And the winners are:

David Hoffrichter from Pennsylvania
Hailee Rojas from Massachusetts
Tremani Sutcliffe from Utah

Finalists:

Farzeen Anam from Pennsylvania
Zhang Chang from China
David Kudlac from Canada
Linh Nguyen from Texas
Grace Sowon Park from Texas

Semi-Finalists:

Sophia Baltrinic from Michigan
James Churchill from Japan
Holli Diggs from Virginia
Katie Lashbrook from Illinois
Quianna Leftwich from New Jersey
Gianna Moscariello from Florida
Malyssa Ollar from Florida
Krrisha Patel from New Jersey
Rachel Polvadore from Georgia
Joseph Procida from New York
Tyler Simonin from Massachusetts
Emily Wynia from California

Honorable Mentions:

Lauren Adams from Florida
Shane Adams from New York
Lucy Adelman from Minnesota
Teresa Agruso from Texas
Kennedy Allen from Florida
Zeinab Alrubaiee from Michigan
Sarah Astegher from New York
Juan Baez from Virginia
Diego Barrera from New York
Vassilios Bayiokos from New Jersey
Addie Ruth Beardsley from Arkansas
Josefa Benasso Barriga from South Carolina
Robert Blaylock from Virginia
Makayla Bounds from Colorado
Martin Brisebois from Canada
Theron Brown from Texas
Annika Brown from California
Melinda Calnimptewa from Pennsylvania
Summer Campbell from Virginia
Rhea Candemeres from Florida
Abrianna Carstens from Florida
Alexandria Chesser from Virginia
Lizzie Coles from England
Mariah Cosey from Texas
Erica Curren from Florida
Paige Curry from Michigan
Zamira Dawletova from Ubekistan
Andrews Debrah from Ghana
Olivia DeVore from Texas
Alexandre Digonnet from California
Brigid Downs from New York
Jade Duffus from New York
Natasa Dujanovic from Germany
Stella Duren from Alabama
Emily Eskew from Washington
Kelsie Fennoy from Maryland
Jozlyn Fernandez from Virginia
Elena Ferrell from Texas
Katie Foley from Wisconsin
Danielle Galinas from South Carolina
Hannah Gamache from New Hampshire
Susan Garcia from Illinois
Caroline Gendron from Illinois
Cameron Gingles from Michigan
Mia Goldston from Texas
Alyssa Gonzales from Texas
Alissa Gonzalez from Rhode Island
Bakhtiyar Gulmurzaev from Uzbekistan
Babur Gulmurzaev from Uzbekistan
Caeli Harman from Wisconsin
Caleb Houser from Nebraska
Judah Jackson from Vermont
Elli Jeffries from Indiana
Jennifer Johnson from California
Morgan Johnson from Alabama
Isabelle Julian from New Jersey
Tupak Kue from Wisconsin
Kaitlyn Ky from California
Rebekah Lane from South Carolina
Ella Lange from Kentucky
Maia Litz from Pennsylvania
Peiyi Lu from California
Austin Lubetkin from Florida
Eve Ludlow from Idaho
Yua Maekawa from California
Kianah Marshall from Utah
Jamaal McClain from Kentucky
Sunai Miraflores from Georgia
Miraziz Miraliev from Uzbekistan
Michael Misakyan from California
Vanessa Murphy from New York
Ishmal Nasir from California
Kierstin Nation from Louisiana
Jose Luis Nunez from Texas
Kyla Odum from Pennsylvania
Estela Ollervides from Texas
Lauren Olsen from Idaho
McKennah Patten from New York
Clara Proulx from Texas
Umida Qudratova from Uzbekistan
Maya Quigley from Michigan
Jessica Ratermann from Missouri
Austin Reeves from Alabama
Emma Mina Rincones-Parra from New York
Elena Roberts from Michigan
Elise Rothenburg from Florida
Arya Sahu from New Jersey
Carlos Sanabria from Canada
Jose Sanchez from Florida
Robert Sankner from Ohio
Sophia Schindler from Minnesota
Ryan Schuette from Texas
James Shepherd from Texas
Ethan Shiflett from Utah
Quinton Singer from Washington
Hefrani Smith from New Hampshire
Mahati Sreedhara from Texas
Nina Steinkraus from California
Isaac Stern from Wisconsin
Ian Strandberg from California
Samantha Tanelli from Florida
Morgan Taton from Texas
Anelle van der Merwe from New Hampshire
Krishiya Veal from Georgia
Manqi Wang from China
Samara Weatherly from Georgia
Georgia Weaver from Virginia
Maya Wierciszewski from New York
Hayley Wilson from California
Amelia Wolf from Florida
Azure Wood from Vermont
Leqi Yang from California

The post Illustrators of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41 appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

And the winners are:

First Place – Randyn Bartholomew from New York
Second Place – Lauren McGuire from Georgia
Third Place – Seth Atwater from Missouri

Finalists:

Bryan Brady from Pennsylvania
Michelle Diaz from Oregon
Colin Hacker from Colorado
Jennifer Lesh Fleck from Washington
Beth Lipsey McCabe from Washington

Semi-Finalists:

Kat Averyheart from Florida
Jennifer Campbell-Hicks from Colorado
Mira Dover from Virginia
Myles Fisher from North Carolina
Laurel Hanson from Maine
Spencer Nitkey from New Jersey
Leo Oliveira from Canada
Spencer Orey from Denmark
M.R. Robinson from Virginia
Heidi Sommer from Utah

Silver Honorable Mentions:

Patricia Ahlborn from Sweden
Ella Ananeva from Washington
Matt Athanasiou from Illinois
Amber Baughman from South Carolina
Christopher Baxter from Utah
Daniel Blatt from California
Shane Bzdok from Texas
Tanner Call from Maryland
Cody D. Campbell from Oregon
Nuno Carvalho from Portugal
Brandon Case from Nevada
Ellie Chang from Military
A.J. Coates from Canada
Ivy Crenshaw from Kentucky
Adrian Croft from Canada
Sarah Darbee from Louisiana
Victoria L. Dixon from Kansas
O.L. Drake from North Carolina
W.H.N. Dunham from Canada
Angelique Fawns from Canada
CL Fors from California
Todd Glasscock from Texas
Danny Hankner from Iowa
D.R.R. Hatch from Utah
Ross C. Higgins from Texas
CR Hodges from Colorado
Muffie Humphrey from Colorado
Jared A. Jackson from Florida
Christopher Kugler from Pennsylvania
Pete Lead from New Zealand
Ian Li from Canada
Nora Meeker from Idaho
Riley Nielson from Utah
Celeste A. Peters from Canada
Kathleen Powell from Missouri
Carlos Ramirez from New Jersey
K.Z. Richards from Ohio
Michael Rosenstein from Oregon
Jason Russell from Alaska
Scott M. Sands from Australia
Sandra Siegienski from Oregon
Michael Simon from Canada
Kim Smuga-Otto from California
Spencer Vargas from Missouri
Jillian Wahlquist from California

