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Worlds Without End Blog

04
24
2023

Book Giveaway: Writers of the Future: Volume 39 edited by Jody Lynn Nye & Dean Wesley Smith Posted at 11:08 AM by Dave Post

Dave Post

Win one of 5 copies!
To celebrate the newest addition to the long-running Writers of the Future anthology series, Galaxy Press has 5 copies of L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future: Volume 39 edited by Jody Lynn Nye & Dean Wesley Smith to give away. That’s right, you can win it before you can even buy it on May 16. This contest is open world-wide. Note: US winners will receive a hard copy while winners outside the US will receive a digital download — unfortunately, we cannot mail the prizes elsewhere.

To enter, all you have to do is re-tweet this tweet:

…or comment here in the blog. Do both and double your chances! It’s about as easy as we can make it. We’ll have a random drawing from our re-tweeter pool and announce the winners on publication day, May 16, so tweet away and don’t forget to check back in a few weeks to see if you’ve won!

L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future: Volume 39In the world of speculative fiction… Your favorite authors… Have selected the best new voices of the year. 24 Award-winning Authors and Illustrators

3 Bonus Short Stories by Kevin J. Anderson, L. Ron Hubbard, and S. M. Stirling

Art and Writing Tips by Lazarus Chernik, L. Ron Hubbard, and Kristine Kathryn Rusch

16-page color gallery of artwork and Cover art by Tom Wood

Check out the stories Brandon Sanderson, Orson Scott Card, Nnedi Okorafor, Robert J. Sawyer, Kevin J. Anderson, Jody Lynn Nye and others chose as the best of the best.

Be amazed. Be amused. Be transported… by stories that take you by surprise and take you further and deeper into new worlds and new ideas than you’ve ever gone before….

Twelve captivating tales from the most exciting new voices in science fiction and fantasy accompanied by three from masters of the genre.

  • A miracle? An omen? Or something else? One day, they arrived in droves — the foxes of the desert, the field, the imagination…. — “Kitsune” by Devon Bohm
  • When a vampire, a dragon and a shape-shifting Chihuahua meet on a beach in Key West, fireworks go off! But that’s just the background. — “Moonlight and Funk” by Marianne Xenos
  • Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I., faces one of his funniest and most perplexing cases ever — an enlightened ogre, a salamander with low self-esteem, and a raging fire dragon terrorizing the Unnatural Quarter! — “Fire in the Hole” by Kevin J. Anderson
  • The Grim Reaper, trapped in an IRS agent’s dying body, must regain his powers before he dies and faces judgment for his original sin. — “Death and the Taxman” by David Hankins
  • In a metaverse future, a woman who exposes falseness in others must decide what is real to her — the love she lost or the love she may have found. — “Under My Cypresses” by Jason Palmatier
  • Vic Harden wasn’t lured by glory on a daring mission into the reaches of outer space — he was ordered out there by his editor. — “The Unwilling Hero” by L. Ron Hubbard
  • Dangerous opportunities present themselves when an alien ship arrives in the solar system seeking repairs. — “White Elephant” by David K. Henrickson
  • With her spaceship at the wrong end of a pirate’s guns, a former war hero must face down her enemies and demons to save Earth’s last best chance for peace. — “Piracy for Beginners” by J. R. Johnson
  • Years after the Second Holocaust, the last surviving Jews on earth attempt to rewrite the past. — “A Trickle in History” by Elaine Midcoh
  • When I said I’d do anything to pay off my debts and get back home to Earth, I didn’t mean survey a derelict spaceship at the edge of the solar system — but here I am. — “The Withering Sky” by Arthur H. Manner
  • High-powered telescopes bring galactic life to our TVs, and network tuner Hank Enos figures he’s seen everything — until the day an alien boy stares back. — “The Fall of Crodendra M.” by T. J. Knight
  • Knights, damsels and dragons, curses and fates foretold — the stuff of legends and stories, but unexpectedly perverse. — “Constant Never” by S. M. Stirling
  • Determined to save his wife, Tumelo takes an unlikely client through South Africa’s ruins to the heart of the Desolation — a journey that will cost or save everything. — “The Children of Desolation” by Spencer Sekulin
  • When a terrorist smuggles a nuclear weapon into London, a team regresses in time to AD 1093 to assassinate a knight on the battlefield, thereby eliminating the terrorist a millennia before his birth. — “Timelines and Bloodlines” by L. H. Davis
  • The Grand Exam, a gateway to power for one, likely death for all others — its entrants include ambitious nobles, desperate peasants, and Quiet Gate, an old woman with nothing left to lose. — “The Last History” by Samuel Parr

You will love this collection of the best new voices because, as Locus magazine puts it, “Excellent writing… extremely varied. There’s a lot of hot new talent.”

