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    [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!

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    • HylebosH
      Hylebos Premium Member @sunvulpine
      last edited by

      @sunvulpine said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

      @Hylebos said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

      @sunvulpine said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

      Soon...?

      Hopefully!

      E...Eventually?

      One would assume!

      We've not heard anything from them yet either here or on Discord, I would just assume the process is just taking a wee bit longer than they were expecting and that they are working hard on it.

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
      • Rahul BalagganR
        Rahul Balaggan Staff
        last edited by

        Hello,

        Our apologies for the delay. The round 2 results will be delayed.

        While we do not have a set date for the results to be announced yet. I will be back with a further update later this week. At the latest, Friday the 6th US time. Probably around 3 pm ET.

        Thank you

        Sorry but J-Novel Club does not publicly comment on any potential licensing decision or acquisitions.
        J-Novel Club, Future Volume Release Schedule
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        S 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
        • S
          sunvulpine @Rahul Balaggan
          last edited by

          @Rahul-Balaggan

          Thank you for keeping us informed!

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • shiratori.keiraS
            shiratori.keira
            last edited by

            Am I missing something or when will the novel previews for voting become available? It is almost time for the Anime Expo 2025, so... not much time left.

            Shiratori Keira

            HylebosH 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • HylebosH
              Hylebos Premium Member @shiratori.keira
              last edited by

              @shiratori-keira said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

              Am I missing something or when will the novel previews for voting become available? It is almost time for the Anime Expo 2025, so... not much time left.

              The finalists were announced but they've not been mentioned in this thread yet, and so I shall post them here in case you haven't seen it yet:

              ONGOING SERIES - FINALISTS
              Cavalier Magica
              Forgotten Girl Quest
              His Reluctant Thrall
              Knight and Flower
              Soul Sentinel
              The Goddess Forgot to Make me OP when I Reincarnated in the New World
              The Hotel Acheron: Dreams in Death's Garden
              The Villainess of Caerleon
              With the Age Gap Gone, Will the Witch Fall for Me?

              COMPLETE STORY - FINALISTS
              I am the Villainess's Minion!
              My Childhood Friend Is in Love with My Mecha!
              Our Worlds Align
              The Cat Forgot Its Tale

              As for when streaming might start, we've not heard any word about that yet, but it could theoretically happen at any point now.

              shiratori.keiraS 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
              • shiratori.keiraS
                shiratori.keira @Hylebos
                last edited by

                @Hylebos Yes, I also received the email with the finalists and it was mentioned that the streaming would become available soon. But still nothing. At this point, I guess that user voting won't be that influential to the final selection.

                Shiratori Keira

                HylebosH 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                • HylebosH
                  Hylebos Premium Member @shiratori.keira
                  last edited by Hylebos

                  @shiratori-keira said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

                  @Hylebos Yes, I also received the email with the finalists and it was mentioned that the streaming would become available soon. But still nothing. At this point, I guess that user voting won't be that influential to the final selection.

                  During last year's contest, on discord, they mentioned that user voting is useful info but hardly definitive, as they fully expect the author with the most online followers to win the vote. Personally speaking, I feel like they only need to have the previews up for a business week or so to collect the data they need, so they could wait as late as the 23rd and still have plenty of time to make their final selections before the award ceremony on July 6th.

                  My assumption at least is that most people who use JNC really just focus on the series they are pre-pubbing and when encountering the possibility of browsing the contest finalists, they'll likely click on one or two of the ones that sound the most interesting to them but ultimately not get around to reading the majority of them. It won't take long for that initial burst of activity to play out before it's just a handful of people who are committed to browsing all thirteen of the finalists.

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                    Damon Cavalchini Premium Member @Hylebos
                    last edited by

                    @Hylebos

                    I was one of those who did read all of the entries last year (because of mild insanity).

                    And, to be honest, there are some I remember vividly and others I would need a prompt to recall :)

                    It is also worth noting that I assume the Grand and Bookwalker prizes will be more heavily weighted by feedback from the relevant judges from Kadokowa and Bookwalker rather than the popular vote.

                    So the previews probably have the greatest impact on the First and Runners Up places.

                    That said, there is nothing we can do except wait for them to appear like chocolate from a vending machine.

                    HylebosH 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                    • HylebosH
                      Hylebos Premium Member @Damon Cavalchini
                      last edited by

                      @Damon-Cavalchini said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

                      @Hylebos

                      I was one of those who did read all of the entries last year (because of mild insanity).

                      And, to be honest, there are some I remember vividly and others I would need a prompt to recall :)

                      It is also worth noting that I assume the Grand and Bookwalker prizes will be more heavily weighted by feedback from the relevant judges from Kadokowa and Bookwalker rather than the popular vote.

                      So the previews probably have the greatest impact on the First and Runners Up places.

                      That said, there is nothing we can do except wait for them to appear like chocolate from a vending machine.

                      I don't think there's a bookwalker prize this year, at the very least it's not mentioned anywhere in the actual text of the contest or on the terms and conditions page except for in the opening banner of the contest page, which might just be an erroneous inclusion.

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                      • D
                        Damon Cavalchini Premium Member @Hylebos
                        last edited by Damon Cavalchini

                        @Hylebos

                        Thanks. I thought it was initially removed and then came back so I was assuming things settled down after the merger and so on.

                        It could just be human error though.

                        It gives us something extra to be excited about at the announcement ceremony (is there or is there not a Bookwalker :)).

                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • shiratori.keiraS
                          shiratori.keira
                          last edited by

                          For those who are interested, the previews are finally online: https://j-novel.club/series/jnc-original-light-novel-contest-2025

                          Shiratori Keira

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 3
                          • L
                            lenovoaxioo
                            last edited by

                            It's weird for me to ask this. But, would there be another contest for 2026?

                            HylebosH 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                            • HylebosH
                              Hylebos Premium Member @lenovoaxioo
                              last edited by

                              @lenovoaxioo said in [JNC LIGHT NOVEL CONTEST 2025] Round 1 Judging for "Ongoing Series" & “Completed”Category Announced!:

                              It's weird for me to ask this. But, would there be another contest for 2026?

                              They confirmed at the award ceremony for this year's contest that they'll indeed be doing another contest in 2026, no further information has been announced yet.

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                              • L
                                lenovoaxioo @Hylebos
                                last edited by

                                @Hylebos thanks for the reply

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