Hugos: What to Expect and Where to Find Reviews
I've bought my supporting membership. My questions have been answered. It is now time to let you all know what to expect out of me when it comes to my voting in the 2012 Hugos and how that affects my reviewing process.
In a word, it won't.
The plan is that when I read something, I'll post a review, same as always. I may not tip my hand in terms of what I'll ultimately vote for in a category, though if you're especially diligent, you can probably guess what will get my vote if you pay attention to my ratings. But I'd like to go ahead and bring attention to the nominees and get some discussion. It doesn't matter if you're voting in the Hugos or not: these discussions are for everyone, and if you come across a short story or novella that you can read for free online, check it out and join in the discussion! The more the merrier!
My intent, at least this early in the game, is to at least read and vote in all of the fiction categories. The other categories will depend on what's available in the electronic voting packet, as well as what I can get my hands on online (for example, I'm really not sure how to go about watching the nominated Doctor Who episodes: hulu does not have them). For everything that I review, you will find a link beside the nomination, where you can join in the discussion at either Live Journal or Word Press. There will be no difference to the reviews. There may be a difference in discussion, but that's to be expected when the same review is in two different blogs.
I intend to be as fair as possible in the categories that I do vote in, even if I've previously stated a bias for something in particular to win. Which means that in an effort to be fair, I may not vote for what I was rooting for originally. Them's the breaks. As of today's date, there are already some reviews available for your perusal, thanks to my incidentally reading this stuff long before the Hugo nominees were ever announced.
For the categories that I vote in but that don't really require an individual review per nominee (such as Best Fan Writer), I may do a single post discussing all of them. You'll see those links next to the category itself.
If you're following me via Live Journal, and you want to see each and every single Hugo-related post that pops up, keep this tag on your radar: blog: award discussion. You'll get everything from reviews to general discussion relating to the Hugos and the opinions I'll inevitably form during the course of the voting process.
Also, one disclaimer: it's highly unlikely I will get around to reading A Dance of Dragons. I haven't even read A Feast of Crows yet, and I don't want to make this summer all about Martin, all the time, because I won't get any other reading done, and I'll be so sick of his work that it probably wouldn't get a fair vote anyway. So don't be surprised if the voting deadline comes and goes and you still don't see a review for Martin. I doubt I'll be that productive.
If you have any questions about any of the above or anything related to my voting in the Hugos, please comment to this post and I'll answer the best I can. Also, if you're a veteran when it comes to voting in the Hugos or jump-starting discussions and if you have any advice, feel free to give me all the pointers you can think of!
I'll be looking forward to any and all discussion, and while I don't have a set calendar of when I'm going to read what (votes are due July 31st, so there is that), you're welcome to follow along. Please note that if you are reading Jo Walton's Among Others for the Theme Park Book Club, the discussion date has been moved back a week to Monday, July 23rd. This gives anyone who wants to read the book who might happen to vote an additional week to read it in case my review inspires them to do so (the chances of that are unlikely, but I don't want to be juggling the book club discussion the day before my votes are due).
Best Novel
• Among Others by Jo Walton ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• A Dance With Dragons by George R. R. Martin
• Deadline by Mira Grant ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Embassytown by China Miéville ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Novella
• Countdown by Mira Grant ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Ice Owl” by Carolyn Ives Gilman ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Kiss Me Twice” by Mary Robinette Kowal ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Man Who Bridged the Mist” by Kij Johnson ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Man Who Ended History: A Documentary” by Ken Liu ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Silently and Very Fast by Catherynne M. Valente ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Novelette
• “The Copenhagen Interpretation” by Paul Cornell ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Fields of Gold” by Rachel Swirsky ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Ray of Light” by Brad R. Torgersen ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Six Months, Three Days” by Charlie Jane Anders ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “What We Found” by Geoff Ryman ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Short Story
• “The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees” by E. Lily Yu ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Homecoming” by Mike Resnick ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Movement” by Nancy Fulda ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Paper Menagerie” by Ken Liu ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Shadow War of the Night Dragons: Book One: The Dead City: Prologue” by John Scalzi ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Related Work
• The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Third Edition edited by John Clute, David Langford, Peter Nicholls, and Graham Sleight
• Jar Jar Binks Must Die… and Other Observations about Science Fiction Movies by Daniel M. Kimmel
• The Steampunk Bible: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Imaginary Airships, Corsets and Goggles, Mad Scientists, and Strange Literature by Jeff VanderMeer and S. J. Chambers
• Wicked Girls by Seanan McGuire
• Writing Excuses, Season 6 by Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Tayler, Mary Robinette Kowal, and Jordan Sanderson
Best Graphic Story
• Digger by Ursula Vernon
• Fables Vol 15: Rose Red by Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham
• Locke & Key Volume 4, Keys to the Kingdom written by Joe Hill, illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez
• Schlock Mercenary: Force Multiplication written and illustrated by Howard Tayler, colors by Travis Walton
• The Unwritten (Volume 4): Leviathan created by Mike Carey and Peter Gross. Written by Mike Carey, illustrated by Peter Gross
Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form
• Captain America: The First Avenger
• Game of Thrones (Season 1) Live Journal
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
• Hugo
• Source Code
Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form
• “The Doctor’s Wife” (Doctor Who)
• “The Drink Tank’s Hugo Acceptance Speech”
• “The Girl Who Waited” (Doctor Who)
• “A Good Man Goes to War” (Doctor Who)
• “Remedial Chaos Theory” (Community) ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Editor, Short Form
• John Joseph Adams
• Neil Clarke
• Stanley Schmidt
• Jonathan Strahan
• Sheila Williams
Best Editor, Long Form
• Lou Anders
• Liz Gorinsky
• Anne Lesley Groell
• Patrick Nielsen Hayden
• Betsy Wollheim
Best Professional Artist
• Dan dos Santos
• Bob Eggleton
• Michael Komarck
• Stephan Martiniere
• John Picacio
Best Semiprozine
• Apex Magazine edited by Catherynne M. Valente, Lynne M. Thomas, and Jason Sizemore
• Interzone edited by Andy Cox
• Lightspeed edited by John Joseph Adams
• Locus edited by Liza Groen Trombi, Kirsten Gong-Wong, et al.
