LEEDS NATIVE WINS INTERNATIONAL ILLUSTRATION CONTEST

Steven Bentley is a winner in the L. Ron Hubbard Illustrators of the Future Contest and will attend a week-long master-class workshop, an awards event and his winning art will be published in the international bestselling anthology, L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 40.

Mr Bentley, 69, currently lives in Portland, Oregon, USA, and started drawing at an early age – first on the walls with his crayons then on any scrap of paper he could lay his hands on or that his father could provide.

A spokesperson for the awards said: “His love of art continued into school and if you would have asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up he would have said he wanted to draw and paint movie posters and book covers.

“Life, however, took him in other directions but despite this he continued to draw and paint every day developing his work until the opportunity came along for him to attend art school where he gained a degree with honours in Animation Art and Design.

“However, his passion always remained in illustration and it is on that he has continued to concentrate.

“He works almost exclusively in traditional media as he enjoys the process. Having something tangible to hold when a work is completed is important to him although he has been known to dabble in the digital realm.”

Mr Bentley’s ambitions Stateside lay in expanding upon the occasional freelance work he gains.

The Illustrators of the Future Contest judges include, Bob Eggleton (11 Chesley Awards and 7 Hugo Awards), Larry Elmore (Dungeons & Dragons book covers), Echo Chernik (graphic designs for major corporations including Celestial Seasonings tea packaging), Rob Prior (art for Spawn, Heavy Metal comics and Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Ciruelo (Eragon Coloring Book).

Following the 1982 release of his internationally acclaimed bestselling science fiction novel, Battlefield Earth, written in celebration of 50 years as a professional writer, L. Ron Hubbard created the Writers of the Future (writersofthefuture.com) in 1983 to provide a means for aspiring writers of speculative fiction to get that much-needed break.

Due to the success of the Writers of the Future Contest, the companion Illustrators of the Future Contest was inaugurated five years later.

In the 34 years of the Illustrators of the Future Contest, there have been 394 winners. The past winners of the Illustrating Contest have produced over 6,800 illustrations, 390 comic books, graced 700 books and albums with their art, and visually contributed to 68 television shows and 40 major movies.

Since its inception, the Writers and Illustrators of the Future contests have produced 39 anthology volumes (with this event) and awarded upwards of $1 million in cash prizes and royalties.

For more information about the Contests, go to www.WritersoftheFuture.com.