Maj Philipp Debriefs His 500 Year Tour

REBECCA MOESTA LATEST WRITERS OF THE FUTURE JUDGE

At the outset of this blog, I had posted the news about Rebecca Moesta being the most recent judge for the Writers of the Future Contest. As the viewership of the blog has markedly increased since those initial days, and since I now have a cool photo she sent me, I am reposting this announcement. So once again she is welcomed as a judge to this contest.

You can see her bio at http://www.wordfire.com/bio-reb.html

MAJ FRED PHILIPP 500 YEAR TOUR OF DUTY DEBRIEF

The following follow-up story just came in from Mjr. Fred Phillipps in response to the last post where he was seen traveling in his time machine:

Yes. Writers of The Future was going strong in 2500 and beyond. However things are not always great for Writers of the Future (WOTF and later WOFT). I didn't always watch the date meter, so I can't say for sure when everything happened.

I saw Writers of the Future rise to become the best selling book in the world and then the Galaxy.

I saw families hunkered down in shelters reading WOFT to their frightened children; inspiring them to write their own stories.

I saw the entire collection of WOFT (1-150; minus 34 and 98 which were banned) inscribed on a thousand metallic disks and shot out into space from the lunar canon.

I saw WOFT forced underground by a jealous emperor. I saw the great WOFT temple burned to ashes with the writers inside. I watched the rise and fall of the rats.

I looked on as an archeologist shouted for joy when he unearthed Writer of the Future LXVII (the plastic edition) from the once lost ancient library of Alexandria (VA). I saw scholars comparing the WOFT LXI Korean version with the newly discovered Hieroglyphic version to once again translate the ancient writing on the Arctic pyramids.

I saw a man beaten to death for suggesting that the stories written in theWOFT may not all be true and that maybe every writer doesn't deserve a separate holiday or even a sacrifice.

Finally I saw silver saucers (yes they were actually saucers) land a on a primitive earth. The green humanoids who stepped out of these saucers had searched the universe looking for one thing: They where here to find the Galaxy Press, so that they could turn in their own submissions for entry into the next Writers of the Future.

Good Luck
Maj Fred Philipp

Troops in the Future Are Still Reading Writers of the Future

Mjr Fred Philipp just back from a journey into the future on his time machine was quick to note that Writers of the Future was still going strong in 2500!


There are a lot of Writers of the Future books spread all over the world due to the voracious reading habits of troops in each of our armed services -- and due to these being great books. I have posted a few photos over the past few weeks of servicemen reading Writers of the Future.

CONTEST ANNOUNCED

I am offering a first edition copy of Battlefield Earth (currently sold for $100) to the most clever photo of someone reading Writers of the Future. I will post all photos that are sent so everyone can see what has been sent in. I look forward to any and all entries!

Finalists for Volume 23 announced

The following article just appeared in an NBC article on Andrea Kale, winner for WOTF 23.

Conan Staffer Honored


Congratulations to Andrea Kail, the script coordinator for "Late Night with Conan O’Brien". Kail was honored with a Writers of the Future award for her science fiction novelette, "The Sun God at Dawn, Rising from a Lotus Blossom". Kail’s story will compete for the Grand Prize award in August.

“If it weren’t for the Writers of the Future Contest, it would have taken much, much longer for my work to come to the attention of influential editors and agents,” Kail said. “I am a perfect example of why this contest was created.” Kail began writing fiction in 2004.

The Contest has helped more than 500 aspiring writers and illustrators to achieve their goals as a published writer or illustrator. Congratulations Andrea!

Here are the Finalists for Writers of the Future 23. As I noted yesterday, just by being able to claim that you are a finalist in the Writers of the Future will quite often result in your submissions coming out of the slush pile.

1st Quarter

Stephen Gaskell - Worthing, UK
Ian Creasey - Leeds, UK
Kim Ritchie - Bothell, WA
Katie Howenstine - Seattle, WA
Kris Dikeman - New York, NY

2nd Quarter

Joanne Steinwachs - Denver, CO
Benjamin Hardin - Provo, UT
Patrick Lundrigan - Boonton, NJ

3rd Quarter

Stephanie Basalyga - Beaverton, OR
Andrew Est - Ashburn, VA
Cat Rambo - Redmond, WA
Lael Salaets - Oakridge, OR
Adrian Simmons - Norman, OK

4th Quarter

Andrew Zimmerman Jones - Anderson, IN
Janna Silverstein - Seattle, WA
Laurel Amberdine - Glenview, IL
Ian McHugh - Hackett, ACT, Australia
Tristan Davenport - Santa Cruz, CA

Eugene winners get great newspaper article!

