Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — The organisers of the second season of the international science fiction literary award Future History have announced the longlist for the 2026 competition, featuring 120 works across four categories. The competition received 1,060 short stories from 27 countries.
Thirty works were selected in each category: Best Short Story, Best Short Story for Children and Young Adults, Best Short Story in a Foreign Language, and Best Screenplay Pitch.
The selected works explore the impact of scientific discoveries and technological progress on society, human relationships and everyday life. Themes in stories by Russian authors include space exploration, artificial intelligence, unmanned technologies, digital immortality and the digital afterlife.
Despite the technological focus, people remain at the centre of these speculative stories, which examine human values, relationships, freedom of choice and responsibility for the consequences of technological development.
“The second season demonstrates just how diverse and multifaceted contemporary visions of the future have become. Russian authors are actively exploring artificial intelligence, space exploration and digital immortality. At the same time, technology in their works is not merely a science-fiction backdrop, but a way to examine how people themselves are changing, along with their understanding of life, memory and the future,” said Sergey Shikarev, executive secretary of the award’s organising committee, literary critic and science fiction researcher.
He added that the different ways writers from various countries envision the future offer a broad spectrum of possible paths for humanity’s development, providing insights for both literature and futures studies.
The award’s international reach is particularly evident in the Best Short Story in a Foreign Language category, which features works by writers from Brazil, India, China, Argentina, Italy, Mexico, South Africa and other countries. Their stories reflect differences in cultural traditions, social experience and approaches to scientific and technological development.
Another addition to the second season is the Best Screenplay Pitch category, which is open to authors of science fiction concepts with potential for screen adaptation.
Created in partnership with the Autonomous Nonprofit Organization Author, the category aims to support original Russian stories for film and other audiovisual formats.
“It is essential to us that the Future History Award should be more than just a literary competition. We want it to be a space where ideas are born — ideas capable of inspiring people, scientists, engineers and the creative industries,” said Elena Mironenko, director general of the ATOM Museum and a cultural studies expert.
She said science fiction allows people to look beyond familiar boundaries and imagine developments that may seem impossible today but could become reality in the future. The screenplay category, she added, offers promising ideas an opportunity to move beyond books and reach audiences on screen.
The next stage will be the selection of finalists, with the shortlists scheduled to be announced in November 2026. The winners will be announced at an official awards ceremony on 4 December 2026.
The Future History International Science Fiction Literary Award was established by the Atom Foundation under the auspices of the Rosatom State Corporation. It aims to support contemporary science fiction authors, promote scientific knowledge and technology, and encourage constructive visions of the future.
The first season attracted more than 2,500 authors from 30 countries. The competition is being held for the second time in 2026, with a total prize fund exceeding 6 million roubles. Science fiction writer Sergei Lukyanenko chairs the jury.
