CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA, FEBRUARY 16, 2024 – Tapas, a leading webcomic and web novel platform, has unveiled the top 15 winners for the first edition of its “True Love on Tapas” romance web novel contest. The winners, selected by a panel of judges based on reader engagement, story quality, and serialization potential, will each receive a minimum guarantee contract of $10,000 – for a combined prize pool of $150,000, making it one of the largest contests in the industry.

This contest marks Tapas’ commitment to empowering writers and fostering the burgeoning web novel community. Launched in October 2023, the competition called for authors to submit unpublished romance stories, a genre for which Tapas is widely recognized. As a result, the contest garnered an impressive 264 entries despite its limited run of 2 months.

“Our goal is to invite U.S. writers to experience the thriving digital storytelling model already established in Korea in which both the medium of the web novel as well as the profession of the web novel creator have already been legitimized as an integral part of a burgeoning industry, enthused Kristianna Lee, Director of Content Management and Novels Growth at Tapas.

“What I love about the web novel as a medium is that it democratizes storytelling by removing the pressure to appeal to the mainstream, allowing each creator to focus on the story they want to tell.” She adds, “and there is no better place to publish than at Tapas. With our expertise in novel-to-comic adaptations and our in-house direct link to off-platform print publishing, choosing Tapas opens endless possibilities for writers.” Lee also encourages writers and readers to “stay tuned for more contests from Tapas that will extend this opportunity to creators who work in other genres. Romance is just the beginning!”

Web novels are great sources of original stories and often find new life as webcomics, animations, and TV series. Kakao Entertainment, Tapas’ parent company, has a proven track record of unlocking the full potential of web novels through diverse adaptations. Kakao Entertainment has produced over 1,200 webcomics based on popular web novels, further expanding said stories through this format. Similarly, blockbusters like Solo Leveling became megahit animations, A Business Proposal topped the charts as a Netflix series, and What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim? captivated viewers worldwide as a K-drama.

In addition to discovering new voices through contests, Tapas is committed to expanding its web novel library. Tapas currently offers over 300 premium web novels which include hit titles from both the U.S. and Korea such as The Beginning After The End, Villains are Destined to Die, and I Made a Deal with the Devil, and plans to increase its offerings to 500 by the year’s end through the acquisition of successful titles from Korea as well as North America. Furthermore, by working with up-and-coming as well as established authors, Tapas plans to broaden its content library to include ever more diverse and engaging stories. 

Tapas’ web novel titles are accessible here: https://tapas.io/novels

Top 15 List

• Iron Blood Bride by PixxiePink
• Serving the Undying King by Twoony
• Prince of Fire and Ash by Leveret Moreau
• The Seventh Date by KG Brightwell
• The Mafia’s Nanny by Suleidy Merced
• Summoned: Familiar of the Dark Magician by Rachel Ashton
• My Husband’s Divorce Attorney by TheFlyingBookworm
• Whispers and Shadows by Mariehallwrites
• Hail To The Saintess! by Xula Von Ziegel
• I Didn’t Ask to Marry You, Male Lead! by AKG
• The Prince and the Pirates by Yourpersonalprince
• Onabi Hex by N.A. Carson
• Free Radical by AmourAccompli
• Respectfully Yours, by Danni
• Bondage by GiveMeThatBread