The 2020 Manly Wade Wellman Award for North Carolina Science Fiction and Fantasy longlist was revealed during ConCarolinas’ closing ceremonies today.

Last year’s winner, Christopher Ruocchio, announced the 18 titles on behalf of the North Carolina Speculative Fiction Foundation.

• Masks & Malevolence / Time & Temper by Natania Barron (Falstaff Books)
• The Hive by Orson Scott Card [and Aaron Johnston] (Tor Books)
• The Storm by David Drake (Baen Books)
• The Hanged Man by K. D. Edwards (Pyr)
• 48 Hours by William R. Forstchen (Forge Books)
• Where Oblivion Lives by T. Frohock (Harper Voyager)
• The Women’s War by Jenna Glass (Del Rey)
• Carl Perkins’ Cadillac by John G. Hartness (Falstaff Books)
• Southern Fury / Southern Souls by Stuart Jaffe
• The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher (Saga Press)
• Inheritance by Gail Z. Martin (SOL Publishing)
• Breaking Gods by D. J. Molles
• To the Bones by Valerie Nieman (West Virginia University Press)
• Winter World by A. G. Riddle (Legion Books)
• Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio (DAW)
• As the Crow Flies by Rysa Walker and Caleb Amsel (Starry Night)
• A Fall in Autumn by Michael G. Williams (Falstaff Books)
• A Midnight Dreary by David Niall Wilson (Crossroad Press)

A shortlist of finalists will be announced on Wednesday, July 1. Ordinarily, the winner(s) would be announced at ConGregate on July 17, however, plans have not been finalized because the con is not being held in person this year.

The Manly Wade Wellman Award was founded in 2013 to recognize outstanding achievement in science fiction and fantasy novels written by North Carolina authors. The 2020 award covers novels published in 2019.

The award is named for long-time North Carolina author Manly Wade Wellman with the permission of his estate.