For a really great article on two of our recent winners to be published in WOTF 23, have a read of what Karen McCowan has to say from the Eugene Register-Guard. I had called her and mentioned that I wondered what it was about Eugene that resulted in so many contest winners. She also wondered, and, well, have a read for yourself and see what she came up with...

Eugene's bunch of Wordos continues to find success

By Karen McCowan

The Register-Guard

. . .

And - cue "Twilight Zone" theme - Eugene and Eugene?

Two local writers, John Burridge and Damon Kaswell, will receive awards, compete for a grand prize of $5,000 and have their short fiction published by Galaxy in this year's "Writers of the Future" anthology of fantasy, science fiction and horror stories.

"I saw that they were both from Eugene and thought, `There must be something in the water up there!' " Goodwin said.

You can click here to read the article in full: The Register-Guard

Damon Kaswell (left) and John Burridge have honed their science-fiction and fantasy writing as members of The Wordos, a local writers group.

Photo by

Wayne Eastburn
The Register-Guard

NEWS ON FINALISTS

I received an email yesterday inquiring about the Contest finalists and realized that I hadn't posted these for all to know. I have spoken with several finalilsts, who by simply adding that they were a finalist in the Writers and Illustrators Contest, have had their work taken out of the slush pile by editors. So for the sake of our finalists and for the sake of the Editors who will want to know about them, I will be posting all finalists for volume 23 in tomorrow's post.

As a note, we are about a week or two away from determining any finalists who will be published in volume 23. So stay tuned and I will get this posted as soon as it is finalized.

More Ad Astra News

MIKE RIMAR (WOTF 21) WROTE IN WITH THIS NEWS...

Below photo: Jim C. Hines (WOTF 15), Robert Sawyer (contest judge), James Alan Gardner (WOTF 6), Toni Pi (WOTF 23) and Mike Rimar (WOTF 21).



Below photo: Toni Pi, Mike Rimar and Stephen Kotowych

Well, I've finished my very first convention as a panelist and I have to say, I like sitting on this side of the table. Where else will I get to sit with GoH Cory Doctorow, as I did Friday night, and have him listen as if I knew what I are talking about--which I did of course, ahem.

That panel had me extremely nervous, but the one I should have really worried about was the Girl Ghosts panel. Only about five people showed up in the audience and it was evident that everyone knew more about the subject than me. In my defense, I did not know I would be on the panel till Friday night when I picked up my badge.

Oh well, live and learn.

Sunday was the best of the three days for me. I attended a panel on editing where I always learn at least something new. This time I learned to write sign like this:

NO TRESPASSING

Not sure about the punctuation though. Hmmm.

Anyway, after that I was on the Writers of the Future panel and that was just loads of fun. Past Winner Alan James Gardner moderated. Robert Sawyer, who is a judge, also attended, as well as Jim C. Hines, another past winner. This year's winners Steve Kotowych and Tony Pi rounded out the cast of characters. We had a good crowd and most seemed genuinely interested in the contest.

After that was an anthology book launch by Canadian author Julie Czerneda where Tony PI and I won prizes of many books. Very cool.

After that was my final panel on magazines vs. anthologies which went very well.

I had a great time, and now I had better get something published so I have a reason to go next year.

Mike

AND THIS JUST IN FROM APEX MAGAZINE

Hey John, you'd ask me to keep you in the loop when we publish WotF winners...

Apex #9 was released and it features two past winners, Geoffrey Girard and Katherine Howestine.

We also just announced a novella titled Temple: Incarnations from past winner Steven Savile.

Thx!

Jason Sizemore

The Art of Geir Lanesskog

Following is the art of Illustrators of the Future winner Geir Lanesskog now residing in Seattle, WA, USA. His first illustration is titled "First Landing."


The second illustration is titled, "Lost Soul."

His third illustration is titled, "Ringside View."


I have now shown the winning art from all of this year's Illustrator of the Future winners.

In weeks to come, I will also feature art from past winners of the Illustrator's contest so you can see what they are doing now.

Ken Scholes on Writers of the Future

KEN SCHOLES (WOTF 21)

Not long ago, I promised an update on what's been happening for me since Writers of the Future XXI. Here it is, in a nutshell.

