Comments: After the oddity of the 1978 Locus Award ballot, the 1979 slate is a comforting return to normality. The Best Novel category returned for one last year before the slip into Best Science Fiction Novel and Best Fantasy Novel was made permanent. The Best Novelette category returned after a year long absence, as did the Best Single Author Collection and Best Anthology categories. The Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Work category was reinstated, and the Best Art or Illustrated Book was as well. In effect, almost all of the changes made in 1978 were reversed in 1979, which makes the strangeness of the 1978 Locus Award ballot all the more puzzling.
Best Novel
Winner:
1. Dreamsnake by Vonda N. McIntyre
Other Nominees:
2. Blind Voices by Tom Reamy
3. The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey
4. The Faded Sun: Kesrith by C.J. Cherryh
5. Colony by Ben Bova
6. Stormqueen! by Marion Zimmer Bradley
7. The Far Call by Gordon R. Dickson
8. The Avatar by Poul Anderson
9. The Courts of Chaos by Roger Zelazny
10. Strangers by Gardner Dozois
11. The Stars In Shroud by Gregory Benford
12. Up the Walls of the World by James Tiptree, Jr.
13. The Outcasts of Heaven's Belt by Joan D. Vinge
14. Sight of Proteus by Charles Sheffield
15. The Stand by Stephen King
16. Journey by Marta Randall
17. Gloriana by Michael Moorcock
18. Saint Camber by Katherine Kurtz
19. The Faded Sun: Shon'jir by C.J. Cherryh
20. Stardance II by Spider Robinson and Jeanne Robinson
21. (tie) The Eye of the Heron by Ursula K. Le Guin
(tie) Hotel Transylvania by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
23. Masters of Solitude by Marvin Kaye and Parke Godwin
24. A Different Light by Elizabeth A. Lynn
25. Kalki by Gore Vidal
Best Novella
Winner:
1. The Persistence of Vision by John Varley
Other Nominees:
2. The Watched by Christopher Priest
3. Seven American Nights by Gene Wolfe4. Old Folks at Home by Michael Bishop
5. Fireship by Joan D. Vinge
6. The Doctor of Death Island by Gene Wolfe
7. The Renewal by Pamela Sargent
8. Insects in Amber by Tom Reamy
9. The Treasure of Odirex by Charles Sheffield
10. A Chinese Perspective by Brian W. Aldiss
Best Novelette
Winner:
1. The Barbie Murders by John Varley
Other Nominees:
2. Hunter's Moon by Poul Anderson
3. Mikal's Songbird by Orson Scott Card
4. Swanilda's Song by Frederik Pohl
5. Devil You Don't Know by Dean Ing
6. In Alien Flesh by Gregory Benford
7. The Nuptial Flight of Warbirds by Algis Budrys
8. (tie) The Gunslinger by Stephen King
(tie) The Man Who Had No Idea by Thomas M. Disch
10. Shipwright by Donald M. Kingsbury
11. Black Glass by Fritz Leiber
12. Starswarmer by Gregory Benford
13. A Good Night's Sleep (aka Sleep Well of Nights) by Avram Davidson
14. The Morphology of the Kirkham Wreck by Hilbert Schenck
15. Selenium Ghosts of the Eighteen Seventies by R.A. Lafferty
16. Within the Walls of Tyre by Michael Bishop
Best Short Story
Winner:
1. Count the Clock that Tells the Time by Harlan Ellison
Other Nominees:
2. View From a Height by Joan D. Vinge
3. Stone by Edward Bryant4. Virra by Terry Carr
5. A Hiss of Dragon by Gregory Benford and Marc Laidlaw
6. Cassandra by C.J. Cherryh
7. Drink Me, Francesca by Richard Cowper
8. A Thousand Deaths by Orson Scott Card
9. (tie) SQ by Ursula K. Le Guin
(tie) Whores by Christopher Priest
11. The Very Slow Time Machine by Ian Watson
12. Gotcha! by Ray Bradbury
13. A Quiet Revolution for Death by Jack Dann
Best Single Author Collection
Winner:
1. The Persistence of Vision by John Varley
Other Nominees:
2. Strange Wine by Harlan Ellison
3. Still I Persist in Wondering by Edgar Pangborn
4. The Earth Book of Stormgate by Poul Anderson
5. Infinite Dreams by Joe Haldeman
6. Fireship by Joan D. Vinge
7. The Best of L. Sprague de Camp by L. Sprague de Camp
8. Night Shift by Stephen King
9. Somerset Dreams and Other Fictions by Kate Wilhelm
