Showing posts with label Hugo Nominee Reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hugo Nominee Reviews. Show all posts

Friday, December 8, 2017

1989 Hugo Longlist

The 1989 Hugo Longlist is the result of the work of a dedicated fan (who has, the last time I checked, asked to remain anonymous) going through the pages of decades-old fanzines and digging up posts from Usenet news groups and compiling the resulting data into a usable form. This is a form of fannish archaeology that makes things like the Hugo Longlist Project possible, and fondom is forever indebted to the people who do these sorts of tedious and thankless tasks for no reason other than a desire to contribute to the sum total of knowledge regarding fannish history.

In most cases, the Longlist reveals facts about history beyond just the names of the people and works that had just missed making it onto the list of finalists. The deep dive into the data that resulted in the longlist also revealed a couple of works that would have made it onto the list of finalists if they had not been disqualified. In the Best Related Work category, Stephen Hawking's Brief History of Time received enough votes to qualify for the final ballot, but was either declared ineligible or withdrawn. In the fanzine category, Aboriginal SF received enough votes to be a finalist, but was ineligible as it did not publish any issues in 1988. Finally, both Elizabeth Moon and Daniel Keys Moran received sufficient votes to be Campbell Finalists, but were both ineligible as they had their first professional publication in 1986 and 1982, respectively. These facts were omitted from the official published Hugo data until they were unearthed by diligent fan research.

A larger revelation contained in the overall shape of the information provided in the longlist is simply how difficult many fans seem to have found determining eligibility in the pre-internet era. Most of the non-fiction categories had at least one ineligible nominee show up either on the longlist or the list of finalists. The prevalence of ineligible nominees is especially notable in the Campbell Award, where there were not only two ineligible authors would received sufficient votes that they would have been finalists otherwise, but three more ineligible authors on the longlist. The salient detail to be drawn from this data is that prior to the internet making the details of publishing transparent to a wider spectrum of the public interested in such things, Hugo voters seem to have spent a fair amount of time figuratively groping in the dark over eligibility issues.

Best Novel

Finalists:
Cyteen by C.J. Cherryh [winner]
Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Guardsman by P.J. Beese and Todd Cameron Hamilton [nomination deleted]
Islands in the Net by Bruce Sterling
Mona Lisa Overdrive by William Gibson
Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card

Longlisted Nominees:
Alternities by Michael P. Kube-McDowell
Deserted Cities of the Heart by Lewis Shiner
Dragonsdawn by Anne McCaffrey
The Gold Coast by Kim Stanley Robinson
Hellspark by Janet Kagan
Ivory by Mike Resnick
Orphan of Creation by Roger MacBride Allen
The Paladin by C.J. Cherryh
Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Best Novella

Finalists:
The Calvin Coolidge Home for Dead Comedians by Bradley Denton
Journals of the Plague Years by Norman Spinrad
The Last of the Winnebagos by Connie Willis [winner]
The Scalehunter's Beautiful Daughter by Lucius Shepard
Surfacing by Walter Jon Williams

Longlisted Nominees:
Backward Turn Backward by James Tiptree, Jr.
The Blabber by Vernor Vinge
The Color of Neanderthal Eyes by James Tiptree, Jr.
The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen
Fatal Statistics by Pauline Ashwell
The Flies of Memory by Ian Watson
Nomans Land by Lucius Shepard
The Skin Trade by George R.R. Martin
Trapping Run by Harry Turtledove
Waiting for the Olympians by Frederik Pohl
We Are for the Dark by Robert Silverberg
Wires by F. Paul Wilson

Best Novelette

Finalists:
Do Ya, Do Ya, Wanna Dance? by Howard Waldrop
The Function of Dream Sleep by Harlan Ellison
Ginny Sweethips' Flying Circus by Neal Barrett, Jr.
Peaches for Mad Molly by Steven Gould
Schrödinger's Kitten by George Alec Effinger [winner]

Longlisted Nominees
The Earth Doth Like a Snake Renew by James Tiptree, Jr.
Glacier by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Lunatics by Kim Stanley Robinson
The Hob by Judith Moffett
Sanctuary by James White
Two by Pat Cadigan

Best Short Story

Finalists:
The Fort Moxie Branch by Jack McDevitt
The Giving Plague by David Brin
Our Neural Chernobyl by Bruce Sterling
Kirinyaga by Mike Resnick [winner]
Ripples in the Dirac Sea by Geoffrey A. Landis
Stable Strategies for Middle Management by Eileen Gunn

Longlisted Nominees
Eidolons by Harlan Ellison
Mrs. Shummel Exits a Winner by John Kessel
On a Phantom Tide by William F. Wu
Slow, Slow Burn by George Alec Effinger

Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Work

Finalists:
A Biographical Dictionary of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists by Robert Weinberg
A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes by Stephen W. Hawking [unclear whether this was ineligible or withdrawn]
First Maitz by Don Maitz
The Motion of Light in Water: Sex and Science Fiction Writing in the East Village 1957-1965 by Samuel R. Delany [winner]
The New Encyclopedia of Science Fiction edited by James E. Gunn
Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror: 1987 by Charles N. Brown and William G. Contento

Longlisted Nominees:
Bare-Faced Messiah: The True Story of L. Ron Hubbard by Russell Miller [ineligible]
Bio of an Ogre: The Autobiography of Piers Anthony by Piers Anthony
Imagination: The Art & Technique of David A. Cherry by David A. Cherry [ineligible]
The New Dinosaurs: An Alternative Evolution by Dougal Dixon
Strokes: Essays and Reviews 1966-1986 by John Clute
Women of Vision: Essays by Women Writing Science Fiction by Denise Du Pont

Best Dramatic Presentation

Finalists:
Alien Nation
Beetlejuice
Big
Who Framed Roger Rabbit? [winner]
Willow

Longlisted Nominees:
Lair of the White Worm
The Lady in White
The Land Before Time
Nolacon II Gripe Session [ineligible]
Star Trek - The Next Generation: Elementary, Dear Data
They Live

Best Professional Editor

Finalists:
Gardner Dozois [winner]
Edward L. Ferman
David G. Hartwell
Charles C. Ryan
Stanley Schmidt

Longlisted Nominees:
Lou Aronica
Jim Baen
Ellen Datlow
George R.R. Martin
Beth Meacham
Shawna McCarthy
Elizabeth "Betsy" Mitchell
Price, ? (it is unclear whether this is Patrick Lucien Price of Amazing Stories or Robert M. Price of Crypt of Cthulhu)
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Brian Thomsen

Best Professional Artist

Finalists:
Thomas Canty
David A. Cherry
Bob Eggleton
Todd Cameron Hamilton [nomination deleted]
Don Maitz
Michael Whelan [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Janet Aulisio
Jim Burns
Vincent Di Fate
Phil Foglio
James Gurney
Tom Kidd
Carl Lundgren
David B. Mattingly
J.K. Potter
Barclay Shaw

