Comments: After mostly ignoring women for the first several years of its existence, the World Fantasy Awards seem to have decided to try to make up for lost time in a single year. Not only did Elizabeth A. Lynn win in the Best Novel category, she shared a victory in the Best Short Fiction category, and the Jessica Amanda Salmonson edited anthology Amazons! won in the Best Anthology or Collection category.
But the real sea change was down ballot. Of the six nominees for Best Novel, five of them were authored by women. The other categories were still overwhelmingly dominated by men, with the Lifetime Achievement, Best Artist, and Special Professional Award categories being exclusively male affairs, but at least the World Fantasy Awards had finally noticed half of the human race.
Best Novel
Watchtower by Elizabeth A. Lynn
Other Nominees:
The Dancers of Arun by Elizabeth A. Lynn
The Dark Bright Water by Patricia Wrightson
Harpist in the Wind by Patricia A. McKillip
The Last Call of Mourning by Charles L. Grant
The Palace by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
Best Short Fiction
(tie) Mackintosh Willy by Ramsey Campbell
(tie) The Woman Who Loved the Moon by Elizabeth A. Lynn
Other Nominees:
The Button Molder by Fritz Leiber
Petey by T.E.D. Klein
Saturday's Shadow by William F. Nolan
Best Anthology or Collection
Amazons! edited by Jessica Amanda Salmonson
Other Nominees:
Nightmares edited by Charles L. Grant
Shadows 2 edited by Charles L. Grant
Thieves' World edited by Robert Asprin
Whispers II edited by Stuart David Schiff
The Year's Finest Fantasy, Volume 2 edited by Terry Carr
Lifetime Achievement
Manly Wade Wellman
Other Nominees:
Avram Davidson
L. Sprague de Camp
H. Warner Munn
Jack Vance
Best Artist
Don Maitz
Other Nominees:
Stephen Fabian
Boris Vallejo
Michael Whelan
Special Award, Professional
Donald M. Grant
Other Nominees:
Lester del Rey
Pat LoBrutto
James Turner
Donald A. Wollheim
Special Award, Non-Professional
Paul C. Allen
Other Nominees:
Pat Cadigan and Arnie Fenner
Harry O. Morris, Jr.
Stuart David Schiff
Special Convention Award
Stephen King
Other Nominees:
None
Go to previous year's nominees: 1979
Go to subsequent year's nominees: 1981
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