Comments: The 1984 World Fantasy Awards saw two developments. First, after deciding to stop publishing the names of the non-winning nominees for the Lifetime Achievement Award in 1983, the World Fantasy Awards decided to hand out a pile of Lifetime Achievement Awards rather than just one, as had been the previous practice. I'm not sure why they decided to make this change - perhaps the judges were concerned that some worthy nominees would pass away before they were recognized if they continued honoring just one nominee per year - but the decision resulted in five co-winners for the award this year.
Second, Tanith Lee blossomed into a force to be reckoned with in fantasy. She had already won a World Fantasy Award in 1983, but in this year not only did the author win another, but she was nominated for two more. It took the World Fantasy Awards several years to notice that women wrote excellent fantasy fiction, but once they did, the prodigious talent of women like Tanith Lee ensured that they would not be overlooked again.
Best Novel
The Dragon Waiting by John M. Ford
Other Nominees:
The Armageddon Rag by George R.R. Martin
Lyonesse by Jack Vance
Pet Sematary by Stephen King
Tea with the Black Dragon by R.A. MacAvoy
The Wandering Unicorn by Manuel Mujica Lainez
Best Novella
Black Air by Kim Stanley Robinson
Other Nominees:
The Lurking Duck by Scott Baker
The Monkey's Bride by Michael Bishop
Nunc Dimittis by Tanith Lee
The Red Hawk by Elizabeth A. Lynn
Best Short Fiction
Elle Est Trois, (La Mort) by Tanith Lee
Other Nominees:
The Hundred-Year Christmas by David Morrell
Into Whose Hands by Karl Edward Wagner
The Silent Cradle by Leigh Kennedy
Solitario's Eyes by Lucius Shepard
Wong's Lost and Found Emporium by William F. Wu
Best Anthology or Collection
High Spirits by Robertson Davies
Other Nominees:
The Dodd, Mead Gallery of Horror edited by Charles L. Grant
Red as Blood by Tanith Lee
Shadows 6 edited by Charles L. Grant
Tales of Wonder by Jane Yolen
Lifetime Achievement
L. Sprague de Camp
Richard Matheson
E. Hoffmann Price
Jack Vance
Donald Wandrei
Other Nominees:
None
Best Artist
Stephen Gervais
Other Nominees:
Jill Bauman
Edward Gorey
Robert Gould
Don Maitz
Rowena Morrill
Special Award, Professional
Ian Ballantine, Betty Ballantine, Joy Chant, George Sharp, and David Larkin
Other Nominees:
Everett F. Bleiler
L. Sprague de Camp, Catherine Crook de Camp, and Jane Whittington Griffin
Edward L. Ferman
Pat LoBrutto
Special Award, Non-Professional
Stephen Jones and David Sutton
Other Nominees:
Robert A. Collins
W. Paul Ganley
Robert M. Price
Douglas E. Winter
Special Convention Award
Donald M. Grant
Other Nominees:
None
Go to previous year's nominees: 1983
Go to subsequent year's nominees: 1985
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