My story "Space Hero" has won the Grand Prize in the Jim Baen Memorial Writing Contest. Last year I won second place with a re-write of one of my WotF quarter-finalist stories, but this year I managed to write two new stories for the contest, and sent the best one in. The story will be published on the Baen Books website sometime in the future, as a feature story.
And congratulations to second place winner David D. Levine (another former WotF winner) with his story "Citizen-Astronaut" and third place winner Stuart D. Gibbon with his story "High Ground." I'm sure we'll see those stories in print soon.
The National Space Society and Baen Books sponsor this contest in memory of Jim Baen, to celebrate the role science fiction has in making advances in science. The basic requirement for entries is that they show the near future of manned space exploration.
The National Space Society has a simple vision: People living and working in thriving communities beyond the Earth, and the use of the vast resources of space for the dramatic betterment of humanity. They have local chapters all over the United States. I've been getting their magazine adAstra for the past year, and I enjoy it thoroughly. Check out the magazine's website where you can download a sample issue and read some articles.
Jim Baen (1946-2006) was a noted science fiction writer, who became and editor and publisher when he founded Baen Books, a leader in the field of military SF, fantasy, adventure and space opera. They also have a thriving e-book division called Webscriptions, which allows readers to download books before publication.
A big thanks to Baen books and The National Space Society for providing the prizes (including membership in the Society!), judges Hank Davis, Jim Mintz, David Weber. And special thanks to William Ledbetter for organizing the contest and getting the results out.