Location: Westercon in San Diego, California.
Comments: Science fiction readers are, I think more than the fans of any other genre, lovers of the history of the genre. As evidence of this, I point to the 1998 nominees for Best Collection. The winner in the category was a collection by Harlan Ellison, an author who started his career in the 1960s. Closely behind Ellison were collections by Alfred Bester and Theodore Sturgeon, both of whom had been at their most prolific in the 1950s. Also on the list was a collection of the works of Cyril M. Kornbluth, an author who died in 1958. I don't know if avid readers of other fiction genres so eagerly snap up and consume the works of authors forty or fifty years after it was first produced, or honor such works with awards at such a time distance either, but I doubt they do.
It seems odd to me, however, that science fiction readers seem so fond of nostalgia. One would think that people who consume fiction that looks to the future would also look forward instead of back, but that seems not to be the case. If you ask a science fiction fan to recommend a book, they are likely to suggest something that was first published forty or fifty years ago, and even requests for recent recommendation often results in a suggestion that is twenty or more years old.
Best Science Fiction Novel
Winner:
1.
The Rise of Endymion by Dan Simmons
Other Nominees:
2.
Antarctica by
Kim Stanley Robinson
3.
Forever Peace by
Joe Haldeman
5.
Finity's End by C.J. Cherryh
6.
/ Slant by
Greg Bear
7.
Diaspora by Greg Egan
8.
Fool's War by Sarah Zettel
9.
Titan by
Stephen Baxter
10.
3001: The Final Odyssey by
Arthur C. Clarke
11.
The Reality Dysfunction by Peter F. Hamilton
12.
God's Fires by Patricia Anthony
13.
Corrupting Dr. Nice by John Kessel
14.
Destiny's Road by
Larry Niven
15.
Eternity Road by Jack McDevitt
16.
The Black Sun by Jack Williamson
17.
The Family Tree by Sheri S. Tepper
18.
Glimmering by
Elizabeth Hand
19.
Secret Passages by Paul Preuss
20.
The Fleet of Stars by
Poul Anderson
21.
Mississippi Blues by Kathleen Ann Goonan
22.
The Calcutta Chromosome by Amitav Ghosh
23. (tie)
Dreaming Metal by Melissa Scott
(tie)
Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Charles Sheffield
25.
The Dazzle of Day by Molly Gloss
26.
Once a Hero by Elizabeth Moon
27.
Einstein's Bridge by John Cramer
28.
Deception Well by Linda Nagata
Best Fantasy Novel
Winner:
1.
Earthquake Weather by
Tim Powers
Other Nominees:
2.
Jack Faust by
Michael Swanwick
3.
City on Fire by Walter Jon Williams
4.
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass by Stephen King
5.
Assassin's Quest by Robin Hobb
6.
The Moon and the Sun by Vonda N. McIntyre
7.
Freedom & Necessity by Steven Brust and Emma Bull
8.
Trader by Charles de Lint
9.
The Gift by Patrick O'Leary
10.
Winter Tides by James P. Blaylock
11.
The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman
12.
Rose Daughter by Robin McKinley
13.
Dogland by Will Shetterly
14.
King's Dragon by
Kate Elliott
15.
Lord of the Isles by David Drake
16.
Gate of Ivory, Gate of Horn by Robert Holdstock
17.
Running with the Demon by
Terry Brooks
18.
The Mines of Behemoth by Michael Shea
19.
My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due
20.
The Night Watch by Sean Stewart
21.
The Stars Dispose by Michaela Roessner
22.
The Blackgod by J. Gregory Keyes
Best First Novel
Winner:
1.
The Great Wheel by Ian R. MacLeod
Other Nominees:
2.
Expendable by James Alan Gardner
3.
Black Wine by Candas Jane Dorsey
4.
An Exchange of Hostages by Susan R. Matthews
5.
Mars Underground by William K. Hartmann
6.
The Art of Arrow Cutting by Stephen Dedman
7.
The Merro Tree by Katie Waitman
8.
Lightpaths by Howard V. Hendrix
9.
A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda
10.
Waking Beauty by Paul Witcover
11.
The Troika by Stepan Chapman
12.
The Stone Prince by Fiona Patton
13.
Lives of the Monster Dogs by Kirsten Bakis
14.
Iron Dawn by Matthew Woodring Stover
15.
The Seventh Heart by Marina Fitch
16.
The Seraphim Rising by Elisabeth DeVos
Best Novella
Winner:
1.
. . . Where Angels Fear to Tread by
Allen M. Steele
Other Nominees:
2. Giant Bones by Peter S. Beagle
3.
