Hugo Award Nominees: The 2014 Edition

It’s that time of year again – awards season! While the Hugo Awards aren’t without their (significant) issues, we’re still happy and proud to be able to nominate and vote for the biggest SFF annual fan awards.

The Hugo Awards are among the most prestigious under the SFF umbrella, and each year the winners are announced at the World Science Fiction Convention (aka WorldCon) – this year, the party is in London (LonCon 3).

If you can’t afford to go to the Con, it’s worth noting that any SFF fan can sign up for a supporting membership ($40/£25) which gives you the right to nominate and vote for the Hugos – this year’s deadline is Monday, March 31 at 11:59 pm PDT (Tuesday, April 1 at 7:59 am BST – UK time). IMPORTANT NOTE: you’d need to get your membership by January 31 at 11:59 pm PST (February 1 at 7:59 am GMT – UK time) to secure your nominating rights for this year.

For more information on how to become a member, check out the LonCon 3 site, the official Hugo Awards website, or our primer from last year.

Today, we reveal our tentative, early picks! NOTE: We haven’t read everything (in particular, there’s a shocking lack of short stories, novellas, and novellettes in our 2013 repertoire) and we are completely open to suggestions.

Without further ado, we give you our picks for (certain categories on) the 2013 ballot!

Thea’s Picks

Best Novel

• Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
• Cold Steel by Kate Elliott
• NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
• The Different Girl by Gordon Dahlquist
• Orleans by Sherri L. Smith

Best Novella, Novelette & Short Story

I confess I haven’t read ANYTHING in 2013 that qualifies, but I do have these Tor.com originals on my list of to be reads. Any recommendations? (I’m trying to make my way through this list but obviously need other sources to make an informed decision!)

• Thief of War by Beth Bernobich
• The Too-Clever Fox by Leigh Bardugo
• The Water That Falls on You From Nowhere by John Chu
• Old Dead Futures by Tina Connolly
• The Hanging Game by Helen Marshall

Best Dramatic Presentation (Long Form)

• Catching Fire
• Gravity
• Pacific Rim
• Europa Report
• You’re Next

Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)

• Any episode of Orphan Black, but if I had to pick one I guess “Effects of External Conditions”
• “The Red Wedding,” Game of Thrones
• “The Day of the Doctor,” Doctor Who (50th Anniversary Special)
• “Isolation,” The Walking Dead
• “Fearful Pranks Ensue” or “Burn, Witch, Burn!” American Horror Story: Coven

Best Graphic Story

• Boxers/Saints by Gene Luen Yang
• Saga by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Best Semiprozine

Honestly, I’m always confused when it comes to what defines a semiprozine versus a fanzine versus…anything else. But I know for a fact that I love Strange Horizons, and they deserve all the love.

• Strange Horizons

Best Fanzine

OH MY GOODNESS THIS IS HARD. There are so many awesome blogs – I mean, “fanzines” – out there, and I certainly don’t read as many as I should. Here are the major players who explicitly comment on the state of SFF plus showcase a good mix of reviews and other original essay content – I think they all must be on the ballot this year:

• Lady Business
• Staffer’s Book Review
• Pornokitsch
• A Dribble of Ink
• The World in the Satin Bag

Best Fancast

Confession: I don’t really listen to podcasts. The two that I have listened to (that are relevant for the Hugo Award) are pretty good, though.

• The Skiffy and Fanty Show
• Lady Business +

Best Fan Writer

• Natalie Luhrs (Radish Reviews)
• Liz Bourke (Tor.com, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea)
• Foz Meadows (Shattersnipe)
• Justin Landon (Staffer’s Book Review)
• Kameron Hurley

Best Related Work

• “We have Always Fought: Challenging the Women, Cattle, and Slaves Narrative” by Kameron Hurley (essay)
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars by Robert Berg (review series)
• Opinion: Journey Succeeds Because It Affirms Our Existence by Erin Hoffman (essay)
• Speculative Fiction 2012 Edited by Justin Landon & Jared Shurin
• “On Gender Parity and Cover Art” by Justin Landon (essay)

