The finalists for the 2023 Mike Resnick Memorial Award for the best unpublished science fiction short story by a new author have been announced.

This is an annual award sponsored by Galaxy’s Edge anthologies (published by Arc Manor) and Dragon Con that celebrates new authors. As well as publishing hundreds of books as author and editor, Mike Resnick was known for his “Writer Children”—paying it forward by helping new writers start their careers. This award was created to honor his memory and continue on his legacy by spotlighting the wonderful new voices in the writing world.

The award is sponsored by Galaxy’s Edge (published by Arc Manor) and Dragon Con. The winner will be announced at Dragon Con during the annual Dragon Awards ceremony.

FINALISTS FOR THE 2023 AWARD

• ?“For the Great and Immortal” by Daniel Burnbridge (South Africa)
• “Spare Parts” by M. Thomas Diskint (Unknown)
• “Just Another Day” by Cecilia Kang (Singapore)
• “Lag” by Pierre-Alexandre Sicart (Taiwan)
• “Deep Sadness” by Sophia Tao (United States)

The first-place winner will get a trophy, a cash award of $250 and have their story bought (at the magazine’s prevailing rate) by Galaxy’s Edge for publication in the magazine. The second-place winner will be given a prize of $100 and the third-place winner a prize of $50.

The members of the finalist judging panel were Nancy Kress, Sheree Renée Thomas, Jody Lynn Nye, Lois McMaster Bujold, and William B. Fawcett.

Nancy Kress is known for her groundbreaking genetics themed novel Beggars in Spain, which many now consider to be a classic of the genre. She is also the winner of seven Nebula awards as well as many other awards, including the Hugo, the John W. Campbell, and the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award.

Sheree Renée Thomas is the current editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. She is also a poet, writer, and anthology editor, and her two Dark Matter anthologies both won the World Fantasy Award. Dark Matter was also named a New York Times notable book of the year.

Jody Lynn Nye is the author or co-author of over 50 novels and 100 short stories. Her collaborations include those with Robert Lynn Asprin for books in the MythAdventures series and The Brain & Brawn Ship series with Anne McCaffrey. Jody teaches the Dragon Con Writer’s Workshop, is now the Coordinating Judge for Writers of the Future, and was the book reviewer for Galaxy’s Edge magazine for five years.

Lois McMaster Bujold is one of the most acclaimed writers in her field, having won seven Hugo awards and three Nebula awards. She is the creator of the extremely popular Vorkosigan series of books.

William B. Fawcett is an American writer, editor, anthologist, and game designer. He co-authored the official Mycroft Holmes Mysteries and over a dozen other novels. Bill has also written almost a dozen historical non-fiction books. He founded Mayfair Games and also designs board and computer games. Bill Fawcett & Associates has packaged and edited over 400 Science Fiction novels and two oral histories of the Navy SEALs.

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About Mike Resnick

?Mike Resnick, along with editing the first seven years of Galaxy’s Edge magazine, was the winner of five Hugos from a record thirty-seven nominations and was, according to Locus, the all-time leading award winner, living or dead, for short fiction. He was the author of over eighty novels, around 300 stories, three screenplays, and the editor of over forty anthologies. When he was not writing, Mike mentored new authors, taking great pride in his “writer children,” being as dedicated in helping them reach their career milestones as achieving his own.

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