Comments: 1986 seems to me to be the year that second-best works took home the critical victories, as there was more than one winner that I think was simply weaker than the competition it beat out. Orson Scott Card's novel Ender's Game took home the Best Novel trophy, which was an expansion of his previously nominated novelette of the same name, and the first Hugo win for the author. Although Ender's Game is a good novel, I don't think it was as good as Blood Music by Greg Bear, or Footfall by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. In the Best Dramatic Presentation category the time travel comedy Back to the Future won the prize, although both the surreal Brazil and the brilliant Enemy Mine were probably better movies. And so on.
The Hugo Awards had their first declined award in this year when Lester del Rey declined the Best Editor Hugo Award on behalf of his late wife Judy-Lynn del Rey. Apparently Judy-Lynn was opposed to the idea of posthumous awards, and he declined her posthumous victory in this category on that ground, as well as on the ground that she would not have won if she had not died earlier in the year.
Best Novel
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
Other Nominees:
Blood Music by Greg Bear
Cuckoo's Egg by C.J. Cherryh
Footfall by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
The Postman by David Brin
Best Novella
24 Views of Mt. Fuji, by Hokusai by Roger Zelazny
Other Nominees:
Green Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Only Neat Thing to Do by James Tiptree, Jr.
Sailing to Byzantium by Robert Silverberg
The Scapegoat by C.J. Cherryh
Best Novelette
Paladin of the Lost Hour by Harlan Ellison
Other Nominees:
Dogfight by Michael Swanwick and William Gibson
The Fringe by Orson Scott Card (reviewed in The Folk of the Fringe)
A Gift from the GrayLanders by Michael Bishop
Portraits of His Children by George R.R. Martin
Best Short Story
Fermi and Frost by Frederik Pohl
Other Nominees:
Dinner in Audoghast by Bruce Sterling
Flying Saucer Rock & Roll by Howard Waldrop
Hong's Bluff by William F. Wu
Snow by John Crowley
Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Work
Science Made Stupid by Tom Weller
Other Nominees:
Benchmarks: Galaxy Bookshelf by Algis Budrys
An Edge in My Voice by Harlan Ellison
Faces of Fear: Encounters with the Creators of Modern Horror by Douglas E. Winter
The John W. Campbell Letters, Vol. 1 edited by Perry A. Chapdelaine, Sr., Tony Chapdelaine, and George Hay
The Pale Shadow of Science by Brian W. AldissBest Dramatic Presentation
Back to the Future
Other Nominees:
Brazil
Cocoon
Enemy Mine
Ladyhawke
Best Professional Editor
Judy-Lynn del Rey [award declined]
Other Nominees:
Terry Carr
Edward L. Ferman
Shawna McCarthy
Stanley Schmidt
Best Professional Artist
Michael Whelan
Other Nominees:
Frank Kelly Freas
Don Maitz
Rowena Morrill
Barclay Shaw
Best Semi-Prozine
Locus edited by Charles N. Brown
Other Nominees:
Fantasy Review edited by Robert A. Collins
Interzone edited by Simon Ounsley and David Pringle
Science Fiction Chronicle edited by Andrew Porter
Science Fiction Review edited by Richard E. Geis
Best Fanzine
Lan's Lantern edited by George "Lan" Laskowski
Other Nominees:
Anvil edited by Charlotte Proctor
Greater Columbia Fantasy Costumers Guild Newsletter edited by Bobby Gear
Holier Than Thou edited by Marty Cantor and Robbie Cantor
Universal Translator edited by Susan Bridges
Best Fan Writer
Mike Glyer
Other Nominees:
Don D'Ammassa
Richard E. Geis
Patrick Nielsen Hayden
Arthur Hlavaty
David Langford
Best Fan Artist
Joan Hanke-Woods
Other Nominees:
Brad W. Foster
Steven Fox
William Rotsler
Stu Shiffman
John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer
Melissa Scott
Other Nominees:
Karen Joy Fowler
Guy Gavriel Kay
Carl Sagan
Tad Williams
David Zindell
What Are the Hugo Awards?
Go to previous year's nominees: 1985
Go to subsequent year's nominees: 1987
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