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Writers of the Future 4th Quarter Winners

Writers of the Future 4th Quarter Standings for Year 35

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The judging results are in! And here are the 4th Quarter 2018 Writers of the Future Contest winners.
Katherine Kurtz with her bestselling Deryni Rising

Writers of the Future Welcomes Bestselling Author Katherine Kurtz as its Newest Judge

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Bestselling fantasy author Katherine Kurtz becomes judge in L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Contest.
Elise Stephens

This Just Happened: A Writer’s Dream Come True

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This is the journey of Elise Stephens who began writing at the age of six who will now be recognized as a professional writer when she is published in Writers of the Future Volume 35—a dream come true.
Writers of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners

Writers of the Future 3rd Quarter Standings for Year 35

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The judging results are in! And here are the 3rd Quarter 2018 Writers of the Future Contest winners.
Illustrators of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners

Illustrators of the Future 3rd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 35

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Here are the 3rd Quarter 2018 Illustrators of the Future Contest winners for Volume 35. Congratulations to you all!
Rainsdon Brittany Certificates

Birthing Stories: Five in Thirty-Five by Brittany Rainsdon

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I’m Brittany. I’m a nurse. I’m also a mom. I just had a baby. And I got my fourth quarter entry in for the Writers of the Future Contest while working around giving birth.
Author Scott Parkin (right) with fans at SLC FanX18

Writer or Author? How to start a story playing with a question…

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Writers of the Future winner and author, Scott Parkin, talks about how to start a story as a key element in establishing things to write about.
Alicia Cay certificates

How To Start Writing

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I have always known that I am a writer. With the kind of knowing you feel deep in your bones and emanates from the very core of your being. And as writers must do, I write. Although that wasn’t always the case. How to start writing...
Dave Wolverton and Algis Budrys

A Different Kind of Writing Workshop

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When L. Ron Hubbard initiated the Writers of the Future contest, he knew that there would be awards and publications for the winners. As Algis Budry, the first contest administrator put it to me, “He wanted to make sure that this helped launch new writers.
L. Ron Hubbard as president of the New York Chapter of the American Fiction Guild in 1936

Advice to the Word-Weary by L. Ron Hubbard

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He wanted, he claimed, an article in which there was a great deal of sound advice about writing and a number of examples.
Pulp magazine covers featuring L. Ron Hubbard stories

History of Helping New Writers by Algis Budrys

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Novice writers who hoped to learn his storytelling and story-selling skills often consulted L. Ron Hubbard for advice. He was happy to offer suggestions and so he began sharing his hard-earned experience with creative writing students.
David Farland winning Writers of the Future Contest in 1987

Prize Writing—Three Things to Know

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If you think about it deeply, everything that you write is really for a competition. You’re competing for publication with other writers, for promotional monies from the marketing departments of various publishers, for literary awards, and of course for your reading audience.
Kary English, photo by Olav Rokne

Writers of the Future Taps Kary English as New First Reader

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The L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Contest would like to welcome Kary English as the new first reader for contest entries!
Photo by Tegan Mierle on Unsplash

One Foot in Front of the Other

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One writer's journey of persistence on becoming a writer. And how Writers of the Future has helped him stay the course despite a number of falls.
"Slurp" by Lucas Durham

Showcase: Lucas Durham, Illustrators of the Future Winner

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During my first week of college, I was gifted with one of Frank…
Writers of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners

Writers of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 35

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The judging results are in! And here are the 2nd Quarter 2018 Writers of the Future Contest winners.
Illustrators of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners

Illustrators of the Future 2nd Quarter Winners Announced for Volume 35

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Here are the 2nd Quarter 2018 Illustrators of the Future Contest winners for Volume 35. Congratulations to you all!
Frederik Pohl at the 1986 Taos Workshop

How to Impress an Editor by Frederik Pohl

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What goes through an editor’s mind when he reads a story by an aspiring writer? In this article written by Frederik Pohl in 1987 for Writers of the Future volume 3, he is about to tell you.…
Bob Eggleton

Art Is a Journey by Bob Eggleton

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Art? So you want to do art for a living? Do you know what the chances of success are?”
Writers of the Future Golden Pen Award and books published by the winners

Some Important Facts You Should Know About Writers & Illustrators of the Future

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The Writers of the Future Contest began in 1984 and the companion Illustrators of the Future Contest followed 5 years later. Both have grown to become the largest merit competitions of their kind in the world.
Remember the stories in the news about exploding phone batteries? Well, Writers of the Future winner (Vol 33) Stephen Lawson turned the “Lithium-Ion Batteries exploding” phenomena into a terse rescue effort on the planet Titan. The story is “Homunculus” and it was this year’s grand prize award-winner in the Jim Baen Memorial Short Story category.

Alumni Update – Stephen Lawson

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Remember the stories in the news about exploding phone batteries? Well,…