Archive for the ‘Nebula Awards’ Category

Jennell Jaquays Named the 2024 SFWA Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award Recipient

 

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association is pleased to announce that the 2024 Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award will be presented posthumously to Jennell Jaquays at the 59th Annual SFWA Nebula Awards® ceremony on June 8, 2024.

The Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award is given by SFWA for significant contributions to the science fiction, fantasy, and related genres community. The award was created in 2008, with Wilhelm named as one of the three original recipients, and was renamed in her honor in 2016. Ms. Jaquays joins the ranks of the latest Solstice Award winners, including Cerece Rennie Murphy, Greg Bear, Petra Mayer, Arley Sorg, Troy L. Wiggins, Ben Bova, and Rachel Caine.

Jennell Jaquays

A multi-award winning and honored artist, game designer, editor, and activist, Jennell Jaquays left an indelible mark on the gaming industry and SFF community for nearly fifty years. Ms. Jaquays’ career began in college, when she and her friends created “The Dungeoneer,” one of the first licensed Dungeons and Dragons fanzines.

Now, from magazines to books, Ms. Jaquays’ art can be seen on multiple covers and throughout the pages of the many different forms and iterations of Dungeons and Dragons’ media. Having designed two modules of her own, “Dark Tower” and “The Caverns of Thracia,”  her writing was celebrated by players for eschewing traditional and linear game mechanics and are not only playable today–but continue to inspire game designers and GMs.

Also known for her game industry work at companies such as Coleco, TSR, and id Software, Ms. Jaquays designed and contributed to multiple projects such as Coleco Vision, certain levels on the Quake II and III video games, arcade conversions of Pac-Man and Donkey-Kong, Halo Wars, and created an expansion pack in Age of Empires III.

Ms. Jaquays was nominated for multiple H.G. Wells Awards for her work and creation of the “Dark Tower” D&D module and for her design and illustrations on“Griffin Mountain.” Her work with Coleco’s WarGames won her the 1984 Summer C.E.S. original software award. Additionally, Castle Greyhawk won an Origins Gamer’s Choice Award for “Best Role-Playing Adventure,” and in 2017, the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts & Design inducted Ms. Jaquays into their hall of fame.

Inspired by her own journey, Ms. Jaquays also became a recognized transgender activist, spending time working as the creative director of the Transgender Human Rights Institute.

“A beacon of hope and inspiration, Jennell Jaquays worked tirelessly in the spirit of community while gifting us with her art, her games, and her stories for almost fifty years,” said SFWA Director-at-Large, Monica Valentinelli. “The Board is honored to commemorate Jennell Jaquays and her indelible legacy as an artist, writer, and game designer in the video game and tabletop roleplaying industries.”

Accepting on behalf of Ms. Jaquays at the 59th Annual Nebula Awards is her wife, Rebecca Heineman.

March 14: Nebula Finalist Announcement, Early Bird Rate Ending, & Scholarship Application Deadline

 

Finalist Announcement

Please help us celebrate the announcement of our 2023 Nebula Award finalists (to be presented this year in Pasadena) with a presentation beginning on our SFWA Youtube channel, tomorrow, March 14, starting at 5PM PT.

Once again, we’ll be calling upon a talented group of SAG-AFTRA narrators to take us through an evening filled with a variety of outstanding speculative fiction works.

It’s sure to be a night to remember! We hope you’ll join us!

Early Bird Rate Expiring 

Tickets are selling fast to the SFWA Nebula Conference, which is why we’re encouraging those of you who are on the fence about attending to register now. The early bird registration deadline is tomorrow.

Register Here

Join us to engage in professional development and foster community among SFF aspiring and industry professionals. And of course, we’ll celebrate our Nebula Award finalists and honorees throughout the weekend, but most especially at the Nebula Award ceremony. That includes recognizing the inspiring work of our newest Grand Master, Susan Cooper.

In-person registration includes all online access. With every conference ticket, you can watch and listen to all recorded panels and presentations that took place over the weekend. If you or someone you know needs a scholarship to participate in the conference, please keep reading!

Scholarship Deadline

SFWA will once again be offering scholarships for members of under-served communities to attend the Nebula conference! The 2024 Nebula Conference will take place June 6-9 in Pasadena, CA and online. If you or someone you know may benefit from these scholarships, please apply here or share this link:

https://airtable.com/appqxO86fh6JpPBNR/shrjMcYbZyuTxhwVH

Scholarship applications must be completed on this form by March 14th, 2024. The scholarship recipients will be selected from the applicant pool by lottery. Applicants may be considered for more than one scholarship if they identify with more than one of the following groups.

