Writers of the Future features young science fiction writers

Which sounds weirder — deadly daggers with bunny ears or a vampire playing shortstop?

The 15th volume of Writers of the Future features both, as well as many more strange themes in a compilation of 12 short science fiction stories.

In an effort to promote the field of science fiction, famed science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard organized his Writers of the Future contest. Winners of the contest are selected four times a year and their stories are published in a volume of stories. The 15th such book boasts contest judges such as Gregory Benford, Robert Silverberg, Frederik Pohl and Anne McCaffrey, among others. The contest is also open to illustrators with a winning sketch accompanying every story.

The winner for the first quarter of 1999 was Jim Hines with "Blade of the Bunny." Told in a narrative style, the story tells of two thieves who are presented with a hugely difficult mission by their guild-master — to steal back property from a sorcerer. The tale has amusing twists, but the ending is largely predictable.

Scott Nicholson won the prize for the second quarter with "The Vampire Shortstop." A little league team faces immense prejudices when a talented vampire is selected to play shortstop. The story is not only entertaining, but also reminds readers of problems caused by racism.

The third quarter winner, Franklin Thatcher's "By Other Windings," is a vague, dark saga of the demon living under Charon's boat. Reduced to stealing some of the dead souls that Charon ferries across the river, the demon is suddenly forced into the control of Elenora. The story is a surprising pick, since the action drifts in parts, and a definite plot materializes very late into the tale.

W.G. Rowland's "The Great Wizard Joey," which is probably the best of the four winners, chronicles the ongoing battle between an evil magician and his bright apprentice. The rebirth of the apprentice into an alternate world (ours) provides for some fascinating insights and perspectives into our world.

None of these stories includes asteroids, spaceships or warp drives and there is virtually no science in the fiction. This is an indication of the blurring boundaries between the fields of science fiction and fantasy.

Another feature of the compilation is the choice of the stories. Some of the stories relegated to second and third place seem to be better than the winners. Amy Sterling Casil's "My Son, My Self," which won a third prize, vies for the tag of the most thought-provoking story. Dealing with a man who is stricken with cancer and can only save himself by depriving his living son-clone of his pancreas, it raises very real, very plausible ethical situations given the advanced state of genetic engineering in the present time.

The book is not pure gold. Some of the stories have an amateurish quality of plot and language. But it must be remembered that the publication is intended to boost the careers of young, aspiring science fiction writers. So, impatient readers who are used to Asimov and Heinlein, beware — this book is probably not for you. However, if you want to catch a glimpse of the future of science fiction, or witness the beginnings of tomorrow's big names in sci-fi, the Writers of the Future volume might be the one to pick up.

— Reviewed by Samanth Iyer