Doctor Who guidelines

BBC Books release statement about writing new Who novels.

BBC Books have been in touch to offer an update on their policy regarding new submissions. Here is their statement:

Since 1997, BBC Books has published almost 150 original Doctor Who novels. A significant number of these have been from first-time novelists, and we are proud to have helped these talented and gifted writers make their first break in publishing.

As one of the very few publishers who still accepts unsolicited, un-agented manuscripts and proposals, we receive a vast number of proposals for Doctor Who books. Although the vast majority of these are not suitable for publication, every single one is read and considered. It is a huge job.

And with Doctor Who set to return to our television screens, bigger and better than ever before, the interest in Doctor Who fiction - from readers and from prospective writers - is already increasing enormously.

At the same time, we are waiting to evaluate the impact of the new series on our continuing lines of Doctor Who books. That means that at the moment - without the help of a real TARDIS - we do not yet know what our requirements for Doctor Who novels will be for 2006 and beyond. With this in mind, it simply isn't fair for us to try to evaluate proposals against criteria that are bound to change. So, for the time being, we have decided it is not possible for us to accept Doctor Who novel proposals for consideration.

We know this will be a disappointment to many prospective writers, and it is not a decision that we have taken lightly. Please be assured that once we have firm plans for the future of Doctor Who publishing, we will consider how we can make sure that the Doctor continues to be well served in the worlds of print as well as television drama. As usual, we will keep our readers and fans informed via the official BBC Doctor Who website, and Doctor Who Magazine. BBC Books is proud to have supported the Doctor in original fiction during his years lost in the television time vortex. Now we can look forward to his rematerialisation on BBC1 and continued success in print.