Honorable Mentions:

Christopher A Nadeau from Michigan
Linda Maye Adams from Virginia
Angelina Adams from Texas
Jon Adcock from California
Miles Adedjouma from New Jersey
Chris Africa from Michigan
Nik Alexander from Maryland
Colin Alston from New York
Wesley Andrus from Washington
Sarah Ang from Singapore
David Annan from Canada
Rosie Arianna from Nevada
A.R.R. Ash from Arizona
Caroline Ashley from Great Britain
Marisa Atkirk from Utah
Genevieve Atwater from Missouri
Cameron Bain from New York
Jen Bair from Georgia
Vrinda Baliga from India
Chris Balliet from Pennsylvania
Yammile Barber from Florida
Aaditya Batra from New York
J.W. Benford from California
Rick Bennett from Utah
Ryan Benson from Georgia
Madame Black Rose from Florida
Justin A.W. Blair from Florida
Maisie Boren from North Carolina
Jason Ray Bouchard from Texas
Carlos Bowe from New York
Ella Brennan from Illinois
Madhu Campbell from California
Aaron Canton from Utah
Theo Carr from Great Britain
Jenny Perry Carr from Texas
Black C. Caviar from Australia
Emmanuel T. Chase from Missouri
Patrick Childress from Washington D.C.
Gio Clairval from Italy
R.G. Clarke from Pennsylvania
Derek Coller from Washington
Liam Conway from South Carolina
D.B. Corsi from North Carolina
Heath Cowled from Australia
Jason P. Crawford from California
S. Donovan Croft from South Carolina
Rick Danforth from Great Britain
Julia Darcey from Colorado
J.E. Deegan from Texas
Fabien Delorme from France
John Derderian from California
Arthur M. Doweyko from Florida
Jason Christopher Duke from Arizona
Joshua Dyer from West Virginia
Jordan Easley from Texas
Jenna Eatough from Utah
Tracy Eire from Washington
Jacob Ellis from California
Tate Fairchild-Coppoletti from Massachusetts
Aedan Ferrara from California
Shannon Fox from California
Joseph Friesen from Canada
John A. Frochio from Pennsylvania
Ashher Rose Gensel from Colorado
Melva L. Gifford from Utah
Russell Giles from Utah
Cara Giles from Utah
J.J. Gilmore from California
Tiina Giocada from Canada
T. Goebel from Arizona
Mark Gordon from Florida
Alex L. Govea from Mexico
Peter Michael Gray from Great Britain
Jentina Grey from California
James E. Guin from Mississippi
Rajan Gupta from California
Roger A. Hammons Jr. from Virginia
TJ Hapney from Florida
James R. Hardin from Pennsylvania
Alex Harford from Great Britain
Justin Harlan from Michigan
Rachel Hart from California
Hyrum W. Hawks from Utah
Christopher Henckel from New Zealand
Susana Hernandez Stengele from Mexico
C.S. Hewison from California
King Hill from Florida
Avery Hocker from Missouri
L.M.C. Holden from Illinois
Lloyd Enoch Holland from Great Britain
Eric Honour from Florida
Harold Hoss from Oklahoma
Teresa Hu from Colorado
Cathy Humble from Oregon
Amanda Ilozumba from Nigeria
S.L. Johnson from Australia
Erik Johnson from Vietnam
Bob Johnston from Great Britain
Todd Jones from Michigan
Eli Jones from Oregon
C.T. Jones from Australia
Oguzhan Kandur from Turkey
Myra Karine from Utah
Hannya Kay from Spain
Janessa Keeling from Kentucky
Ian Keith from Arizona
Geoff Kemp from Australia
Harry Kennan from Massachusetts
Andria Kennedy from Virginia
Dan Kenner from Idaho
Jordana Kerth from Texas
Rebecca Kim from New Jersey
Karen L. Kobylarz from Illinois
Anitha Krishnan from Canada
Jason Lairamore from Oklahoma
Brad Larner from Michigan
Kurt Larson from Minnesota
MQ Larue from Florida
Isabel LeFevre from North Dakota
Sylvie Lian from Singapore
Irene Liang from Texas
Michelle Liggons from California
Darren Lipman from Wisconsin
Candice R. Lisle from New Mexico
Justine Lombardi from New York
Gene Louviere from Louisiana
Tom Lovett from Great Britain
Robert F. Lowell from California
Judy Lunsford from Arizona
Chloe Macdonald from Utah
Gareth Macready from Australia
Judah Mahay from Pennsylvania
Bella Majewski from West Virginia
Mark Manifesto from California
Tara Mann from California
Nathan Marekera from Zimbabwe
Charley Marsh from Minnesota
Max Martelli from Vermont
Adam and Kathleen Martin from Alabama
Nico Martinez Nocito from Maine
Kain Massin from Australia
Chelsy J. Maughan from Texas
Robert J. McCarter from Arizona
Michael McCarty from Michigan
Drake McDonald from Alabama
Parker McIntosh from Oregon
Morgan McIntyre from Great Britain
Christopher McManamon from California
Devin Miller from North Carolina
C.R. Miller from Connecticut
Sam Moses from Utah
TR Naus from Virginia
Scott Newman from Great Britain
Kristen Nicole from Washington
Jill Nied from Pennsylvania
Scott North from Great Britain
Susan Oke from Great Britain
Kamtoya Okeke from Washington D.C.
Al Onia from Canada
Albert O’Toole from Canada
Jasmine Palomino from Virginia
Jan Paolo Villaverde from Philippines
B.A. Paul from Indiana
Philip Peerce from Kentucky
Jacob Perez from California
J. C. Persson from Sweden
Mark Phillips from Virginia
Thomas Poldervaart from Netherlands
Robert Porteous from Australia
Emilia Pulliainen from Finland
K.R. Queen from Washington
Ambi Rachelle from California
M.K. Ragab from Egypt
Susmita Ramani from California
Mathew Raska from Ohio
Sophie Rathmann from Colorado
Lee Rector from California
Ramprasath Rengasamy from Georgia
Juliana Rew from Colorado
Kevin Richard from North Carolina
William Joseph Roberts from Georgia
Kerri J. Roe from Alaska
Maddy Roubik from Wisconsin
Jacob Rowan from Texas
Jordan Saelor from New York
Soham Saha from Illinois
Annmarie SanSevero from Arkansas
B.E. Saunders from Australia
Michael Schultz from Alabama
Joel C. Scoberg from Great Britain
L. A. Selby from California
Abhishek Sengupta from India
Neil Shieldman from Utah
J. Millard Simpson from Maryland
Cambria M. Slade from Tennessee
Zachary Smith from Washington
Gideon P. Smith from Massachusetts
J.L. Smyser from Colorado
Theodor Sorescu from Massachusetts
I.J. Sparks from Colorado
Ezekiel Springer from New York
Jake Stein from Oregon
Nicole Sterijevski from Canada
Abigail E. Sterner from Virginia
Shami Stovall from Kansas
J.P. Suchecki from Missouri
Ramya Suresh from Washington
Prim Sutchiewcharn from Thailand
Erin L. Swann from Maryland
J.M. Tanenbaum from California
Roger Terry from Indiana
Jessica E. Terson from Florida
Rachael D. Teuschler from Colorado
Niz Thomas from New Jersey
Kelly Thomas from California
Tee LaFrance Todd from Maryland
Delphus Trikes from Texas
Sidney C. Tsai from California
Annie Tupek from Oregon
Roderick D. Turner from Canada
Garrett Van Tiem from Tennessee
Scott Pahaku Vilhauer from California
Alaina Villoria from Florida
Shannon Walch from Germany
Kyle Walker from Alaska
N.A. Walters from Ohio
Larina Warnock from Oregon
Catherine Weaver from California
Russell Weisfield from Colorado
Sophia Wells from Canada
Amy Wethington from South Carolina
Rachel Whatley from Georgia
Philip White from Utah
Leslie Wibberley from Canada
Chase Williams from New Jersey
T.D. Wilson from Ohio
Paul Wilson from Ohio
Michael J. Wine from California
Elliott Wink from California
E.C. Wolfe from Michigan
Tie Yi from New York
Eli Zaren from Texas
Brad Zeiger from Oregon