4 Comments | Posted in Contests | Tags: ,

04
20
2023

Guest Post: Writers of the Future Contest and Volume 39 — Are you ready? Posted at 2:42 PM by Dave Post

Dave Post

L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future: Volume 39 The highlight of the year, for aspiring writers and readers alike, is fast approaching with the release of the latest volume of the Writers of the Future Anthology. Volume 39 promises to be the most inspiring offering to date, featuring twelve debut stories by the winners of Writers of the Future 2022 and three bonus stories by best-selling authors, all illustrated by winners of the Illustrators of the Future Contest.

It starts off with a deeply human and feminist science-fiction offering about a miracle, a tragedy, and the connection between the two, unexpectedly and delightfully followed by a clever romp with a vampire, a dragon, and a were-dog. Volume 39 begins with thought-provoking, powerful narrative and, story by story, weaves and builds in insight, inspiration, and wonder.

Readers of this volume will find themselves pulled in and captivated by the discovery of new worlds, the exploration of clever technologies, and the imagining of futures with complex problems. They’ll experience alien worlds, first contacts, clever and convincing AI, and life and death choices. Skilled storytelling and artful Illustration go hand in hand with the beauty and caliber of art included in Volume 39, coming together with the narratives in flawless union. The imagery lives up to the high bar set by the stories.

For readers, the Writers and Illustrators of the Future provides a singular opportunity. It is a veritable buffet of offerings from fresh new voices in speculative fiction, a genre that includes science fiction, fantasy and the less definable stories that skirt the borders between realism and fancy. The blind judging process ensures that each volume is composed of diverse new voices from around the world. The stories that win are themselves compelling, meaningful, and boast the forward thinking insight that speculative fiction is known for.

Writers and Illustrators of the Future volumes are uniquely suited for sharing among family members because it comes in a digestible style that is appropriate for middle grade readers. Volume 39 is no exception, with its flaming dragon bedecked cover and a collection of stories and illustrations that manage to uphold the same standard for excitement, adventure, and immersion.

Each volume boasts articles with exclusive advice and trade secrets for success in writing and illustration. Volume 39 in particular includes a very useful article on priorities, by Kristine Kathryn Rush, that outlines how to write (or meet other priority goals) without forsaking health or relationships.

Writers of the Future Trophies For aspiring writers and artists finding out about the contest for the first time and wondering how to be the next winner included in the Writers of the Future anthologies, picking up a copy of Volume 39 and reading it cover to cover is the first, most important step. It’s the most comprehensive way to learn your market, to get a feel for what kind of material is right for Writers of the Future and to learn from the previous winners, judges, and pros affiliated with the contest.

You may be wondering if the contest is as worthwhile as it sounds, or if all this excitement over a single anthology contest is warranted.

The short answer is: yes, get excited; entering the contest is free and easy to do, with very tangible rewards if you win. The long answer is still yes; setting your sights on getting into the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contest is one of the most worthwhile goals out there for an aspiring writer or illustrator.

The official website has an intuitive, easy-entry submission portal with all of the rules and guidelines displayed clearly. The support and free-training is invaluable for beginners as well as more seasoned writers teetering on the edge of pro-writing. On the website you’ll find a lively forum of over 10,000 writers and illustrators with active discussions, critique trades, support threads, and advice for winning the contest. There are posts by judges, editors, and past winners geared towards helping entrants build their knowledge and skills.

The website also features a free online writers training course that teaches the fundamentals of short story craft with articles and video lectures by legends like Orson Scott Card, David Farland, and Tim Powers. It’s free—have I mentioned that enough times yet? It’s broken up into manageable chunks, and you get a completion certificate at the end. Once you’ve registered, you can move through the course at your own pace or come back to it to revisit and refresh your memory.

Even the judging system provides more support and feedback than writers and illustrators can expect elsewhere, featuring Returned with Comments, Honorable Mentions, Silver Honorable Mentions, Semi-Finalists, and Finalist rankings, to show entrants their current level and progress.

With four entry quarters a year and three winners each quarter, writers and illustrators can use the contest as a quarter by quarter goal-marker for their own progress and benefit from multiple opportunities to win the contest. The culmination of winning is a free trip to Los Angeles for a week of workshops, networking, and hands-on mentorship with industry professionals, the whole event ending in a red carpet award ceremony and a professional book signing. Aspiring authors and illustrators have nothing to lose by entering the contest and everything to gain: practice, support, community, and, maybe, the biggest win of their career.

What are you waiting for?

By CL Fors

CL Fors CL Fors lives and breathes stories in multiple mediums: the written word, illustration in watercolor, acrylic, digital, and ink, and the creation of custom jewelry and other artifacts of story. She is an artist with a myriad of interests and experiences that inform and flavor her writing and illustrating. A multipotentialite, mother, author, and adventurer, CL is a science and science-fiction enthusiast with a passion for research based sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and speculative fiction in general. 

CLʼs debut novel, Progeny, is the first installment of the Primogenitor series. The second and third books in the series, Adaptation and Reunion. are available on Amazon and the fourth book Schism will be released soon.  CL also writes science articles and short stories and has articles published at Genetic Literacy Project and Midwifery today Magazine. Website: CLForsauthor.com

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