“Étienne clutched the rope … and he rose, slowly, centimeter by halting centimeter.”
That image alone—part folkloric parable, part speculative firebrand—offers a glimpse into why “Son, Spirit, Snake,” a science fiction and fantasy short story by Jack Nash, helped L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 40 clinch the 2025 International Book Awards Gold Medal in Science Fiction and Fantasy, announced June 6 by American Book Fest.
“Four decades of providing opportunity has resulted in one of the most sought-after prizes in science fiction and fantasy.”
Based in Los Angeles and Phoenix, American Book Fest hosts one of the world’s largest international book award competitions for mainstream, indie and self-published titles. The 16th annual contest drew thousands of entries from authors and publishers across the globe, according to Jeffrey Keen, president and CEO of American Book Fest.
“Over our 16-year history, thousands of self-published and indie authors have leveraged the promotional power of their International Book Award to increase online recognition, enhance their title’s credibility, and garner more attention in the crowded book-buying marketplace,” Keen said. More than 500 winners and finalists were named in over 100 categories in the contest, which recognized books published in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
The win marks a major moment for the Writers of the Future anthology series, which has become one of the most enduring launchpads for speculative fiction’s next generation. In an era where more than 4 million books are published annually—most self-published and rarely seen—the contest offers what few others can: a rare platform where unknown talents are not only discovered, but meaningfully celebrated.
Volume 40 of Writers of the Future—which also won the 2024 New York City Big Book Award—features breakout stories and illustrations from speculative fiction’s rising stars, including:
- “Son, Spirit, Snake” by Jack Nash, illustrated by Pedro N.
- “The Edge of Where My Light Is Cast” by Sky McKinnon, illustrated by Carina Zhang.
- “Nonzero” by Tom Vandermolen, illustrated by Jennifer Mellen.
- “Da-ko-ta” by Amir Agoora, illustrated by Connor Chamberlain.
- “Ashes to Ashes, Blood to Carbonfiber” by James Davies, illustrated by May Zheng.
- “Summer of Thirty Years” by Lisa Silverthorne, illustrated by Gigi Hooper.
Nash’s story, the L. Ron Hubbard Golden Pen Award Winner in 2024, is a luminous example of the kind of ambition and emotional precision that the Writers of the Future Contest has cultivated across four decades of visionary storytelling. Set in a Cameroonian gold-mining village where spirits grieve, gods gossip and even Death speaks with regret, Nash’s tale weaves ancestral myth and postcolonial unease into a radiant tapestry of survival, guilt and hard-won redemption. Like the gold dust offered to the sacred Moabi tree in its pages, “Son, Spirit, Snake” is both ritual and resistance—a literary offering with soul.
“A culture is as rich and as capable of surviving as it has imaginative artists,” observed John Goodwin, quoting Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard. “I am truly honored to see Writers of the Future receive the recognition it absolutely deserves,” added Goodwin, who is the president of Galaxy Press, which publishes the anthology series.
Founded by L. Ron Hubbard in 1983, the Writers of the Future Contest has long served as what he called a “means for new and budding writers to have a chance for their creative efforts to be seen and acknowledged.” Since 1988, the companion Illustrators of the Future Contest has offered similar support for visual artists, attracting contestants from around the world. Over the years, the anthologies have earned praise from critics and editors alike. Publishers Weekly described the series as consistently spotlighting “tomorrow’s stars” of science fiction and fantasy.
“Four decades of providing opportunity has resulted in one of the most sought-after prizes in science fiction and fantasy,” Goodwin said. “And to see the book itself celebrated with multiple gold awards in a field of thousands really acknowledges just how significant this contest is.”
Available in trade paperback, digital and audiobook editions across the US, UK, Canada, Australia and South Africa, Volume 40 includes essays by Gregory Benford, a professor of physics at the University of California, Irvine, and Dean Wesley Smith, an acclaimed science fiction writer and author of over 200 novels over the past 40 years, as well as L. Ron Hubbard’s classic “On Writing and Science Fiction.”
In a marketplace flooded with noise, Writers of the Future stands out for its sustained commitment to literary craft, narrative imagination and real opportunity. That Volume 40 earned top prizes from multiple major award platforms is no accident—it’s the culmination of decades of careful cultivation, and a reminder that even in a digital deluge, stories with soul still shine. As the contest looks to its fifth decade, the future of science fiction and fantasy may well begin—again—on the very pages of Writers of the Future.
