L. Ron Hubbard Illustrators of the Future Contest
Offered by Author Services, Inc.
About this scholarship
The L. Ron Hubbard Illustrators of the Future Contest is a free, international quarterly competition for new and amateur science-fiction and fantasy artists. Three co-winners each quarter receive $500 and become eligible for the annual Golden Brush Award, which carries an additional $5,000. Entrants retain all rights to their art, and judging is anonymous and conducted by professional artists. Each entry must contain three original, previously unpublished illustrations created solely by the entrant, with a different subject in each piece. Work may be color or black and white and can use traditional, mixed-media, digital-design, photo-editing, or photographic techniques, but every asset must be owned by the artist. Generative AI or similar tools are prohibited, and the organizers may request source files or references to confirm originality. The contest is for amateurs who have not been professionally published and paid for more than three black-and-white story illustrations or more than one process-color painting in broadly distributed media. Electronic files must be JPG or JPEG, at least 300 dpi and 5 by 7 inches, no larger than 8.5 by 11 inches or 10 MB, and must omit the artist's signature. The fourth-quarter deadline is 11:59 p.m. Pacific time on September 30, 2026.
Eligibility
- Be a new or amateur artist from any nation with a means of written communication in English
- Have no more than three professionally published and paid black-and-white story illustrations or one process-color painting in broadly distributed media
- Submit three original, previously unpublished science-fiction or fantasy illustrations with a different subject in each piece
- Own the copyright to the final illustrations and every asset used to create them
- Do not use generative artificial intelligence or similar technology in any part of the work
- For electronic entry, submit JPG or JPEG files meeting the official size, resolution, and file-size limits
- Remove the artist's signature from electronically submitted images for anonymous judging
- Submit the complete entry by September 30, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time