Best Semi-Prozine

Finalists:
Aboriginal SF edited by Charles C. Ryan [ineligible]
Interzone edited by David Pringle and Simon Ounsley
Locus edited by Charles N. Brown [winner]
The New York Review of Science Fiction edited by David G. Hartwell, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Teresa Nielsen Hayden, Susan Palwick, and Kathryn Cramer
Science Fiction Chronicle edited by Andrew I. Porter
Thrust edited by D. Douglas Fratz

Longlisted Nominees:
Argos: Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine edited by Ross Emry [ineligible]
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer [placed in the fanzine category]
Horror Show edited by David B. Silva
New Pathways Into Science Fiction And Fantasy edited by Michael G. Adkisson
Pulphouse edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch [ineligible]
Science Fiction Eye edited by by Stephen P. Brown and Dan Steffan
Weird Tales edited by George H. Scithers, Darrell Schweitzer, and John Gregory Betancourt

Best Fanzine

Finalists:
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer [winner]
FOSFAX edited by Timothy Lane
Lan's Lantern edited by George "Lan" Laskowski
Niekas edited by Edmund R. Meskys, Mike Bastraw, and Anne Braude
OtherRealms edited by Chuq Von Rospach

Longlisted Nominees:
Delineator edited by Alan White
Jane's Fighting SMOFs edited by Jane Dennis and Scott Dennis
Nova Express edited by Lawrence Person
Pirate Jenny edited by Pat Mueller [ineligible]
Pulp edited by Avedon Carol, Rob Hansen, John Harvey and Vincent Clarke
Pulsar! edited by Arlan Andrews
Science Fiction Randomly edited by Hawk and Steve Antczak
Texas SF Enquirer edited by Pat Mueller
Trap Door edited by Robert Lichtman
YHOS edited by Art Widner

Best Fan Writer

Finalists:
Avedon Carol
Mike Glyer
Arthur D. Hlavaty
Dave Langford [winner]
Guy H. Lillian, III
Chuq Von Rospach

Longlisted Nominees:
T.L. Bohman
Richard Brandt
Jeanne Gomoll
Andrew Hooper
Susan Landerman
George Laskowski
Joseph T. Major
Pat Mueller
Leslie Turek [ineligible]
Harry Warner, Jr.
Owen Whiteoak

Best Fan Artist

Finalists:
Brad W. Foster [winner]
Teddy Harvia
Merle Insinga
Stu Shiffman
Taral Wayne
Diana Gallagher Wu [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Steve Fox
Alexis Gilliland
Jeanne Gomoll
Jon “Lang” Langford
Joe Mayhew
Ingrid Neilson
Diana Harlan Stein
Arthur Thomson (aka ATom)

John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer

Finalists:
P.J. Beese and Todd Cameron Hamilton
Christopher Hinz
Elizabeth Moon [ineligible]
Daniel Keys Moran [ineligible]
Melanie Rawn
Michaela Roessner [winner]
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
William Sanders
Delia Sherman

Longlisted Nominees:
Andrea I. Alton
Richard Kadrey [ineligible]
Ian McDonald [ineligible]
Loren J. McGregor
Rebecca Ore [ineligible]
Matt Ruff
Mary Stanton

Go to previous year's longlist: 1984
Go to subsequent year's longlist: 2001

Go to 1989 Hugo Finalists and Winners

Hugo Longlist Project     Book Award Reviews     Home

Wednesday, August 16, 2017

2017 Hugo Award Longlist

Over the last couple of years, the various Puppy factions have packed the lists of Hugo finalists with works and people who were mediocre to miserable in quality, which meant that the longlisted nominees were often a far superior collection of books, stories, editors, magazines, writers, and artists. This year, with a handful of exceptions that all came from the Rabid Puppy slate, this wasn't the case - even though the longlisted nominees are, by and large, a strong group, the set of finalists it, taken as a whole, generally even better.

This was the first year in which the E Pluribus Hugo voting system for nominations was implemented, and it seems to have worked as well as one could possibly hope to expect. The change in the voting rules, coupled with their waning ability to whip their adherents into a frenzy after being shellacked in the voting in 2015 and 2016, resulted in the Sad Puppies kind of slinking away after not even putting a token effort into putting together a voting slate. The Rabid Puppies continued their Quixotic quest, but changed tactics, putting forward only one or two candidates in each category in order to try to get someone on the ballot via "bullet voting", and that seems to have had mixed results. They managed to get eleven finalists on the ballot, while five more appear on the longlist. They could have had five more finalists, but Rabid Puppy leader Theodore Beale is apparently really terrible at understanding the eligibility rules, so those five potential finalists were all disqualified as ineligible. The Rabid Puppies were able to get no more than one finalist per category.

As usual, the Rabid Puppy offerings included the worst crap on either the finalist ballot or the longlist, ranging from the intentionally insulting nomination of Alien Stripper Boned from Behind by the T-Rex to the usual array of self-promotion of Castalia House's dreadful products. One thing that is interesting to note is that Beale didn't even try to offer lip service to his previous alliance with the Sad Puppies and their favorite publisher Baen Books. Instead, he simply promoted his own business at every possible opportunity save for the one intentional "joke" nominee and a handful of "hostage" nominees - which are essentially slated nominees with widespread credibility. The idea seems to be a kind of Xanatos Gambit to get "worthy" works on the ballot in order to "trap" the Hugo voters into either voting against something they like or handing Beale a "win" by voting for a "hostage" to win. Like all of Beale's plots, this one is based upon his having no understanding of how normal people behave, and has been a complete failure thus far.

On a side note, one claim that is sometimes made is that because the Puppy slates on occasion include items that have some merit, one should be okay with those finalists because "they likely would have made it onto the ballot even without Puppy support". I've always been suspicious of those claims, in large part because in every year there are so many more good works in every category than there are spaces on the ballot. The notion that any work "probably would have been a finalist anyway" seems to vastly overstate the chances that anything has of getting onto the list of Hugo finalists. This year, the works that had merit on the Rabid Puppy slate were the "hostages", specifically This Census-Taker by China Miéville, The View From the Cheap Seats by Neil Gaiman, Star Wars Art: Ralph McQuarrie by Ralph McQuarrie, Deadpool, and Game of Thrones: The Winds of Winter. The McQuarrie book didn't make the finalists, so we can set it aside.

