After Kevin signed the contract in Editor Ennie's office, the other contestants started coming out of the semi-finals area one by one. Judging by their expressions, they seemed fairly satisfied with their own works.
Of course, Kevin turning in his paper early at least made them feel like they had one more chance.
After exchanging greetings with Kevin and a few others, he walked out of the London Literary Publishing House alone. The publication of "Jane Eyre" was now settled, all that awaited him was its release and receiving the royalties.
"Once I get my hands on this two hundred thousand pounds, I can finally pay off the debts my father left behind," Kevin thought to himself.
As for the fees for film and television copyrights, Ennie, the chief editor, honestly told him that it depends on the film and television company's decision. The London Literary Publishing House is only responsible for promoting it to the other party. Whether to adapt it into a TV series or film is entirely up to them.
However, this did not worry Kevin. When "Jane Eyre" becomes a bestseller, the film and television companies will definitely not hesitate to sign the copyright with him. All he needs is time, as time can prove everything.
As for the discussion on Twitter about Kevin submitting his article within just a few minutes, it is still ongoing. After the other contestants came out of the qualifying round, they also took out their phones to post on Twitter.
"Thanks to that guy who handed in his paper early, you gave me the opportunity," wrote a confident contestant.
"Bro, thank you for suddenly dropping out. Although I may not be confident about winning the first place, your withdrawal undoubtedly gives us a little more opportunity."
"Hey, can you believe it? Such a prestigious competition, and yet some people treat it like child's play."
"I think God wouldn't let him go in vain, wasting an opportunity to step into the literary world."
The tweets from these contestants clearly indicate that they all feel Kevin turning in his work too early is a waste of this opportunity.
But they wouldn't know that at this moment, Kevin has already signed a publishing contract for "Jane Eyre" with the London Literary Publishing House and even had tea with the young woman editor-in-chief of the London Literary. What's most fatal is that Kevin's piece, completed in just over ten minutes, is a masterpiece. Perhaps, one day, all these people will know. After Editor Ennie returned home, she opened her computer and also checked Twitter. As the editor-in-chief of the London Literary Publishing House, many people forwarded these Twitter messages to her.
She slowly began to flip through the evaluations of those who had turned in their papers early for Kevin, feeling increasingly restless. She immediately called Kevin, who had just returned to the hotel at that moment. Seeing Ennie, the chief editor, calling, he thought it was about "Jane Eyre," so he answered right away.
"Huai, what's wrong with Editor Ennie?"
"Kevin, do you know? Your performance in the semi-finals today has spread on Twitter, and many people think you are wasting a spot in the semi-finals." Ennie reminded. "Is that so? But respected Editor Ennie, please believe me. I have confidence in this literary competition." Kevin said.
"Alright, I'm just telling you to be more careful in the future. But, it seems like a good thing to be talked about on Twitter as a newcomer," Ennie said helplessly.
"Perhaps. However, thank you for your advice."
After exchanging a few words, the two of them hung up the phone.
Actually, it's not just Ennie and Zela who saw these tweets, even Augustine in Edinburgh saw them.
When he saw the tweet saying that Kevin submitted his article for the semi-finals in just over ten minutes, he chuckled. In his heart, he thought: With your level, after being in the same class for so long, we still didn't know? This time making it to the semi-finals can only be attributed to your dumb luck, it was like a joke from God. Now that the joke is over, you will be treated as a laughingstock.
Since Augustine also tweeted this, Collison, as the homeroom teacher, saw the news as well. He furrowed his brows, thinking to himself, "Dear Kevin, what on earth are you up to? Can you really complete a masterpiece that surpasses all others in just a few minutes? That's simply preposterous. Well, may Almighty God bless him."
Kevin didn't have the mind to think about these issues. What he was thinking about was when his salary came, besides helping his father with some debts, he also needed to buy a brand-new computer. This way, he could surf the internet normally and play on Twitter like everyone else. Most importantly, it would be much more convenient for him to write articles in the future.
After all the articles for the semi-finals were submitted, the judges were about to start the closed review process. To ensure fairness, all pages containing information about the contestants were sealed. They could only be opened after the judges selected the winners.
The entire review and evaluation process lasted for a day and a half, with a total of 8 judges, all of whom are prominent figures in the current British literary scene, and their professionalism is self-evident.
"Hi, dear Cory, I suddenly feel that our task is enormous, and the talents of British literature are waiting to be discovered by us," Santos, also a judge, said to Cory.
"Yes, so we must be extra careful and try our best to ensure that those talented individuals achieve good rankings," Mr. Cory said solemnly.
"Alright, everyone, let's start reviewing the manuscripts of these literary geniuses. Hopefully, there will be some surprises for us."
So, the editors began their time of reviewing the manuscripts, they were all leading figures in the industry, and quite responsible.
However, after more than two hours had passed, many judges shook their heads one after another, indicating their considerable dissatisfaction with the works written by the contestants in this round.
Yes, many participants are facing this situation for the first time, without a topic, just facing a broom, they can only let their imagination run wild. After all, among these more than twenty participants, many are nobles who have been born into wealth and privilege, where would they have ever come across a broom.
Mr. Cory had the same expression as everyone else. He read three semi-final works in a row, and except for one that was passable, the other two were quite terrible. One person even wrote directly about the production process of a broom, without any literary merit at all.
"If it really doesn't work out, then just cancel the champion title of this literary competition. We can't let those mediocre works win awards, right? That would be an insult to the London Literary Competition," Mr. Cory thought to himself.
However, regardless of how the entries for this literary competition's second round were, as judges, they patiently continued to review other submissions.
But every time they reviewed an article, they would shake their heads helplessly.
"Mr. Cory, have you reviewed any satisfactory works?"
"No, so far, I haven't seen a satisfactory piece of work," Cory said helplessly.
"Absolutely disappointing, I don't have any either. Is there really no literary genius in this literary competition?"
"Ask Santos what he has gained, hey, dear Santos, how are things going over there?" Mr. Cory said to Santos.
However, Santos completely ignored him, his eyes fixed on the manuscript in his hands, unable to hear any external sounds, as if he had lost himself, occasionally revealing a satisfied smile at the corner of his mouth.
