Nnedi Okorafor, bestselling Nigerian American writer of Africanfuturist science fiction and fantasy for both children and adults. Best known for her Binti Series and the novels Who Fears Death, Zahrah the Windseeker, Akata Witch, and Remote Control, she has also written for comics and film and is the recipient of numerous awards including the Hugo Award, Nebula Award, Eisner Award, and World Fantasy Award.
Nicola Griffith, celebrated British American speculative fiction writer and activist, author of the Hild Sequence, Ammonite, So Lucky, Slow River, Spear, and more. Winner of the Nebula Award, Otherwise/Tiptree Award, World Fantasy Award, Los Angeles Times Book Prize, two Washington State Book Awards, and six Lambda Literary Awards.
Once upon a time, new SFFHoF inductees were picked by a cabal of industry insiders with fountain pens and agendas—and the results confirmed that. These days, it’s up to you!
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame was founded in 1996 by the Kansas City Science Fiction and Fantasy Society (KCSFFS) in conjunction with the J. Wayne and Elsie M. Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction at the University of Kansas.
The award, judged by a team at Goldsboro Books in London, is called “the only prize that rewards storytelling in all genres – from romance, thrillers and ghost stories, to historical, speculative and literary fiction.” It is given annually to “a compelling novel with brilliant characterization and a distinct voice that is confidently written and assuredly realized”.
The complete shortlist is at the link. The winner, who will receive £2,000 and a beautiful, handmade glass bell, will be named on September 26.
The Washington (DC) Science Fiction Association (WSFA) has announced the finalists for the 2024 WSFA Small Press Award for Short Fiction:
“Baby Golem” by Barbara Krasnoff, Jewish Futures: Science Fiction from the World’s Oldest Diaspora, ed. by Michael A Burstein, Fantastic Books (2023); and
“Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer, Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 200 (May 2023) ed. by Neil Clarke
“A Bowl of Soup on the 87th Floor” by Kai Holmwood, Dreamforge Magazine, Issue 10 (March 2023) ed. by Scot Noel
“By the Works of Her Hands” by LaShawn M Wanak,Never Too Old to Save the World: A Midlife Calling Anthology, ed. by Alana Joli Abbott & Addie King, Outland Entertainment (February 2023)
“Interstate Mohinis” by M. L. Krishnan, Diaboloical Plots, Issue 100B (June 2023) ed. by Kel Coleman
“Machines” by Jennifer R. Povey, Game On!, ed. by Stephen Kotowych & Tony Pi, Zombies Need Brains (July 2023)
“Nothing But the Gods on Their Backs” by Alex T. Singer,Metaphorosis, (June 2023) ed. by B. Morris Allen
“Six Meals at Fanelli’s” by Annika Barranti Klein, Fusion Fragment, Issue 16 (April 2023) ed. by Cavan Terrill.
The award honors the efforts of small press publishers in providing a critical venue for short fiction in the area of speculative fiction, and showcases the best original short fiction published by small presses in the previous year (2023). An unusual feature of the selection process is that the voting is done with the identity of the author and publisher hidden so that the final choice is based solely on the quality of the story.
The winner is chosen by members of the Washington Science Fiction Association (www.wsfa.org), and the award will be presented at their annual convention, Capclave (www.capclave.org), held this year on September 27 – September 29 at the Rockville Hilton & Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD.
The Helsinki Science Fiction Society has announced the winner of the 2024 Tähtifantasia Award, given for the best fantasy book published in Finnish during the previous year.
Jorge Luis Borges’ short story collection Kertomukset (published by Teos) Translated into Finnish by Anu Partanen
The English version of the award citation says:
The Argentinian Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986) was a poet, essayist and fantastic prose writer who exploited the possibilities of genre fiction. Borges did not receive the Nobel Prize for literature, but he did receive, among other things, the World Fantasy prize for his life’s work.
At the heart of the collection is the Fiktioita collection, published in the 1940s, whose most famous short story is The Library of Babel. In it, Borges describes the world as an endless library whose writings contain all possible worlds. In Borges’ stories, reality appears as a maze. Behind the apparent order lies chaos, emptiness and infinity. Still, the search is its own reward and in eternity every place is a vantage point.
Borges is a clear and pleasant narrator who knows how to describe realistically and atmospherically. He lures the reader into thought games and their extreme conclusions in easy-to-follow language. Borges creates believable characters and alternative worlds with just a few sentences. There is nothing too much and nothing too little in his text.
There is humor in the stories, which reminds us of relativity and the importance of attentiveness. In them you can find perspectives on historical and contemporary phenomena. For example, the spread of conspiracy theories and the influence of information can be thought of through the topics discussed by Borges, which are deception and self-deception and the search for identity and meaning.
The award jury is composed of critics Jukka Halme and Aleksi Kuutio, Osmo Määttä of Risingshadow.net and Niina Tolonen, a book blogger. Aleksi is the chair and is also on the Board of The Finnish Critics’ Association.