Based upon a review of the items that made the list of finalists that only Rabid Puppies would likely vote for (a list that includes Alien Stripper Boned from Behind by a T-Rex, An Equation of Almost Infinite Complexity, An Unimaginable Light, P. Alexander, Theodore Beale, Jeffro Johnson, and Castalia House Blog), there appear to have been between 70 and 90 people voting as Rabid Puppies. if we deduct that amount from the totals garnered by the "hostages", we can get a rough estimate of whether or not these works would have reached the list of finalists without Rabid Puppy assistance. We can't be exact, because the E Pluribus Hugo voting system means that to do so we would need to be able to look at the individual nominating ballots to get an accurate count, but we can make an educated guess. To be conservative, we'll drop seventy votes from each finalist.
  • Deducting seventy votes from This Census-Taker by China Miéville drops it behind The Dispatcher by John Scalzi which would replace it on the ballot.
  • Removing seventy votes from the total garnered by The View From the Cheap Seats by Neil Gaiman puts it well behind Writing Women Characters by Kate Elliott, which would knock it off the ballot.
  • Pulling seventy votes out of Deadpool's total still puts it ahead of Kubo and the Two Strings and it would stay on the ballot.
  • Game of Thrones: The Winds of Winter was removed from the ballot due to the rule that prevents a single series from having more than two finalists in a category and the producers of Game of Thrones elected to have this one taken off. If one removes seventy votes from this episode's total, it would still have been ahead of Splendor and Misery, which means the producers of Game of Thrones would have still had to make a decision as to which two episodes of the show should remain on the ballot.
So that's a fifty percent "would have made it anyway" rate, which doesn't seem all that great to me. Having these nominees on the ballot isn't terrible, and absent the spamming of the other shitty Castalia House products onto the list of finalists having a group push for these "hostage" works to be on the ballot wouldn't be an issue. There is no doubt though, that even when it comes to the "hostages" the Puppies warp the ballot. That they warp the ballot in an inoffensive way doesn't mean that it is warped any less than when they do it to put crap onto the list. That said, with the Sad Puppies looking like they are an entirely spent force, and the Rabid Puppies increasingly looking like they are heading that way, this is probably not an issue that we will need to really worry about much in the future.

Best Novel

Finalists:
All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders
A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers
Death’s End by Cixin Liu (translated by Ken Liu)
Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee
The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin [winner]
Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer

Longlisted Nominees:
Babylon's Ashes by James S.A. Corey
Borderline by Mishell Baker
Children of Earth and Sky by Guy Gavriel Kay
City of Blades by Robert Jackson Bennett
The Core of the Sun by Johanna Sinisalo
An Equation of Almost Infinite Complexity by J. Mulrooney [rabid puppy pick]
Everfair by Nisi Shawl
Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold
Ghost Talkers by Mary Robinette Kowal
Infomocracy by Malka Older

Best Novella

Finalists:
The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle
This Census-Taker by China Miéville [rabid puppy pick]
The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe by Kij Johnson
Penric and the Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold
A Taste of Honey by Kai Ashante Wilson

Longlisted Nominees:
Chimera Gu Shi by S. Qiouyi Lu and Ken Liu
Cold Forged Flame by Marie Brennan
The Dispatcher by John Scalzi
Forest of Memory by Mary Robinette Kowal
Hammers On Bone by Cassandra Khaw
The Last Days of New Paris by China Miéville
The Lost Child of Lychford by Paul Cornell
Penric's Mission by Lois McMaster Bujold
Runtime by S.B. Divya
The Vanishing Kind by Lavie Tidhar

Best Novelette

Finalists:
Alien Stripper Boned from Behind by the T-Rex by Stix Hiscock [rabid puppy pick]
The Art of Space Travel by Nina Allan
The Jewel and Her Lapidary by Fran Wilde
The Tomato Thief by Ursula Vernon (reviewed in 2017 WSFA Small Press Award Voting) [winner]
Touring with the Alien by Carolyn Ives Gilman
You’ll Surely Drown Here If You Stay by Alyssa Wong

Longlisted Nominees
Blood Grains Speak Through Memories by Jason Sanford
A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djeli Clark
Everyone from Themis Sends Letters Home by Genevieve Valentine
Foxfire, Foxfire by Yoon Ha Lee
Kid Dark against the Machine by Tansy Rayner Roberts
Red as Blood and White as Bone by Theodora Goss
Sooner or Later Everything Falls Into the Sea by Sarah Pinsker
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
The Venus Effect by Joseph Allen Hill
The Visitor From Taured by Ian R. Macleod

Best Short Story

Finalists:
The City Born Great by N.K. Jemisin
A Fist of Permutations in Lightning and Wildflowers by Alyssa Wong
Our Talons Can Crush Galaxies by Brooke Bolander
Seasons of Glass and Iron by Amal El-Mohtar [winner]
That Game We Played During the War by Carrie Vaughn
An Unimaginable Light by John C. Wright [rabid puppy pick]

Longlisted Nominees
Lullaby for a Lost World by Aliette de Bodard
Razorback by Ursula Vernon
Red in Tooth and Cog by Cat Rambo
A Salvaging of Ghosts by Aliette de Bodard
The Story of Kao Yu by Peter S. Beagle
Terminal by Lavie Tidhar
Things With Beards by Sam J. Miller
We Have A Cultural Difference, Can I Taste You? by Rebecca Ann Jordan
Welcome to the Medical Clinic . . . by Caroline M. Yoachim
Ye Highlands and Ye Lowlands by Seanan McGuire

Best Related Work

Finalists:
The Geek Feminist Revolution by Kameron Hurley
The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher
Traveler of Worlds: Conversations with Robert Silverberg by Robert Silverberg and Alvaro Zinos-Amaro
The View From the Cheap Seats by Neil Gaiman [rabid puppy pick]
The Women of Harry Potter posts by Sarah Gailey
Words Are My Matter: Writings About Life and Books, 2000-2016 by Ursula K. Le Guin [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Archive of Our Own by the Organization for Transformative Works
Bandersnatch by Diana Pavlac Glyer
#BlackSpecFic by Brian J. White, et al
Making Conversation by Teresa Nielsen Hayden
Octavia E. Butler by Gerry Canavan
Speculative Blackness by André M. Carrington
Star Wars Art: Ralph McQuarrie by Ralph McQuarrie [rabid puppy pick]
THEN: Fandom in the UK, 1930-1980 by Rob Hansen
The Tingled Puppies by Chuck Tingle
Writing Women Characters by Kate Elliott

Best Graphic Story

Finalists:
Monstress, Volume One: Awakening written by Marjorie Liu, illustrated by Sana Takeda [winner]
Saga, Volume 6 written by Brian K. Vaughan, illustrated by Fiona Staples

Longlisted Nominees:
Clean Room, Vol. 1: Immaculate Conception by Gail Simone and Jon Davis-Hunt
Descender, Vol. 2: Machine Moon by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen
Injection, Volume 2 by Warren Ellis, Declan Shalvey, and Jordie Bellaire
Lumberjanes Vol. 4: Out of Time by Grace Ellis, Noelle Stevenson, and Shannon Watters
Mockingbird, Vol. 1: I Can Explain by Chelsea Cain and Kate Niemczyk
Oglaf (Bodil Bodilson) by Trudy Cooper and Doug Bayne
Stand Still, Stay Silent by Minna Sundberg
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Beats Up the Marvel Universe! by Ryan North and Erica Henderson
The Wicked and the Divine, Vol. 3: Commercial Suicide by Kieron Gillen and Matthew Wilson

