L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 42 Australia Release with Melbourne Winner

Australia and New Zealand are a major contributor to the genres of science fiction and fantasy. L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 42, just released, has published another winner from Australia, Thomas K. Slee, from Melbourne.

“The Contests have celebrated 23 winners from Australia and New Zealand,” stated Writers of the Future Contest Director Joni Labaqui, “and Thomas continues that legacy.”

• 1992: Illustrator winner and Academy Award winner Shaun Tan (Volume 8), now an Illustrators of the Future Contest judge
• 1993: Writer winner Sean Williams (Volume 9), now a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author and Writers of the Future Contest judge
• 2002: Writer winner Lee Battersby (Volume 18)
• 2005: Writer winner and multi-award-winning author Cat Sparks (Volume 21)
• 2006: Writer winner Richard Kerslake (Volume 22)
• 2006: Illustrator winner Melanie Tregonning (Volume 22)
• 2008: Grand prize writer winner and Aurealis Award winner Ian McHugh (Volume 24)
• 2008: Writer winner Sonia Helbig (Volume 24)
• 2008: Writer winner Alexandra Szweryn (Volume 24)
• 2010: Writer winner and Aurealis Award winner Jason Fischer (Volume 26)
• 2011: Writer winner Patty Jansen (Volume 27)
• 2011: Writer winner and Jim Baen Memorial Award winner R.P.L. Johnson (Volume 27)
• 2011: Writer winner Ben Mann (Volume 27)
• 2012: Writer winner Nicholas T. Chan (Volume 28)
• 2014: Writer winner and multiple Aurealis Award winner Shauna O’Meara (Volume 30)
• 2015: Writer winner and multiple Aurealis Award winner T.R. Napper (Volume 31)
• 2015: Writer winner Samantha Murray (Volume 31)
• 2015: Illustrator winner Amit Dutta (Volume 31)
• 2020: Grand prize writer winner Chris Winspear (McDonald) (Volume 36)
• 2020: Writer winner Michael Gardner (Volume 36)
• 2022: Writer winner J.A. Becker (Volume 38)
• 2024: Illustrator winner Connor Chamberlain from New Zealand (Volume 40)
• 2026: Writer winner Thomas K. Slee (Volume 42)

The Volume 42’s paperback, eBook, and digital audiobook are available on Amazon.com.au at bit.ly/WOTF42australia, and can be ordered in stores throughout Australia and New Zealand.

Selected from a field of thousands of entrants from 180 countries, Volume 42 features winners from eight countries: Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Slovakia, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the USA. The Australian winner is Thomas K. Slee from Melbourne, with his award-winning story, “Form 14B: Application for Certification of Consciousness Transfer (Post-Mortem),” in which a major social influencer has died, but his lawyer insists it’s not the end of the world … just sign here, and you’ll be loaded into a new body in no time.

The anthology, showcasing new science fiction and fantasy short stories paired with illustrations from Contest winners, has earned critical praise:

In their article, “Inside Writers of the Future,” SciFiNow wrote about author Thomas K. Slee “discovering the Contest via Brandon Sanderson, the power of honest feedback, and why red tape might just be more important than we think in his Writers of the Future quarterly first-place story.”

International library review publication Library Journal, provided their verdict in their review of Volume 42, “Following the outstanding previous entries in the series, this 42nd collection provides a representative and thought-provoking sampling of  terrific new voices in speculative fiction, from the dangers of messing with the past to potential hopes and fears for the possible future.”

About the Contests:

In the 42 years of the Writers of the Future Contest, there have been 583 winners and published finalists. The past winners of the Writing Contest have published over 8,000 novels and short stories.

In the 37 years of the Illustrators of the Future Contest, there have been 430 past winners who have produced over 6,800 illustrations and 390 comic books, graced over 700 books, 500 comics, and 130 major motion pictures, gaming feature films, TV shows, and documentaries.

The Writers of the Future Award is the genre’s most prestigious award of its kind and has now become the largest, most successful, and demonstrably most influential vehicle for budding creative talent in the world of speculative fiction. Since its inception, the Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests have produced 42 anthology volumes and awarded upwards of $1 million in cash prizes and royalties.

For more information please visit www.writersofthefuture.com and www.galaxypress.com