The Dealings of Daniel Kesserich by
Fritz Leiber
4.
Everything's Eventual by Stephen King
5.
Marrow by
Robert Reed
6.
The Golden Keeper by Ian R. MacLeod
7.
The Vampire's Beautiful Daughter by S.P. Somtow
8.
Ecopoiesis by
Geoffrey A. Landis
9.
A Cold Dry Cradle by Gregory Benford and Elisabeth Malartre
10.
Messengers of Chaos by
G. David Nordley
11.
Quinn's Deal by L. Timmel Duchamp
12.
The Black Blood of the Dead by
Brian Stableford
13.
Coppola's Dracula by Kim Newman
14.
In the Furnace of the Night by James Sarafin
15.
The Veil of Snows by Mark Helprin
16.
The Funeral March of the Marionettes by
Adam-Troy Castro
17.
Briar Rose by Robert Coover
18.
Izzy and the Father of Terror by Eliot Fintushel
Best Novelette
Winner:
1.
Newsletter by
Connie Willis
Other Nominees:
2.
Moon Six by
Stephen Baxter
3.
Lethe by Walter Jon Williams
4.
Galaxia by Gregory Benford
5.
Reasons to be Cheerful by Greg Egan
6.
Julie's Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
7.
Mother Grasshopper by
Michael Swanwick
8.
We Will Drink a Fish Together . . . by
Bill Johnson
9.
The Pipes of Pan by
Brian Stableford
10.
Escape Route by Peter F. Hamilton
11.
Echoes by Alan Brennert
12.
Beauty in the Night by
Robert Silverberg
13.
Blood and Judgment by John Brunner
14.
Second Skin by
Paul J. McAuley
15. Three Hearings on the Existence of Snakes in the Human Bloodstream by James Alan Gardner
16.
London Bone by Michael Moorcock
17.
The Dragons of Springplace by
Robert Reed
18.
El Castillo de la Perseverancia by Howard Waldrop
19.
After Kerry by Ian McDonald
20.
On the Ice Islands by Gregory Feeley
21.
The Undiscovered by William Sanders
22.
Quinn's Way by Dale Bailey
23.
The Botanist by Mary Rosenblum
24.
Crossing Chao Meng Fu by
G. David Nordley
25.
Residuals by
Paul J. McAuley and Kim Newman
Best Short Story
Winner:
Other Nominees:
2. Scientifiction by Howard Waldrop
3.
Zemlya by
Stephen Baxter
4.
The 43 Antarean Dynasties by
Mike Resnick
5.
Get a Grip by Paul Park
6.
The Wisdom of Old Earth by
Michael Swanwick
7.
On the Inside by
Robert Silverberg
8.
No Planets Strike by Gene Wolfe
9.
Always True to Thee, in My Fashion by Nancy Kress
10.
Standing Room Only by Karen Joy Fowler
11.
The Hand You're Dealt by
Robert J. Sawyer
12.
Glass Earth Inc. by
Stephen Baxter
13.
Winter Fire by
Geoffrey A. Landis
14.
Gulliver at Home by John Kessel
15.
An Office Romance by Terry Bisson
16.
The Heart of Whitenesse by Howard Waldrop
17.
Flash Company by Gene Wolfe
18.
Orphanogenesis by Greg Egan
19.
Booming Ice by
Robert Reed
Best Collection
Winner:
Other Nominees:
2.
His Share of Glory: The Complete Short Science Fiction of C.M. Kornbluth by
Cyril M. Kornbluth
3.
Axiomatic by Greg Egan
4.
Virtual Unrealities by
Alfred Bester
5.
Think Like a Dinosaur and Other Stories by
James Patrick Kelly
6.
Thunder and Roses: Volume IV: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon by
Theodore Sturgeon, edited by Paul Williams
7.
Giant Bones by Peter S. Beagle
8.
Vacuum Diagrams by
Stephen Baxter
9.
Going Home Again by Howard Waldrop
10.
The Pure Product by John Kessel
11.
Barnacle Bill the Spacer and Other Stories by Lucius Shepard
12.
The Forest of Time and Other Stories by
Michael F. Flynn
13.
A Geography of Unknown Lands by
Michael Swanwick
14.
Back in the U.S.S.A. by Eugene Byrne and Kim Newman
15. The Rhinoceros Who Quoted Nietzsche and Other Odd Acquaintances by Peter S. Beagle
16.
