Category Archives: Hugo Awards

Remembering Murray Leinster

Will F. Jenkins, better known by his pseudonym Murray Leintster, was born this day (June 16) in 1896.  He passed away on June 8, 1975, just eight days short of his 79th birthday.

Leinster wrote for a variety of pulp magazines, but his greatest output was in the field of science fiction, beginning with “Atmosphere” in Argosy in 1918.  While he wrote novels, his best work was at shorter lengths.  Some of these stories include “Sidewise in Time”, “First Contact”, “A Logic Named Joe”, and “Exploration Team”.  These stories have become classics in the field, and “Exploration Team” won one of the first Hugo Awards.

I’ve always enjoyed Leinster’s work. As with any prolific author, not all the stories are of equal quality, but when Leinster was good, he was very good.

Later in the summer, when things settle down, i.e., when the second summer session starts and I’m teaching, one of the things I want to do is restart the Pre-Campbell Science Fiction Challenge.  Leinster will be one of the authors I’ll be reading.

Tom Kratman’s Big Boys Don’t Cry

Big Boys Don't CryBig Boys Don’t Cry
Tom Kratman
Castallia House
ebook $2.99

This is another novella that’s on the final ballot for the Hugo Awards this year.  I reviewed one of its competitors recently.

There’s some pretty good competition here.  If you like military science fiction, you”ll like this one.

Maggie is a tank, and she’s been damaged beyond repair.  Her brain is still functional as the technicians are beginning to take her apart for scrap.  Big Boys Don’t Cry gives some of the highlights from her illustrious career, a career that spans centuries if I read the book correctly.  (The memories aren’t in chronological order.)

But something in Maggie’s memory is damaged.  There are certain memories that are partitioned off, memories she isn’t supposed to access.  Continue reading

Clarkesworld Issue 69 is Now Available

Clarkesworld Issue 69
monthly
free online or available by subscription in various ebook formats

Clarkesworld has gotten some high profile attention in the last few years, having won the Hugo for Best Semiprozine in 2010 and 2011.  I’ve had subscription for the past six months or so.  Time constraints have kept me from finishing all of the issues, but based on everything I’ve read so far, it’s been a good investment. 

This magazine provides a good balance of fiction and nonfiction, and the new issue is no exception.  Here’s a closer look at the contents:

Immersion” by Aliette de Bodard is set on a space habitat in which the inhabitants are long lived.  Tourism is a large part of the economy.  The culture on the station is so different from that of Galactic society that people wear immersers, which help them navigate the customs of the other culture.  This is basically the story of two women, one trapped in her immerser and the other longing to escape hers.

An Owomoyela’s “If the Mountain Comes” was my favorite story in the issue.  It’s the tale of a young woman whose father is wealthy due to the fact that he controls the only water supply for miles.  And he’s ruthless about keeping that control, and by extension, control of his neighbors.  Then one day a man shows up from outside who promises to make the local river, currently dry, flow again. 

Last, but certainly not least, is “You Were She Who Abode” by E. Catherine Tobler is the most complex story in the issue, requiring the reader’s full attention.  It’s also the most technically accomplished.  It concerns a woman who is a veteran of a horrible war in which children were combatants.  Due to her injuries, she’s had an implant to help her maintain her memory.  Only the implant isn’t working correctly.

In the nonfiction, we have an essay by Stephen Gaskell, “Energizing Futures:  How SF Fuels Itself“, discussing the various methods of energy production throughout the history of science fiction.  I last reviewed Stephen’s work here.  The interview (“Neither the Billionaire nor the Tramp: Economics in Speculative Fiction) is a round-robin discussion of economics featuring Elizabeth Bear, N. K. Jemisin, Dani Kollin, Brian Francis Slattery, Charlie Stross, and John C. Wright conducted by Jeremy L. C Jones.  There’s lots of good advice for writers in this one.  Daniel Abraham discusses “Assimilation, Multiculturalism, and Me“.  Finally, editor Neil Clarke turns statistical in “Clarkesworld by the Numbers“.

All in all, I thought this was a strong issue.  The fiction was professional quality and just as good as anything in the main publications such as Asimov’s, Analog, or F&SF.  The nonfiction was interesting and thought provoking.  It’s easy to see why Clarkesworld has won the Hugo in its category for the last two years.

Congratulations to the Hugo Award Winners

The Hugos were given out last night at Renovation, the 69th World Science Fiction Convention, in Reno, Nevada.

The winners are:

Best Novel:                      Blackout/All Clear                             Connie Willis

Best Novella:                   The Lifecycle of Software Objects      Ted Chiang

Best Novellette:                “The Emperor of Mars”                        Allen M. Steele

Best Short Story:              “For Want of a Nail”                            Mary Robinette Kowal

Best Related Work            Chicks Dig Time Lords                      Lynne M. Thomas
                                                                                           and Tara O’Shea, eds.

Best Graphic Story           Girl Genius Volume 10:                        Phil and Kaja
                                                                                            Folio, art by Phil Folio

Best Dramatic Presentation , Long Form:                Inception

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form:                Doctor Who:  “The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang”

Best Professional Editor, Long Form:                      Lou Anders

Best Professional Editor, Short Form:                     Sheila Williams

Best Professional Artist:                                         Shaun Tan

Best Semiprozine:                                                  Clarkesworld

Best Fanzine:                                                         The Drink Tank

Best Fan Artist:                                                      Brad W. Foster

Also, the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, which is not a Hugo, went to Lev Grossman

Futures Past and Present/Adventures Fantastic would like to congratulate all the nominees and especially the winners.  A list of winners and all nominees can be found here.