Fantastic Ideas Can Win Fantastic Prizes

The Contest

The contests are open to all amateur writers and illustrators of speculative fiction, free to enter, and judging is blind—the judges see only the story or art and a number assigned to it—making it a true meritocracy. Winners retain full rights to their work.

The award is considered 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.

The Prizes

Each grand prize winner received a check for $5,000 in addition to the prize money they received when initially announced as quarterly winners. The Contest flies all winners to Los Angeles for an expense-paid, week-long workshop given by Contest judges and culminating in a Black Tie Gala Awards event.

The Winners

This year’s grand prize writer winner is David Henrickson from Sterling, VA. Dao Vi from Sylmar, CA, who was born in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam was named 2023 grand prize illustrator winner.

“Writers and Illustrators of the Future, by the very nature of the Contests, has become one of the most diverse anthologies published, this year with winners from nine countries,” stated John Goodwin, President, Author Services, Inc., L. Ron Hubbard’s Literary Agency. 

Quarterly Winners and Published Finalist of the Writer’s Contest included: Samuel Parr of Market Harborough, United Kingdom; Spencer Sekulin of Newmarket, Ontario, Canada; L.H. Davis of Malabar, FL; Devon Bohm of West Hartford, CT; Arthur H. Manners of Cambridge, England; David Hankins of Bettendork, IA; J.R. Johnson of Ottawa, Canada; Elaine Midoch of Pembroke Pines, FL; Marianne Xenos of Amherst, MA; Jason Palmatier of State College, PA; and T.J. Knight of Glen Spey, NY. Britany Rainsdon of Blackford, IN, a 2022 Quarterly Writer winner, was also honored.

Quarterly Winners of the Illustrator’s Contest included: Alexandra Albu of Iasi, Romania; Clarence Bateman of Bronx, NY; Sarah Morrison of Malden, MA; Ximing Luo of Ellicott City, MD born in Hangzhou, China; Alaya Knowlton of Sarasota, FL; Kristin Hadaway of Abington, MD; José Sánchez of San José, Costa Rica; Helen Yi of Sarasota, FL and Seoul, South Korea; Chris Binns of Hillsboro, OR; April Solomon of Laguna Beach, CA, and Chris Arias of Cartago, Costa Rica.

The Origins

L. Ron Hubbard created the Writers of the Future Contest to give aspiring writers of speculative fiction a much-needed break. Due to the success of the Writing Contest, the companion Illustrators of the Future Contest was created.

Past winners of the Writing Contest have published 2,000 novels and nearly 6,300 short stories. They have produced 36 New York Times bestsellers, and their works have sold over 60 million copies.

IIllustrating Contest winners have produced over 6,800 illustrations, 390 comic books, graced 700 books and albums with their art, and visually contributed to 68 television shows and 40 major movies. 

Learn More

For further facts, including how to enter next year’s contest and here to get this year’s anthology, visit www.writersofthefuture.com.

 "“Writers and Illustrators of the Future has become one of the most diverse anthologies published, this year with winners from nine countries,” stated John Goodwin, President, Author Services, Inc., L. Ron Hubbard’s Literary Agency."