I liked Paul Kidby’s art for the French version of Agent to the Stars so much that I bought it. And here it is. And it looks fabulous. Paul was also kind enough to offer me the black and white sketch he did for the cover, which is also fabulous, in a monochromatic fashion, so now I have that too. How awesome is that. I mean, it’s cool enough just that people create covers for things I write. But to get to own it too? Well. I like my life, is what I have to say to that.

We’re getting close to crunch time for Nebula and Hugo Award nominations: For SFWA members, the last day to get in Nebula nominations is 11:59pm (Pacific) on February 15, and while the Hugo nomination period lasts through March 26, it’s generally a good idea not to wait until the last minute to get in your nods. So if you can nominate for the Nebulas or the Hugos (or both!) now is a fine time to do it.

Last month I offered authors a chance here to note which works of theirs are eligible for awards this year; today I would like to offer science fiction and fantasy readers and fans some space to list eligible works and people who they think award nominators should keep in mind when filling out their ballots. After all, you’re the folks reading the books and watching the movies and TV shows; you should know what you think is the bast stuff of last year — and Whatever is read by a not-insignificant percentage of the people who nominate for science fiction and fantasy awards. So: Share!

Now, the rules:

1. Anyone may post in this thread — we’re all fans — but if you or your work is eligible for awards this year you may not recommend yourself or your work. There’s another thread for that (see link above). To repeat: Only recommend others and/or the work of others.

2. Only recommend works or people you know are eligible for awards this year (usually, works released or people who had work released in the 2010 calendar year). If you are not sure, please check. It’s not that difficult.

3. Please try to put all your recommendations into a single post; it makes it easier to for folks to scan through the comment thread.

4. When you recommend a work or a person, if possible (and it usually is possible), note the category in which it or they is eligible — remember, you’re trying to suggest nominations, so make it easy for people to know which category to nominate in. This is particularly the case for short fiction, which for both the Hugo and Nebula (and other awards) has three categories based on length: Short Story, Novelette and Novella. Here’s information on the Hugo Award categories; here’s information on the Nebula Award and its categories.

5. You may include links to eligible works if they are legally available online but be aware that posts with three or more links are likely to get punted into the moderation queue. If this happens, don’t panic — I’ll be along presently to free them.

6. Do not recommend me or my work, please. I’ve already let people know what work of mine is eligible; this thread is for everything else.

7. Finally, don’t post in the thread unless you’re making recommendations (i.e., no comments on other people’s recommendations, etc); I want the thread as uncluttered as possible so nominators can find good ideas.

Now, then: What science fiction and fantasy works and people do you think nominators should consider for awards this year? Tell us! Now!