Baen Books has announced the top ten finalists for the 2018 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award. The Grand Prize will be presented at the 2018 International Space Development Conference in Los Angeles, CA the weekend of May 24-27.

“The goal of this contest is to encourage writers to create exciting and positive stories about humankind’s near future in space,” said William Ledbetter, contest administrator. “The stories all take place within the next fifty or sixty years and show the challenges and wonders that await us as we explore and colonize the solar system. Our winners can be novices or professionals; we just care about a well told story.”

This year’s top ten Jim Baen Memorial Award finalists (in alphabetical order) are:

Stewart C Baker
Gustavo Bondoni
Jonathan Edelstein
C Stuart Hardwick
Stephen Lawson
Angus McIntyre
Wendy Nikel
Julie N. Novakova
Patrice Sarath
Martin L. Shoemaker

The contest is judged by top Baen editors and best-selling author David Drake, who read the entries “blind” with no author information included, so the winners are picked solely by merit of the stories. Over the years, the contest has developed an international character. In addition to the United States, entrants have hailed from Argentina, the Czech Republic, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, Algeria, Switzerland, New Zealand, Spain, and Morocco.

A collection of sixteen of the best stories from the first ten years of this contest, The Jim Baen Memorial Award: The First Decade, came out last November.

Entries in the Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award writing contest are being accepted through February 1, 2018. See rules and specifications at the site.

Judging will be by Baen Books editors Hank Davis, Jim Minz, Tony Daniel, David Afsharirad, and best-selling Baen author David Drake.

Ten finalists will be announced no later than March 8, 2018.

The Grand Prize winner will be published as the featured story on the Baen Books main website and its author paid the going rate. The winner will receive, in addition, an engraved award, free entry into the 2018 International Space Development Conference, a year’s membership in the National Space Society and a prize package containing various Baen Books and National Space Society merchandise. The second- and third-place entries will receive lesser prizes.

The winners will be honored at the 2018 International Space Development Conference in Los Angeles, CA, May 24-27 2018.

The winner and runners-up for the 2016 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award have been announced.

GRAND PRIZE

• “Dear Ammi” by Aimee Ogden

SECOND PLACE

• “To Lose the Stars” by Jennifer Brozek

THIRD PLACE

• “Cylinders” by Ronald D. Ferguson

Aimee Ogden is from Madison, Wisconsin, Jennifer Brozek from Bothell, Washington, and Ronald D. Ferguson from San Antonio, Texas.

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 at a ceremony during the annual International Space Development Conference held May 18-22, 2016 in Puerto Rico. The winner receives a trophy and her story will be published June 2016 at the Baen.com web site, where new fiction is featured each month.

“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. “We believe — and strive to show with these imaginative stories — that humanity has a bright and exciting future beyond the bounds of Earth. We want to see Moon bases, Mars colonies, orbital habitats, space elevators, asteroid mining, realistic spacecraft, heroics, sacrifice, and adventure. This year’s winning stories deliver just that.”