The post Writers of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41 appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

My first dirty secret is that my winning story was not originally written for Writers of the Future. Yet I believe that was the key to its success because it was written for the right audience. 

Writing to Jody, or the simulacrum of all possible judges on the panel for the quarter, can get you out of the slush pile and maybe even into the finalist circle. For many people, that drive to win is all the fuel they need to get them over the finish line. This contest has been and will continue to be the forge in which many sharpen their skills.

I won’t speak for others, but my obsession was hampering my growth and my ability to craft a good story. I took feedback from the judges, whether it was through Semi-Finalist critiques or sharing their wisdom in interviews and blog posts, and incorporated it all into my toolkit. I was getting better at certain skills, but was I getting better as a writer?

Did it matter?

Of course, it did. Everything matters in some granular way, and while spending years in the artistic doldrums is not the most productive, rest and reflection are just as important as the perpetual grind.

My second dirty secret is that I stopped submitting to any pro market for several years. If you’re someone who’s missed a lot of entries and feels like there’s no chance for you to win in the future, that’s not the case.

Ah, before you protest, I only stopped submitting. I did not stop writing, reading, or thinking about how to write. I invested myself in what my communities were reading and sometimes shared my own stories. I wrote for a variety of friends and strangers. I learned to please the ones who savored technical details, the ones who demanded spectacle, and the ones who enjoyed philosophical explorations. I did my best not to alienate any of them, though no matter your intentions, it is always a risk.

(If you ask someone to give you an honest opinion of your work, be sure you offer the same. And if they’re not the sort to make and share, then don’t underestimate the persuasiveness of buying someone a drink or a pizza).

By thinking about what stories they would enjoy and find engaging, I was stepping beyond “writing” and into conscious “storytelling.” The distinction is that one term only encapsulates a medium and the other your role in the art. I was not getting paid nor getting credits to my name, but the relationship with my readers is why I do this in the first place.

The Winning Story

One story I wrote stood out, not for my admiration of its features, but in the emotional reactions it received from my trusted readers. No one said it was “special” but they did agree that it was emotionally engaging, in a way that was palpably different than their earlier reviews.

The Edge of Where My Light is Cast is not the first time nor the last time I will ponder artificial life. The inspiration for the story is part of a greater conversation with computer scientists, philosophers, and writers as far back as Mary Shelley and beyond.

It is also one of my more optimistic stories. Why is Tabitha created? To serve as a living memory of a companion that was loved and cherished. Not for profit, for fame, or to save the world. It was the strength of her owner’s love and degree of destructive obsession that sparked life in the digital cat.

(I have withdrawn from using phrases like “AI cat” to describe the story. The meaning of the term “artificial intelligence” has faded into a vague gesture towards “something computery” and has otherwise lost meaning in the public’s consciousness.)

What to do with Tabitha once she exists, though? I chose the genre that suited her limitations, and her need for discovery—a mystery, but not one of the criminal underworlds and ascending gods—to reflect how she would come to discover herself. Because she was limited to the information that is stored in electronics, I was forced to learn how she would interact with our world and search for her missing owner.

It culminated in Tabitha and the reader together asking the same impossible question.

“How do you process grief?”

I think there is a lot of pretty language in the story, but the treatment of that question is what made it what it is.

Writing Tips

Writing tips? Oh, goodness, I won’t bore you to death with the minutiae of my process. If you’re reading this in aspiration, I hope someone has given you the classic “read, write, submit” nuggets paraphrased by more traveled authors than myself. Do it. Do it for pleasure. Do it for yourself.

And read poetry, too. There is no better place for the appreciation of language, solemn contemplation, and pure unrestrained glee.

Eat, live, breathe poetry. It will serve you on your best days and at your worst.

“But Writers of the Future doesn’t accept poetry!”

Yes, but poetry makes you a better writer and a better storyteller.

You may notice a refrain here.

My generation received a masterclass in stating the obvious, but there is some value to it. It is called “speculative fiction” because you must speculate. There must be questions, and you must attempt to answer them. They can be deep philosophical questions, like “How would a digital life form experience our world through instruments and code?” Or it may be a more whimsical question, like “What if Corgis could fly?”

Your audience would perk up their ears and nod emphatically. “What IF?” indeed. But now this is the trick you have played on yourself, for you have presented yourself as an authority on flying Corgis and must maintain that relationship until the tale has concluded. Your question has chosen its audience, and now you must see it through.

(And if you are to say that flying Corgis is a solemn subject, then you are now crafting a story for an audience based on that opinion. Good luck!)

Everyone entering the Contest will have their strengths and weaknesses to meditate upon. I would encourage you to use the wealth of resources available on this blog and provided by Writers of the Future, and beyond.

In honor of the “speculative element,” I offer the questions that brought me from Finalist to Winner:

Who are you writing for? What is the story you want to tell? And how will you connect to your audience through those words?

Sky McKinnon is an author and artist grown from the Pacific Coast of Alaska. They hold an MFA in Poetry from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and a Master’s in Library and Information Science from the University of Washington, though their journey with stories began with their mother in the forests of the North.

Sky currently resides in Seattle with friends, both upright and furry varieties, and their beloved partner Jayde, who continues to be a source of endless inspiration and joy.

The post Sky McKinnon: Entering, Exiting, Entering Again appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

Hey, you. Yes, you, the one fretting in front of the computer because you’re too nervous to start on that story you promised yourself you’d work on. Come here a second; I have something to tell you.

Ready? Okay, here it is: you’ll be fine.

