100 Year Starship Canopus Award for Excellence in Interstellar Writing 2023 invites author submissions (news).
Submissions and nominations are now being accepted for the 2023 100 Year Starship Canopus Award for Excellence in Interstellar Writing, which honours the best works of fiction and non-fiction that advance humanity’s knowledge of the difficulties, chances, pitfalls, and benefits of extraterrestrial space exploration.
Who Owns Space? is the topic for this year. Investigating the potential for human life in space. People have gazed upward for thousands of years, drawn by the tapestry of stars, sun, moon, and other luminaries in the sky that serve as a compelling, though immeasurable, link across many nations and civilizations.
A conundrum exists for exploration, space-based technology, and related capacities, as well as for its vision and magic. Will the sky and space remain our shared patrimony in the modern day, despite becoming ever more accessible? Beyond the confines of the law, the fundamental idea of space travel is being revised today. “Space isn’t only for rocket scientists and billionaires,” stated Dr. Mae Jemison. However, a common misconception is that particular nations and individuals have exclusive access to space.
Writers are encouraged to investigate the potential futures in space and to identify how various actions, technological priorities, policies, people and communities, and even the stories we tell over the next ten years may permanently fix the goals, gatekeepers, and benefits of space exploration for decades to come.
The 100 Year Starship Nexus 2023 event, which takes place in Nairobi, Kenya from January 31st to February 4th 2023, will award the Canopus Awards. “When Space, Purpose, and Culture Collide” is the theme of Nexus 2023. The Nexus brings together the variety of human experience, skills, knowledge, creativity, passion, commitment, resources, cultures, technologies, policy, investment, education, art, perspectives, and motivation needed to achieve such an extraordinary future. Nexus 2023 will be a virtual and live event that welcomes attendees from all around the world.
The second-brightest star in the night sky is the star that gives the Canopus Award its name. It has played a crucial part in the history of humanity for millennia, serving as a prominent navigational star for cultures ranging from the Bedouins of Sinai to the Voyager probe. It also served as a good omen for planting seasons.
The Canopus Award for this year will be given in seven categories. Long Form Fiction (containing novels, novellas, and graphic novels), Short Form Fiction, Long Form Non-Fiction, Short-Form Non-Fiction, and Digital Presentation (including video games and interactive experiences) are the first five categories for Published Works.
The 100YSS subject for this year, “Who Owns Space,” served as the inspiration for the Original Works category. Original Short Form Fiction (1,000–6,000 words) and Original Short Form Non-Fiction will also get honours (1,000-6,000 words).
Additionally, this year marks the debut of a brand-new award: Original Local Short-Form Fiction. Any African citizen may submit a story in the Original Local Short-Form Fiction category. Up until November 15, 2022, YSS will accept nominations for previously published works, and up until November 30, 2022, it will accept applications for the original categories.
Each of the prize categories will have five finalists, who will be revealed in December. The judges for Canopus will then choose a winner from each set of finalists. The 100YSS public event Nexus 2023 will include a special award ceremony where winners will be recognised.
For more details, visit www.CanopusAwards.org, www.NexusNairobi.org, and www.100YSS.org.
