The Nova Awards, which have recognized excellence in British fanzines since 1973, are receiving a major update. Now all UK and Irish fans will be eligible to vote, not just the members of Novacon.

Ballots can be downloaded from the Novacon website, novacon.org.uk. Votes will be accepted via e-mail.

The award winners are announced at Novacon, scheduled this year from November 11-13.

The full press release follows the jump.

[Thanks to Steve Green for the story.]

Major Revamp For Nova Awards

After nearly four decades celebrating achievement in British fanzines, the Nova Awards are undergoing a major revamp. Eligibility was extended to cover Irish and certain electronic fanzines in 2002, and now voting is being opened up to all UK and Irish fans.

Previously, the franchise was restricted to members of Novacon, the convention which has hosted the award ceremony since 1973.

In addition, ballot forms will be available at the Novacon website, novacon.org.uk, and votes accepted via e-mail.

One condition remains: all voters must have read at least six different British or Irish fanzines during the previous year, to ensure a basic familiarity with the current field. Novacon maintains a ‘longlist’ of known eligible fanzines on its website; it currently includes details for twenty titles, fourteen of which are available online.

Steve Green

Administrator