You might have a dozen stories sitting in your hard drive that you don’t think are good enough to show anyone. You might have zero stories because you’re paralyzed by the sight of a blank page. You might have a stack of rejections that are starting to look like a sign from the universe that You Should Give Up, Because Let’s Be Realistic, You’ll Just Never Make It.

You might fail. Your stories might not sell. You may get bad reviews.

Okay, so what?

You probably didn’t make a huge financial investment in order to write those stories. No one’s going to get hurt, either. All you spent was some time and some words. You can make more words. And time was going to pass regardless of how you spent it. Rejection stings, but in the long run you’re no better or worse than when you started off.

If you do reach your goals, though, you get to experience the joy of, well, reaching your goals. I’d say that’s an excellent trade-off. High reward, barely any risk. So what’s stopping you, really? Why does the thought of putting yourself out there still make you so nervous?

Oh, I see. You’re like me, then. You just think you’re not good enough.

“Butter Side Down” is not a serious story. I’m happy to admit this. My story inspiration: my toaster spooked me one day and I got to thinking how funny it would be if the aforementioned toaster did this on purpose. Did anyone ask for an AI love story between some guy and a kitchen appliance? No. But I had fun writing it, which made me think that someone might have fun reading it.

I had no idea where to submit it. Google told me that I could apply to L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future. Sounded fancy. Why not? Obviously, I wouldn’t win, but maybe it would at least get a laugh out of some slush readers before they rejected it.

So I sent it in. Then Joni told me I was a Finalist. Then Joni told me I won Second Place. Then I got put on a plane heading to a place I’d never been, and people I’d never met told me they’d read my story and they’d liked it.

Whoa.

I cannot stress to you how big of a deal this was to me. I am generally not the target audience for most works of fiction; adventures don’t happen in my part of the world. Heroes in stories don’t look/sound/talk/think/live like me. People like me are, regrettably, used to be Othered. It comes in innocuous questions like “How did you learn English” (probably the same way you did) and “Do you have internet in Malaysia” (no, we send emails through smoke signal). The vast majority of people I’ve met in my life have been exceedingly kind, but once in a while, I get slapped with a neon sign saying: YOU ARE INVISIBLE. YOU DO NOT BELONG. ALSO, YOUR NEW HAIRCUT LOOKS SILLY.

If my existence is such an oddity, what more of the work I produce? I don’t know much about science fiction. I know even less about humorous science fiction. Even as I was writing “Butter Side Down,” I berated myself for not writing something respectable. I should have been working on an epic about alien contact, intergalactic war, and serious middle-aged men. This wasn’t real science fiction. My idea was ridiculous. My writing was ridiculous. I was ridiculous, and I had no business trying to stick my nose into an industry not built for me.

I was half-right. I was, indeed, being ridiculous. I came to the Writers of the Future Workshop expecting to feel out of place. I thought I’d have to justify myself, but… that didn’t happen. No one told me that I didn’t deserve to be taken seriously. No one demanded to know how I got here or why I thought a light-hearted science fiction rom-com would be worth writing.

Instead I got some new neon signs. Tell us about yourself. We’re interested in your opinion. I hope you keep writing because your perspective’s worth reading. Also, your haircut is cool, actually.

Whoa (again).

I still feel too clumsy and inexperienced as a writer to lecture you about writing tips. What I can do is tell you something that took me ages to learn: ‘good enough’ is not real. There’s no correct way to write something. You don’t need to fit in because the entire point of a creative endeavor is to write something that resonates. You can’t predict what’s going to resonate with a reader, so that leaves you one option— you’ll have to write something that resonates with you.

For me, the story that resonated was something fun and sweet. I didn’t want to copy Dune or Star Wars, even though those seemed like the gold standard of science fiction. What I wanted was an exploration into the inherently human need to belong, told by characters I liked, using a concept that made me laugh. At the crux of it, I wanted to write about loneliness and how friendship can take you by surprise. So, I did. And it turned out that this was exactly what I was supposed to write.

What you think editors want doesn’t matter. The voice in your head telling you that you’re not good enough doesn’t matter. Rejections don’t matter. Failure doesn’t matter. You won’t lose anything, so get out of your head and write the story, draw the picture, and follow the idea to its end. It may turn out weird or silly or uncomfortably emotional. Okay, so what? Is that really so bad?

Imagine. It took me winning this competition and traveling halfway across the world to learn what, in retrospect, sounds obvious. The thing is, I’m not special. Everyone has a bit of ‘I’m not good enough’ in them. Everyone doubts themselves. If this is you right now, I’m telling you that I see you.

“Should I write it even if it’s self-indulgent?”

Yes.

“Should I submit this even though someone else told me they didn’t like it?”

Yes.

“Should I bother trying even though I think I’ll never be good enough to—”

YES.

Listen. This whole writing thing still seems weird and lonely. I’m well aware there are some people who’ll hate my work just because of who I am. But I’m beginning to understand that there are many more people who’ll think exactly the opposite, and I’m getting tired of second-guessing myself based on criteria I can’t even control. Why shouldn’t I write what I want to read? Do I really want to be my own biggest obstacle? What, am I going to look back someday and think, “I wish I’d believed in myself less?”

This whole blog post is as much a message to myself as it is to you. You aren’t your work. An unsuccessful piece is not a reflection of who you are any more than an unsuccessful sandwich is. It’s just something you made. Someone might like it. Someone might not. You may be emotionally attached to the sandwich, but there will be other sandwiches. There will not be another You.

I am choosing not to listen to my insecurities. I am choosing to write for the people who want to read it. I acknowledge that there will be failures and rejections and people who hate my work. I don’t care. I have two hands and a keyboard, and I’m going to make this everyone’s problem.

Okay. You know what you have to do, right? Open that Word document. Write the first line. Now the second. Now the third.

See? You’re doing it. There was never anything to be afraid of.

Keep going. You might not yet know exactly where you’ll end up, but so what?

Kal M grew up in the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, fully intending to someday become a respectable lawyer. After graduating from the London School of Economics with a BA in Anthropology and Law, however, she found herself back in Malaysia, suddenly no longer interested in dealing with contracts. Instead, she decided to admit to herself that what she really wanted to do was write stories. That’s what she does now, and she intends to keep doing so for the rest of her life.

