The judges of the World’s largest Science Fiction and Fantasy writing contest have issued a Press Release revealing that the main rejection point for all entrants is setting, character description and a lack of originality.
The Press Release reads as follows:
After every quarter the thousands of entries in the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Contest – the world’s largest and oldest science fiction and fantasy contest – are reviewed by contest administrators and notes are taken on the body of submissions. Tips for those who did not make the finals were announced.
In making the announcement, Dave Wolverton aka David Farland, Writers of the Future Contest coordinating judge and first reader, said, “Originality is the key element to a story being selected as a finalist in this contest. It always has been and always will be. You need to come up with fresh ideas to be a successful writer, so we are looking for those who have their own imagination. Your story must also resonate with the reader. The main problem that I see are that setting or character description are lacking. The writer has not informed you enough about where you are, the circumstances, or the character is barely described. This accounts for 90% of all story flaws. Other flaws include the fact that the idea is not new, or the ‘world’ that the story is situated in has not been thought through enough.”
Originality is the key element to a story being selected as a finalist in this contest. It always has been and always will be. You need to come up with fresh ideas to be a successful writer, so we are looking for those who have their own imagination.
Now in its 30th year, the Writers of the Future Contest began in 1983 and attracts entries worldwide in science fiction and fantasy. Twelve quarterly winners receive prize monies and, along with selected finalists, are published in an annual anthology, L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future (Galaxy Press). The book is sold in bookstores and at Amazon.com and gives the winners the exposure that they need.
Inspired by multiple New York Times best-selling author L. Ron Hubbard, the merit-based Writers of the Future Contest was initiated by him to discover and encourage talented beginning writers of science fiction and fantasy, and thus launch careers.
The idea has proved very successful. Hundreds of winners have had successful writing careers following their win and publication in the anthology, and to date has launched the careers of 12 New York Times bestsellers including:
Jo Beverley, Tobias S. Buckell, Nancy Farmer, Eric Flint, Karen Joy Fowler, Tim Myers, Patrick Rothfuss, Lisa Smedmen, Dean Wesley Smith, Elizabeth Wein, Sean Williams, and Dave Wolverton aka David Farland.
Wolverton recommends that prospective writers visit http://www.writersofthefuture.com for more information on how to enter the contest.
Jennie Ivins
For goodness sake, let’s get our noses out of the air. I pray for the day that the gatekeepers will disappear.