2016 Aurealis Awards Finalists

The 2016 Aurealis Awards shortlist has been announced by the Western Australian Science Fiction Foundation. Judging coordinator Katharine Stubbs reports there were over 800 entries across the 15 categories. Click on the link to see the members of the judging panels.

The Aurealis Award winners and the recipient of the Convenors’ Award for Excellence will be announced at a ceremony at the Australian National Convention in Perth on April 14.

2016 Aurealis Awards – Finalists

BEST CHILDREN’S FICTION

  • Blueberry Pancakes Forever, Angelica Banks (Allen & Unwin)
  • Magrit, Lee Battersby (Walker Books Australia)
  • Somebody Stop Ivy Pocket, Caleb Crisp (Bloomsbury)
  • The Turners, Mick Elliott (Hachette Australia)
  • When the Lyrebird Calls, Kim Kane (Allen & Unwin)
  • The Hungry Isle, Emily Rodda (Omnibus Books)

BEST GRAPHIC NOVEL / ILLUSTRATED WORK

  • Mechanica, Lance Balchin (Five Mile)
  • BROBOT, James Foley (Fremantle Press)
  • Negative Space, Ryan K Lindsay (Dark Horse Comics)
  • The Spider King, Josh Vann (self-published)

BEST YOUNG ADULT SHORT STORY

  • “A Right Pretty Mate”, Lisa L Hannett (Dreaming in the Dark)
  • “Dune Time”, Jack Nicholls (Tor.com)
  • “No One Here is Going to Save You”, Shauna O’Meara (In Your Face, FableCroft Publishing)
  • “Did We Break the End of the World?”, Tansy Rayner Roberts (Defying Doomsday, Twelfth Planet Press)
  • “Pretty Jennie Greenteeth”, Leife Shallcross (Strange Little Girls, Belladonna Publishing)

BEST HORROR SHORT STORY

  • “Non Zero Sum”, RPL Johnson (SNAFU: Hunters, Cohesion Press)
  • “Flame Trees”, TR Napper (Asimov’s Science Fiction, April/May 2016)
  • “Penny for a Match, Mister?”, Garth Nix (The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales, Saga Press)
  • “The Red Forest”, Angela Slatter (Winter Children and Other Chilling Tales, PS Publishing)
  • “68 Days”, Kaaron Warren (Tomorrow’s Cthulhu, Broken Eye Books)
  • “Life, or Whatever Passes For It”, Durand Welsh (Peel Back the Skin, Grey Matter Press)

BEST HORROR NOVELLA

  • “Box of Bones”, Jeremy Bates (Ghillinnein Books)
  • “Served Cold”, Alan Baxter (Dreaming in the Dark, PS Publishing)
  • “Waking in Winter”, Deborah Biancotti (PS Publishing)
  • “Burnt Sugar”, Kirstyn McDermott (Dreaming in the Dark, PS Publishing)
  • “Pan”, Christopher Ruz (Andromeda Spaceways Magazine #62)

BEST FANTASY SHORT STORY

  • “Watercress Soup”, Tamlyn Dreaver (Andromeda Spaceways Magazine #65)
  • “Where the Pelican Builds Her Nest”, Thoraiya Dyer (In Your Face, FableCroft Publishing)
  • “Dune Time”, Jack Nicholls (Tor.com)
  • “Penny for a Match, Mister?”, Garth Nix (The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales, Saga Press)
  • “The Lighthouse at Cape Defeat”, David Versace (Aurealis #89)
  • “The Cartographer’s Price”, Suzanne Willis (Mythic Delirium Issue 3.1)

BEST FANTASY NOVELLA

  • “Raven’s First Flight”, Alan Baxter (SNAFU: Black Ops, Cohesion Press)
  • “By the Laws of Crab and Woman”, Jason Fischer (Review of Australian Fiction)
  • “Forfeit”, Andrea K. Höst (The Towers, the Moon, self-published)
  • The Bonobo’s Dream, Rose Mulready (Seizure Press)
  • “Burnt Sugar”, Kirstyn McDermott (Dreaming in the Dark, PS Publishing)
  • “Finnegan’s Field”, Angela Slatter (Tor.com)

BEST SCIENCE FICTION SHORT STORY

  • “Trainspotting in Winesburg”, Jack Dann (Concentration, PS Publishing)
  • “The Baby Eaters”, Ian McHugh (Asimov’s Science Fiction 40/1)
  • “The Autumn Dog Cannot Live to Spring”, Claire McKenna (In Your Face, Fablecroft)
  • “Of Sight, of Mind, of Heart”, Samantha Murray (Clarkesworld #122)
  • “68 Days”, Kaaron Warren (Tomorrow’s Cthulu, Broken Eye Books)
  • “The Least of Things”, Jen White (Aurealis #94)

BEST SCIENCE FICTION NOVELLA

  • Waking in Winter, Deborah Biancotti (PS Publishing)
  • “Salto Mortal”, Nick T Chan (Lightspeed #73)
  • “Going Viral”, Thoraiya Dyer (Dimension6 #8, coeur de lion)
  • The Bonobo’s Dream, Rose Mulready (Seizure Press)
  • “All the Colours of the Tomato”, Simon Petrie (Dimension6 #9, coeur de lion)
  • “Did We Break the End of the World?”, Tansy Rayner Roberts (Defying Doomsday, Twelfth Planet Press)

BEST COLLECTION

  • Crow Shine, Alan Baxter (Ticonderoga Publications)
  • Concentration, Jack Dann (PS Publishing)
  • A Feast of Sorrows, Angela Slatter (Prime)
  • Winter Children, Angela Slatter (PS Publishing)