The post You Don’t Need to Fit In appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

And the winners are:

John Barlow from Minnesota
HeatherAnne Lee from New York
Breanda Audrey Petsch from Colorado

Finalists:

Yeo Jin Lee from Texas
Grace Nah from New York
Sidney Shurgin from New York
Kelsey Spade from Kentucky
Michael Vidal from Florida

Semi-Finalists:

Emily Alvarez-Acosta from California
Kate Balogh from California
Jordan Bush from Georgia
Jeslyn Chan from Hong Kong Island
Angelina Chen from California
Travis Deming from Utah
Alec Fortune from Texas
Przemek Gawlas from Poland
Kaitlyn Gulley from Indiana
Bryan M. Hancock from Texas
Ching-Ling Ke from Illinois
Mali Nicholson from California
Jeremy Pena from Florida
Sophia Tegtmeyer from California
Ian Vivas Garcia from Arizona
Lauren Whitesides from Washington
David Wilson from Nevada
Alice Yurkova from California

Honorable Mentions:

Mina Abdullah from Texas
Lau Caminha Aguiar from Brazil
Luciano Aguilar from California
Van Aileen from New Jersey
Rose Ally from Texas
Zeinab Alrubaiee from Michigan
Archita Ananthula from Texas
Kalea Arian from California
Danny Avalos Jr. from Texas
Ameria B from Oklahoma
Victoria Bailey from Texas
Alexandra Barouty from Oregon
Vassilios Bayiokos from New Jersey
Joy Blocker from Nebraska
Ahmi Bradshaw-Nixon from Virginia
Isabel Braman from Wisconsin
Aiden Brown from Georgia
Stacey Brown from Maryland
Theron Brown, II from Texas
Kathryn Brumm from Michigan
Toni Burba from Florida
Carley Caldwell from Maine
Jayli Capasso from New York
GR Collins from Great Britain
Erika Coon from California
Jeri Crippen from Arizona
Ina Crockett from West Virginia
Eernie Culp from Florida
Rose Cumiskey from Virginia
Brandon Dales from Michigan
Dale Davis from Utah
Kristopher De Leon from New York
Celia DeMary from Ohio
Zdravko Denev from Great Britain
Clark Denny from California
Bhimarjun Dhimal from Kansas
Macy Doft from Colorado
Abigail Eckels from Ohio
Tessa Farria from Philippines
Jacob Faulkner from California
Ryan Fay from California
Concetta Franciamore from Italy
Rosy Fu from California
Jailene Garcia from Pennsylvania
Amore Garcia from Texas
Lillian Josephine Haley from Oregon
Lindsey Hatch from Ohio
Jazzy Hawkins from Georgia
Maris Hayes from New York
Kirei Heath from Florida
Regan Herzog from Ohio
Taylor L. Hinders from Texas
Alondra Hippensteel from California
Carolina Hoppmann from South Carolina
Irena Horodynska from Arizona
Kailey Hu from California
Lujain Jallab from South Carolina
Shavonne Johnson from Tennessee
Lillian Jones from Florida
Ananya Kanagaraj from Tennessee
Kae Kapust from South Dakota
Paige Kardos from New Jersey
Bryce Katiman from North Carolina
Anna Kinslow from Texas
Maiya Kisten from Florida
Niko Kristic from Great Britain
Aubrie Landolt from California
Hayden Larson from New York
Ana Leon from Florida
Lucy Lin from Illinois
Alexandra Linlor from California
Xinyi Liu from China
Gosama Maharjan from Maryland
Felix Makennah from New Jersey
Lianna Martinez from Pennsylvania
McKenna McMackin from Oregon
Madolyn McNaughton from Australia
Elka Mei from Canada
Josie Milner from North Carolina
Abigail Moore from Massachusetts
Christina Morse from New York
Alison Nichols from Florida
Anna Nicol from Ohio
Julianna Notaro from Massachusetts
Kayani Ostojich from California
Mark Taylor Overbey from Georgia
Nina Paris from Illinois
Sage Pedersen from Idaho
Neo S. Peepers from Wisconsin
Deja Pemberton from Maryland
Javier Quintana from Italy
Laila Racquel from Texas
Mathew Redmann from Wisconsin
Kariel Rivera from Florida
Kathryn Robertson from North Carolina
Gilbert Rodriguez from Florida
Youvna Salian from India
Micah Sanders from Michigan
Kailey J. Smith from Florida
Nicole Smith from Michigan
Natalie Sorber from Utah
Ken Sorrow from Tennessee
Candice Stephens from Arkansas
Nola Steuer from Oregon
Noel Stinson from Washington
Jaiel Stjohn from Maryland
Sovila Sun from Utah
Alexis Targum from New Jersey
Annika TenBroek from Kansas
Miranda Davina-Gomez Tess from District of Columbia
Miranda Thorne from Virginia
Rodica Todd from Great Britain
Bekzod Toirov from Uzbekistan
Monique Trejo from Nebraska
Hamro Usmonov from Uzbekistan
Claire Vendsel from California
Cyan Vidales Nicoletti from Virginia
Deena Vore from Tennessee
Anna Vyshegorodtseva from Michigan
Michaela Walker from Ohio
Tse’Kai Walker from Ohio
Zan Wang from United Kingdom
Sarah Westawker from Minnesota
Ashley White from California
Chloe Rhoslyn Williams from Minnesota
Nolan Wollmer from Wisconsin
Ash Wong from California
Megan York from Texas
Connie Yu from Illinois

The post Illustrators of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41 appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

And the winners are:

First Place – TR Naus from Virginia
Second Place – Ian Keith from Arizona
Third Place – Joel C. Scoberg from Wales, Great Britain

Finalists:

L.J. Axxelen from Canada
Patrick Leitzen from Iowa
Parker McIntosh from Oregon
Michael Michel from Oregon
Callum Rowland from Great Britain

Semi-Finalists:

A.P. Hawkins from Texas
Erik M. Johnson from Massachusetts
Irene Liang from Texas
C.M. Murray from Delaware
James SW Paris from Tennessee
Thomas Poldervaart from the Netherlands
Kathryn Robertson from North Carolina
Nick Thomas from Ohio
Malia Walker from Colorado

Silver Honorable Mentions:

Matt Athanasiou from Illinois
Jen Bair from Georgia
Kate Bergquist from New Hampshire
Jules Bly from California
Tanner Call from Maryland
Madeleine Chae from North Carolina
Peter Coughlin from New York
Adrian Croft from Canada
Rachael Cupp from Arizona
Kate Dane from Minnesota
Victoria L. Dixon from Kansas
Thomas R. Eggenberger from Japan
Ian Gonzales from Washington
Chris Griffiths from New Zealand
Bill Hackenberger from California
Alex Harford from Great Britain
Hyrum W. Hawks from Utah
Cody Hegel from California
Benjamin Hewett from Texas
Kori L.M. Hughes from New York
C.T. Jones from Australia
Andria Kennedy from Virginia
Gavin Keon from Australia
Kevin Kepko from Florida
Tammy Komoff from Florida
Liz Lazo from Colorado
Jordan Legg from Canada
Christopher Maleney from Pennsylvania
Nathan Marekera from Zimbabwe
Ryan McBride from Washington
A.M. Mischek from Wisconsin
Daniel K. Morgan from Great Britain
Melanie Mulrooney from Canada
Mandy Munro from Australia
Jeff Naylor from Minnesota
Carrina Nieman from Montana
Cara O’Sullivan from Utah
Kathleen Powell from Missouri
Beth Powers from Indiana
Jeffrey Alan Rector from California
K.Z. Richards from Ohio
Steve Rodgers from California
Drew Rogers from California
Caroline Searls from Texas
L.A. Selby from California
Sheri Singerling from Germany
Gideon P. Smith from Massachusetts
Melody Sundholm from Oregon
Ramya Suresh from Washington
Muhammad Hadi Umar from Pakistan
Shannon Valenzuela from Texas
Rory Veguilla from Florida
Jilian Wahlquist from California
Elliott Wink from California
Brad Zeiger from Oregon

