The milestone 20th Anniversary L.Ron Hubbard Achievement Awards have been conferred on winners of the internationally-acclaimed 2003 Writers and illustrators of the Future Contests for new and aspiring writers and illustrators of speculative fiction - - representing countries from the United States and The Netherlands, Panama and Croatia --- in landmark ceremonies at Hollywoods storied Beverly Hills Hotel. The Achievement Awards event also honored world famous fantasy and science fiction author Anne McCaffrey, creator of The Dragonriders of Pern Saga and a judge of the Writers of the Future contest virtually since the outset, with this years coveted L. Ron Hubbard Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Arts.
Hollywood CA (PRWEB) August 24, 2004 -- The milestone 20th Anniversary L.Ron Hubbard Achievement Awards have been conferred on winners of the internationally acclaimed 2003 Writers and illustrators of the Future Contests for new and aspiring writers and illustrators of speculative fiction -- representing countries from the United States and The Netherlands, Panama and Croatia -- in landmark ceremonies at Hollywoods storied Beverly Hills Hotel.
Twenty-five contest winners -- 14 writers and 11 illustrators -- received prizes during the Hubbard Achievement Award Ceremonies, now regarded as one of the top trio of accolades for creative excellence in all of speculative fiction. The Hubbard contests for the best new creative talent in the field of science fiction, fantasy and horror with cash prizes totaling nearly $30,000 are the largest, most successful and most widely influential merit competitions of their kind in the world.
The Achievement Awards event also honored world famous fantasy and science fiction author Anne McCaffrey, creator of The Dragonriders of Pern Saga and a judge of the Writers of the Future contest virtually since the outset, with this years coveted L. Ron Hubbard Lifetime Achievement Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Arts.
Other notable guests at the event were Joe Beverly, a former winner of the contest and now one of the most celebrated authors in the romance book field; Robert Sawyer, Hugo and Nebula award winner, Steven Hickman, famed illustrator with more than 450 book covers to his credit and Dr. Story Musgrave, multi-award winning NASA astronaut.
A premier highlight of the evenings ceremonies was a recital by world renouned musical virtuoso Chick Corea and his internationally celebrated Elektric Band of selections from Coreas vividly innovative new musical tone poem, To The Stars, dramatically capturing characters, scenes and events from the classic science fiction novel of future space travel by L. Ron Hubbard.
The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contest was honored by a presentation by Publishers Weekly from Twenty years of outstanding achievement of its aims - - to provide new and budding writers and artists a chance for their creative efforts to be seen and acknowledged." Publishers Weekly, is considered the bible of the publishing industry and the presentation was made by Roy Kops of the magazine. The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Contests were also honored by the Mayor and the City of Los Angeles with a special 20th Anniversary commemorative proclamation.
Participants in the 20th Annual Hubbard Achievement Awards comprised a marquee, multiple-prize winning roster of New York Times and international bestselling authors – all among the foremost writers in the field of speculative fiction and all judges of the Writers of the Future Contest - - that included Kevin J. Anderson, Doug Beason, Gregory Benford, Nina Kiriki Hoffman, Eric Kotani, Larry Niven, Fredrik Pohl, Jerry Pournelle, Tim Powers and Writers Contest Coordinating Judge, K.D. Wentworth.
Top ranking Illustrator of the Future judges participating in the event included Vincent Di Fate, Frank Kelly and Laura Brodian Freas, Illustrator Contest Coordinating Judge, Ron Lindahn and his wife and Illustrator colleague, Val Lakey Lindahn, Judith Holman, and 1991 Illustrator Grand Prize winner, Sergey Poyarkov.
The culmination of a lifetime of dedicated commitment to helping other writers, particularly beginners, become more accomplished, productive, and successful at their craft - - and reflecting his own versatile career over five decades as a preeminent professional and quintessential writers writer - - L. Ron Hubbard created the Writers of the Future contest and groundbreaking annual anthology in late 1983 as a means for new and budding writers to have a chance for their creative efforts to be seen and acknowledged."
The companion Illustrators or the Future Contest was inaugurated in 1988, consistent with the legacy of Mr. Hubbards literary objectives and goals, to do for beginning illustrators in the field of speculative fiction, and other genres, what the earlier contest had already achieved for new writers.
Capping the ceremonies was the awarding of Hubbard Gold Award Grand Prizes -- including $4,000 in cash – to the top winners in each Contest. Receiving the Grand Prize for the 2003 Story of the Year" was William Katz of Arlington, Virginia, while The Illustrator of the Year Prize went to Laura Diehl of Grottoes, Virginia.
The Hubbard Achievement Awards Event also was highlighted by the release of L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future, Volume XX (Galaxy Press), the yearly original anthology of never-before published winning stories and accompanying illustrations. -- ranging in themes and narrative flow across the universe of mysterious new worlds, unexplored galaxies and strange dimensions -- and representing the pinnacle international showcase for the best new writers and illustrators of speculative fiction.
Past winners of the Writers of the Future Contest, alone, have collectively gone on to publish over 250 novels -- a number of them New York Times, London Times and USA Today bestsellers -- and some 3,000 short stories, with more than 23 million copies of their works sold around the globe.
In his own phenomenally prolific and versatile 56-year writing career, L. Ron Hubbard published more than 250 novels, novellas and stories in virtually every major genre, including such trendsetting works of speculative fiction as To The Stars, The Kingslayer, Fear and Final Blackout, and his crowning masterworks, Battlefield Earth and the 10-novel Mission Earth series.
Over 158 million copies of his works -- underscored by 19 New York Times bestsellers( including an unprecedented 11 in less than two years) – have been sold in 58 languages in 155 countries.
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