After coming home from the workshop and awards ceremony in Seattle, I continued to write and sell short stories. About a year later, I wrote my first novel, The Psalms of Isaak: Lamentation , based on a story of mine that had done well in Realms of Fantasy. At about the same time, Fairwood Press put out a limited, hardcover edition of my novelette Last Flight of the Goddess. Last Flight is doing well (I'll be sending a copy down to the Author Services Library soon), picking up some nice mentions including this one in the May issue of Analog I sent the novel to an agent in January and am now represented by Jennifer Jackson of the Donald Maass Literary Agency.

My writing career is off to a solid start and I credit the Writers of the Future program as a key factor in my continued success. Besides being a remarkable, pro-level venue for publication, the workshop is an amazing, skill-sharpening experience and the boost of confidence and exposure from that week is a great help in a field where external validation is hard to come by when you're first starting out. I am promoting the contest now at every con I attend and telling all of my friends that it's a great opportunity.

Folks who want to ask me more about my experience may contact me through my website -- www.sff.net/people/kenscholes -- or visit my live journal at http://kenscholes.livejournal.com .

Cheers!

Ken

P.S. Also, the story my novel is based on, "Of Metal Men and Scarlet Thread and Dancing with the Sunrise," (Realms of Fantasy, August 2006)) made the Locus Recommended Reading List and is eligible for a Locus Award. More details on that are at https://secure.locusmag.com/2007/2007PollAndSurvey.html

The novel continues that story and is part of an anticipated five volume series.

More Ad Astra News from Stephen Kotowych

I see you’ll be posting a few reports about the Writers of the Future panel this past weekend at AD ASTRA. Thought I’d add my two cents if you’d like to include them with the others.

The Writers of the Future panel was well attended, especially for an 11 am Sunday panel (keep in mind most people at the con had likely been up all Saturday night) and it definitely filled up as the hour progressed.

The panelists who had already been to the WOTF event—James Alan Gardner, Mike Rimar, and Jim C. Hines—related their experiences, and it was interesting to hear how the event runs, and how it has changed over time (Jim won in 1990, and Mike and Jim have both been in the last few years). Rob Sawyer had some very good things to say about his experience as a judge, and the high quality of the finalist stories he’d read.

One common theme mentioned by the panelists was that having a Writers of the Future credit in your submission cover letter immediately got you taken seriously. Many of the panelist commented that after their WOTF win, when stories were rejected they were accompanied by personal rejections from editors (whereas before they’d been getting form rejection letters—and I can attest to this personal rejection phenomenon personally).

Tony Pi and I (both winners this year) were excited by the discussion of the original art that will accompany each story in the anthology. Both Jim Gardner and Rob Sawyer commented that they have original artwork based on their stories hanging in their homes, and on what a thrill it is to have art inspired by your writing. Rob even said he’s seen WOTF winners break into tears of joy when they first lay eyes on the art for their stories done by the Illustrators of the Future winners. I can’t wait to see what will accompany my story!

All in all, I think it went very well, and I may have learned more about the contest and what to expect from the week-long workshop than anyone else in the room.

I was also on a panel Saturday (my first ever panel as a writer!) about what day jobs writers have. It was a real thrill to be on that panel with Terence M. Green, a 2-time World Fantasy Award finalist, and hear him talk about how he made time to write
while working for 30 years as a high school English teacher. Also on the panel were authors Hayden Trenholm (who works as a policy consultant for a Canadian senator), and Jana Paniccia (who works for PriceWaterhouseCooper), one of the editors of the DAW Books anthology Under Cover of Darkness (which includes my
first published story).

And immediately following the WOTF panel was the second launch for Under Cover of Darkness which was exceptionally well attended and a lot of fun. Many copies of the anthology sold and the line-up for autographs was so long we actually ran half and hour into the room time booked for the next panel. A great time, all around!


This us sitting down for the WOTF panel. L to R: Tony Pi (WOTF 23), Rob Sawyer WOTF judge), James Alan Gardner (Grand Prize Winner WOTF 6), Stephen Kotowych (WOTF 23), Mike Rimar (WOTF 21), and Jim Hines (WOTF 15)

This is a close-up of Stephen Kotowych, Mike Rimar, and Jim Hines. Note Mike’s published finalist trophy (which Jim seems to be snatching...)

This is of my first panel, “Not Just a Writer”, and L to R: Hayden Trenholm, Terence M. Green, Stephen Kotowych, and Jana Paniccia.

SHARE YOUR NEWS!

