October 5^th, 2015

Orson Scott Card’s InterGalactic Medicine Show (IGMS), The Elephant and Macaw Banner, and Brazilian website Universo Insônia have teamed up once again to bring the best of Brazilian speculative fiction to the English-speaking world via the third edition of the biennial Hydra Competition (Concurso Hydra in Brazil’s native language of Portuguese).

A panel of Brazilian judges will select three finalists from short stories first published in Brazil in 2013 and 2014. Orson Scott Card, one of the world’s best-selling authors of speculative fiction, and Edmund R. Schubert, editor of IGMS, will select the winner from among the finalists.

Edumund writes, “I’ve really come to look forward to this contest each time it’s held and am grateful to Christopher and Tiago for all the hard work they do in making it possible. Orson and I get the easy, fun part—reading the finalists. With the growing attention international authors have been gaining in recent years, it’s an honor to be able to shine a light on the fine work coming out of Brazil.”

The second edition of the Hydra Competition received international attention, with winner Camila Fernandes’s story, “The Other Bank of the River”, published in the May 2014 issue of IGMS. She relates: “Winning the Hydra in 2014 was an unexpected delight and, of course, a great honor. Thanks to the competition and Christopher’s wonderful translations, Brazilian speculative fiction authors have one more channel to Anglophone readers, a readership that goes far beyond native English speakers. I hope this prize is awarded to other authors for many years to come.”

Brazilian blogger Tiago Castro returns as organizer of the third edition. He adds, “The first two editions of the contest showed that Brazil has great potential for publishing outside the country. The quality of the stories continues to rise and we expect that choosing the three finalists will be harder than ever. I’m proud to be a part of this new chapter in Brazilian speculative fiction, helping authors cross the literary borders of our country.”

The three finalist stories will be translated to English by author Christopher Kastensmidt, author of The Elephant and Macaw Banner series, Nebula Award finalist and founder of the Hydra Competition. InterGalactic Medicine Show will publish the winning entry.

The name for the Hydra Competition comes from the Hydra constellation. Being a group of stars named after a mythical monster, the Hydra constellation is symbolic of both the fantasy and science fiction produced by the speculative community today. The constellation crosses the celestial equator, joining the northern and southern celestial hemispheres, just as the Hydra competition joins the northern and southern hemispheres of speculative fiction. The Hydra is also one of the constellations on the Brazilian flag.

Submissions will be open from October 5^th through November 11^th and all eligible Brazilian authors are encouraged to participate. Regulations (in Portuguese) are available at universoinsonia.com.br. There is no entry fee to participate, and the winner will receive a publication contract with IGMS at the magazine’s normal rate.

About Orson Scott Card’s InterGalactic Medicine Show

Founded by multiple-award winning author Orson Scott Card, and edited since 2006 by Edmund R. Schubert, IGMS is an award-winning bimonthly online magazine publishing illustrated science fiction and fantasy short stories, audio stories, interviews, reviews, and more. Authors range from established pros like Peter Beagle and David Farland to first-time authors making their professional debut.

About The Elephant and Macaw Banner

The Elephant and Macaw Banner is an award-winning fantasy series set in sixteenth-century Brazil. The stories tell the adventures of Gerard van Oost and Oludara, an unlikely pair of heroes who meet in Salvador. News, artwork, and in-depth explanations of historical and cultural references from the series can be found at the website www.eamb.org.

About Universo Insônia

The site Universo Insônia (Insomnia Universe) publishes articles, news, and reviews on fantastic literature, cinema, comics, TV series, cartoons, and fantasy pop culture in general. The site’s principal objective is publicizing and supporting professionals in the area of Brazilian fantasy culture. The site also contains content about traditional and international productions.

Announcing the second Hydra Competition for Brazilian Fantastic Literature

July 1^st, 2013

Orson Scott Card’s InterGalactic Medicine Show (IGMS), The Elephant and Macaw Banner, and Brazilian website Universo Insônia have teamed up once again to bring the best of Brazilian speculative fiction to the English-speaking world via the second biennial Hydra Competition (Concurso Hydra in Brazil’s native language of Portuguese).