Best Dramatic Presentation: Long Form

Finalists:
Arrival [winner]
Deadpool [rabid puppy pick]
Ghostbusters
Hidden Figures
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Stranger Things, Season One

Longlisted Nominees:
10 Cloverfield Lane
Captain America: Civil War
Doctor Strange
The Expanse, Season 1
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
Star Trek: Beyond
Westworld, Season 1
Zootopia

Best Dramatic Presentation: Short Form

Finalists:
Black Mirror: San Junipero
Doctor Who: The Return of Doctor Mysterio
The Expanse: Leviathan Wakes [winner]
Game of Thrones: Battle of the Bastards
Game of Thrones: The Door
Game of Thrones: The Winds of Winter [no more than two finalists may come from the same series, rabid puppy pick]
Splendor & Misery (album) by Clipping

Longlisted Nominees:
The Expanse: Salvage
Luke Cage: Manifest
Person of Interest: Return 0
Stranger Things: Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers
Stranger Things: Chapter Seven: The Bathtub
Stranger Things: Chapter Eight: The Upside Down
Steven Universe: The Answer
Westworld: The Bicameral Mind
Westworld: The Original

Best Professional Editor: Short Form

Finalists:
John Joseph Adams
Neil Clarke
Ellen Datlow [winner]
Jonathan Strahan
Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas
Sheila Williams

Longlisted Nominees:
P. Alexander [rabid puppy pick]
Sana Amanat
Scott H. Andrews
C.C. Finlay
Lee Harris
Toni Jerrman
Mur Lafferty
Lynne M. Thomas
Ann VanderMeer
Trevor Quachri

Best Professional Editor: Long Form

Finalists:
Theodore Beale [rabid puppy pick, racist sexist homophobic dipshit]
Sheila E. Gilbert
Liz Gorinsky [winner]
Devi Pillai
Miriam Weinberg
Navah Wolfe

Longlisted Nominees:
Anne Lesley Groell
Jane Johnson
Beth Meacham
Joe Monti
Patrick Nielsen Hayden
Jonathan Oliver
Bella Pagan
Marco Palmieri
Toni Weisskopf
Betsy Wollheim

Best Professional Artist

Finalists:
Galen Dara
Julie Dillon [winner]
JiHun Lee [ineligible, rabid puppy pick]
Chris McGrath
Victo Ngai
John Picacio
Tomek Radziewicz [ineligible, rabid puppy pick]
Sana Takeda

Longlisted Nominees:
Tommy Arnold
Rovina Cai
Donato Giancola
Michael Komarck
Todd Lockwood
Reiko Murakami
Likhain (M. Sereno)
Fiona Staples

Best Semi-Prozine

Finalists:
Beneath Ceaseless Skies edited by Scott H. Andrews
The Book Smugglers edited by Ana Grilo and Thea James
Cirsova Heroic Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine edited by P. Alexander [rabid puppy pick]
GigaNotoSaurus edited by Rashida J. Smith
Lightspeed Magazine edited by John Joseph Adams [ineligible]
Strange Horizons edited by Niall Harrison, Catherine Krahe, Vajra Chandrasekera, Vanessa Rose Phin, Li Chua, Aishwarya Subramanian, Tim Moore, Anaea Lay, and the Strange Horizons staff
Uncanny Magazine edited by Lynne M. Thomas, Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, and Julia Rios, and podcast produced by Erika Ensign and Steven Schapansky [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Clarkesworld edited by Neil Clarke
Daily Science Fiction edited by Elektra Hammond: Elektra Hammond, Sarah Overall, and Brian Whit
Escape Pod edited by Mur Lafferty and Al Stuart
Fireside Fiction edited by Brian White
Interzone edited by Andy Cox
Mothership Zeta edited by Editor Mur Lafferty, Sunil Patel, and Karen Bovenmyer.
PodCastle edited by Graeme Dunlop and Rachael K. Jones
Shimmer edited by E. Catherine Tobler, Nicola Belte, Sophie Wereley, Joy Marchand, Suzan Palumbo, Josh Storey, Lindsay Thomas, and Laura Blackwell
Tähtivaeltaja edited by Toni Jerrman

Best Fanzine

Finalists:
Castalia House Blog edited by Jeffro Johnson [rabid puppy pick]
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer [declined nomination]
Journey Planet edited by James Bacon, Chris Garcia, Esther MacCallum-Stewart, Helena Nash, Errick Nunnally, Pádraig Ó Méalóid, Chuck Serface, and Erin Underwood
Lady Business edited by Clare, Ira, Jodie, KJ, Renay, and Susan [winner]
nerds of a feather, flock together edited by The G, Vance Kotrla, and Joe Sherry
Rocket Stack Rank edited by Greg Hullender and Eric Wong
SF Bluestocking edited by Bridget McKinney

Longlisted Nominees:
Ansible edited by David Langford
Banana Wings edited by Claire Brialey and Mark Plummer
Black Gate edited by John O’Neill
Chunga edited by by Andy Hooper, Randy Byers, and Carl Juarez
Galactic Journey edited by Janice Marcus
James Nicoll Reviews edited by James Nicoll
Quick Sip Reviews by Charles Payseur
Women Write About Comics edited by Megan Purdy
Young People Read Old SFF edited by James Davis Nicoll

Best Fan Writer

Finalists:
Mike Glyer
Jeffro Johnson [rabid puppy pick]
Natalie Luhrs
Foz Meadows
Abigail Nussbaum [winner]
Chuck Tingle

Longlisted Nominees:
Cora Buhlert
Alexandra Erin
Camestros Felapton
Sarah Gailey
Crystal Huff
Morgan (Castalia House) [rabid puppy pick]
James Nicoll
Mark Oshiro
Charles Payseur
O. Westin

Best Fan Artist

Finalists:
Ninni Aalto
Alex Garner [rabid puppy pick, ineligible]
Elizabeth Leggett [winner]
Vesa Lehtimäki
Likhain (M. Sereno)
Spring Schoenhuth
Steve Stiles
Mansik Yang [rabid puppy pick, ineligible]

Longlisted Nominees:
Liz Argall
Galen Dara
Lauren Dawson aka Iguanamouth
Ariela Housman
Megan Lara
Richard Man
Simon Stålenhag
Kathryn M. Weaver

