The Chengdu Worldcon committee notified members today that they have released the first block of the 2023 Hugo Voter Packet, a package of finalist works made available to voters by Hugo Award, Lodestar Award, and Astounding Award nominees and their publishers. The contents of the first block are not identified in the press release.
The Voter Packet is only available to WSFS members of the convention.
The committee says this year’s Voter Packet includes all finalists in the four main written fiction categories (Novel, Novella, Novelette, and Short Story). The Packet also includes materials from the majority of finalists in the remaining categories. The Hugo Voter Packet will remain available until the ballot closes on October 1 (Beijing Time).
Eligible members can download and review the packet on the 2023 Hugo Awards Voting Page.
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Give it a few hours, the net certificate is currently invalid and being worked on.
In the process of downloading… So far no packets for dramatic presentation long (not surprising), fanzine, and fan writer. Presumably the last 2 will be forthcoming.
I could log in, but I couldn’t download. I tried the 3 major browsers, but at least Best Novel was “untrusted” and wouldn’t download. I hope there’s a workaround.
I have managed to work around the fails-to-download-in-chrome situation, but it involved some unix-ey command line work.
SF Lightyear on Weibo says the semipro magazine and fan artist files have download errors (the self-comment on his original post about packet eligibility):
https://weibo.com/5726230680/Nf2kJhNYW
Not sure if this means the files aren’t downloadable, or if they’re corrupted in some way.
Chrome didn’t want to download due to the certificate issue, but Safari allowed it (very slowly). Confirming the bad download links on the Semipro Zine and Fan Artist files – I got an error message instead of a download file.
I see there’s a solid mix of language availability – some things only in English, some only in Chinese, some in both, and some in one with an abstract or summary in the other.
No issue with downloading Semiprozine and Fan Artist for me. And a quick look through the files look fine. Using Chrome.
I was lucky with the short and long form movies. I had them all on one of my many streaming services. The novels are all available at my library.
For Chrome I’m using an incognito window and telling it to keep the file after it initially tries to block it.
Chrome is throwing up all kinds of privacy errors. I’m not mentally up to dealing with this. I hope next year’s Hugo administration is a little less buggy.
I’m beginning to think I won’t be able to vote in this year’s awards due to all the technical nonsense.
Whenever I log in using Chrome, I get the certificate error. That’s been happening for weeks. Generally, I just find the “Proceed anyway (unsafe)” option and hope for the best.
As for downloading the .zip files in the packet, Chrome would pop open a new tab and then close it immediately. If I Shift-Click on the link, though, it opens in a new window. I then clicked in the URL bar (which was showing the name of the .zip file) and pressed Enter. That would start the download as expected.
It’s not the ideal way to do it, but I was able to download everything available right now.
Right-clicking the download button and selecting “Save link as” worked for me.
I used Firefox and it warns me that while the website uses HTTPS the download is via HTTP i.e. not secure and I have to click a second button to download the file regardless of the danger. Very exciting. I’ve down loaded three packets and so far none of them have exploded.
when I was having trouble accessing the nominating ballot, I was advised to download Opera, use its VPN and set it for somewhere in Europe. (As it turned out, I think I was mostly having a verizon issue, because I had no problem accessing it from the free wifi at a holiday inn even without opera).
over on facebook, Neil Ottenstein reports needing to use google vpn to access the Hugo packet.
In previous years there were requests for a list of what works should be considered part of each finalist for Best Series (whether or not those works are included in the voter packet). Since the voter packet doesn’t include such a list, here is an attempt at writing an unofficial one.
Three of the series are straightforward, in that they just have novels (as far as I know) and not any separately published short fiction to consider.
Children of Time Series:
Children of Time
Children of Ruin
Children of Memory
The Founders Trilogy:
Foundryside
Shorefall
Locklands
The Scholomance:
A Deadly Education
The Last Graduate
The Golden Enclaves
The Locked Tomb has three novels and two pieces of short fiction (so far):
Gideon the Ninth
Harrow the Ninth
Nona the Ninth
https://www.tor.com/2020/07/29/the-mysterious-study-of-dr-sex-tamsyn-muir/
https://www.tor.com/2022/06/08/as-yet-unsent-tamsyn-muir/
Rivers of London includes nine novels (these are what’s in the voter packet), three novellas (a fourth published in 2023), thirteen pieces of short fiction (collected in Tales from the Folly), and graphic novels (it’s less clear if those count as part of the nomination for the purposes of the rules on Best Series, which specify “works in which the text is the primary form of communication”).
Novels:
Rivers of London
Moon over Soho
Whispers Under Ground
Broken Homes
Foxglove Summer
The Hanging Tree
Lies Sleeping
False Value
Amongst Our Weapons
Novellas:
The Furthest Station
The October Man
What Abigail Did That Summer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivers_of_London_(book_series) provides an (incomplete) list in internal chronological order, including short fiction and graphic novels.
