Writers of the Future Volume 33 to be Featured at Ad Astra Convention

For Immediate Release

Contact: Emily Goodwin
email: [email protected]

Writers of the Future Volume 33 to be Featured at Ad Astra Convention With Canada Dean of Science Fiction Robert J. Sawyer Robert J. Sawyer

Toronto, ONT–Past Ad Astra Guest of Honor, international bestselling author and Writers of the Future Contest judge, Robert J. Sawyer (Quantum Night), along with past Contest winners James Alan Gardner (1990), Tony Pi (2007) and Stephen Kotowych (2007) will be on hand this weekend at the Ad Astra Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention in Toronto to announce and celebrate the release of L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 33 in Canada. (The term “Ad Astra” is Latin for “To the Stars.”)

Sawyer had himself entered the Writers of the Future contest until he sold his first novel and so disqualified himself to enter.  John Goodwin, President Galaxy Press publisher of the Writers of the Future series, met Sawyer in 2003 at Torcon 3 (61^st World Science Fiction Convention) when he had won his first Hugo Award, Best Novel, for Hominids. It was soon after that Sawyer became a judge for the Contest.  And it was after attending Writers of the Future Galas as a Contest judge that Sawyer noted, “The Awards ceremony is without parallel in the science fiction field, classier than the Hugos, the Nebulas and the John W. Campbell Memorial ceremonies combined. The list of past winners and runners-up reads like a Who’s Who of the last quarter century of the SF/F field.”

L. Ron Hubbard created the Writers of the Future Contest (www.writersofthefuture.com) in 1983 to provide a means for aspiring writers of speculative fiction to get that much-needed break. Due to the success of the Writing Contest, the companion Illustrators of the Future Contest was created in 1988.

“Volume 33 released earlier in April in the US where it jumped to #6 on national bestseller lists, Publishers Weekly and Wall Street Journal,” stated Emily Goodwin, VP PR Galaxy Press (and from Toronto).  “Because of our past success with Canadian winners, we wanted to present this year’s edition with due fanfare. So I have asked some of our past Canadian winners, along with Mr. Sawyer, to help.”  The panel is scheduled for 1:00pm on Saturday.

James Alan Gardner, known for his novels Expendable, Commitment Hour and Hunted, stated, “The Contest was a fine finishing step from amateur to pro, and I’m grateful to all those involved.”

Toni Pi, 2015 Aurora Award winner for Best English Poem/Song, noted, “My sale to L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 23 undoubtedly opened the way to my nominations for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer and the Prix Aurora Award, and I am truly grateful.”

Stephen Kotowych, winner of Spain’s Ictineu Award, and a two-time finalist for the Prix Aurora Award, Canada’s highest prize for SF, stated, “The Contest has a fabulous track record of finding and nurturing the next generation of great SF writers, and I like to see my win as the judges saying they expect that level of success and performance from me, too.”

Ad Astra writer Guest of Honor, bestselling author and Writers of the Future Contest judge Brandon Sanderson when speaking of the Contest stated, “It really does help the best to rise to the top.” While bestselling author Orson Scott Card, and fellow Contest judge said, “There’s only one reason to pick up Writers of the Future, and that’s because the stories are wonderful.”

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