Nebula Award Nominees Announced!

This morning, the nominees for the 2011 Nebula Awards were announced. The Nebulas are like the Oscars of American science fiction and fantasy. Awarded by the members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, the Nebulas honor excellence in the categories of novel, novella, novelette, and short story. There is also the Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation and the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy.

If you want to get to know some excellent writers making daring and barrier-breaking (and fun!) work, browse through the full list and give some of the nominated pieces a go. While there are a number of familiar names on the list (Neil Gaiman, China Mieville, Woody Allen), there are also some new writers who might just rock your socks (I'd like to point you to Ferrett Steinmetz and Tom Crosshill in particular).

Novel

• Among Others, Jo Walton (Tor)
• Embassytown, China Miéville (Macmillan UK; Del Rey; Subterranean Press)
• Firebird, Jack McDevitt (Ace Books)
• God’s War, Kameron Hurley (Night Shade Books)
• Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti, Genevieve Valentine (Prime Books)
• The Kingdom of Gods, N.K. Jemisin (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

Novella

• “Kiss Me Twice,” Mary Robinette Kowal (Asimov’s Science Fiction, June 2011)
• “Silently and Very Fast,” Catherynne M. Valente (WFSA Press;Clarkesworld Magazine, October 2011)
• “The Ice Owl,” Carolyn Ives Gilman (The Magazine of Fantasy andScience Fiction, November/December 2011)
• “The Man Who Bridged the Mist,” Kij Johnson (Asimov’s Science Fiction, October/November 2011)
• “The Man Who Ended History: A Documentary,” Ken Liu (PanverseThree, Panverse Publishing)
• “With Unclean Hands,” Adam-Troy Castro (Analog Science Fiction andFact, November 2011)

Novelette

• “Fields of Gold,” Rachel Swirsky (Eclipse 4, Night Shade Books)
• “Ray of Light,” Brad R. Torgersen (Analog Science Fiction and Fact, December 2011)
• “Sauerkraut Station,” Ferrett Steinmetz (Giganotosaurus, November 2011)
• “Six Months, Three Days,” Charlie Jane Anders (Tor.com, June 2011)
• “The Migratory Pattern of Dancers,” Katherine Sparrow (Giganotosaurus, July 2011)
• “The Old Equations,” Jake Kerr (Lightspeed Magazine, July 2011)
• “What We Found,” Geoff Ryman (The Magazine of Fantasy and ScienceFiction, September/October 2011)

Short Story

• “Her Husband’s Hands,” Adam-Troy Castro (Lightspeed Magazine, October 2011)
• “Mama, We are Zhenya, Your Son,” Tom Crosshill (Lightspeed Magazine, April 2011)
• “Movement,” Nancy Fulda (Asimov’s Science Fiction, March 2011)
• “Shipbirth,” Aliette de Bodard (Asimov’s Science Fiction, February 2011)
• “The Axiom of Choice,” David W. Goldman (New Haven Review, Winter 2011)
• “The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees,” E. Lily Yu (Clarkesworld Magazine, April 2011)
• “The Paper Menagerie,” Ken Liu (The Magazine of Fantasy and ScienceFiction, March/April 2011)

Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation

• Attack the Block, Joe Cornish (writer/director) (Optimum Releasing; Screen Gems)
• Captain America: The First Avenger, Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely (writers), Joe Johnston (director) (Paramount)
• Doctor Who: “The Doctor’s Wife,” Neil Gaiman (writer), Richard Clark (director) (BBC Wales)
• Hugo, John Logan (writer), Martin Scorsese (director) (Paramount)
• Midnight in Paris, Woody Allen (writer/director) (Sony)
• Source Code, Ben Ripley (writer), Duncan Jones (director) (Summit)
• The Adjustment Bureau, George Nolfi (writer/director) (Universal)

 Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and FantasyBook

• Akata Witch, Nnedi Okorafor (Viking Juvenile)
• Chime, Franny Billingsley (Dial Books; Bloomsbury)
• Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Laini Taylor (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Hodder & Stoughton)
• Everybody Sees the Ants, A.S. King (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
• The Boy at the End of the World, Greg van Eekhout (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)
• The Freedom Maze, Delia Sherman (Big Mouth House)
• The Girl of Fire and Thorns, Rae Carson (Greenwillow Books)
• Ultraviolet, R.J. Anderson (Orchard Books; Carolrhoda Lab)

Have a Rocket

This past weekend, the winners of the 2011 Hugo Awards were announced. The Hugos recognize excellence in the field of science fiction and fantasy, and have been around since 1953. The Hugos are particularly interesting because they're awarded on the basis of a popular vote. Anyone who is a member of the World Science Fiction Society can nominate, and the winners are also selected by vote. The final ballot is an excellent indication of what some of the most enthusiastic and respected editors, authors, artists, and fans think is worthy of recognition in the world of speculative fiction.

 

Enormous congratulations to the 2011 fiction winners:

 BEST NOVEL: Blackout/All Clear by Connie Willis

I can vouch for the addictive nature of these books (a single novel in two volumes). With a deliriously thrilling story set in London during the Blitz and Oxford in 2060, Blackout (book one) and All Clear (book two) show off Willis' smart, compassionate writing; her meticulous historical detail; and her mastery of the cliffhanger. The novel bounces between characters who are connected by story, but separated by time, and Willis manages to balance their story lines so well and pull them so taut that you find yourself caught in a reading frenzy, unable to to resist devouring chapter after chapter. If you enjoy historical mysteries, give these books a try.

 BEST NOVELLA: The Lifecycle of Software Objects by Ted Chiang
Ted Chiang is an extraordinary writer, but if you don't regularly read science fiction, you may not know about him yet. Lucky you! I envy you your introduction. Chiang's work is unique in its cool intelligence, its willingness to tackle difficult or analytical ideas, and its crisp, perfectly set prose.



BEST NOVELETTE: "The Emperor of Mars" by Allen M. Steele
This was originally published in Asimov's Science Fiction, but is currently available to read on the author's website.

BEST SHORT STORY: "For Want of a Nail" by Mary Robinette Kowal
This was originally published in Asimov's Science Fiction, but is currently available to read on the author's website.

 BEST GRAPHIC STORY: Girl Genius, Volume 10: Agatha Heterodyne and the Guardian Muse by Phil and Kaja Foglio

With the tagline "Adventure, Romance, MAD SCIENCE," this popular series chronicles the story of the titular Agatha Heterodyne in fantastical alternate history of Europe. This is its third straight year of winning the Best Graphic Story award.

 And a special congratulations to Lev Grossman, the winner of the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. Lev is the author of The Magicians and The Magician King, two novels that revel in a fresh and shocking view of what it means to tell a story with magic. Lev will be visiting Kepler's this Wednesday, the 24th, to sign The Magician King. We can't wait!

For a full list of winners and a list of nominated works, please visit the Hugo Award website.