# 2014 Hugo Awards



## Ophiucha (Apr 19, 2014)

I am not sure what the appropriate forum is for this, so I'll go with this. The list of nominations for the 2014 Hugo Awards is out. It's a bit more controversial a list, with some unpopular names among editors and the _Return of the King_ian nomination for Best Novel (see below), but there are some great authors here as well. Always a good place to look to see what's happening in recent sff, if nothing else. And Mark Oshiro's on the best fan writers list again! Awesome!



> *Best Novel*
> Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie (Orbit US/Orbit UK)
> Neptune’s Brood, Charles Stross (Ace / Orbit UK)
> Parasite, Mira Grant (Orbit US/Orbit UK)
> ...


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## Philip Overby (Apr 19, 2014)

I'm sorry, maybe I'm ignorant, but I could use a break down of what some of these categories even mean. For example:

1. What is a novelette? I'm assuming it's shorter than a novella? I guess I could Google it, but that's no fun. 

2. What is Best Related Work?

3. Also I'm not familiar with any of the fan categories. Does this mean like fan fiction or something that is outside the industry in some way? I know Kameron Hurley's writing (which is awesome), but I'm not sure why she's listed as a fan writer. Does she write fan fiction? 

4. I'm assuming your Return of the Kingian reference is to the Wheel of Time? Did none of the books ever win a Hugo? That's kind of insane to me since you'd think at least one of them would have. 

5. I also don't know a lot of these names. Which makes me happy because that means I can find new, cool authors (or old ones I just haven't heard of) 

6. And another question: which do you think are controversial picks?


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## Ophiucha (Apr 19, 2014)

No problem. 

1. Novelette, as far as I can tell, is a term invented by SFF award ceremonies to split up short stories (5k and less) and novellas (15/20k-50k). Just to get more stories nominated overall, one assumes.

2. Meta text about fantasy/science fiction. So things talking about themes in the genre, reviews, analysis, etc..

3. It tends to mean someone who isn't professionally published, or works for free. As with 'related works', they usually write more meta than actual stories, although I think you can be nominated if you just publish free sff online or in fanzines. I don't know if fanfiction counts, but maybe?

4. Nope. I don't think they were ever even nominated. It's a touch more blatant than RotK, insofar as they nominated _The Wheel of Time_ as a whole as opposed to just _A Memory of Light_.

5. Best part of the awards for me!

6. There are a few here, although I think Vox Day (in the novelette category) is the most controversial one. I won't comment on the specifics, but his Wiki page gives an overview. I know I heard some mumbling about one of the editor nominations earlier on Facebook. And the continued dominance of _Doctor Who_ on the short-form dramatic presentation category is always a heated topic. Not to mention the controversy over the host a month ago, when Jonathan Ross was announced and then quickly pulled back.


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## Telcontar (Apr 19, 2014)

Love that XKCD (Randall Munroe) is up for a Hugo for "Time." That was a fantastic creation. Admittedly I have not seen his competition's offerings, but I still hope he wins.


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## Ophiucha (Apr 19, 2014)

Yes, I love the XKCD 'comics' that are just huge and full of little secrets and odd programming and can just take away an afternoon exploring. _Time_ was a great one. Only other one I've read is _Saga_, which is good but I'd rather see something else win.


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## Feo Takahari (Apr 19, 2014)

Pardon me, I'm still adjusting to the idea that XK-freaking-CD is up for a Hugo. I guess it's in the same medium as previous winners like Digger, but Digger has a lot more in common with, say, Saga than XKCD has in common with either of them. It's like if a brilliant animated short that was made exclusively for Youtube was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.


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