Be sure to share your news with the Writers & Illustrators of the Future blog. Send photos, books and art sold. If its interesting to you, its no doubt interesting to others as well and this is where they can find out about it!

The Art of Yuliya Kostyuk

Following are the winning illustrations of Yuliya Kostyuk of Kiev, Ukraine. The first illustration is titled "Successful Hunting."

The second illustration is titled "Chasing."

The third illustration is titled "Ensnaring."

LAURA DIEHL (WOTF XX)

Laura Diehl was an Illustrators of the Future winner for volume 20.

What am I doing these days?

Lots! I've been really working on the business side of illustration as of late. I'm now officially Laura Diehl Illustration, registered with all the applicable local people (clerk of the court, my town). I've most recently been working on another website redesign, and, of course, that huge post-card promo took a while to get together.

What's new?

Since I graduated with my BFA (almost a year ago, hard to believe!), I've been working primarily with small presses and self-published authors creating cover artwork for Fantasy and Sci-Fi books. I am also hard at work on a fantasy picture book, writing and illustrating my own story. We'll see where that goes!

What's been published?

Here's the list of what I've done from last January to present (to make things easier all of my images have titles that correspond to their applicable books):

- Dragon Moon Press , Alberta, Canada - Book Cover for Too Many Princes (2007) [small press]
- Danny Kelly , Glendora, CA - Book Cover for Book of Angels: The Fall (2007) [to be published]
- Luna Brillante Publications , Yosemite, FL - Book Cover for Just Like A Fairy Tale (2006) [small press]
- Destifire Entertainment , Northampton, PA - Book Cover for Time Warriors 4 (2006) [self-publishing author]
- Sfxfantasy, Singapore - Book Covers for: Dark Warriors , Lost in Another Realm , Warrior Girl , and A Warrior's Death (2006) [self-publishing author]
- Zumaya Publications , Austin, TX - Book Cover for A Knight's Wish (2006) [small press]
- Continuum New York , New York, NY - Book Cover for Phillip Pullman: Master
Storyteller (2006) [larger academic press]

I'm currently reading the manuscript for a story called Small Magics , to be published by Dragon Moon Press.

Thanks for the banner images. I'll most certainly put one up on my link page when I launch my newly re-designed site :)

Best, Laura --
Laura Diehl Laura Diehl Illustration
Laura@LDiehl.com
http://www.ldiehl.com/

More Great News...

Here is some great news from three previous Writers of the Future winners:

ERIC JAMES STONE (WOTF 21)

I got an email this morning from Eric Flint, editor of Jim Baen's Universe (http://www.baensuniverse.com/). He's decided to buy "Premature Emergence," the story I wrote during the Writers of the Future Workshop in Seattle back in 2005. Since the story would never have been written without the workshop, I think this is definitely a WOTF success story.
Because I was a published finalist before being a winner, I was lucky enough to go to the workshop twice. This sale means both of my workshop stories have sold at pro rates -- my 2004 workshop story "Salt of Judas" appeared in the March 2006 issue of InterGalactic Medicine Show (http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com/).
--Eric

DAVID SAKMYSTER (WOTF 22)

I finally have a couple updates (and potentially some more in the hopper but I don't want to jinx those...)

1) The Red Envelope has been accepted for inclusion in the anthology, 'Best New Romantic Fantasy', edited by Paula Guran (Wildside Press's Juno Imprint), due out at the end of 2007.

2) My story 'Stowaway' has made it onto the shortlist for the annual 'Aeon Award', with winners to be announced in September in Copenhagen.

3) My screenplay adaptation of The Red Envelope is currently being reviewed by two independent production companies.

Thanks - will keep you updated (and I'll probably be looking to do some more combo-signings when the new anthology comes out).

Dave

STEVEN SAVILLE (WOTF 19)

Just had to share a couple of things:

ONE:
The International Association of Media Tie-In Writers is pleased to announce the nominees for the first annual Scribe Awards, honoring excellence in licensed tie-in writing for books published in 2006.

Our first annual GRANDMASTER AWARD, honoring career achievement in the field, will go to DONALD BAIN, author of the MURDER SHE WROTE novels and the ghostwriter behind COFFEE, TEA OR ME and other bestsellers.

The 2007 Scribe awards will be given out at a ceremony in late July at Comic-Con in San Diego. The details on the event, and how to attend, will be announced in the near future. Congratulations to all our nominees and special thanks to our judges for all their hard work and dedication!