Best Fancast

Finalists:
The Coode Street Podcast presented by Gary K. Wolfe and Jonathan Strahan
Ditch Diggers presented by Mur Lafferty and Matt Wallace
Fangirl Happy Hour presented by Ana Grilo and Renay Williams
Galactic Suburbia presented by Alisa Krasnostein, Alexandra Pierce, and Tansy Rayner Roberts, produced by Andrew Finch
The Rageaholic presented by RazörFist [rabid puppy pick]
Tea and Jeopardy presented by Emma Newman with Peter Newman [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Down and Safe presented by Michael Damien Thomas, L.M. Myles, Scott Lynch, and Amal El-Mohtar
Fansplaining presented by Flourish Klink and Elizabeth Minke
Midnight in Karachi presented by Mahvesh Murad
The Skiffy and Fanty Show presented by Shaun Duke, Julia Rios, Paul Weimer, Mike Underwood, David Annandale, Rachael Acks, Trish Matson, and Jen Zink
StarShipSofa presented by Tony C Smith
Storyological presented by E.G. Cosh and Chris Kammerud
Superversive SF presented by Dawn Witzke [rabid puppy pick]
Sword and Laser presented by Tom Merritt and Veronica Belmont
Vaginal Fantasy presented by Felicia Day, Veronica Belmont, Bonnie Burton, and Kiala Kazebee
Verity! presented by Deborah Stanish, Erika Ensign, Katrina Griffiths, L.M. Myles, Lynne M. Thomas, and Tansy Rayner Roberts

Best Series

Finalists:
The Craft Sequence by Max Gladstone
The Expanse by James S.A. Corey (first volume in the series: Leviathan Wakes)
October Daye series by Seanan McGuire
Peter Grant/Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch
Temeraire series by Naomi Novik (first volume in the series: His Majesty's Dragon)
The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Arts of Dark and Light by Theodore Beale [rabid puppy pick]
Fairyland by Catherynne M. Valente
Foreigner by C.J. Cherryh
The Laundry Files by Charles Stross
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson
Newsflesh by Mira Grant
Remembrance of Earth's Past by Cixin Liu (first volume in the series The Three-Body Problem)
Thessaly by Jo Walton
World of the Five Gods by Lois McMaster Bujold
Young Wizards by Diane Duane

John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer

Finalists:
Sarah Gailey
J. Mulrooney [rabid puppy pick]
Malka Older
Ada Palmer [winner]
Laurie Penny
Kelly Robson

Longlisted Nominees:
Charlotte Ashley
Scott Hawkins
Cassandra Khaw
Sarah Kuhn
Arkady Martine
Sylvain Neuvel
Sunil Patel
Natasha Pulley
Tade Thompson
K.B. Wagers

Go to previous year's longlist: 2016
Go to subsequent year's longlist: 2018

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Sunday, April 9, 2017

1984 Expanded Hugo Nominees

As I have noted before, due to a unique fluke, all of the raw balloting data from the 1984 Hugo Awards is publically available. This means that one can reconstruct not only the Longlist from this data, but essentially every work that received any nominations at all. The same dedicated science fiction fan who provided me with the information needed to reconstruct the "Longlist" for this year, also provided me with the information contained in this post. This is the "long tail" of the Hugo nominating process, and as far as I know, this is the only year for which we can see behind the curtain in this manner.

While it is somewhat interesting to see the array of works that received nominations but missed the cut to make the "Longlist", what I find more interesting is the overall landscape of the nominations. Some categories, such as Best Novel and Best Novelette, had a wide array of nominees, with an incredibly deep field of works receiving votes. Other categories, such as Best Novella and Best Semi-Prozine, had less than a handful of additional candidates receive votes. Still others, such as Best Fan Writer and Best Fan Artist, had none: Except for those who made the list of finalists and the longlist, no one received any votes in those categories. It seems that there were a wide variety of opinions about what novels and short stories were worthy of a Hugo nomination, but not nearly such a range of feeling in some of the other categories. I don't think any real insigtful conclusions about the state of fandom can be drawn from this pattern, especially not from a distance of more than thirty years, but it is a unique window into the mechanics of the Hugo process, and thus is interesting to look at.

Best Novel

Expanded Nominees:
40,000 in Gehenna by C.J. Cherryh
Annals of Klepsis by R.A. Lafferty
The Armies of Daylight by Barbara Hambly
The Birth of the People's Republic of Antarctica by John C. Batchelor
The Blackcollar by Timothy Zahn
Broken Symmetries by Paul Preuss
Christine by Stephen King
Code of the Lifemaker by James P. Hogan
The Crucible of Time by John Brunner
Cugel's Saga by Jack Vance
Damiano by R.A. MacAvoy
Dragon on a Pedestal by Piers A. Anthony
The Dragon Waiting by John M. Ford
The Dreamstone by C.J. Cherryh
Escape Velocity by Christopher Stasheff
Friday by Robert A. Heinlein
The Gods of Riverworld by Philip José Farmer
Hart's Hope by Orson Scott Card
Lammas Night by Katherine Kurtz
Lyonesse by Jack Vance
Magician's Gambit by David Eddings
The Man Who Used the Universe by Alan Dean Foster
Manna by Lee Correy
A Matter for Men by David Gerrold
The Never Ending Story by Michael Ende
Neveryona by Samuel R. Delany
The Nonborn King by Julian May
On a Pale Horse by Piers A. Anthony
Pet Sematary by Stephen King
The Sleeping Dragon by Joel Rosenberg
Rocheworld by Robert L. Forward
Spellsinger by Alan Dean Foster
Streetlethal by Steven Barnes
The Sword of Winter by Marta Randall
The Tree of Swords and Jewels by C.J. Cherryh
The Unforsaken Hiero by Sterline Lanier
Valentine Pontifex by Robert Silverberg
Wall Around a Star by Frederik Pohl and Jack Williamson
Welcome Chaos by Kate Wilhelm
White Gold Wielder by Stephen R. Donaldson
Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin
Worlds Apart by Joe Haldeman
The Worthing Chronicle by Orson Scott Card
The Wounded Sky by Diane Duane
Yesterday's Son by A.C. Crispin

Best Novella

Expanded Nominees:
Credos by Ray Brown
The New Untouchables by Joseph Delaney

Best Novelette

Expanded Nominees:
And the Marlin Spoke by Michael Bishop
Beauty by Tanith Lee
Borovsky's Hollow Woman by Jeff Duntemann and Nancy Kress
Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons
Cicada Queen by Bruce Sterling
A Day in the Life of Justin Argento Morrel by Greg Frost
Deathwomb by Poul Anderson
Deep Song by Reginald Bretnor
The Eternity Wave by Scott Elliot Marbach
Fire-Caller by Sydney J. Van Scyoc
Gemstone by Vernor Vinge
The Glitch by Britton Bloom
The Hand of Friendship by Rob Chilson
Hard Times by Howard Chaykin
Heritage of Flight by Susan Shwartz
The Hills Behind Hollywood High by Avram Davidson and Grania Davis
The Invasion of the Church of the Holy Ghost by Russell Kirk
The Kidnapped Key by Jayge Carr
Knight of Shallows by Rand B. Lee
The Leaves of October by Don Sakers
Life on the Tether by Mark Wheeler
The Lurking Duck by Scott Baker
Mirror Image by Diana L. Paxson
Mirror of the Soul by L.S. Blanchard
The Monkey's Bride by Michael Bishop
Multiples by Robert Silverberg
The Nanny by Tom Wilde
Night Win by Nancy Kress
Nunc Dimittis by Tanith Lee
Rogueworld by Charles Sheffield
A Simple Case of Suicide by Marc Stiegler
To Slay the Dragon by P.E. Cunningham
Subworld by Phyllis Eisenstein
Taking the Fifth by Hayford Peirce
The Taylorsville Reconstruction by Lucius Shepard

