Did you know that Young Adult novels are eligible for a Special Prometheus Award?
In the broad realm of fantastical fiction, Young-Adult or YA novels have had and continue to have a special and honored place.
Just recall how much of the Golden Age of modern SF was YA books for teenagers or so-called “juvenile fiction” for children or middle-grade readers, including many of Robert Heinlein’s early bestsellers, such as Citizen of the Galaxy or Red Planet, both inducted into the Prometheus Hall of Fame for Best Classic Fiction.
That’s a key reason why the Libertarian Futurist Society decided several years ago to set up a process to begin recognizing eligible and worthy YA novels with a Special Prometheus Award – and why we invite our members, as well as publishers and authors, to bring eligible YA works to our attention.
THE CIVILIZING POWER OF GOOD LITERATURE
Specifically written for or primarily appealing to children and/or teenagers, YA fiction has for generations had its own niche in bookstores, libraries and on publishers’ annual upcoming lists.
As well it should: If younger generations don’t learn to read, and enjoy reading, they’re unlikely to read regularly, or are less likely to read widely, as adults.
In this era of social media, shorter attention spans and undereducated or miseducated youth, a surprising and appalling number of whom don’t learned to read, that dismal trend seems evident – and worrisome.
Moreover, such a pattern raises concerns about the progressive loss of literacy and education, both necessary underpinnings for adulthood and responsible citizenship in free or relatively free societies.
As Katy Carl wrote in a recent NR article “The Written World’s Rewards,” “before it is anything else, the reading and writing of literature is a work of freedom.” Something worth recalling “in a cultural moment that seems to have forgotten this timeless reality… (and) that endangered species, the ‘general reader’,” she wrote.
HOW STORIES CAN ILLUMINATE IMPORTANT THEMES
As readers and sf/fantasy fans, LFS members and leaders have long recognized that powerful stories, believable characters and illuminating themes can make a big difference in the world, especially for younger readers.
After all, we were young readers once ourselves – and many of us developed a lifelong habit of reading by becoming acquainted with classic literature – including some of the best sf/fantasy available during our coming of age.
Of course, as part of that reading, we came across a wide variety of compelling and memorable fiction that focuses in different ways and to different extents on the society-sustaining and civilization-enhancing value of individual liberty, respect for individual rights and the pursuit of happiness through voluntarism and cooperation rather than violence and statism.
And for many of us, that led us to a principled and ethical commitment to a philosophy of universal respect for individual rights, civil liberties and economic freedom – i.e. a society based on social rather than political power.
THE LINK BETWEEN LIBERTY AND LITERACY
Historically and philosophically, literacy and liberty are deeply intertwined.
Thus, to promote universal human flourishing and sustain the foundations of both freedom and civilization, I believe our culture needs to encourage reading, and more than that, nurture a love of reading. In my view, that not only helps us become better citizens, but also better equips people of all backgrounds, religions and races to pursue their natural rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Young people need good books to read – and books worthy of reading, so they are motivated to learn to read and keep reading.
That’s true of both non-fiction and fiction – including the type of sf/fantasy-oriented YA novels that explore libertarian and anti-authoritarian themes and champion cooperation over coercion and freedom over tyranny.
OF INTEREST: ALL ELIGIBLE YA FICTION
While the focus of initial LFS discussions was primarily on YA novels when authoring this new Special Award category, the LFS also is interested in identifying and considering any eligible YA works that fit the Prometheus Awards – including shorter fiction, such as novellas and stories).
After all, the overall goal of the Prometheus Awards is to recognize any type of fantastical fiction (including but not limited to science fiction and fantasy), in whatever length or format that it’s published, recorded, performed, staged or released – so long as its fits the distinctive dual focus of our award on both liberty and literary quality.
Thus, the Libertarian Futurist Society invites anyone – publishers, authors, sf/fantasy fans as well as LFS members – to bring to our attention any YA fiction that’s a potential candidate for nomination just as soon as possible after it is published.
LET US KNOW OF OLDER YA SF/FANTASY, TOO
Furthermore, if a work of eligible YA fiction has been previously overlooked – even if wasn’t published during the currently eligible calendar year – don’t hesitate to let us know about it, too, if it seems to fit our focus.
