Writers of the Future Arrives at Ad Astra in Toronto

TITLE:  Writers of the Future Arrives at Ad Astra in Toronto

SUMMARY:  Brandon Sanderson, Robert J. Sawyer, James Alan Gardner, Tony Pi and Stephen Kotowych introduce L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 33 and talk about their experiences with Writers of the Future at the start of their careers.

Guests of Honor, international bestselling authors and Writers of the Future Contest judges Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn Series) and Robert J. Sawyer (Quantum Night), along with past Canadian Contest winners James Alan Gardner, Tony Pi and Stephen Kotowych were on hand this past weekend at the Ad Astra Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention in Toronto announcing the release of Writers of the Future volume 33.

The panel was moderated by Emily Goodwin, VP Public Affairs Galaxy Press—publisher of the fiction books of L. Ron Hubbard and the Writers of the Future series.  A key topic was how the Contest can provide that much needed support to make it not only as a Canadian writer, but also on the international stage as a writer of science fiction or fantasy.  Each panelist then shared their own perspective on the value of the Writers of the Future Contest in assisting with their writing careers.

Sanderson commented when discussing the value of the Contest at the start of his career, “The first sign that I got that something was going right was when I got the Honorable Mention from Writers of the Future…. It gave me quite the boost.”

Sanderson had earlier noted, “If you look back at the era when I was submitting, Pat Rothfus and I, we are some of the biggest fantasy writers of our generation to break in, and we were both submitting to Writers of the Future.”

It was several years earlier after a World Science Fiction Convention in Toronto that Sawyer had originally been contacted by the Contest.  He recalled, ‘When I was approached to be a judge for Writers of the Future, I had only to look at the names of the other judges to know that this was a group that I wanted to be part of.” 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 contemporary fiction.  Since its inception, the Writers and Illustrators of the Future contests have produced 33 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