• New York Review of Science Fiction edited by David G. Hartwell, Kevin J. Maroney, Kris Dikeman, and Avram Grumer
Best Fanzine
• Banana Wings edited by Claire Brialey and Mark Plummer
• The Drink Tank edited by James Bacon and Christopher J Garcia
• File 770 edited by Mike Glyer
• Journey Planet edited by James Bacon, Christopher J Garcia, et al.
• SF Signal edited by John DeNardo
Best Fan Writer
• James Bacon
• Claire Brialey
• Christopher J Garcia
• Jim C. Hines
• Steven H. Silver
Best Fan Artist
• Brad W. Foster
• Randall Munroe
• Spring Schoenhuth
• Maurine Starkey
• Steve Stiles
• Taral Wayne
Best Fancast
• The Coode Street Podcast, Jonathan Strahan & Gary K. Wolfe
• Galactic Suburbia Podcast, Alisa Krasnostein, Alex Pierce, and Tansy Rayner Roberts (presenters) and Andrew Finch (producer)
• SF Signal Podcast, John DeNardo and JP Frantz, produced by Patrick Hester
• SF Squeecast, Lynne M. Thomas, Seanan McGuire, Paul Cornell, Elizabeth Bear, and Catherynne M. Valente
• StarShipSofa, Tony C. Smith
John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer
• Mur Lafferty
• Stina Leicht ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Karen Lord ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Brad R. Torgersen
• E. Lily Yu
In a word, it won't.
The plan is that when I read something, I'll post a review, same as always. I may not tip my hand in terms of what I'll ultimately vote for in a category, though if you're especially diligent, you can probably guess what will get my vote if you pay attention to my ratings. But I'd like to go ahead and bring attention to the nominees and get some discussion. It doesn't matter if you're voting in the Hugos or not: these discussions are for everyone, and if you come across a short story or novella that you can read for free online, check it out and join in the discussion! The more the merrier!
My intent, at least this early in the game, is to at least read and vote in all of the fiction categories. The other categories will depend on what's available in the electronic voting packet, as well as what I can get my hands on online (for example, I'm really not sure how to go about watching the nominated Doctor Who episodes: hulu does not have them). For everything that I review, you will find a link beside the nomination, where you can join in the discussion at either Live Journal or Word Press. There will be no difference to the reviews. There may be a difference in discussion, but that's to be expected when the same review is in two different blogs.
I intend to be as fair as possible in the categories that I do vote in, even if I've previously stated a bias for something in particular to win. Which means that in an effort to be fair, I may not vote for what I was rooting for originally. Them's the breaks. As of today's date, there are already some reviews available for your perusal, thanks to my incidentally reading this stuff long before the Hugo nominees were ever announced.
For the categories that I vote in but that don't really require an individual review per nominee (such as Best Fan Writer), I may do a single post discussing all of them. You'll see those links next to the category itself.
If you're following me via Live Journal, and you want to see each and every single Hugo-related post that pops up, keep this tag on your radar: blog: award discussion. You'll get everything from reviews to general discussion relating to the Hugos and the opinions I'll inevitably form during the course of the voting process.
Also, one disclaimer: it's highly unlikely I will get around to reading A Dance of Dragons. I haven't even read A Feast of Crows yet, and I don't want to make this summer all about Martin, all the time, because I won't get any other reading done, and I'll be so sick of his work that it probably wouldn't get a fair vote anyway. So don't be surprised if the voting deadline comes and goes and you still don't see a review for Martin. I doubt I'll be that productive.
If you have any questions about any of the above or anything related to my voting in the Hugos, please comment to this post and I'll answer the best I can. Also, if you're a veteran when it comes to voting in the Hugos or jump-starting discussions and if you have any advice, feel free to give me all the pointers you can think of!