Final ballot voting is restricted to comic book industry creative community — anyone involved in and credited with creating comics professionally.
In addition to Final Ballot categories, both Fan-Only Favorites from the nomination ballot and Hero Initiative Awards (The Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award and The Dick Giordano Humanitarian Award) will be presented at the Mike Wieringo Comic Book Industry Awards ceremony the evening of September 21 as part of The Baltimore Comic-Con.
Best Cartoonist (Writer and Artist)
66 Shark Teeth
K. O’Neill
Ed Piskor
Jeff Smith
Jillian Tamaki
Best Writer
Dan Abnett
Ed Brubaker
Tom King
Mariko Tamaki
Kit Trace
Best Artist or Penciller/Inker Team
Elsa Charretier
Duncan Fegredo
Abdullah Hadia
Vincent Mallié
Sean Phillips
Peter Rostovsky
Best Letterer
Clayton Cowles
Taylor Esposito
Lucas Gattoni
Stephen Kok
Micah Myers
Stan Sakai
Best Colorist
Brad Anderson
Jordie Bellaire
Tamra Bonvillain
Stephan Franck
Jacob Phillips
Rico Renzi
Best Cover Artist
Colin Griffin
Tula Lotay
Dan Parent
Chris Samnee
Bill Sienkiewicz
Fiona Staples
Best Series
Geiger: Ground Zero, Image Comics
The Night Eaters, Abrams ComicArts
Phantom Road, Image Comics
Rare Flavours, BOOM! Studios
Sirens of the City, BOOM! Studios
Tower, A Wave Blue World
Best Single Issue or Story
Animal Pound #1, BOOM! Studios
By The Horns: Dark Earth #7, Scout Comics
Etheres, Source Point Press
Rare Flavours #1, BOOM! Studios
Somna, DSTLRY
Star Trek: Day of Blood – Shaxs’ Best Day, IDW Publishing
Best Original Graphic Novel
Monica, Fantagraphics
Parasocial, Image Comics
Roaming, Drawn & Quarterly
Slightly Exaggerated, Dark Horse Comics
Three Rocks: The Story of Ernie Bushmiller: The Man Who Created Nancy, Abrams ComicArts
Best Anthology
The Devil’s Cut, DSTLRY
Dwellings, Oni Press
Hairology, Lifeline Comics
Ice Cream Man, Image Comics
The Rocketeer One-Shot, IDW
Swan Songs, Image Comics
Best Humor Comic
Asterix and the White Lotus (Vol. 40), Papercutz
Betty & Veronica Friends Forever: Game On #1, Archie Comics
In Ascension by Martin MacInnes is the winner of the 38th Arthur C. Clarke Award for science fiction book of the year. The selection was revealed today at an award ceremony held in London.
The annual Arthur C. Clarke Award is presented for the best science fiction novel of the year, and selected from a list of novels whose UK first edition was published in the previous calendar year.
Chair of the Judges, Dr Andrew M. Butler said:
As always, the judging session was filled with emotion and intelligence and it took a while for Martin MacInnes’s In Ascension to emerge as the front runner. It shows us, in the words of one judge, “vistas between the cellular and the cosmic.” It’s an intense trip and for once it’s a winner that is in the tradition of Clarke’s own novels.
Martin MacInnes receives a trophy in the form of a commemorative engraved bookend and prize money to the value of £2024.00; a tradition that sees the annual prize money rise incrementally by year from the year 2001 in memory of Sir Arthur C. Clarke.
The winner of the 2023 Dashiell Hammett Award for Literary Excellence in Crime Writing was named by the International Association of Crime Writers (North American Branch) on June 17. The award is given to a book, originally published in the English language in the United States or Canada, “that best represents the conception of literary excellence in crime writing.”
Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead (Doubleday)
Other Nominees
The Almost Widow by Gail Anderson-Dargatz (Harper Avenue)
Night Letter by Sterling Watson (Akashic)
The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon (Alfred A. Knopf)
Stealing by Margaret Verble (Mariner)
NGAIO MARSH AWARDS
The organizers of New Zealand’s annual Ngaio Marsh Awards have released their longlist of 12 nominees for the 2024 Best Novel prize:
Dice, by Claire Baylis (Allen & Unwin)
The Caretaker, by Gabriel Bergmoser (HarperCollins)
Ritual of Fire, by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan)
Birnam Wood, by Eleanor Catton (Te Herenga Waka University Press)
Pet, by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka University Press)
El Flamingo, by Nick Davies (YBK)
Double Jeopardy, by Stef Harris (Quentin Wilson)
The Quarry, by Kim Hunt (Spiral Collectives)
Devil’s Breath, by Jill Johnson (Black & White/Bonnier)
Going Zero, by Anthony Mccarten (Macmillan)
Home Before Night, by J.P. Pomare (Hachette)
Expectant, by Vanda Symon (Orenda)
The longlist is currently being considered by an international panel of crime and thriller writing experts from the USA, United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand. Finalists for Best Novel, Best First Novel, and Best Kids/YA will be announced in early August, with the finalists celebrated and winners announced as part of a special event held in association with WORD Christchurch in late August.