BEST ANTHOLOGY

  • Dreaming in the Dark, Jack Dann (ed.) (PS Publishing Australia)
  • Defying Doomsday, Tsana Dolichva and Holly Kench (eds.) (Twelfth Planet Press)
  • Year’s Best YA Speculative fiction 2015, Julia Rios and Alisa Krasnostein (eds.) (Twelfth Planet Press)
  • Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume 10, Jonathan Strahan (ed.) (Solaris)
  • In Your Face, Tehani Wessely (ed.) (Fablecroft Publishing)

BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL

  • Elegy, Jane Abbott (Penguin Random House Australia)
  • The Bone Queen, Alison Croggon (Penguin Books Australia)
  • The Other Side of Summer by Emily Gale (Penguin Random House Australia)
  • Lady Helen and the Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman (HarperCollins Publishers)
  • Gemima: Illuminae Files 2, Amy Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (Allen & Unwin)
  • Goldenhand, Garth Nix (Allen & Unwin)

BEST HORROR NOVEL

  • Fear is the Rider,  Kenneth Cook (Text Publishing)
  • My Sister Rosa, Justine Larbalestier (Allen & Unwin)
  • The Grief Hole, Kaaron Warren (IFWG Publishing Australia)

BEST FANTASY NOVEL

  • Nevernight, Jay Kristoff (Harper Voyager)
  • Fall of the Dagger, Glenda Larke (Hachette Australia)
  • Den of Wolves, Juliet Marillier (Pan Macmillan Australia)
  • Vigil, Angela Slatter (Jo Fletcher Books)
  • Road to Winter, Mark Smith (Text Publishing)
  • Sisters of the Fire, Kim Wilkins (Harlequin Australia)

BEST SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL

  • Watershed, Jane Abbott (Penguin Random House)
  • Confluence, SK Dunstall (Ace Books)
  • Gemima: Illuminae Files 2, Amy Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (Allen & Unwin)
  • Squid’s Grief, DK Mok (self-published)
  • Stiletto, Daniel O’Malley (Harper Collins Publishers)
  • Threader, Rebekah Turner (Harlequin Australia)

Convenors’ Award for Excellence Nominees

The Convenors’ Award for Excellence is awarded at the discretion of the convenors for a particular achievement in speculative fiction or related areas in that year that cannot otherwise by judged for the Aurealis Awards.

This award can be given to a work of non-fiction, artwork, film, television, electronic or multimedia work, or one that brings credit or attention to the speculative fiction genres.

The convenors consider all eligible entries, but there is no shortlist generated, and only the winner is presented at the ceremony. The eligible nominations received for the award are:

This year’s nominees are:

  • Claire Fitzpatrick – “Why Do People Like Horror Movies?”[Aurealis]

Writing non-fiction is a passion of mine, which I am hoping to turn into a serious academic career. It is my joy and pleasure to research horror and explore its various avenues. I am hoping you will see the dedication I put into my article, and the seriousness of my intent to educate people on horror.

  • Claire Fitzpatrick – “Dark Fantasy Versus Horror: Why Are Their Differences Important? And Which Genre Should You Introduce to Your Children First?”[Aurealis] 

Horror can also be for children! Childhood is scary. Kids live in a world of insane giants, they are generally powerless, and Horror teaches children the ability to recognise fear with themselves, which can be helpful in times of stress. I wrote this piece for my daughter – she’s 4 and loves scary stories. Horror is good for the soul.

  • Claire Fitzpatrick – “Body Horror And The Horror Aesthetic” [Aurealis] 

Body horror is a genre that transcends pure fear and manifests in a physical form. It delves into or most primal instincts as human beings. Body horror—which describes creations deemed ‘outside of nature’—is seen as some hideous deformity, but it’s extremely beautiful. I love to write about body horror – indeed, body horror is my passion. This article explains body horror, and why it’s such an interesting branch of horror.

  • Elizabeth Fitzgerald – Earl Grey Editing [http://earlgreyediting.com.au/] 

As well as working as an editor, Elizabeth is a prolific reviewer who has produced many reviews of Australian works. She also writes a regular collection of “loose leaf links”, which collect links relevant to writers, readers and publishers, focusing on topics such as conventions, equity, awards and competitions. All of this work combines to create a valuable contribution to the Australian speculative fiction field.

  • Felicity Banks – Scarlet Sails

A rollicking pirate adventure where you choose what kind of pirate you are.

  • Kate Forsyth – The Rebirth of Rapunzel: A Mythic Biography of the Maiden in the Tower [FableCroft Publishing]

Showcasing an astonishing level of research in a highly readable and engaging form, The Rebirth of Rapunzel delves into the mythology of the Rapunzel fairy tale and examines the historical and storytelling background to the piece. Packaged with several related articles and other pieces, the book is both a factual exploration of a fictional creation and a beautiful reading experience in and of itself. Non-fiction collection

  • Nalini Haynes – Dark Matter Zine [http://www.darkmatterzine.com/]

For the past 6 years Dark Matter Zine has published interviews and panel discussions featuring science fiction and fantasy authors and publishers as well as reviews of science fiction and fantasy stories and articles about conventions, events and science fiction and fantasy culture. To date Dark Matter Zine has over 109 podcasts, 94 videos, 90 guest blogs and over 1300 reviews. As blogger-in-residence for the ACT Writers Centre I have also featured SFF authors in interviews for the mainstream community. Webzine

[Thanks to Andrew Porter for the story.]

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