I'll be looking forward to any and all discussion, and while I don't have a set calendar of when I'm going to read what (votes are due July 31st, so there is that), you're welcome to follow along. Please note that if you are reading Jo Walton's Among Others for the Theme Park Book Club, the discussion date has been moved back a week to Monday, July 23rd. This gives anyone who wants to read the book who might happen to vote an additional week to read it in case my review inspires them to do so (the chances of that are unlikely, but I don't want to be juggling the book club discussion the day before my votes are due).
Best Novel
• Among Others by Jo Walton ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• A Dance With Dragons by George R. R. Martin
• Deadline by Mira Grant ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Embassytown by China Miéville ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Novella
• Countdown by Mira Grant ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Ice Owl” by Carolyn Ives Gilman ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Kiss Me Twice” by Mary Robinette Kowal ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Man Who Bridged the Mist” by Kij Johnson ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Man Who Ended History: A Documentary” by Ken Liu ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Silently and Very Fast by Catherynne M. Valente ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Novelette
• “The Copenhagen Interpretation” by Paul Cornell ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Fields of Gold” by Rachel Swirsky ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Ray of Light” by Brad R. Torgersen ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Six Months, Three Days” by Charlie Jane Anders ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “What We Found” by Geoff Ryman ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Short Story
• “The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees” by E. Lily Yu ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Homecoming” by Mike Resnick ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Movement” by Nancy Fulda ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “The Paper Menagerie” by Ken Liu ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• “Shadow War of the Night Dragons: Book One: The Dead City: Prologue” by John Scalzi ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Related Work
• The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Third Edition edited by John Clute, David Langford, Peter Nicholls, and Graham Sleight
• Jar Jar Binks Must Die… and Other Observations about Science Fiction Movies by Daniel M. Kimmel
• The Steampunk Bible: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Imaginary Airships, Corsets and Goggles, Mad Scientists, and Strange Literature by Jeff VanderMeer and S. J. Chambers
• Wicked Girls by Seanan McGuire
• Writing Excuses, Season 6 by Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Tayler, Mary Robinette Kowal, and Jordan Sanderson
Best Graphic Story
• Digger by Ursula Vernon
• Fables Vol 15: Rose Red by Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham
• Locke & Key Volume 4, Keys to the Kingdom written by Joe Hill, illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez
• Schlock Mercenary: Force Multiplication written and illustrated by Howard Tayler, colors by Travis Walton
• The Unwritten (Volume 4): Leviathan created by Mike Carey and Peter Gross. Written by Mike Carey, illustrated by Peter Gross
Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form
• Captain America: The First Avenger
• Game of Thrones (Season 1) Live Journal
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
• Hugo
• Source Code
Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form
• “The Doctor’s Wife” (Doctor Who)
• “The Drink Tank’s Hugo Acceptance Speech”
• “The Girl Who Waited” (Doctor Who)
• “A Good Man Goes to War” (Doctor Who)
• “Remedial Chaos Theory” (Community) ( Live Journal || Word Press)
Best Editor, Short Form
• John Joseph Adams
• Neil Clarke
• Stanley Schmidt
• Jonathan Strahan
• Sheila Williams
Best Editor, Long Form
• Lou Anders
• Liz Gorinsky
• Anne Lesley Groell
• Patrick Nielsen Hayden
• Betsy Wollheim
Best Professional Artist
• Dan dos Santos
• Bob Eggleton
• Michael Komarck
• Stephan Martiniere
• John Picacio
Best Semiprozine
• Apex Magazine edited by Catherynne M. Valente, Lynne M. Thomas, and Jason Sizemore
• Interzone edited by Andy Cox
• Lightspeed edited by John Joseph Adams
• Locus edited by Liza Groen Trombi, Kirsten Gong-Wong, et al.
• New York Review of Science Fiction edited by David G. Hartwell, Kevin J. Maroney, Kris Dikeman, and Avram Grumer
Best Fanzine
• Banana Wings edited by Claire Brialey and Mark Plummer
• The Drink Tank edited by James Bacon and Christopher J Garcia
• File 770 edited by Mike Glyer
• Journey Planet edited by James Bacon, Christopher J Garcia, et al.
• SF Signal edited by John DeNardo
Best Fan Writer
• James Bacon
• Claire Brialey
• Christopher J Garcia
• Jim C. Hines
• Steven H. Silver
Best Fan Artist
• Brad W. Foster
• Randall Munroe
• Spring Schoenhuth
• Maurine Starkey
• Steve Stiles
• Taral Wayne
Best Fancast
• The Coode Street Podcast, Jonathan Strahan & Gary K. Wolfe
• Galactic Suburbia Podcast, Alisa Krasnostein, Alex Pierce, and Tansy Rayner Roberts (presenters) and Andrew Finch (producer)
• SF Signal Podcast, John DeNardo and JP Frantz, produced by Patrick Hester
• SF Squeecast, Lynne M. Thomas, Seanan McGuire, Paul Cornell, Elizabeth Bear, and Catherynne M. Valente
• StarShipSofa, Tony C. Smith
John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer
• Mur Lafferty
• Stina Leicht ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Karen Lord ( Live Journal || Word Press)
• Brad R. Torgersen
• E. Lily Yu