Best Short Story

Expanded Nominees:
Amanda and the Alien by Robert Silverberg
Basileus by Robert Silverberg
Brothers by Richard Cowper
Buchanan's Head by Avram Davidson
The Cassandra by Timothy Zahn
The Cruelest Month by James Patrick Kelly
Cruising by Ian Watson
Cryptic by Jack McDevitt
Darts by Steve Perry
The Emigrant by Joel Rosenberg
Feat of Clay by Gene De Weese
Ghost Town by Chad Oliver
Golden Gate by R.A. Lafferty
In the Islands by Pat Murphy
La Reine Blanche by Tanith Lee
La Ronde by Damon Knight
The Man Outside by George Alec Effinger
Memory by Michael P. Kube-McDowell
Needle in a Timestack by Robert Silverberg
The Palace at 4 A.M. by Donald Barthelme
Potential by Isaac Asimov
The Power of the Press by Richard Kearns
The Reluctant Torturer by Hayford Peirce
Revisions by Gordon Eklund
The Sense of Discovery by Jerry Oltion
The Shadows of Evening by Timothy Zahn
Slow Dancing with Jesus by Gardner Dozois and Jack Dann
A Small Kindness by Ben Bova
Solitario's Eyes by Lucius Shepard
A Song for Justin by Richard Mueller
Stone Eggs by Kim Stanley Robinson
Tank-Farm Dynamo by David Brin
We the People by Jack C. Haldeman
Welcome to Wizcon by John Morressy
What We Did That Night in the Ruins by Warren Brown

Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Work

Expanded Nominees:
Against the Night, the Stars: The SF of Clarke by John Hollow
The Art of Return of the Jedi by Carol Titelman
De Camp: An L. Sprague De Camp Bibliography by Charlotte Laughlin and Daniel J.H. Levack
The Guide to Supernatural Fiction by Everett F. Bleiler
The Science in Science Fiction edited by Peter Nicholls

Best Dramatic Presentation

Expanded Nominees:
Android [ineligible]
British Airways Cities in Flight (Television Commercial)
The Empire Strikes Back [ineligible]
The Keep
Never Say Never Again
Prototype (CBS Television Movie)
Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone
Special Bulletin (NBC Television Movie)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan [ineligible]
Strange Invaders
Thriller (music video)

Best Professional Editor

Expanded Nominees:
Lou Aronica
Robert Asprin
Charles N. Brown
Sheila Gilbert
Beth Meacham
Jessica Amanda Salmonson
Karl Edward Wagner

Best Professional Artist

Expanded Nominees:
Janet Auliso
Alicia Austin
Wayne D. Barlowe
George Barr
Doug Beekman
John Berkey
Jim Burns
David A. Cherry
James C. Christensen
Rick Demarco
Stephen Fabian
Phil Foglio
Frank Frazetta
Gary Freeman
Jack Gaughan
James Gurney
David Hardy
Stephen Hickman
Ralph McQuarrie
Real Musgrave
Wendy Pini
Richard M. Powers
Don Ivan Punchatz
Hannah Shapiro
Rick Sternbach
Walter Velez
Robert Walters
Dawn Wilson

Best Semi-Prozine

Expanded Nominees:
Pandora edited by Jean Lorrah and Lois Wickstrom

Best Fanzine

Expanded Nominees:
Anvil edited by Charlotte Proctor
Masiform D edited by Devra Michele Langsam
Private Heat edited by Lee Pelton
Weber Woman's Wrevenge edited by Jean Weber
Wiz edited by Richard Bergeron

Best Fan Writer

Expanded Nominees:
None

Best Fan Artist

Expanded Nominees:
None

John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer

Expanded Nominees:
Clare Bell
Linda Blanchard
Susan Casper
David Eddings
Gregory Frost [ineligible]
Bruce T. Holmes
Rand B. Lee
David R. Palmer [ineligible]
Patricia C. Wrede

Go to 1984 Hugo Longlist

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Sunday, March 5, 2017

1984 Hugo Longlist

The 1984 Hugo "Longlist" is actually an artificial construct. The Hugo Award administrator from 1984 did not release the statistics behind the nominations. Instead, due to an odd fluke, the raw nominating data for the year was made public, meaning that the statistics could be reconstructed by someone enterprising enough to sit down and tabulate the results by hand. For these statistics, I have a dedicated science fiction fan to thank, because she sent me this data when she learned I was compiling the available Hugo Longlist statistics into a single set of posts. I am immensely grateful that she decided to share her work with me for this project.

One interesting side-effect of the way this data was generated is that the list provided to me contains far more nominees than normal for the Hugo statistics. In keeping with the standard set by the Constitution of the World Science Fiction Society, I have only listed the top fifteen nominees in each category, including all nominees that happen to have been tied for fifteenth place. Because it is interesting, I will list the remaining nominees in a supplemental post on a future date. Update: Here is the list of Expanded Nominees). Additionally, I note that the data provided to me was much more complete than the data provided by many of the "official" releases of the statistics - for example, the data provided included the identities of the editors of the nominees for the Best Semi-Prozine and Best Fanzine categories. Unfortunately, this data appears to be the last bit of information that is readily accessible concerning the Hugo Longlists of the past, so unless I am able to turn up some additional sets of statistics, this will likely be the last historical Longlist I can add to the array.

