Tag Archives: William Ledbetter

Zeiger Wins 2023 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award

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Brad Zeiger was named the winner of this year’s Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award Contest for his story “The Insomniac.” The contest has been held annually since 2007 by Baen Books, in partnership with the National Space Society, to discover original stories celebrating optimistic, near-future space exploration.

Zeiger, an Oregon resident, will be honored at the 2023 International Space Development Conference, in Frisco, Texas, May 25-28, 2023. In addition to the award, his winning story will be published at Baen.com, paid professional rates, and Zeiger will receive membership in the National Space Society.

FIRST PLACE

  • “The Insomniac” by Brad Zeiger

SECOND PLACE

  • “High Risk” by Avery Parks

THIRD PLACE

  • “Cronus” by J. M. Eno

“Winning the contest is an honor and opportunity for the winner, not only to be published, but to attend the ISDC, and meet scientists and space advocates from around the world,” said William Ledbetter, contest administrator.

In addition to Zeiger’s winning story, Baen Books and National Space Society honored two runners-up for the award. Avery Parks of Texas was awarded second place for her story “High Risk;” and in third place was “Cronus” by J.M. Eno of New York.

Judges for the award were author and space scientist Les Johnson, and the editorial staff of Baen Books, and entries were judged anonymously.

According to Baen publisher Toni Weisskopf, all of this year’s finalists turned in some incredible stories. “The judges were quite impressed by the breadth and depth of the submissions. Stories like those by the top ten finalists exemplify the very best of what we want from the contest, and from this kind of science fiction.”

[Based on a press release.]

2020 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award

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M.T. Reiten

M.T. Reiten has won the grand prize in the 2020 Jim Baen Memorial Short story Award competition with his short story “Bagala Devi Objective.” Persistence paid off — it’s Reiten’s first win, after twice placing third in previous years (2017 and 2019).

The Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Contest has been held annually since 2007 and is focused on stories of space exploration and discovery, with an optimistic spin on those activities for the human race.

FIRST PLACE

  • “Bagala Devi Objective” by M.T. Reiten

SECOND PLACE

  • “Spinners” by Kate MacEachern

THIRD PLACE (tie)

  • “Sample Return by C. Stuart Hardwick
  • “The Caretaker” by Tiffany Smith

The contest judges were Baen Books editors Hank Davis, Jim Minz, Tony Daniel, David Afsharirad, and Baen author David Drake.

The Grand Prize winner will be published as the featured story on the Baen Books main website and paid at the normal paying rates for professional story submittals, currently .08/word. The author will also receive an engraved award, free entry into the 2020 International Space Development Conference (unfortunately cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak), a year’s membership in the National Space Society and a prize package containing various Baen Books and National Space Society merchandise.

Second and Third place winners will receive a year’s membership in the National Space Society and a prize package containing various Baen Books and National Space Society merchandise. They were also to have received free entry into the now-cancelled 2020 International Space Development Conference.

What the Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award looks like.

Dream Foundry Short Story Contest Finalists

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Dream Foundry announced the finalists of its inaugural writing contest for writers of speculative fiction on October 29. 

The contest was open to anyone with a completed short story who had not yet been professionally paid for their work.

The top three winners will be announced on November 15, 2019, and the first place winner will receive a $500 cash prize. All three of the top winners will receive critiques and feedback from professional writers working in the field.

William Ledbetter was the contest coordinator.  Charles Coleman Finlay, editor of Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and Lisa Rodgers, agent at JABberwocky, are serving as judges for this year’s contest.

The finalists are:

  • S Rain Lawrence – Minnesota
  • Douglas Wu – Connecticut
  • Steven Berger – Texas
  • Jamie Adams – Minnesota
  • Sam Tovey, United Kingdom
  • Tiffany Smith – Texas
  • Andrew J. Savage – Japan
  • Rose Wachowski – Virginia
  • Samantha Lynne Sargent – Canada
  • Claire Whitmore – Wisconsin 

Dream Foundry is a registered 501(c) non-profit dedicated to bolstering the careers of nascent professionals working with the speculative arts.  You can join their community at forum.dreamfoundry.org, find weekly content at dreamfoundry.org/blog.

[Based on a press release.]

2017 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Contest Winner

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Philip A. Kramer of Seattle, WA has won the grand prize in the 2017 Jim Baen Memorial Award competition for his short story “Feldspar.”

The Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Contest has been held annually since 2007 and is focused on stories of space exploration and discovery, with an optimistic spin on those activities for the human race.

GRAND PRIZE

“Feldspar” by Philip A. Kramer

FIRST RUNNER-UP

“Bullet Catch” by Stephen Lawson (Louisville, KY)

SECOND RUNNER-UP

“An Economy of Air” by M. T. Reiten (Los Alamos, NM)

Judges for the award were the editors of Baen Books and special guest judge, author David Drake. Stories were judged anonymously. The Jim Baen Memorial Award will be presented May 26, 2017 in a ceremony at the annual International Space Development Conference held this year in St. Louis, MO. The winner receives a distinctive award and professional publication of the story in June 2017 at the Baen.com web site.

“The National Space Society and Baen Books applaud the role that science fiction plays in advancing real science and have teamed up to sponsor this short fiction contest in memory of Jim Baen, Baen Books founder,” said William Ledbetter, contest administrator. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for the winner to meets scientists and space advocates from around the world.”

What the Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award looks like.