Fantasy come true for Harborough writer as he makes his debut in internationally acclaimed anthology

The short story from a Harborough fantasy writer has been included in an internationally acclaimed anthology.

Sam Parr’s story, ‘The Last History’, is published in L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 39, which has been released today.

Sam is among 12 winners in the Writers of the Future Contest, which is aimed at science fiction and fantasy authors, and was honoured along with others at an event in Hollywood, last month.

Author L Ron Hubbard, founder of the controversial Church of Scientology, launched the contest in 1983 to provide a means for aspiring writers to achieve a much-needed break.

Sam spent his early years dreaming up fantastical people and creatures, ever since reading The Hobbit as a child.

But, a lack of confidence meant Samuel had not shared any of his work until his wife Kat who, helps Sam to ‘see the magic in the world’, encouraged him to enter his story into the contest.

Sam’s acceptance speech described his struggles with chronic pain and how reading and writing fiction has helped him to cope.

He said: “In those sleepless nights and those difficult times, a solace I turned to and found wisdom in was speculative fiction. It provided escapism and it was really fun. But it was more than that, it felt true to me, inspired to me even though it was make believe, I felt like those fantastical creatures. I felt like when I was waking up that perhaps I was a little bit like Frodo climbing Mt Doom. I also felt that if these characters and these authors could have such imagination to dream up these fantastical worlds, to dream of the stars then maybe I could dream of hope.”

Now Sam, who is also a careers advisor, cannot wait to continue setting the weird worlds in his head onto the page.

He told the Mail: “I’m inspired by so many things – books and birdsong, life’s loves and challenges, and all the beautiful character and colour of the world. Writing, I suppose, is a way of responding to this, and trying to give something back. It’s also a mental workout. Nothing challenges my brain like it.”

Visit www.WritersOfTheFuture.com for more information about the competition.