October Daye includes 16 novels and 48 pieces of short fiction published up to the end of 2022 (the voter packet provides NetGalley access to the novels). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seanan_McGuire_bibliography gives lists in publication order. Seanan McGuire has also been posting a list in internal chronological order, including the short fiction (with brief comments and content warnings), on Twitter (starting https://twitter.com/seananmcguire/status/1677027195632619524 ) and Bluesky; not sure why the short fiction didn’t end up in the voter packet, given the intent expressed there to include it; it was included in the 2021 voter packet. Neither platform makes it easy to read things without an account at present; see https://twstalker.com/seananmcguire/status/1677027195632619524 or https://blue.amazingca.dev/user/seananmcguire.bsky.social for versions of the thread that can currently be read without an account. I think the following is the internal chronological order for all 64 stories (starting off based on Seanan’s list, followed by my understanding of the order for the remaining stories) – though it’s probably best to read several of the novels before many of the pieces of prequel short fiction that come earlier chronologically:
“Such Dangerous Seas”
“The Fixed Stars”
“Sun Sets Weeping”
“Rat-Catcher”
“Forbid the Sea”
“Stage of Fools”
“The Voice of Lions”
“The Act of Hares”
“Instruments of Darkness”
“With Honest Trifles”
“In Deepest Consequence”
“Jealous In Honor”
“Quick in Quarrel”
“Of Strange Oaths”
“Dreams and Sighs”
“Wishes and Tears”
“Poor Fancy’s Followers”
“Our Trial Patience”
“Earth for Charity”
“Mean and Mighty”
(“Distinction of Place” and “Notes of Sorrow” were released 2023, so not part of the nomination.)
“In Little Stars” (missing in Seanan’s list)
“Heaps of Pearl”
“Shore to Shore”
“Write in Water”
“Live in Brass”
“And Thrice Again”
“The Ambitious Ocean”
“Shine in Pearl”
“These Antique Fables”
“Never Shines the Sun”
“In Sea-Salt Tears”
“Strangers in Court”
Rosemary and Rue
A Local Habitation
An Artificial Night
Late Eclipses
“Through This House”
One Salt Sea
Ashes of Honor
“No Sooner Met”
Chimes at Midnight
“Full of Briars”
The Winter Long
A Red-Rose Chain
Once Broken Faith
“Dreams and Slumbers”
The Brightest Fell
“Of Things Unknown”
Night and Silence
“Suffer a Sea-Change”
The Unkindest Tide
“Hope is Swift”
A Killing Frost
“And Deeps Below”
“Sacrifice Your Tears”
“Into the Sea”
“In Safety Rest”
“Upon Your Honor”
“With Sweet Peace”
“Like a Dream”
“Give Sorrow Words”
When Sorrows Come
“And With Reveling”
Be the Serpent
So far, I have not been able to login to do anything like download anything. Yes, there is a certificate issue. I’ll try again tomorrow.
Chrome doesn’t seem to think the website linked above exists.
I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong, but this is frustrating, especially after the initial delay.
Safari gives me a certificate error, but when I go through it to the webpage it just returns a blank screen.
I tried a VPN from the UK (I am in the US) but that doesn’t see mto have helped things.
tried with chrome, got warning, couldn’t get past. didn’t work. Tried with chrome incognito, it at least gave the option to proceed, but then said site didn’t exist. Tried with firefox, got warning, proceed anyway…. blank page. (like, page source is empty). Wheee -_-;
I downloaded everything available earlier. But now I am also seeing a 404 page can’t be found error.
A friend showed me the trick with Firefox. Click on the link, then look in the upper right hand corner. You’ll see a red warning button. Click on the arrow next to it, and choose “download anyway.”
I was able to log in to the Hugo ballot site (but not the main Chengdu site) and download the packet(s) using Edge. I’m not getting any emails from Chengdu announcing any of this, and the emails from the main site (with the login codes) are not getting to me.
Site is back up this morning. Chrome still complaining about it not being secure and certificate invalid.
I’ve now written up a guide to how to get past the security warning, how to find and download the files, and how to get them onto a Kindle. Comments/corrections welcome.
https://www.kith.org/jed/2023/08/18/how-to-download-this-years-hugo-packet/
A joy, “click here to request an eraser capable version from Netgalley” which will then be refused.
My request for The Daughter of Doctor Moreau is still pending. In past years, I’ve never been refused with the Del Rey books which need to be requested from NetGalley. Unless they only let you read it in the NetGalley app, they aren’t necessarily “eraser capable”. Previously they also had ADE epub and Send-to-Kindle.
I’ve already been declined on NetGalley this morning for the Robert Jackson Bennett books found in the series folder. Fingers crossed there’s a different way to access them.
Eraser there should have be ereader, stupid auto correct.
It was Foundryside that was refused, other requests still pending. Pretty sure it’s been out long enough that getting a pirate copy would be trivial, not that I’m planning on trying.
@Nickpheas
Ah, gotcha! That makes more sense.
Well, that’s annoying. Sounds like someone dropped the ball somewhere. I hadn’t tried to request that one because I already own it (but haven’t read it yet).
Is there somewhere to check the status of requested books from NetGalley? I can’t see where my requests are listed. Thanks for any help!
I’m not getting the login token. I’ve checked my spam filter, and it’s not there either. sigh
Now I’m worried I won’t be able to vote in the hugos. The packet would be nice, but it’s the voting that’s important. (I was able to nominate.)
I do hope there will eventually be a Fan Writer packet. I know I can probably assemble it myself piecemeal, but it would be nice if I didn’t have to.
@Lorien
The only place I can see is on the book’s page. “Your request is pending” replaces the request button. You’ll get an email if it changes.
@Laura
Thank you. I’ll keep an eye on my email.
Is anyone else not getting the token email? It acknowledges I’m a member, says “success” when I ask for a token… and then crickets. (It’s not in my spam filter, and if it’s getting blocked upstream I have no way to know or clear it.)
I’d like to offer immense gratitude for the troubleshooting advice people are providing. In particular Jed Hartman’s suggestions combined with A.J.’s shift-click technique. (Chrome wasn’t showing me a “download target” option on the menu.)
Thanks for the info about Chrome not showing you a download option! I’ve now updated that step of my procedure to mention a couple of other approaches—I hadn’t realized that Chrome’s context menu is different on different platforms.
Glad you got it working!