Like last year, 2016 Hugo Award nomination has been affected by SP/RP slating issues, resulting in the nomination of works and authors (Chuck Tingle is just one, but certainly the most surprising) that would have otherwise not found a space in the finalist list. This was an incentive, if you ever needed one, in engaging and voting for the awards.
The finalists for this year’s Hugo Awards and John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer were announced on Tuesday, April 26, 2016, resulting from 4032 valid nominating ballots (4015 electronic and 17 paper) from the members of Sasquan (Worldcon 2015), MidAmeriCon II (Worldcon 2016), and Worldcon 75, Helsinki 2017.
I have discussed this year’s nominations here, included some of my picks, and here you have the 2016 list of final names. For what concerns the awards, I have still to cast my vote (deadlines is July 31). In some cases, my choice is going to be a difficult one, as in these categories:
BEST NOVEL
- Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie (Orbit)
- The Cinder Spires: The Aeronaut’s Windlass by Jim Butcher (Roc)
- The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin (Orbit)
- Seveneves: A Novel by Neal Stephenson (William Morrow)
- Uprooted by Naomi Novik (Del Rey)
BEST NOVELLA
- Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (Tor.com)
- The Builders by Daniel Polansky (Tor.com)
- Penric’s Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold (Spectrum)
- Perfect State by Brandon Sanderson (Dragonsteel Entertainment)
- Slow Bullets by Alastair Reynolds (Tachyon)
BEST SEMIPROZINE
- Beneath Ceaseless Skies edited by Scott H. Andrews
- Daily Science Fiction edited by Michele-Lee Barasso and Jonathan Laden
- Sci Phi Journal edited by Jason Rennie
- Strange Horizons edited by Catherine Krahe, Julia Rios, A. J. Odasso, Vanessa Rose Phin,Maureen Kincaid Speller, and the Strange Horizons staff
- Uncanny Magazine edited by Lynne M. Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, and Erika Ensign & Steven Schapansky
I haven’t (yet) made up my mind, and I’ll probably wait to finish my reading of the ballot pack.
In other cases, the choice has been easier, like for the Best Novelette. My pick was “And You Shall Know Her by the Trail of Dead” by Brooke Bolander, which you can read here on Lightspeed. I have also selected The Martian by Ridley Scott (Long Dramatic Form), File 770 by Mike Glyer (Best Fanzine) and Tales to Terrify by Stephen Kilpatrick (Best Fancast) straight away.
If you want to do some readings about the nominations and the packet, File 770 has a good selection here. Happy reading!