Comments on: Your Science Fiction Award Nomination Suggestions

By: the english assassin

the english assassin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 11:43:45 +0000

I’ll be the nth person to support the mighty StarShipSofa for a nomination for Best Fanzine… over the years it’s been a great resource of SF history with its original show, released some of the best short fiction in audio form, from classic authors like Mike Moorcock to today’s big hitters like Ted Chiang, it’s narration is second to none and it has some great original non-fiction pieces in the mix too – and it’s free and run by a motley crew of volunteers from around the world. I’m not sure what the readership is of paper-based SF fanzines these days but SSS truly has a global audience and can only be a shot in the arm for SF as a whole…

By: Adrienne Foster

Adrienne Foster — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:16:23 +0000

Since I haven’t seen any mention of the TV series, MEDIUM, I’d like to throw that into the mix. I have always appreciated how gritty it is and how willing that show is to explore different areas of creativity. The writing and acting is consistently well done. Of the new episodes that were aired in 2009, I beg indulgence by considering the following for the dramatic short form catagory:

“Bite Me,” which spliced in scenes from NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD.

“The Man in the Mirror,” which Allison falls into a coma and swaps bodies with a middle-aged man.

“The Devil Inside, Parts 1 & 2,” where a spirit manipulates Allison’s dreams so she keeps seeing familiar faces instead of the true images of the real villians.

The following three-part episode would fall under the long form category:

“How to Make a Killing in Business, Parts 1-3,” when Allison finds herself battling her own ethics after accepts a job with a commercial company that uses their contact to prevent her from reporting a serious crime.

By: Saladin Ahmed

Saladin Ahmed — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:28:52 +0000

Ack! I neglected to mention above that I am also eligible for the Campbell award this year. I’ve had stories in IGMS, Strange Horizons, and a few other places. My Campbell profile is here:

http://www.writertopia.com/profiles/SaladinAhmed

and it has links to all of my free online stories, which range from Islamic-inspired sword and sorcery to a goofy supervillain story about race, prison, and a 900-lb blue guy named “Masher.”

By: Scott H. Andrews

Scott H. Andrews — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:56:16 +0000

Thanks so much, John and Marie and Sara for your endorsements of Beneath Ceaseless Skies! The magazine is eligible for Best Semiprozine, and I am eligible for Best Editor, Short Form (if you find me worthy).

I personally would vote Neil Clarke a special award of some kind for his tireless campaign last year to save the semiprozine Hugo category.

By: Matthew Sanborn Smith

Matthew Sanborn Smith — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 01:37:42 +0000

StarShipSofa pigpile, baby!
(http://www.starshipsofa.com)

By: MS

MS — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 14:02:10 +0000

Best Fanzine
StarShipSofa (http://www.starshipsofa.com)

Best Related Work
The Intersection of Fantasy and Native America: From H.P. Lovecraft to Leslie Marmon Silko by Amy H. Sturgis and David D. Oberhelman (http://www.mythsoc.org/press/fantasy.native.america/)

By: Shweta Narayan

Shweta Narayan — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 07:54:25 +0000

Hi! I'd like to chime in seconding Amal El Mohtar's suggestions -- her story, And Their Lips Rang with the Sun (Strange Horizons, October '09), is strange and gorgeous, and got me right between the ribs. And the scope of re-imagining in Catherynne M. Valente's The Radiant Car Thy Sparrows Drew (Clarkesworld, August '09) takes my breath away. I know I have other suggestions but I'm blanking right now. So for now, just pimping my own stuff -- I'm eligible for the Campbell Award this year, and my stories Nira and I (Strange Horizons, March '09), Charms (Strange Horizons, August '09), and Daya and Dharma (GUD magazine, Spring 2009) are all Hugo and Nebula eligible. They're also freely available online, as is some of my other stuff; I'll happily send electronic versions of other work along to people for voting purposes.

By: Gary Main

Gary Main — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 20:29:29 +0000

I would love to nominate a little know pod cast from Tony Smith called Starshipsofa, if you have not listen to this you are missing a real gem. He single headedly created an audio magazine that includes a fact feature, flash fiction, poetry, main fiction, he reviews book. He also had short stories from Gene Wolfe, M John Harrison, Cory Doctorow, Charlie Stross, Neal Asher, Elizabeth Bear, John Scalzi, Ted Chang, Alister Reynods, Richard Morgen, Joan Vinge, Harry Harrison, Joe Haldeman, China Melville and over a hundred more to numerous to mention. If you never listen to a other pod cast then listen to this. It is pure quality and each pod cast runs to over a hour. Tony does more to heighten the love of SF in its short form than any one I can mention and he gives all his time freely, humour and with out payment. The address is http://www.starshipsofa.com . All the narrators give up their time to contribute the fantastic pod cast please give it a try. He also host a SF chat with a sister pod cast called Sofanauts for all things SF.

By: Phil Ackerman

Phil Ackerman — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 16:33:40 +0000

Dramatic Presentation short form / Best Fanzine;
StarshipSofa ( http://www.starshipsofa.com/ )

For Best Related Work
Sofanauts (http://sofanauts.com/)

Best Novel
House of Suns – Alastair Reynolds

Novelette
Thousamdth Night / Minla’s Flower – Alastair Reynolds

By: Elke

Elke — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:08:19 +0000

Joining the chorus about StarShipSofa. I’m not certain enough of the Hugo categories & parameters, however, and what fits an aural magazine and the material published in it. May we have input from those more familiar?

If the Hugo Awards are to represent the year’s best works, then there must be something that fits because there is excellent work going on at http://www.starshipsofa.com. Have you read Lord Dickens’s Declaration? There’s also an old-fashioned paper-in-binding short story collection, StarshipSofa Stories, Volume 1, containing material to blow off one’s socks.