A panel of Brazilian judges will select three finalists from short stories first published in Brazil in 2011 and 2012.  Orson Scott Card, one of the world’s best-selling authors of speculative fiction, and Edmund R. Schubert, editor of IGMS, will select the winner from among the finalists.

Card says, “Ever since I lived in Brazil in the early 70s, the nation and people of Brazil have been important to me.  That’s why in Speaker for the Dead, the colonists are Portuguese-speaking Brazilians!  When I returned to Brazil to take part in a science fiction convention twenty years ago, I made new friends and read the work of some exciting authors.  I’ve continued following the Brazilian science fiction scene ever since, and I am proud that IGMS will be a means of bringing the work of some of these writers to American readers.  Till now, American readers have had little idea of how much good work is being done in our genre in Brazil.”

The three finalist stories will be translated from Portuguese by author Christopher Kastensmidt, Nebula Award finalist and founder of the Hydra Competition.  The winning entry will be published in InterGalactic Medicine Show.

Christopher says, “It was an honor to work with Orson Scott Card and IGMS during the first Hydra Competition, and I’m thrilled they are supporting this initiative once again.  The first competition had a huge impact on the careers of the finalists and the visibility of the Brazilian speculative fiction community in general.”  Brontops Baruq, winner of the first edition, echoes these thoughts: “The Hydra Competition was an injection of self-confidence and inspired me to keep writing.  I’m glad to know that another competition is on the way and I hope that it keeps opening doors and taking Brazilian speculative fiction to new hemispheres.”.”

IGMS editor Edmund R. Schubert says, “I think exploring cross-cultural viewpoints and attitudes is not only healthy, but absolutely necessary in this increasingly interconnected world, and science fiction and fantasy has always been the voice of the ‘other,’ the ‘alien,’ both literally and metaphorically. It’s the voice that explores differences that make us alike.  With the inaugural Hydra contest, IGMS published the top two stories instead of just the first-prize story (as was originally planned), and it was as gratifying to see both how well-received the contest was in Brazil as to see how well-received the prize-winning stories were in America. I can’t wait to see what the second Hydra contest brings us.”

Competition organizer Tiago Castro adds, “”It was a pleasure to be a part of the first Hydra Competition, a very important initiative for Brazilian speculative fiction.  The process was intense, principally because of the quality of the stories we received, but in the end, the result was extremely rewarding.  I’m both pleased and anxious at the opportunity to organize this second edition.”

The name for the Hydra Competition comes from the Hydra constellation.  Being a group of stars named after a mythical monster, the Hydra constellation is symbolic of both the fantasy and science fiction produced by the speculative community today.  The constellation crosses the celestial equator, joining the northern and southern celestial hemispheres, just as the Hydra competition hopes to join the northern and southern hemispheres of speculative fiction.  The Hydra is also one of the constellations on the Brazilian flag.

Submissions will be open from July 15^th through August 31^st and all eligible Brazilian authors are encouraged to participate.  Rules will be published in Portuguese on the website Universo Insônia (universoinsonia.com.br).  There is no entry fee to participate; however, the winner will receive a publication contract and be paid at IGMS’s full rate.

About Orson Scott Card’s InterGalactic Medicine Show

Founded in 2005 by multiple-award winning author Orson Scott Card, and edited since 2006 by Edmund R. Schubert, IGMS is an award-winning bimonthly online magazine publishing illustrated science fiction and fantasy short stories, audio stories, interviews, reviews, and more. Authors range from established pros like Peter Beagle and David Farland to first-time authors making their professional debut.

About The Elephant and Macaw Banner

The Elephant and Macaw Banner is a fantasy series set in sixteenth-century Brazil.  The stories tell the adventures of Gerard van Oost and Oludara, an unlikely pair of heroes who meet in Salvador.  News, artwork, and in-depth explanations of historical and cultural references from the series can be found at the website www.eamb.org.