10. The Best of Eric Frank Russell by Eric Frank Russell
11. Blood and Burning by Algis Budrys
12. Night Winds by Karl Edward Wagner
13. (tie) The Best Short Stories of J.G. Ballard by J.G. Ballard
(tie) Born to Exile by Phyllis Eisenstein
15. The Redward Edward Papers by Avram Davidson
Best Anthology
Winner:
1. The Best Science Fiction of the Year #7 edited by Terry Carr
Other Nominees:
2. The 1978 Annual World's Best SF edited by Donald A. Wollheim with Arthur W. Saha
3. Universe 8 edited by Terry Carr4. New Dimensions 8 edited by Robert Silverberg
5. Stellar #4 edited by Judy-Lynn del Rey
6. Year's Finest Fantasy edited by Terry Carr
7. Chrysalis 2 edited by Roy Torgeson
8. Orbit 20 edited by Damon Knight
9. Anticipations edited by Christopher Priest
10. Swords Against Darkness III edited by andrew j. offutt
11. Immortal edited by Jack Dann
12. Millennial Women edited by Virginia Kidd
13. Shadows edited by Charles L. Grant
14. Nebula Winners Twelve edited by Gordon R. Dickson
15. Alpha 9 edited by Robert Silverberg
16. The Best of Analog edited by Ben Bova
17. Study War No More edited by Joe Haldeman
Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Book
Winner:
1. The Way the Future Was by Frederik Pohl
Other Nominees:
2. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Vol. 2 by Donald H. Tuck
3. Index to Science Fiction Anthologies and Collections by William G. Contento
4. Science Fiction and Heroic Fantasy Index by Stuart W. Wells III
5. Fantasms: A Jack Vance Bibliography by Daniel J.H. Levack and Tim Underwood
6. A History of the Hugo, Nebula, and International Fantasy Awards by Donald Franson and Howard DeVore
7. The Complete Guide to Middle Earth by Richard Foster8. The International Science Fiction Yearbook by Colin Lester
9. The Hills of Faraway: A Guide to Fantasy by Diana Waggoner
10. The American Shore by Samuel R. Delany
11. Speaking of Science Fiction by Paul Walker
Best Art or Illustrated Book
Winner:
1. Tomorrow and Beyond edited by Ian Summers
Other Nominees:
2. Faeries by Brian Froud and Alan Lee
3. The Magic Goes Away by Larry Niven, illustrated by Esteban Maroto
4. The Fantastic Art of Boris Vallejo by Boris Vallejo
5. The Illustrated Roger Zelazny by Roger Zelazny, illustrated by Gray Morrow
6. Age of Dreams by Alicia Austin
7. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction edited by Robert Holdstock
8. Empire by Samuel R. Delany, illustrated by Howard Chaykin
9. Fantasy by Fabian by Stephen Fabian
10. Frank Frazetta, Book III by Frank Frazetta
11. The Second Book of Virgil Finlay by Virgil Finlay
12. The Flight of Icarus by Donald Lehmkuhl, edited by Martyn Dean and Roger Dean
13. Beauty and the Beast by Chris Achilleos
Best Magazine
Winner:
1. Fantasy & Science Fiction edited by Edward L. Ferman
Other Nominees:
2. Locus edited by Charles N. Brown
3. Analog edited by Stanley Schmidt
4. Asimov's edited by George Scithers
5. Omni edited by Ben Bova
6. Science Fiction Review edited by Richard E. Geis
7. Algol/Starship edited by Andrew Porter
8. Galileo edited by Charles C. Ryan
9. Destinies (Ace) edited by James Baen
10. Starlog edited by Howard Zimmerman
11. Unearth edited by Jonathon Ostrowsky-Lantz and John M. Landsberg
12. Galaxy edited by J.J. Pierce
13. Asimov's SF Adventure edited by George Scithers
14. (tie) Future Life edited by Ed Naha and L.N. Nelson
(tie) Whispers edited by Stuart David Schiff
Best Artist
Winner:
1. Boris Vallejo
Other Nominees:
2. Michael Whelan
3. Stephen Fabian
4. Vincent Di Fate
5. Frank Kelly Freas
6. Rick Sternbach
7. George Barr
8. Frank Frazetta
9. Tim Kirk
10. David Hardy
11. Darrell Sweet
12. Alicia Austin
13. Brian Froud
14. Richard Powers
15. The Brothers Hildebrandt
16. William Rotsler
17. Jack Gaughan
18. Alexis Gilliland
Go to previous year's nominees: 1978
Go to subsequent year's nominees: 1980
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