Honorable Mentions:

Christopher A. Nadeau from Michigan
Joy Achill from Austria
Chris Africa from Michigan
A.M. Aikman from Florida
Lenore Alecto from Texas
Yasmeen Amro from Jordan
Mark Geraint B. Aragona from Philippines
Lindsey Azurin from California
Tina Back from California
Andrew Barber from Virginia
Gary Battershell from Arkansas
Melissa Beaty from Tennessee
Hannah Beecher from New Hampshire
Ryan Benson from Georgia
Marcelo Bighetti from Utah
HM Bird from Utah
Dave Blake from Great Britain
D.P. Blanchard from Massachusetts
Tyler Bourassa from Canada
Nathan Bowen from Great Britain
C. Clayton Bowman from Virginia
David Bridge from Great Britain
Morgan Broadhead from Ohio
Gabriel Burch from Oklahoma
Ethan Campbell from Hawaii
Jennifer Campbell-Hicks from Colorado
Jenny Perry Carr from Texas
Brandon Case from Nevada
David Chamberlain from California
Joann C. Chapman from Utah
Jordan Chase-Young from Australia
Christopher Cherrwin from California
Patrick Childress from District of Columbia
Gio Clairval from Italy
Chris Clemens from Canada
A.J. Coates from Canada
John Coffren from Maryland
Daniel M. Cojocaru from Switzerland
Zevar Collan from Finland
Derek Coller from Washington
Alexander Condie from Canada
Adelie Condra from Virginia
Jason P. Crawford from California
Brian Crenshaw from Ohio
James D. Crofts, III from Utah
D.M. Cross from Maryland
Sarah Darbee from Louisiana
Edward Daschle from Washington
Emily Dauvin from Canada
Livia E. De Souza from Connecticut
Abigail Deland from Great Britain
John E. DeLaughter from Oklahoma
Michelle J. Diaz from Oregon
Adam Dickson from Canada
Michael Anthony Dioguardi from New York
K.A. Dowd from Utah
Kayleigh Duggan from New York
P. Dupree from South Africa
A.V. Dutson from Utah
Jenna Eatough from Utah
Alex English from Illinois
Mark English from New Zealand
Damien Esposito from New York
Bree Ewing from Kentucky
Timothy Falasca from Florida
Angelique Fawns from Canada
Shirley Bear Fedorak from Canada
Daniel Fenton from Kansas
Aedan Ferrara from California
Samuel Finn from Washington
Kimberly Finnell-Mulvena from Arizona
Isabel Firster from Kentucky
Hannah Flanders from Florida
Cassiopeia Fletcher from Missouri
Luca Forno D’Adamo from U.S. Virgin Islands
Adam Fout from Texas
Shannon Fox from California
Joseph Friesen from Canada
James Fritz from Illinois
John A. Frochio from Pennsylvania
Jack Gallegos from New Mexico
E.M. Gaucher from Canada
Cara Giles from Utah
Nate Givens from Virginia
Vance Gloster from California
Ed Godbois from Massachusetts
J.C.G. Goelz from Louisiana
Arlo Z. Graves from California
Robin Rose Graves from California
Joshua Green from Australia
Jentina Grey from California
Harambee K. Grey-Sun from Virginia
Jeff Grimm from Oregon
William Gronefeld from Ohio
Trent Guillory from Texas
Iver Gullixson from Montana
Kris Hager from Georgia
Alex Hale from Colorado
Mervi Hamalainen from Finland
Su Mon Han from Washington
D.R.R. Hatch from Utah
Christopher Henckel from New Zealand
Jim Henderson from Colorado
Michelle Henrie from Utah
Juliea Miriah Hetherington from Washington
C.R. Hodges from Colorado
Ben Holden from Great Britain
C.B. Iota from New Mexico
Jackson from Florida
Raven Jakubowski from New York
Alex Jantz from Wisconsin
S.R. Jensen from Idaho
Emery Jessop from Utah
Sophia Johannessen from Canada
R.A. Johnson from Pennsylvania
Bob Johnston from Great Britain
Kent Alan Jones from Iowa
Doublas Jones from North Carolina
Arindam Kalita from India
Toshiya Kamei from Missouri
Hannya Kay from Spain
Angela Kayd from Massachusetts
Kristina Kelly from Indiana
Dan Kenner from Idaho
Kari Kilgore from Virginia
Esther Kim from Pennsylvania
David Klotzkin from New York
Niko Kristic from Great Britain
Yuri Kukhar from Pennsylvania
Fernando L R from Mexico
Jason Lairamore from Oklahoma
Brad Larner from Michigan
MQ Larue from Florida
Kathy Latusick from Oregon
Pete Lead from New Zealand
R.J.K. Lee from Japan
Cheri Lee from Michigan
Jennifer Lesh Fleck from Washington
Elizabeth Levin from Illinois
Candice R. Lisle from New Mexico
Hannah Le Liu from Canada
Charlie B. Lorch from France
W.P. Louviere from Oregon
Gene Louviere from Louisiana
Lovett Lovett from Great Britain
E.E. Lucek from Illinois
Natalie Maddern from Australia
Skip Maris from Maryland
Anneli Marks from Denmark
J.R. Martin from Texas
Collin Masteller from California
Django Mathijsen from Netherland
Justin R. McArthur from Canada
Samantha M. McWilliams from New Jersey
Dan Mecham from Utah
Rainbow Medicine-Walker from Washington
Jen Mierisch from Illinois
Devin Miller from North Carolina
Lauren Moore from Texas
Sam Moses from Utah
H.Y. Motte from Arizona
Hallie WhiffleLoop Murat from New Jersey
Lori Ann Nelson from Texas
Scott Newman from Great Britain
Alice Nord from France
Carsan Okamoto from California
John M. Olsen from Utah
Spencer Orey from Denmark
Ryan Owen from Massachusetts
Jacob Perez from California
Jerry Parker from California
B.A. Paul from Indiana
Nicky Penttila from Maryland
Nelson Plank from Missouri
William Platt from Florida
Juho Pohjalainen from Finland
Brenda Posey from Alabama
Alyssa Preston from Ohio
Maddy Rain from Florida
Lee Rector from California
Afton Reed from Utah
S.C. Rey from Utah
J.M. Roberts from Illinois
Jamie Roe from Great Britain
Gavin Ross from Canada
Johanna Rothman from Massachusetts
Alley Rowland from Kansas
Aili Sanchez from Massachusetts
Scott M. Sands from Australia
Annmarie SanSevero from Arkansas
James JH Scala from Canada
Hannah Schofield from Great Britain
Alix Seidman from New Jersey
Lily Séjor from France
Jaakko Seppälä from Finland
Zac Sherman from Ohio
Hank Shore from North Carolina
Joseph Sidari from Massachusetts
G.V. Silva from Germany
Catherine Simpson from Virginia
J.L. Smyser from Colorado
I.J. Sparks from Colorado
Jake Stein from Oregon
Dan W. Stohel from Oregon
Prim Sutchiewcharn from Thailand
Erin L. Swann from Maryland
Amor Tellus from Colorado
Jude Thaddean from Texas
D.J. Thiess from Georgia
Jayden Thompson from Kentucky
Loretta Torossian from Florida
Stephanie Turner from Canada
Timothy James Turnipseed from Texas
Katharine Tyndall from Germany
Theresa Tyree from Oregon
Jack Miles Ventimiglia from Missouri
Eric Vonder Haar from California
Stephanie VonSmore from Florida
KT Wagner from Canada
Hunter Kay Wallace from Montana
Cathleen Weng from Tennessee
Ana Wesley from California
Kevin West from Germany
Dean Westen from Georgia
Iris Whelan from Maryland
Jennica Whitney from Oregon
Leslie Wibberley from Canada
J.F. Wiegand from Maryland
K.A. Wiggins from Canada
A Wilkins from New Zealand
Jarrod K. Williams from Ohio
Paul Wilson from Ohio
Sterling Wolfe from New York
William R.D. Wood from Virginia
David Woolley from Utah
Error Writes from Sweden
Kathleen Zoll from Pennsylvania