KILLER NASHVILLE SILVER FALCHION
Finalists have been announced for the 2024 Silver Falchion award given by the Killer Nashville Writers Conference in Franklin, Tennessee. The Silver Falchion award categories cover the spectrum of popular literature.
Finalists have been announced for the 2024 Silver Falchion award given by the Killer Nashville Writers Conference in Franklin, Tennessee. The Silver Falchion award categories cover the spectrum of popular literature.
The conference takes place August 22-25. The awards dinner is on August 23.
Here are the finalists in Silver Falchion categories that include works of genre interest.
BEST SCI-FI / FANTASY
The Pilgrim – Part I by A. Keith Carreiro
The Confession of Hemingway Jones by Kathleen Hannon
Interface: Book One: Connection by R.K. Hillhouse
The Zone: A Cyberpunk Thriller by Stu Jones
Do You Believe in Magic? by Jim Melvin
Darwin’s Dilemma by Don Stuart
BEST JUVENILE / Y.A.
Where Echoes Die by Courtney Gould
The Sasquatch of Hawthorne Elementary by K.B. Jackson
Kathryn Gossow received the Award for her many contributions to the field of fairy tales in Australia, particularly in building and nurturing the community of fairytalers.
She was a key part of the group that created the only collection of contemporary Australian fairy tales, South of the Sun Australian Fairy Tale Anthology, a project of many years, defining just what a fairy tale is, ensuring a respectful relationship with the writers and illustrators, and organizing events to promote the book and get it out into the community.
She was one of the key people in organizing the Flesh or Fossil AFTS conference in Brisbane in 2022 – the most highly attended conference so far.
Kathryn liaised between the Brisbane Fairy Tale Ring and GOMA when they created the unique Fairy Tale exhibition 2023-2024, to create opportunities for our Storytellers to participate and communicate about fairy tales with the general public, and to sell the South of the Sun Australian Fairy Tale Anthology beside other fairy tale classics.
Perhaps most importantly, she has been the leader and nourisher of the Brisbane Fairy Tale Ring for many years, providing stability and support for their enduring community.
The Ignyte Awards Committee today announced the 2024 Ignyte Awards shortlist. The Awards “seek to celebrate the vibrancy and diversity of the current and future landscape of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror by recognizing incredible feats in storytelling and outstanding efforts towards inclusivity within the genre.”
The shortlist is derived from 20 BIPOC+ voters made up of SFF community members and previous award winners, of varying genders, sexualities, cultures, disabilities, and locations throughout the world. They are referred to as the Ignyte Awards Committee. The kidlit categories (Young Adult and Middle Grade) each had an additional 5 judges from the age demographics ideally targeted by each of those categories. No active staff members of FIYAH Literary Magazine work with or administer the Ignyte Awards.
The Committee was not limited to selections authored or otherwise created by BIPOC. VPublic voting for the awards is open and will continue until August 31. Public voting on the shortlist does not permit write-in nominations.
This year’s winners will be announced on November 6th.
OUTSTANDING NOVEL: ADULT
for novel-length work (40k words) Works intended for an Adult audience
Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon – Wole Talabi (DAW Books)
The Water Outlaws – S.L. Huang (Tordotcom)
The Saint of Bright Doors – Vajra Chandrasekera (Tordotcom)
To Shape a Dragon’s Breath – Moniquill Blackgoose (Del Rey)
We are the Crisis – Cadwell Turnbull (Blackstone Publishing)
OUTSTANDING NOVEL: YOUNG ADULT
for novel-length (40k+ words) works intended for the young adult audience
I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me – Jamison Shae (Henry Holt & Co.)
That Self-Same Metal – Brittany N. Williams (Harry N. Abrams)
Funeral Songs for Dying Girls – Cherie Dimaline (Tundra Books)
Beholder – Ryan La Sala (PUSH)
Sing Me to Sleep – Gabi Burton (Bloomsbury YA)
OUTSTANDING MIDDLE GRADE
for works intended for the middle grade audience
Abeni’s Song – P. Djèlí Clark (Starscape)
Just a Pinch of Magic – Alechia Dow (Feiwel & Friends)
Keynan Masters and the Peerless Magic Crew – DaVaun Sanders (Inkyard Press)
Lei and the Fire Goddess – Malia Maunakea (Penguin Workshop)
The Sun and the Star – Mark Oshiro, Rick Riordan (Disney Hyperion)
OUTSTANDING NOVELLA
for speculative works ranging from 17,500-39,999 words