SPECULATIVE FICTION

BEST NOVEL – ADAPTED
SLAINE: THE EXILE by Steven Savile
SUPERMAN RETURNS by Marv Wolfman
TOXIC AVENGER: THE NOVEL by Lloyd Kaufman & Adam Jahnke
ULTRAVIOLET by Yvonne Navarro
UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION by Greg Cox

BEST NOVEL – ORIGINAL
STAR TREK CRUCIBLE: McCOY – PROVENANCE OF SHADOWS by David R. George III STARGATE ATLANTIS: EXOGENESIS by Elizabeth Christensen & Sonny Whitelaw
THIRTY DAYS OF NIGHT: RUMORS OF THE UNDEAD by Jeff Mariotte & Steve Niles WARHAMMER: FAITH AND FIRE by James Swallow
WARHAMMER: ORC SLAYER by Nathan Long

GENERAL FICTION

BEST NOVEL - ADAPTED
SNAKES ON A PLANE by Christa Faust
THE PINK PANTHER by Max Allan Collins

BEST NOVEL – ORIGINAL
CSI NEW YORK: BLOOD ON THE SUN by Stuart Kaminsky
LAS VEGAS: HIGH STAKES by Jeff Mariotte
MR. MONK GOES TO HAWAII by Lee Goldberg
OAKDALE CONFIDENTIAL: SECRETS REVEALED by Alina Adams

YOUNG ADULT – ALL GENRES

BEST NOVEL
ALIAS APO: STRATEGIC RESERVE by Christina York
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: PORTAL THROUGH TIME by Alice Henderson DRAGONLANCE: WARRIOR'S HEART by Stephen Sullivan
KNIGHTS OF THE SILVER DRAGON: PROPHECY OF THE DRAGONS by Matt Forbeck

TWO
I just returned from London where I agreed a very nice deal (my highest to date) with a pop culture publisher, Plexus, to write TELEVISIONARIES a critical study of 50 years of Cult SF tv from The Twilight Zone through to Torchwood, where I get to be all opinionated and ramble on about Buffy, Angel, Dr Who and every show under the sun...

THREE
I have sold a new novel to Black Library, as yet untitled, due for release March 08 . It will be my fourth for them, the first following on from the Von Carstein Vampire trilogy.

Life is pretty good right now -

Hope you and yours are having a grand old time!

S.

Help Needed to Upgrade this Blog Look

I have received many great reports regarding the content of this site - the great photos, incredible artwork and wonderful successes of contest winners.

BUT --- there is one thing that I would really like some suggestions and help with and that is designing this blog so that it really looks like a Writers and Illustrators of the Future blog site, rather than a template I pulled up from blogger.com.

WITH SO MANY ILLUSTRATORS OF THE FUTURE WINNERS, I should think that I could get someone to help with a great template design and even some suggestions on upgrades to the blog that would make it even more the place to go to find out about the Contests and its judges and winners.

You can email me directly at pr@galaxypress.com with your ideas, suggestions, etc.

I have some great reports from ADASTRA convention this past weekend in Canada, and Steven Savile, who is doing incredibly well since winning the contest which will be posted in the next few days. Plus I have more art to post tomorrow.

But, with more and more people coming to this blog every week, I would like to do a rapid upgrade.

Thanks!

John

The Troops In Iraq Really Enjoy Writers of the Future!

Galaxy Press,

Thank you for sending us several copies of Writers of the Future XXII. These books were a welcome addition to our small library here at the US Embassy in Iraq. Of the hundreds of books in the library, these books see the least shelf time. I also sent several copies out with soldiers returning to their forward operating bases in other parts of the country. The short stories in this book were all superb. Each story is was unlike any story I’ve ever read before. In the military we are often told to think outside the box. I can honestly say that the stories in the book were all written by “outside the box” thinkers. I have always believed that good science fiction stimulates creative thinking. I also enjoyed this book because it allowed me 12 new opportunities to escape to a place far different from any place that I’ve ever been. I’m sure that the men and women who are out there patrolling streets will appreciate the break from reality even more.

Very Respectfully

MAJ Fred Philipp
United States Army
Multi National Force
Iraq

IRAQ'S ARCH DE TRIUMPH

THE NAVY ENJOYS WRITERS OF THE FUTURE AS WELL!



SEAN WILLIAMS LETS THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG!

