An aerospace researcher and Mason University graduate has won the top prize in an international literary competition for his short story set in Cincinnati.
Last month, science fiction writer Michael T. Kuester was honored at the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Competition in Hollywood, California. Kuester's story "In Vivid Color" was published in an anthology of works by other amateur writers as part of the awards.
Besides being the founder of Scientology, Hubbard was a science fiction writer himself, known for his works "Battlefield Earth" and "Fear." He created this competition in 1983 to give aspiring genre writers "a much-needed chance," according to the competition's press release.
The organizers of the international competitions notified Küster that he had won the quarterly stage with his story and invited him to the awards ceremony and preliminary writing workshops.
It wasn't until the evening of the awards ceremony that he learned he had won the grand prize. In addition to the honor of winning the competition, Küster received the Golden Pen award and a cash prize of $5,000.
Kuester, an engineer, science fiction writer, avid outdoorsman and food enthusiast, lives in Mason with his partner, Jen, their two children and their roommate, a freeloader named Eddie the cat.
His work will soon appear in the magazine. Analogue Science Fiction and Fact , But collection L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 42 became his professional debut.
Küster began writing in 2013. Before entering the competition, most of his works were science fiction stories that emphasized scientific accuracy based on his professional experience. "In the Bloom of Life" is a different matter entirely.
He began his noir story with a scene featuring a man with the ability to project himself into paintings, strolling through Claude Monet's "Water Lilies." When the police discover this ability, they track him down and ask him to provide data from crime scene photographs to gain access to the victims' final moments.
«"I pictured Cincinnati, being driven from his home to the police station where he's working on crime scene photos, I pictured the streets of downtown," Kuester said.
Michael T. Kuester has completed writing his first novel, Seven Days in Samarkand.
In his acceptance speech, Kuester spoke fondly of Cincinnati.
He began his speech by reminiscing about the five-hour drive from his small town of Sharon, Pennsylvania, to Ohio to attend the University of Cincinnati in 2003. He has lived in Cincinnati ever since.
«"To the people of Cincinnati," Kuester said, "I know sometimes it feels like this city doesn't get enough attention, but I see you. And right now, the whole world sees you.".
Kuester thanked illustrator Nathan Deivert of Greensburg, Indiana, who created the work for In Living Color magazine. Deivert was also a quarterly winner of L. Ron Hubbard's Illustrator of the Future contest.
Deivert brought his oil painting to Hollywood. He said many people at the autograph session after the awards ceremony told him how terrifying the painting was.
Kuster recommends that anyone interested look for Writers of the Future, Volume 42, at their local independent bookstores.
The cover of Volume 42 of the Writers of the Future collection was created by illustrator and jury member of this competition, Ciruelo Cabral from Barcelona, Spain.
Küster won the Writers of the Future competition for a short story, but has already completed writing his first novel, Seven Days in Samarkand. He is currently seeking a literary agent to begin the publication process. According to Küster, this process could take years.
Find out more about Küster on the website and more about Deivart on the website. .
«"Don't give up, because I've seen many writers give up. Because, again, it's hard. Writing fiction is not for the faint of heart. The first thing I would advise is to learn to deal with rejection. You'll get a lot of rejections and a lot of doors slammed in your face," Küster said.
He encourages all aspiring science fiction writers to register for the "Writers of the Future" competition. "There's no good reason not to participate, and there's every reason to do so.".
This article originally appeared in the Cincinnati Enquirer: International Literary Competition Winner Is a Mason Engineer.