Exorcisms and Ecstasies by Karl Edward Wagner
17. (tie)
The Arbitrary Placement of Walls by Martha Soukup
(tie)
Voyages by Starlight by Ian R. MacLeod
19.
Eating Memories by Patricia Anthony
20.
Fractal Paisleys by Paul Di Filippo
21.
Fabulous Harbours by Michael Moorcock
Best Anthology
Winner:
1. The Year's Best Science Fiction: Fourteenth Annual Collection edited by Gardner Dozois
Other Nominees:
2.
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Tenth Annual Collection edited by
Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling
3.
Year's Best SF 2 edited by David G. Hartwell
4.
The Science Fiction Century edited by David G. Hartwell
5.
Millennium (aka
Revelations) edited by Douglas E. Winter
6.
The Best of Interzone edited by David Pringle
7.
Black Swan, White Raven edited by
Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling
8. The Horns of Elfland edited by Ellen Kushner, Delia Sherman, and Donald G. Keller
9.
Nebula Awards 31 edited by
Pamela Sargent
10.
New Worlds edited by David Garnett
11.
Bending the Landscape: Fantasy edited by Nicola Griffith and Stephen Pagel
12.
Love in Vein II edited by Poppy Z. Brite and
Martin H. Greenberg
14.
Dying For It edited by Gardner Dozois
15.
Black Mist and Other Japanese Futures edited by
Orson Scott Card and Keith Ferrell
16.
Modern Classics of Fantasy edited by Gardner Dozois
17.
A Century of Science Fiction, 1950-1959 edited by
Robert Silverberg
Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Book
Winner:
1. The Encyclopedia of Fantasy edited by John Clute and John Grant
Other Nominees:
2.
Reflections and Refractions: Thoughts on Science-Fiction, Science, and Other Matters by
Robert Silverberg
3.
Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction, Revised Edition by
James E. Gunn
4.
Outposts: Literatures of Milieux by Algis Budrys
5.
St. James Guide to Fantasy Writers edited by David Pringle
6.
Bram Stoker's Dracula edited by Nina Auerbach and David J. Skal
7.
Science Fiction After 1900: From the Steam Man to the Stars by Brooks Landon
8.
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales, Children, and the Culture Industry by Jack Zipes
9.
A Subtler Magick: The Writings and Philosopy of H.P. Lovecraft by S.T. Joshi
10.
Science Fiction and Fantasy Reference Index: 1992-1995 edited by Hal W. Hall
Best Art Book
Winner:
1. Infinite Worlds: The Fantastic Visions of Science Fiction Art by Vincent Di Fate
Other Nominees:
2. Spectrum 4: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art edited by Cathy Fenner and Arnie Fenner with Jim Loehr
3. Something in My Eye: Excursions into Fear by Michael Whelan; edited by Arnie Fenner and Cathy Fenner
4.
"Repent Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman by
Harlan Ellison, illustrated by Rick Berry
5.
www HRGiger com by H.R. Giger
6. The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass by Stephen King, illustrated by Dave McKean
7. (tie)
A Treasury of Great Children's Book Illustrators by Susan E. Meyer
(tie)
The Veil of Snows by Mark Helprin, illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg
Best Editor
Winner:
1. Gardner Dozois
Other Nominees:
2. David G. Hartwell
3.
Gordon van Gelder
4.
Ellen Datlow
5.
Stanley Schmidt
6. David Pringle
7.
Scott Edelman
8. Patrick Nielsen Hayden
9.
Martin H. Greenberg
10. Terri Windling
11.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
12.
Shawna McCarthy
Best Magazine
Winner:
1.
Asimov's
Other Nominees:
2.
Fantasy & Science Fiction
3.
Science Fiction Age
4.
Analog
5.
Interzone
6.
Realms of Fantasy
7.
The New York Review of Science Fiction
8.
Science Fiction Chronicle
Best Publisher
Winner:
1. Tor/St. Martin's
Other Nominees:
2. Bantam/Dell
3. HarperCollins (U.S.)
4. Putnam/Ace
5. Random House/Del Rey
6. Baen
7. Avon/Morrow
8. DAW
9. Penguin/Roc
10. Warner
11. White Wolf
12. Mark V. Ziesing
13. NESFA Press
Best Artist
Winner:
1. Michael Whelan
Other Nominees:
2. Bob Eggleton
3. Vincent Di Fate
4. Thomas Canty
5. (tie) H.R. Giger
(tie) Don Maitz
7. Jim Burns
8. Rick Berry
9. Dave McKean
Go to previous year's nominees: 1997
Go to subsequent year's nominees: 1999
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