A NEW STAR WARS VIDEO GAME AND A COMPANION BOOK BY WRITERS OF THE FUTURE WINNER AND CONTEST JUDGE

To quote the official site:"Star Wars: The Force Unleashed...casts players as Darth Vader's 'Secret Apprentice' and promises to unveil new revelations about the Star Wars galaxy. The expansive story, created under direction from George Lucas, is set during the largely unexplored era between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope."One glance at the artwork above will give you an idea of the energy the game is going to contain. Again, to quote the site:"The Secret Apprentice won't just Force push enemies into walls - he'll Force push enemies through walls. The Secret Apprentice won't just Force grip foes to throw them aside - he'll Force grip them in midair, zap them with lightning, then drop them to the ground to explode like a bomb."Does that sound cool or what?Anyway, the game is out in November. The novelization I've written--one of the only places fans will get the "canon" end of the story--will be out shortly beforehand. I'm excited, and very proud to be involved in the Star Wars universe again.

For more information on Sean's project go to: http://ladnews.livejournal.com/30230.html

The Art of Lorraine Schleter

Following is the art of 4Q Illustrator of the Future winner Lorraine Schleter of Ft Branch, IN. Her first illustration is titled "Morgan le Fay."

Her second illustration is titled "Samhain."

Her third illustration is titled "The Freak."

WRITERS OF THE FUTURE WINNER SUCCESS

Lawrence Schliessman won the Writers of the Future contest and published his story "Cancilleri's Law" under the pen name Gabriel F.W. Koch.

"As a bookstore owner and a writer, I am very aware of how difficult it can be for a new author to get that first important break.

"Through research, I learned that L. Ron Hubbard started the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future contest in 1984 as a vehicle to assist new and aspiring writers enter the world of successfully published authors.

"Of course writing skill is required as is persistence. I entered five times over the years. Each time, I entered without great expectations and was surprised that I was one of the 2003 winners, and astonished at how hard the people at Galaxy Press worked to promote my work thereafter.

"This contest is a must for anyone, writer or illustrator, who loves working creatively in Science Fiction. "

Lawrence Schliessman

We just finished our first month PLUS Sound Advice from Octavia Butler

Well, theWriters & Illustrators of the Future blog just completed its first full month. In February, we had 1,489 visitors. So this is a start. Nowhere near where we need to be, but --- a start. Do let others know that this blog exists and that this is where everyone should go to find out about both contests, its judges and winners.

NEW SECTION

As I recently mentioned, I am starting a new feature in the blog of including a quote from our judges from essays they have provided over the years. These are the hot tips consisting of hard-won advice that they found instrumental to their success that will be included at least once a week.

HOT TIPS AND SOUND ADVICE

I met Octavia Butler a few years ago when the workshops and Awards Ceremony went to Seattle. We had lunch at her favorite Tai restaurant and we talked about a lot of things. She had recently agreed to become a judge for the Writers Contest, but due to mounting health problems, this was something that never fully materialized. She very much agreed with and appreciated what the Contest stood for. In fact, it was several years earlier, in 1989, that she had written an essay for Writers of the Future Volume IX - Furor Scribendi. It is from this essay that I have quoted the first of six rules she gives:

"Writing for publication may be both the easiest and the hardest thing you'll ever do. Learning the rules--if they can be called rules--is the easy part. Following them, turning them into regular habits, is an ongoing struggle. Here are the rules:

"1. Read. Read about the art, the craft, and the business of writing. Read the kind of work you'd like to write. Read good literature and bad, fiction and fact. Read every day and learn from what you read. If you commute to work or if you spend part of your day doing relatively mindless work, listen to book tapes. If your library doesn't have a good supply of complete books on audio tape, companies like Recorded Books, Books on Tape, Brilliance Corporation, and the Literate Ear will rent or sell you a wide selection of such books for your pleasure and continuing education. These provide a painless way to ponder use of language, the sounds of words, conflict, characterization, plotting, and the multitudes of ideas you can find in history, biography, medicine, the sciences, etc."

__________________________

Be sure to check back for the next post when I will start featuring the winning art of the 4Q illustrator contest winners!

4Q Winners Announced for Illustrators of the Future

THIS JUST IN...

The fourth quarter winners for the Illustrators of the Future Contest just came in from the judges and here they are:

Lorraine Schleter of Fort Branch, IN
Yuliya Kostyuk of Kiev, Ukraine
Geir Lanesskog of Seattle, WA

Congratulations to the three of you!

I will begin posting the winning illustrations from these winners starting Monday.