Best Novel

Finalists:
Millennium by John Varley
Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
The Robots of Dawn by Isaac Asimov
Startide Rising by David Brin [winner]
Tea with the Black Dragon by R.A. MacAvoy

Longlisted Nominees:
Against Infinity by Gregory Benford
The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers
The Armageddon Rag by George R.R. Martin
The Citadel of the Autarch by Gene Wolfe
Helliconia Summer by Brian Aldiss
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Orion Shall Rise by Poul Anderson
Superluminal by Vonda N. McIntyre
Thendara House by Marion Zimmer Bradley
The Void Captain’s Tale by Norman Spinrad

Best Novella

Finalists:
Cascade Point by Timothy Zahn [winner]
Claude Hurricane by Hilbert Schenck
Hardfought by Greg Bear
In the Face of My Enemy by Joseph Delaney
Seeking by David R. Palmer

Longlisted Nominees:
Aquila Meets Bigfoot by Somtow Sucharitkul
The Curse of the Smalls and the Stars by Fritz Lieber
Eszterhazy and the Autogondola-Invention by Avram Davidson
Gilpin’s Space by Reginald Bretnour
The Gospel According to Gamaliel Crucis by Michael Bishop
Her Habiline Husband by Michael Bishop
Homefaring by Robert Silverberg
The Lord of the Skies by Frederik Pohl
The Napoleon Crime by Poul Anderson and Gordon Dickson
Transit by Vonda N. McIntyre

Best Novelette

Finalists:
Black Air by Kim Stanley Robinson
Blood Music by Greg Bear [winner]
The Monkey Treatment by George R.R. Martin
The Sidon in the Mirror by Connie Willis
Slow Birds by Ian Watson

Longlisted Nominees
The Black Current by Ian Watson
Blind Shemmy by Jack Dann
The Final Report of the Lifeline Experiment by Timothy Zahn
Hearts Do Not in Eyes Shine by John Kessel
In Whose Name Do We Seek the Quark? by Thomas R. Dulski
Martha Belling by Leigh Kennedy
The Mind of Medea by Kate Wilhelm
Red Star, Winter Orbit by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling
Remembering Siri by Dan Simmons
Street Meat by Norman Spinrad
Warlord by Timothy Zahn

Best Short Story

Finalists:
The Geometry of Narrative by Hilbert Schenck
The Peacemaker by Gardner Dozois
Servant of the People by Frederik Pohl
Speech Sounds by Octavia E. Butler [winner]
Wong’s Lost and Found Emporium by William F. Wu

Longlisted Nominees
$call link4(cathy) by Cherie Wilkerson
Beyond the Dead Reef by James Tiptree, Jr.
Deborah’s Children by Grant D. Callin
Her Furry Face by Leigh Kennedy
Involuntary Man’s Laughter by Spider Robinson
Man-Mountain Gentian by Howard Waldrop
Nearly Departed by Pat Cadigan
Not an Affair by Theodore Sturgeon
Soulsaver by James Stevens
Spending a Day at the Lottery Fair by Frederik Pohl
Spook by Bruce Sterling

Best Nonfiction, Related, or Reference Work

Finalists:
Dream Makers, Volume II by Charles Platt
The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Volume 3 by Donald H. Tuck [winner]
The Fantastic Art of Rowena by Rowena Morrill
The High Kings by Joy Chant
Staying Alive: A Writer’s Guide by Norman Spinrad

Longlisted Nominees:
Amber Dreams: A Roger Zelazny Bibliography by Daniel Levack
The Castle of the Otter by Gene Wolfe
Dark Valley Destiny: The Life of Robert E. Howard by L. Sprague de Camp, Catherine Cook de Camp, and Jane Whittington Griffin
Minus Ten and Counting by Jordin Kare, Julia Ecklar, Leslie Fish, et al.
The NESFA Index, 1982 by NESFA
Over My Shoulder by Lloyd A. Esbach
Philip K. Dick edited by Martin H. Greenberg and Joseph Olander
The SF Book of Lists by Maxim Jacubowski and Malcolm Edwards
Skywalking: The Life and Films of George Lucas by Dale Pollock
Talbot Mundy: Messenger of Destiny by Donald M. Grant
Uranian Worlds by E. Garber and L. Paleo
Worlds Beyond: The Art of Chesley Bonestall by Frederick Durant

Best Dramatic Presentation

Finalists:
Brainstorm
Return of the Jedi [winner]
The Right Stuff
Something Wicked This Way Comes
Wargames

Longlisted Nominees:
Blue Thunder
Christine
Dark Crystal [ineligible]
The Day After
The Dead Zone
Doctor Who: The Five Doctors Krull
Liquid Sky [ineligible]
Superman III
Testament
Twilight Zone: The Movie
V
Zelig

Best Professional Editor

Finalists:
Terry Carr
Edward L. Ferman
David G. Hartwell
Shawna McCarthy [winner]
Stanley Schmidt

Longlisted Nominees:
Susan Allison
Jim Baen
Ellen Datlow
Judy-Lynn del Rey
Jim Frenkel
Charles L. Grant
T.E.D. Klein
George Scithers
Donald A. Wollheim
Howard Zimmerman

Best Professional Artist

Finalists:
Val Lakey Lindahn
Don Maitz
Rowena Morrill
Barclay Shaw
Michael Whelan [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
Vincent Di Fate
Kelly Freas
Dell Harris
Kevin Johnson
Thomas Kidd
Carl Lundgren
David Mattingly
Victoria Poyser
Darrell Sweet
Boris Vallejo

Best Semi-Prozine

Finalists:
Fantasy Newsletter/Fantasy Review edited by Robert A. Collins
Locus edited by Charles N. Brown [winner]
SF Chronicle edited by Andrew Porter
SF Review edited by Richard E. Geis
Whispers edited by Stuart Schipf

Longlisted Nominees:
Cinefantastique edited by Fred S. Clarke
Fantasy Book edited by Nick Smith and Dennis Mallonee
Foundation edited by David Pringle, Ian Watson, and John Clute
Mile High Futures edited by Leanne C. Harper
The Patchin Review edited by Charles Platt
Rigel Science Fiction edited by Eric Vinicoff
Shayol edited by Pat Cadigan and Arnie Fenner
Space & Time edited by Gordon Linzer
Starlog edited by Kerry O’Quinn
Starship edited by Andrew Porter
Weirdbook edited by Ganley W. Paul

Best Fanzine

Finalists:
Ansible edited by Dave Langford
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer [winner]
Holier Than Thou edited by Marty Cantor
Izzard edited by Patrick Nielsen Hayden and Teresa Nielsen Hayden
The Philk Fee-Nom-Ee-Non edited by Paul J. Willett

Longlisted Nominees:
Aurora edited by Diane Martin
Boonfark edited by Dan Steffan
The Dillinger Relic edited by Arthur Hlavaty
Instant Message edited by NESFA
Interstat edited by Teri Meyer and Ann Crouch
Kantele edited by Margaret Middleton
Lan's Lantern edited by George Lazkowski
Mainstream edited by J. Kaufman and S. Tompkins
Outworlds edited by Bill Bowers
Q36 edited by Marc Ortlieb
The Texas SF Inquirer edited by Pat Mueller

Best Fan Writer

Finalists:
Richard E Geis
Mike Glyer [winner]
David Hlavaty
David Langford
Teresa Nielsen-Hayden