About Universo Insônia

The site Universo Insônia (Insomnia Universe) publishes articles, news, and reviews on fantastic literature, cinema, comics, TV series, cartoons, and fantasy pop culture in general.  The site’s principal objective is publicizing and supporting professionals in the area of Brazilian fantasy culture.  The site also contains content about traditional and international productions.

Hydra Competition for Brazilian Fantastic Literature

Orson Scott Card’s InterGalactic Medicine Show (IGMS) and The Elephant and Macaw Banner have partnered up to create a contest that will bring the best of Brazilian speculative fiction to the English-speaking world via the Hydra Competition (Concurso Hydra in Brazil’s native language of Portuguese).

A panel of judges will select three finalists from short stories first published in Brazil in 2009 and 2010.  Orson Scott Card, one of the world’s best-selling authors of speculative fiction, will select the winner.

Card says, “Ever since I lived in Brazil in the early 70s, the nation and people of Brazil have been important to me.  That’s why in Speaker for the Dead, the colonists are Portuguese-speaking Brazilians!  When I returned to Brazil to take part in a science fiction convention twenty years ago, I made new friends and read the work of some exciting authors.  I’ve continued following the Brazilian science fiction scene ever since, and I am proud that IGMS will be a means of bringing the work of some of these writers to American readers.  Till now, American readers have had little idea of how much good work is being done in our genre in Brazil.”

The winning story will be translated from Portuguese by author Christopher Kastensmidt, finalist in this year’s Nebula Awards and organizer of the Hydra Competition, and it will be published in InterGalactic Medicine Show.

IGMS editor Edmund R. Schubert says, “We’ve been publishing stories from around the globe for nearly as long as the magazine has been online, but it was always the English-language speaking parts of the world. This opportunity to reach into Brazil, to a whole new way of not just speaking, but of thinking and of viewing the world, is exciting. South America and Latin America have long been renowned for incorporating magical realism into their fiction and that’s a perfect avenue for IGMS to explore.  I’m incredibly excited to see the stories that come to us out of this contest.”

Competition organizer Christopher Kastensmidt adds, “The Brazilian speculative fiction community has produced hundreds of excellent stories over the last two years, but almost none of them have made the passage to the English-speaking world.  Orson Scott Card and the staff at InterGalactic Medicine Show recognize that speculative fiction is international, and their support will make this competition one of the biggest incentives ever for Brazilian writers.”

The name for the Hydra Competition comes from the Hydra constellation.  Being a group of stars named after a mythical monster, the Hydra constellation is symbolic of both the fantasy and science fiction produced by the speculative community today.  The constellation crosses the celestial equator, joining the northern and southern celestial hemispheres, just as the Hydra competition hopes to join the northern and southern hemispheres of speculative fiction.  The Hydra is also one of the constellations on the Brazilian flag.

Submissions will be open from July 1^st through August 15^th and all eligible Brazilian authors are encouraged to participate.  Rules will be published in Portuguese on the website Universo Insônia (universoinsonia.com.br).  There is no entry fee to participate; however, the winner will receive a publication contract and be paid at IGMS’s full rate.

About Orson Scott Card’s InterGalactic Medicine Show

Founded by multiple-award winning author Orson Scott Card, and edited for the past five years by Edmund R. Schubert, IGMS is an award-winning bimonthly online magazine publishing illustrated science fiction and fantasy short stories, audio stories, interviews, reviews, and more. Authors range from established pros like Peter Beagle and David Farland to first-time authors making their professional debut.  IGMS can be found at www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com.

About The Elephant and Macaw Banner

The Elephant and Macaw Banner is a fantasy series set in sixteenth-century Brazil.  The stories tell the adventures of Gerard van Oost and Oludara, an unlikely pair of heroes who meet in Salvador.  News, artwork, and in-depth explanations of historical and cultural references from the series can be found at the website www.eamb.org.