After checking its eligibility, we can highlight the work on the Prometheus Blog, thereby bringing it to the attention of our members and a wider readership of sf/fantasy fans.
In addition, once any work of fantastical fiction is at least 20 years old, it becomes eligible for nomination to the Prometheus Hall of Fame for Best Classic Fiction. (And once a work comes to our attention, it’s pretty much “on our radar” from then on.)
With so many thousands of novels published each year (including the burgeoning field of ebooks and self-publishing), it’s become even more challenging to try to keep up with the broad and increasingly diverse field of fantastical fiction – which also incorporates fable, alternate history, mythology, horror, near-future tech-accented political thrillers and much more.
PUBLISHERS’ SUBMISSIONS ARE WELCOME
Thus, we welcome suggestions and submissions from all.
Publishers and authors are invited to bring YA fiction to our attention as submissions, if they believe the work fits the distinctive dual focus of the Prometheus Awards on both liberty and literary quality.
We suggest that publishers and authors first read our Submissions guidelines letter, available via a link on the main LFS website home page, to check the relevant eligibility guidelines and submission procedures.
Then incorporate the requested information – including title, author, publisher, publication date, a brief description of the work and a statement explaining how you believe it’s relevant to the Prometheus Awards – and contact LFS President William H. Stoddard at president@LFS.org
LFS MEMBERS’ NOMINATIONS ARE INVITED
Here’s a reminder that all LFS members have a variety of membership privileges – including the significant right to nominate works for all categories of the Prometheus Award.
That includes annual categories for Best Novel and the Prometheus Hall of Fame for Best Classic Fiction, of course. But don’t forget to be on the lookout for works that might fit our occasional Special Awards, which cover several subcategories.
Now that the LFS Board of Directors has authorized a new subcategory of Special Awards honoring YA fiction, Young Adult novels published within the current calendar year* are also eligible for a Special Award nomination.
* Like the eligible publication dates specified for the Best Novel category, any novel previously overlooked that was published in the last two months (November and December) of the previous calendar year may also be nominated.
Besides the basic nominations information – the full title, author, publisher, publication month/year and page length – LFS members are strongly encouraged to include a description of the novel that confirms its status as sf/fantasy or within the broader fantastical genres as well as a statement explaining why you are nominating it and how it fits our award’s distinctive themes.
To make a nomination or obtain more information, contact LFS President William H. Stoddard at president@LFS.org
ABOUT THE PROMETHEUS AWARDS AND THE LFS
* Join us! To help sustain the Prometheus Awards and support a cultural and literary strategy to appreciate and honor freedom-loving fiction, join the Libertarian Futurist Society, a non-profit all-volunteer association of freedom-loving sf/fantasy fans.
Libertarian futurists understand that culture matters. We believe that literature and the arts can be vital in envisioning a freer and better future. In some ways, culture can be even more influential and powerful than politics in the long run, by imagining better visions of the future incorporating peace, prosperity, progress, tolerance, justice, positive social change, and mutual respect for each other’s rights, human dignity, individuality and peaceful choices.
* Prometheus winners: For a full list of Prometheus winners, finalists and nominees – including in the annual Best Novel and Best Classic Fiction (Hall of Fame) categories and occasional Special Awards – visit the enhanced Prometheus Awards page on the LFS website. This page includes convenient links to all published essay-reviews in our Appreciation series explaining why each of more than 100 past winners since 1979 fits the awards’ distinctive dual focus on both quality and liberty.
* Watch videos of past Prometheus Awards ceremonies, Libertarian Futurist Society panel discussions with noted sf authors and leading libertarian writers, and other LFS programs on the Prometheus Blog’s Video page.
* Read “The Libertarian History of Science Fiction,” an essay in the international magazine Quillette that favorably highlights the Prometheus Awards, the Libertarian Futurist Society and the significant element of libertarian sf/fantasy in the evolution of the modern genre.
* Check out the Libertarian Futurist Society’s Facebook page for comments, updates and links to the latest Prometheus Blog posts.