Longlisted Nominees:
Claire Anderson
Richard Bergeron
Don D'Ammassa
Leslie Fish
George Lazkowski
Mark R. Leeper
Eric Mayer
Marc Ortlieb
Andrew Porter
Ted White
Paul J. Willett

Best Fan Artist

Finalists:
Brad W. Foster
Alexis Gilliland [winner]
Joan Hanke-Woods
William Rotsler
Stu Shiffman

Longlisted Nominees:
Lela Dowling
Kurt Erichsen
Phil Foglio
Steve Fox
Jeanne Gomoll
Linda Leach
Marc Schirmeister
Dan Steffan
Arthur Thompson
Mel White
Charles Williams

John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer

Finalists:
Joseph Delaney
Lisa Goldstein
R.A. MacAvoy [winner]
Warren G. Norwood
Joel Rosenberg
Sheri S. Tepper
Timothy Zahn [ineligible]

Longlisted Nominees:
Robin W. Bailey
Steven R. Boyett
David Brin [ineligible]
Steven Brust
Ann Crispin
John De Chancie
Robert W. Franson
Barbara Hambly
P.C. Hodgell [ineligible]
M. Bradley Kellogg
Sandra Miesel
Kim Stanley Robinson [ineligible]
Lucius Shepard
Dan Simmons

Go to subsequent year's longlist: 1989

Go to 1984 Hugo Finalists and Winners

Go to 1984 Expanded Nominees

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Sunday, February 26, 2017

1939 Retro Hugo Award Longlist (awarded in 2014)

The Retro Hugo Awards seems like they were motivated by the best of intentions. Because the Hugo awards were not started until 1953, and then skipped a year, there are several Worldcons - mostly from the 1940s - for which no Hugo Awards were ever selected. The idea behind the Retro Hugo Awards seems to have been to allow fans to reach back and honor works from those years that were "missed" by the Hugo Awards by giving them "Retro" Hugos. This way, the gaps in the Award's history could be filled, and people could recognize the creative works of the greats of the past. The only problem is that it hasn't really worked out that way.

I have always been somewhat skeptical of the Retro Hugo Awards, and looking at the associated Longlists has done nothing to change my opinion. Looking back seventy-five years, as the voters did when nominating works for the 1939 Retro Hugo Awards, results in quite sparse results. There weren't even sufficient numbers of nominations in the categories Best Related Work, Best Graphic Story, Best Long Form Dramatic Presentation, Best Long Form Editor, or Best Semiprozine for the categories to even be represented. Of the categories that did make the cut, only one was able to garner fifteen total nominees, while most categories fell far short of that mark. The evidence seems to show that either the Hugo voting populace isn't armed with enough information to be able to come up with a wide array of nominees, or the depth of the field decades ago was simply insufficient to reasonably support a comprehensive set of nominees. In either case, the dearth of longlisted nominees serves as yet more evidence that the Retro Hugos, although an interesting idea in theory, are just not up to snuff in practice.

Best Novel

Finalists:
Carson of Venus by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Galactic Patrol by E.E. "Doc" Smith
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien [ineligible]
The Legion of Time by Jack Williamson
Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis
The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
At Midnight on the 31st of March by Josephine Young Case
The Doomsday Men by J.B. Priestly
The Drums of Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer
The Red Star of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Silver Princess in Oz by Ruth Plumly Thompson
Synthetic Men of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Tarzan and the Forbidden City by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Towers in the Mist by Elizabeth Goudge

Best Novella

Finalists:
Anthem by Ayn Rand
A Matter of Form by H.L. Gold
Sleepers of Mars by John Wyndham (writing as John Beynon)
The Time Trap by Henry Kuttner
Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell, Jr. (writing as Don A. Stuart) [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
The Black Drama by Manly Wade Wellman
Black Vulmea's Vengeance by Robert E. Howard
Dreadful Sleep by Jack Williamson
The Hairy Ones Shall Dance by Manly Wade Wellman
Tarzan and the Elephant Men by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Best Novelette

Finalists:
Dead Knowledge by John W. Campbell, Jr. (writing as Don A. Stuart)
Hollywood on the Moon by Henry Kuttner
Pigeons From Hell by Robert E. Howard
Rule 18 by Clifford D. Simak [winner]
Werewoman by C.L. Moore

Longlisted Nominees
Beyond the Screen by John Benyon
The Dead Spot by Jack Williamson
The Men and the Mirror by Ross Rocklynne
Reunion on Ganymede by Clifford D. Simak
Secret of the Observatory by Robert Bloch
Seeds of the Dusk by Raymond Z. Gallun
The World's Eighth Wonder by Eric Frank Russell

Best Short Story

Finalists:
Azethoth by H.P. Lovecraft [ineligible]
Beyond the Wall of Sleep by H.P. Lovecraft [ineligible]
The Faithful by Lester del Rey
Hollerbochen’s Dilemma by Ray Bradbury
How We Went to Mars by Arthur C. Clarke [winner]
Hyperpilosity by L. Sprague de Camp

Longlisted Nominees
Between Two Worlds by Mary Lutyens
The Book by H.P. Lovecraft
The Brain Pirates by John W. Campbell, Jr.
An Experiment of the Dead by Helen Simpson
Janice by Shirley Jackson
The Merman by L. Sprague de Camp
Robots Return by Robert Moore Williams
With and Without Buttons by Mary Butts

Best Dramatic Presentation: Short Form

Finalists:
Around the World in Eighty Days
A Christmas Carol
Dracula
R.U.R.
The War of the Worlds [winner]

Longlisted Nominees:
The Brave Little Tailor
The Man Who Was Thursday
Mother Goose Goes to Hollywood
Porky in Wackyland

Best Professional Editor: Short Form

Finalists:
Forrest J Ackerman [ineligible]
John W. Campbell, Jr. [winner]
Walter H. Gillings
Raymond A. Palmer
Mort Wesinger
Farnsworth Wright

Longlisted Nominees:
T. O'Connor Sloane

Best Professional Artist

Finalists:
Margaret Brundage
Virgil Finlay [winner]
Frank R. Paul
Alex Schomburg
H.W. Wesso

Longlisted Nominees:
Howard V. Brown
Lee Morey
Norman Saunders
Charles Schneeman

Best Fanzine

Finalists:
Fantascience Digest
Fantasy News
F(antasy) A(mateur) P(ress) A(ssociation) [ineligible]
Imagination! [winner]
Novae Terrae
Spaceways [ineligible]
Tomorrow
Le Zombie [ineligible]

Longlisted Nominees:
Science Fiction Newsletter

Best Fan Writer

Finalists:
Forrest J Ackerman
Ray Bradbury [winner]
Arthur Wilson "Bob" Tucker
Harry Warner, Jr.
Donald A. Wollheim

Longlisted Nominees:
Robert A. Madle
Sam Moskowitz
William F. Temple

Go to subsequent year's longlist: 1941 (awarded in 2016)

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