• Music: "It Came Out of the Sky," Creedence Clearwater Revival

Podcasts and the Hugo Awards

The Hugo Awards are special in the world of science fiction because they are made by, determined by, and administered by the fans. Technically speaking, electronic publications have always been eligible for the Hugos. The year 2009, however, brought two new and exciting developments for those of us who support new media: first, the audiobook METAtropolis (by Joseph E. Lake, Jr., Tobias S. Buckell, Elizabeth Bear, John Scalzi, and Karl Schroeder, and edited by John Scalzi) was nominated for a Hugo in the Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form category, a first for a straight-to-audio production; and second, the World Science Fiction Society Business Meeting ratified a constitutional amendment that added the words “or the equivalent in other media” to various Hugo Award category definitions, thereby formally acknowledging what had always been the case de facto, that electronic publications were eligible.

Recently I was thrilled to see this thread in the hugo_recommend community regarding podcast eligibility for the 2010 Hugos -- and, in particular, the case of StarShipSofa: The Audio Science Fiction Magazine. (Go team!) The consensus seems to be that Best Fanzine would be the best category for a podcast: no one is certain, because no podcast has ever received sufficient nominations to make the ballot. Since this discussion in the hugo_recommend community, a growing wave of support for the StarShipSofa nomination has appeared on John Scalzi's blog under "Science Fiction Award Suggestions." So, if you, like me, are a World Science Fiction Society member and you plan on participating Hugo Awards nominations (open now through March 13), now is a fantastic time to help raise the issue of podcast eligibility in the Hugos -- and, if you like, support StarShipSofa in the process!


[On a related personal note, I've also been gratified to see some mention of another project near and dear to my heart, in this case with relation to the Best Related Work category for the 2010 Hugos, namely The Intersection of Fantasy and Native America: From H.P. Lovecraft to Leslie Marmon Silko, which grew out of my keynote address to the Mythopoeic Society a few years ago and which I co-edited with the wonderful David D. Oberhelman. My sincere thanks and lasting gratitude to all who have supported this book!]


"If America or any other nation turns its back on space, it becomes the caveman who ignores the sight of the first spark. It becomes Columbus content to mark time in a Spanish port. It becomes the Wright Brothers never leaving their Ohio bicycle shop. It spits in the face of wonder – and in so doing denies every noble impulse of humanity."
- Troy Senik, "When Man Looked Up"