WRITERS OF THE FUTURE
CONTEST RULES

“A culture is as rich and as capable of surviving as
it has imaginative artists. The artist is looked upon to start things.
The artist injects the spirit of life
into a culture. And through his creative endeavors,
the writer works continually to give tomorrow a new form.”—L. Ron Hubbard

    >>  ENTRANTS RETAIN ALL PUBLICATION RIGHTS
    >>  NO ENTRY FEE IS REQUIRED
    >>  ALL AWARDS ARE ADJUDICATED BY PROFESSIONAL WRITERS ONLY
    >>  PRIZES EVERY THREE MONTHS: $1,000, $750, $500
    >>  ANNUAL GRAND PRIZE: $5,000 ADDITIONAL!
    >>  OPPORTUNITY FOR NEW AND AMATEUR WRITERS OF NEW SHORT STORIES OR NOVELETTES OF SF OR FANTASY

1. No entry fee is required, and all rights in the story remain the property of the author. All types of science fiction, fantasy and dark fantasy are welcome.

2. By submitting to the Contest, the entrant agrees to abide by all Contest rules.

3. All entries must be original works, in English. Plagiarism, which includes the use of third-party poetry, song lyrics, characters or another person’s universe, without written permission will result in disqualification. Excessive violence or sex, determined by the judges, will result in disqualification. Entries may not have been previously published in professional media.

4. To be eligible, entries must be works of prose, up to 17,000 words in length. We regret we cannot consider poetry, or works intended for children.

5. The Contest is open only to those who have not professionally published a novel or short novel, or more than one novelette, or more than three short stories, in any medium. Professional publication is deemed to be payment, and at least 5,000 copies, or 5,000 hits.

6. Entries submitted hardcopy must be typewritten or a computer printout in black ink on white paper, printed only on the front paper, double spaced, with numbered pages. All other formats will be disqualified. Each entry must have a cover page with the title of the work, the author’s legal name, a pen name if applicable, address, telephone number, email address and an approximate word count. Every subsequent page must carry the title and a page number, but the author’s name must be deleted to facilitate fair, anonymous judging.

Entries submitted electronically must be double-spaced and must include the title and page number on each page, but not the author’s name. Electronic submissions will separately include the author’s legal name, pen name if applicable, address, telephone number, email address and approximate word count.

7. Manuscripts will be returned after judging only if the author has provided return postage on a self addressed envelope.

8. We accept only entries for which no delivery signature is required by us to receive them.

9. There shall be three cash prizes in each quarter: a First Prize of $1,000, a Second Prize of $750, and a Third Prize of $500, in U.S. dollars or the recipient’s locally equivalent amount. In addition, at the end of the year the four First Place winners will have their entries rejudged, and a Grand Prize winner shall be determined and receive an additional $5,000. All winners  also receive trophies.

10. The Contest has four quarters, beginning on October 1, January 1, April 1 and July 1. The year will end on September 30. To be eligible for judging in its quarter, an entry must be postmarked or received electronically no later than midnight on the last day of the quarter. Late entries will be included in the following quarter and the Contest Administration will so notify the entrant.

11. Each entrant may submit only one manuscript per quarter. Winners are ineligible to make further entries in the contest.

12. All entries for each quarter are final. No revisions are accepted.

13. Entries will be judged by professional authors. The decisions of the judges are entirely their own, and are final.

14. Winners in each quarter will be individually notified of the results by phone, mail or email.

15. This Contest is void where prohibited by law.

READ THE CONTEST HISTORY >>

 SEND YOUR ENTRY BY MAIL TO:
 L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest
 PO Box 1630
 Los Angeles, CA 90078

VISIT THE WEBSITE:

http://www.writersofthefuture.com/contest-rules