Best Pro Artist

• Fiona Staples
• Julie Dillon
• Victo Ngai
• Anna & Elena Balbusso
• Carl Wiens

John W Campbell Award

• The Thousand Names by Django Wexler
• Earth Girl by Janet Edwards
• In the After by Demitria Lunetta

Ana’s Picks

Best Novel

• Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
• Sorrow’s Knot by Erin Bow
• All Our Pretty Songs by Sarah McCarry
• The Real Boy by Anne Ursu

I really, really loved The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman but I am not sure I want to nominate it. I am undecided on my last spot torn between Ascension by Jacqueline Koyanagi and Inheritance by Malinda Lo.

Best Short Story/Novella/Novellette

WELP! I’ve read only a handful of stories that qualify for these categories and I am not entirely sure where they fit in.

I QUITE like for my lists:

Novella: “The Eye With Which The Universe Beholds Itself” by Ian Sales

Short Stories (?):

“Flawless” by Frances Hardinge (in Twisted Winter
“Blackberry Blue” by Jamila Gavin (in the collection Blackberry Blue)

Obviously, I need to investigate further. Lady Business are collecting suggestions in a handy Hugo Media Spreadsheet so I will be checking them out.

Best Dramatic Presentation (Long Form)

• Iron Man 3
• Gravity
• Pacific Rim
• Thor 2

I am saving the last spot as I still need to watch Catching Fire.

Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)

• Orphan Black (need to decide which episode)
• “The Day of the Doctor,” Doctor Who – Doctor Who’s 50th anniversary episode.
• The Legend of Korra – Beginnings Parts 1 and 2

Best Graphic Story

• Boxers/Saints by Gene Luen Yang
• Avatar The Last Airbender’s The Search – Part 1 by Gene Luen Yang, illustrated by Studio Gurihiru
• Saga by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples

Best Semiprozine

Echoing Thea’s vote and reasoning here:

• Strange Horizons

Best Fanzine

OK, so, I have four in my MUST include list. These are must-reads for me, with a really cool range of reviews, essays, guest posts and fan discussions:

• Lady Business
• Pornokitsch
• A Dribble of Ink
• Practically Marzipan

Best Fan Writer

These writers all blow my mind away with their thoughtful posts, essays and contribution to the SFF community. Abigail Nussbaum is my Reviewer Idol.

• Abigail Nussbaum (Asking the Wrong Questions)
• Liz Bourke (Tor.com, Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea)
• Foz Meadows (Shattersnipe)
• Justin Landon (Staffer’s Book Review)
• Aishwarya (Practically Marzipan)

I also think Renay (Lady Business, Strange Horizons) deserves consideration here – she is carving her way into being one of the most important voices in SFF these days.

Best Related Work

• “We have Always Fought: Challenging the Women, Cattle, and Slaves Narrative” by Kameron Hurley (essay)
• Tropes vs Women (a brilliant video series about gaming by Anita Sarkeesian)
• Speculative Fiction 2012 Edited by Justin Landon & Jared Shurin
• “On Gender Parity and Cover Art” by Justin Landon (essay)

Best Pro Artist, Best Editor and Best Fancast

I don’t feel I know enough to actually nominate for these categories (although I REALLY like Thea’s choices).

John W Campbell Award

• Max Gladstone (for Two Serpents Rise)
• Sofia Samatar (for A Stranger in Olondria not a book for me, but recognize the beauty of the writing)
• Sarah McCarry (for All Our Pretty Songs)

On The Book Smugglers’ Eligibility

We guess this is where we should mention that The Book Smugglers is eligible in the category of Best Fanzine. In 2013, on top of our usual reviews, guest posts and annual Smugglivus event, we debuted two new features of which we are incredibly proud: SFF in Conversation and Old School Wednesdays.

Thanks for considering us!

Over to you! Suggestions and comments are most welcome.