The Californer - Dave Freer's "Storm-Dragon" Wins First-Ever Prometheus Special Award For Young Adult Fiction

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Freer's novel is the first in a category the Libertarian Futurist Society created years ago and had never used — until now.

WICHITA FALLS, Texas - Californer -- Raconteur Press is proud to announce that Storm-Dragon, the debut Boys' Adventure novel by Dave Freer, has won the 2026 Special Prometheus Award for Young Adult Fiction — the first time this specific award has ever been presented to any book. The Libertarian Futurist Society's board approved a Special Award category for Young Adult Fiction several years ago but had not yet found a work it considered worthy of the honor. Storm-Dragon is that book.

Special Prometheus Awards are occasional, not annual, and reserved for outstanding work outside the parameters of the Society's two annual categories, Best Novel and the Prometheus Hall of Fame. Only ten Special Awards have been given since the category was established in 1998, and the Society has not presented one since 2017, making this both a rare honor and a first.

The win comes on the heels of Raconteur Press's first-ever Prometheus Award, announced last week when J. Kenton Pierce's A Kiss for Damocles took Best Novel. That makes two Prometheus Awards for Raconteur Press in the same award cycle, a significant milestone for a press now in its second year of publishing novels and its first year of publishing Boys' Adventure fiction.

Storm-Dragon follows Skut, a refugee kid on a rough ocean colony world, who rescues a small alien creature — an electrosensitive, six-limbed "dragon" that turns out to be a lot smarter and a lot more dangerous than anyone expected. His friend Podge, new in town, gets dragged into it, right as the whole settlement starts facing a threat nobody can explain. The boys navigate bullies, bad teachers, a town government that's gotten comfortable pushing people around, and eventually a raid that forces the whole colony to figure out what it actually stands for. The novel sits in the tradition of Robert Heinlein's and Andre Norton's classic adventure fiction for young readers: story first, with its themes of self-reliance and mutual respect emerging naturally rather than as argument.

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"Rita and I are thrilled and honored to have not one, but two of our novels recognized by the Prometheus Awards this year," said Ian McMurtrie. "Dave Freer's Storm-Dragon receiving the inaugural Special Award for Young Adult Fiction, alongside J. Kenton Pierce winning Best Novel with A Kiss for Damocles, demonstrates that engaging and entertaining stories that celebrate freedom, self-reliance, and adventure still have a place on bookshelves. We're incredibly proud of our little press publishing fiction that speaks to young readers and adults alike — great storytelling is always in vogue."

Storm-Dragon is Freer's first novel for Raconteur Press's Boys' Adventure line, launched to address what the Press has called a reading crisis among boys: a shortage of adventure fiction written to entertain young male readers rather than instruct them. Freer previously won the Prometheus Award for Best Novel in 2023 for Cloud-Castles, making him one of a small number of authors recognized by the Libertarian Futurist Society across multiple award cycles. A former marine biologist based in Tasmania, Australia, Freer's career has included work as a commercial shark fishery scientist, salvage diver, and steeplejack. He has authored or co-authored more than twenty novels.

"I was actually a little worried that Storm-Dragon would win the Prometheus," said Freer. "That was not what it was written for. It was written to get boys reading for pleasure, as a gateway. By recognizing Storm-Dragon in this way, it means they think it follows in the footsteps of Heinlein Juvies — exactly what I was in my usual inept fashion trying to do. I am delighted, and hope they make it a regular Prometheus feature, because firstly, it is fun to read, and secondly humans need our boys reading."

The Prometheus Award, first presented in 1979 and awarded annually by the Libertarian Futurist Society since 1982, is one of the longest-running fan-based awards in science fiction. Past winners include Neal Stephenson, Poul Anderson, Vernor Vinge, Terry Pratchett, and Cory Doctorow.

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This year's awards will be presented at the Libertarian Futurist Society's 46th annual online ceremony, open to the public, on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 16, 2026. Freer has confirmed he will deliver his acceptance remotely from Tasmania despite a fourteen-hour time difference from the ceremony's Eastern-time slot.

Storm-Dragon is available in paperback and ebook at Amazon and in paperback at IngramSpark. Parents, educators, and librarians are encouraged to contact pr@raconteurpress.com to request a review copy.

About Raconteur Press

Raconteur Press is a Texas-based independent publisher founded in 2022. The press publishes genre fiction anthologies, novels, and a Boys' Adventure line, with all books unapologetically designed to entertain. Raconteur operates on a philosophy of radical transparency, publishing sample contracts publicly and sharing its operational playbook openly with the indie publishing community. Learn more at raconteurpress.substack.com.

About the Libertarian Futurist Society

The Libertarian Futurist Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring science fiction and fantasy that explores themes of individual liberty. The Prometheus Award has been presented annually since 1982. Learn more at lfs.org.

Available for Media

Mr. Freer is available for interviews via email/video given the Tasmania time difference; scheduling can accommodate. Review copy, press kit, author bio, cover image, and award logo available on request. Contact pr@raconteurpress.com.