The post Writers of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41 appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

The L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests are pleased to announce the second-quarter winners for its 41st year.

For the Writers of the Future Contest, the writer winners for the quarter ending March 31, 2024, are:

• First Place – Randyn Bartholomew from Washington, D.C.
• Second Place – Lauren McGuire from Georgia
• Third Place – Seth Atwater from Missouri

For the Illustrators of the Future Contest, the winners are:

• David Hoffrichter from Pennsylvania
• Hailee Rojas from Massachusetts
• Tremani Sutcliffe from Utah

Congratulations to them all! They will be published in 2025 in L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 41.

You can find the complete list of Finalists, Semi-Finalists, and Honorable Mentions at:

Writers of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41

Illustrators of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41

In 1985, with the release of the first volume of the series, L. Ron Hubbard wrote, “The artist injects the spirit of life into a culture. And through his creative endeavors, the writer works continually to give tomorrow a new form.” The Contest Director, Joni Labaqui, stated, “We remain true to the direction set by Mr. Hubbard of providing that means for the aspiring writer and artist to be seen and acknowledged. We have celebrated winners from 50 out of over 175 countries with entrants.”

The award-winning writers and illustrators will be flown out to Hollywood for a week-long workshop with Contest judges, some of the field’s biggest names. Plus, a lavish awards ceremony.

Writer judges are Kevin J. Anderson, Dr. Doug Beason, Dr. Gregory Benford, Orson Scott Card, Brian Herbert, Hugh Howey, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Nancy Kress, Katherine Kurtz, Todd McCaffrey, Rebecca Moesta, Larry Niven, Jody Lynn Nye, Dr. Nnedi Okorafor, Tim Powers, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Brandon Sanderson, Dr. Robert J. Sawyer, Robert Silverberg, Dean Wesley Smith, and Dr. Sean Williams.

Illustrator judges are Echo Chernik, Lazarus Chernik, Ciruelo, Vincent Di Fate, Diane Dillon, Bob Eggleton, Craig Elliott, Larry Elmore, Laura Freas Beraha, Brian C. Hailes, Brittany Jackson, Val Lakey Lindahn, Stephan Martiniere, Mike Perkins, Sergey Poyarkov, Rob Prior, Irvin Rodriguez, Dan dos Santos, Shaun Tan, Tom Wood, and Stephen Youll.

The success of the Contests is measured by the success of its winning authors and illustrators.

The 559 winners and published finalists of the Writing Contest have published over 2,000 novels and 6,300 short stories, and their works have sold over 60 million copies. In addition, 16 winners have 41 New York Times bestselling books combined.

The 406 past winners of the Illustrating Contest have produced over 6,800 illustrations and 390 comic books, graced 700 books and albums with their art, and visually contributed to 68 TV shows and 40 major movies.

For more information about Writers and Illustrators of the Future, visit www.writersofthefuture.com.

The post Winners Announced: 2nd Quarter Volume 41 Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

The L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests are pleased to announce the third-quarter winners for its 41st year.

For the Writers of the Future Contest, the writer winners for the quarter ending June 30, 2024, are:

• First Place – TR Naus from Virginia
• Second Place – Ian Keith from Arizona
• Third Place – Joel C. Scoberg from Wales

For the Illustrators of the Future Contest, the winners are:

• John Barlow from Minnesota
• HeatherAnne Lee from New York
• Breanda Audrey Petsch from Colorado

Congratulations to them all! They will be published in 2025 in L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 41.

You can find the complete list of Finalists, Semi-Finalists, and Honorable Mentions at:

Writers of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41

Illustrators of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 41

In 1985, with the release of the first volume of the series, L. Ron Hubbard wrote, “The artist injects the spirit of life into a culture. And through his creative endeavors, the writer works continually to give tomorrow a new form.” The Contest Director, Joni Labaqui, stated, “We remain true to the direction set by Mr. Hubbard of providing that means for the aspiring writer and artist to be seen and acknowledged. We have celebrated winners from 50 out of over 175 countries with entrants.”

The award-winning writers and illustrators will be flown out to Hollywood for a week-long workshop with Contest judges, some of the field’s biggest names. Plus, a lavish awards ceremony.

Writer judges are Kevin J. Anderson, Dr. Doug Beason, Dr. Gregory Benford, Orson Scott Card, Brian Herbert, Hugh Howey, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Nancy Kress, Katherine Kurtz, Todd McCaffrey, Rebecca Moesta, Larry Niven, Jody Lynn Nye, Dr. Nnedi Okorafor, Tim Powers, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Brandon Sanderson, Dr. Robert J. Sawyer, Robert Silverberg, Dean Wesley Smith, and Dr. Sean Williams.

Illustrator judges are Echo Chernik, Lazarus Chernik, Ciruelo, Vincent Di Fate, Diane Dillon, Bob Eggleton, Craig Elliott, Larry Elmore, Laura Freas Beraha, Brian C. Hailes, Brittany Jackson, Val Lakey Lindahn, Stephan Martiniere, Mike Perkins, Sergey Poyarkov, Rob Prior, Irvin Rodriguez, Dan dos Santos, Shaun Tan, Tom Wood, and Stephen Youll.

