Writers of the Future: The Best New Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume XXVI

by L. Ron Hubbard

Discover Imaginative New Worlds of Tomorrow . Discover the new visionaries of imagination in the Writers of the Future. Established in 1983 by L. Ron Hubbard expressly for the aspiring writer, Writers of the Future has become the most respected and significant forum for new talent in all aspects of speculative fiction. Never before publis...

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Short Stories, Anthologies, Fiction

520 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2010

About the author

L. Ron Hubbard is universally acclaimed as the single most influential author and humanitarian of this modern age. His definitive works on the mind and spirit—comprising over 350 million copies in circulation and more than 40 international bestsellers—have resulted in a legacy benefiting millions and a movement spanning all cultures.

Reviews

[Michelle King · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favourite story was easily 'The House of Nameless' by Jason Fischer. Madcap energy, intriguing mythic underpinnings, amusing use of mundane details and a bouncy, joyful weirdness over a solid quest/chase structure.

Other faves:

'Seeing Double' by Tom Crosshill -- an interesting idea, the joined consciousness was well shown and the were characters intriguiging

'Living Rooms' by Laurie Tom -- the manifestations of the rooms was a great, novel idea, and the world building and plot held up well. the love story was sweet and all the better for being only implied rather than stated.

[Dan Smyth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very little to like in this year's anthology. Exanastasis is easily the best of the bunch. Confusion and lack of endings is mostly what makes up the rest of the stories. Unfortunate that the stories are so poor this year.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked ”Living rooms” the best.
Did not like ”Digital rights”, but it lingers in my mind a little, unwelcomed. So that’s that.
Maybe it was well written, but I know it depicted (yet again) abuse of women although in a new way.

[Des · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the entire offering. They saved the best, or at least the wildest, for last with "The House of Nameless."

[Hermit Hank · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that this is the worst rating I have ever given a book. Wasn't too many times that a story in this book would grab me and keep my interest.

[Michelle D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was okay. 85% of the stories were to my tastes, the others were not.

[Callie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology contains an amazing variety of good stories. My personal favorites were "Living Rooms", "Not in the Flesh", "Lisa with Child", and "Written in Light". There were a few stories that I didn't find much interest in, but I still felt that overall the stories were good samples of well crafted writing. Even a reader not that into short stories can enjoy these. Each story has well developed imaginary worlds, surprising plot twists, and touches the heart with deep portrayals of human nature. I hope all the writers have some successful careers in the future. Even if you aren't interested in the contest, the stories are very entertaining and worth checking out.

[Angie Lisle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I avoided this series for a long time because L Ron Hubbard's religious cult scares me. Then, I received two volumes (29 and 30) in exchange for reviews and now, I'm reading the series backwards.

This volume of the anthology has been my least favorite to-date simply because I didn't understand a couple of the stories. Too much was left for me to infer. On the other hand, Not In the Flesh by Adam Colston has been one of my favorite stories that I've seen in this series (and is by favorite story in this volume). And, since I love the exposure to new writers, I've already purchased Volume 25.

[Clare Deming · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first of these anthologies that I have had the chance to read, and they may certainly vary from year to year. I found that this volume was weighted toward science fiction, with fewer fantasy selections. The stories are interspersed with short essays about the field from well-known authors and artists. Overall, I enjoyed this book and I thought that it was a solid collection of fiction. I'll highlight some of my favorite stories below.

See my complete review at:

http://sciencefictionmusings.blogspot...

[Kyle Aisteach · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some very good stuff in this edition, but it suffers from the inconsistency of tone and style that plagues all the contest's anthologies. Individual stories are all quite good considering they're all written by new and emerging writers, but there's nothing that screams "Nominate me for a Hugo!"

[Ceola · Rating 4 out of 5]

The short story i read was LIVING ROOMS. BY Laurie Tom
This is diffinately different. Rooms with personalities? Yes but rooms that can manifest into a somewhat solid human form? Yes.
I really likes this book hoping there is a follow up or continuation of the series.