing services to fabulous experiences, and help us to cover our printing costs!

You are also invited to our Triple Launch Party!

Join us at Café Duello in Downtown Vancouver on Sunday, November 30th from 2:00-5:00pm. We will have more pieces of artwork from the Fran Skene Memorial Art Auction available for purchase and by donation. Plus there will be readings from Pulp Literature Issue 48, featuring Renée Sarojini Saklikar, Barhopping for Astronauts by Leo X Robertson, and Stella Ryman and the Search for Thelma Hu by Mel Anastasiou along with shortlisted poets and novellists from our Kingfisher, Raven, and First Page Cage contests. We hope to see you there!