The success of the Contests is measured by the success of its winning authors and illustrators.

The 559 winners and published finalists of the Writing Contest have published over 2,000 novels and 6,300 short stories, and their works have sold over 60 million copies. In addition, 16 winners have 41 New York Times bestselling books combined.

The 406 past winners of the Illustrating Contest have produced over 6,800 illustrations and 390 comic books, graced 700 books and albums with their art, and visually contributed to 68 TV shows and 40 major movies.

For more information about Writers and Illustrators of the Future, visit www.writersofthefuture.com.

The post Winners Announced: 3rd Quarter Volume 41 Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

The L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast launched in 2019 and currently has 288 published episodes and over 65 million downloads in over 110 countries. And just this week, the Podcast Awards: The People’s Choice, one of the most intense podcast competitions in the world with over three million individual people voting for 900 podcasts across 30 categories, announced that the Writers of the Future Podcast is a Finalist in three categories, Art, Education, and Storyteller/Drama. Judging is now underway for overall category winners, which will be announced on International Podcast Day, September 30.

The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast provides education on necessary skills and hard-won business insight while enhancing the ability to tell or illustrate a good story. It is dedicated to providing writing tips and art advice from Contest judges, winners, and industry professionals, as well as inspiring novice writers or artists to persevere. Each writer and artist also explains their journey to success. Between all the show’s guests, there is a story that everyone can relate to and be inspired by. The podcast maintains that original purpose established by Mr. Hubbard when he created the internationally acclaimed Writers of the Future Contest in 1983.

“I am very honored that the The Podcast Awards: The People’s Choice recognized the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast,” stated John Goodwin, President of Author Services, Inc. and the show’s host. Todd Cochrane, CEO of Podcast Connect, the Contest organizer, said, “Making the slate is a serious accomplishment.” Cochrane added, “This year, the voting pool was 3.1 million across 900 participating shows.” Having announced the slate of finalists, final voting from a select 20,000 listeners + 500 industry pros is underway. Contest organizers will announce winners on September 30, International Podcast Day.

The writing and art podcast is one of several tools made available for aspiring writers and artists by the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests. For nearly four decades—and almost 1,000 winning writers and artists—L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests have discovered and nurtured a steady stream of new talent who have changed the face of science fiction and fantasy. With entrants from over 175 countries, and winners from 50, these Contests have been providing “a means for new and budding writers to have a chance for their creative efforts to be seen and acknowledged,” as per the mission statement by L. Ron Hubbard in the first volume.

In addition to Contest winners, guests of the podcast have included such industry giants as Craig Alanson (Expeditionary Force series), Kevin J. Anderson (Clockwork Destiny), Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game), Echo Chernik (Art Nouveau artist), Tom Doherty (Publisher of Tor), Bob Eggleton (winner of 11 Chesley Awards), Larry Elmore (Dragonlance artist), Brian Herbert (Dreamer of Dune), Hugh Howey (Silo), Jonathan Maberry (The Joe Ledger Series), Larry Niven (Ringworld), Nnedi Okorafor (Binti), Tim Powers (On Stranger Tides), Rob Prior (Spawn and Heavy Metal artist), A.G. Riddle (The Atlantis Gene), Robert J. Sawyer (Flash Forward), Dean Wesley Smith (Seeders Universe), Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn Series), Elizabeth Wein (Code Name Verity), Toni Weisskopf (Publisher of Baen Books), and Tom Wood (Tom Wood Fantasy Art).

The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast is available at bit.ly/SoundCloudWOTF and on all major podcast platforms.

The website, www.writersofthefuture.com, is the hub for the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests. It includes the history of each awards event, all Contest judges, and information on how to enter the Contests. Additionally, the Forum, Blog, and Podcast are easily accessed.

The post The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast Recognized by the Podcast Awards: The People’s Choice appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.

The L. Ron Hubbard Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast has just posted episode 300. Now in its fifth year, the Podcast has over 66 million downloads from over 120 countries. It is hosted on SoundCloud and available on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), iHeartRadio, Pocket Casts, Podbay, Podbean, Spotify, and YouTube. The Podcast was syndicated on the United Public Radio Network as it neared its 100th episode and has been a finalist seven times in the People’s Choice Podcast Awards, one of the most intense podcast competitions in the world, with over three million individual people voting for 900 podcasts across 30 categories.

To provide some perspective on the podcast environment, in 2019, there were over 819,000 podcasts. Today, there are over 3.2 million podcasts in the world, according to ListenNotes. A podcast getting over 30 downloads per episode is in the top 50%, a podcast getting over 115 downloads is in the top 25%, and over 4,782 in the top 1%, per The Podcast Host.

The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast was launched in April 2019. It was created to provide writing and illustrating tips and advice from contest judges, winners, and industry professionals for writers and artists, along with the inspiration needed to keep going.

Providing help to aspiring writers and artists is all the more urgent, says podcast host John Goodwin, “There are upwards of four million books published each year, with roughly three million being self-published.”  L. Ron Hubbard noted in his inaugural essay to Writers of the Future that “The competition is very keen and even dagger sharp.” Goodwin concluded, “And so this podcast is dedicated to those wanting to succeed with these art forms.”

The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast was inspired by L. Ron Hubbard’s mission statement in 1983 when he created the Writers of the Future Contest: “A culture is as rich and as capable of surviving as it has imaginative artists. The artist is looked upon to start things. The artist injects the spirit of life into a culture. And through his creative endeavors, the writer works continually to give tomorrow a new form.”

In addition to Contest winners, guests of the Podcast have included such industry giants (listed alphabetically) as Craig Alanson (Expeditionary Force series), Kevin J. Anderson (Dune Prequels), Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game), Echo Chernik (Art Nouveau artist), Roger Christian (Academy Award winner for Star Wars set design), Tom Doherty (Publisher of Tor), Bob Eggleton (winner of 11 Chesley Awards), Larry Elmore (Dragonlance artist), Brian Herbert (Dune prequels), Hugh Howey (Silo), Brandon Mull (Fablehaven), Larry Niven (Ringworld), Nnedi Okorafor (Binti series), Tim Powers (On Stranger Tides), Rob Prior (Spawn and Heavy Metal artist), A.G. Riddle (Quantum Radio), James Rosone (Monroe Doctrine), Robert J. Sawyer (The Oppenheimer Alternative), Dean Wesley Smith (Seeders Universe), Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn), Toni Weisskopf (Publisher of Baen Books), and Tom Wood (Tom Wood Fantasy Art).

The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast is one of several tools made available for aspiring writers and artists by the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests. For over four decades—and nearly 1,000 writers and artists—L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests have discovered and nurtured a steady stream of new talent who have changed the face of science fiction and fantasy.

For more information about Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast, visit writersofthefuture.com/podcast/.

The post The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Podcast Celebrates 300 Episodes appeared first on Writers & Illustrators of the Future.