Here are the categories of scholarships we’re offering and the number of online conference scholarships available for each:

  • Scholarship for Black and/or Indigenous Creators: This scholarship is open to Black and/or Indigenous creators in the United States and abroad. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarship for AAPI Creators: This scholarship is available to Asian creators, Asian American creators, and creators from the Pacific Islands. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarships for Hispanic/Latinx Creators: This scholarship is available to creators with backgrounds in Spanish-speaking and/or Latin American cultures. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarship for Writers Based Outside of the U.S.: This scholarship is available to creators who live outside the United States. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarship for members of the LGBTQIA+ Community: This scholarship is available to creators who identify as LGBTQIA+. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarship for creators with disabilities: This scholarship is available to creators who identify as having a disability. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarship for creators who face financial barriers: This scholarship is available to creators whose financial situations may otherwise prevent them from participating. (quantity: 15 online scholarships)
  • Scholarship for in-person registration are available in limited quantities for creators who identify with one of our online scholarship groups. This scholarship does not include funds for travel, lodging or other related expenses to attend the conference, only for registration.

Our support of underserved communities isn’t possible without your help. If you are able, please consider making a donation at sfwa.org/donate to help us fund additional scholarships in the future.

We hope to see you at the Nebulas!

The SFWA Events Team

Tanith Lee Announced as 2024 SFWA Infinity Award Recipient

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) is proud to announce the recipient of the 2024 SFWA Infinity Award. In the second presentation of this honor, the organization would like to recognize the works and career of Tanith Lee (1947–2015) at the 59th Annual Nebula Awards® Ceremony on June 8.

 

The SFWA Board voted to create the Infinity Award to posthumously honor acclaimed creators who passed away before they could be considered for a Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award. This new award aims to recognize that even though those celebrated worldbuilders, storytellers, and weavers of words are no longer with us, their legacies will continue to inspire.

SFWA President Jeffe Kennedy remarked, “Tanith Lee was writing combinations of science fiction, fantasy, romance, horror, queerness, and sex long before the current trends. She was a true trailblazer in multiple cross-genres and influenced so many of today’s authors. It’s a sorrow to me that she passed before we could celebrate her as she should have been, but a bittersweet joy to at least be able to give her this honor today.”

Photo: © Daughter of the Night

An aspiring writer from the age of nine, Lee’s first professional sale was “Eustace,” a ninety word vignette which appeared in The Ninth Pan Book Of Horror Stories (1968), edited by Herbert van Thal.

While working as an assistant librarian, Lee wrote a children’s story which was accepted for publication. A number of additional stories were also purchased, but none of them were ever published, due to a slump in the publishing firm’s sales. In 1971, Macmillan published The Dragon Hoard, a children’s novel, followed by Animal Castle, a children’s picture book, and Princess Hynchatti & Some Other Surprises, a short story collection (both 1972).

DAW published The Birthgrave in 1975, beginning a relationship that lasted until 1989 and saw the publication of 28 books altogether. Following the publication of her second and third books from DAW, Don’t Bite The Sun and The Storm Lord (both 1976), Lee quit her day job to become a full-time freelance writer.

Tanith Lee has won or been nominated for a variety of awards, including the World Fantasy Award, the August Derleth Award and the Nebula. She has appeared as Guest of Honour at a number of science fiction conventions, including Boskone XVIII in Boston in 1981, and the 1984 World Fantasy Convention in Ottawa.

Rather than a physical award, SFWA will make a donation to a cause that an Infinity Award honoree supported or that their loved ones request. This year, it has been requested by the family that the donation be split between two charitable causes, Pasadena Humane and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. 

SFWA Announces the Winners of the 58th Annual Nebula Awards

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 58th Annual Nebula Awards®. These awards are given to the writers of the most outstanding speculative fiction works released in 2022, as voted on by Full, Associate, and Senior SFWA members.

The awards were presented at the live broadcast of the 58th Annual Nebula Awards Ceremony, hosted by Toastmaster Cheryl Platz.

The winners are as follows:

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR NOVEL

Babel, R.F. Kuang (Harper Voyager US; Harper Voyager UK)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR NOVELLA

Even Though I Knew the End, C.L. Polk (Tordotcom)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR NOVELETTE

“If You Find Yourself Speaking to God, Address God with the Informal You”, John Chu (Uncanny 7–8/22)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR SHORT STORY

“Rabbit Test”, Samantha Mills (Uncanny 11–12/22)

 

THE ANDRE NORTON NEBULA AWARD FOR MIDDLE GRADE AND YOUNG ADULT FICTION

Ruby Finley vs. the Interstellar Invasion, K. Tempest Bradford (Farrar, Straus, Giroux)

 

THE RAY BRADBURY NEBULA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING DRAMATIC PRESENTATION

Everything Everywhere All at Once, Dan Kwan, Daniel Scheinert (A24, AGBO, IAC Films)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR GAME WRITING

Elden Ring, Hidetaka Miyazaki, George R.R. Martin (FromSoftware, Bandai Namco)

 

Additional awards and honors presented:

 

THE SFWA DAMON KNIGHT MEMORIAL GRAND MASTER AWARD

Robin McKinley

 

THE INFINITY AWARD

Octavia E. Butler (posthumous)

 

THE KATE WILHELM SOLSTICE AWARD

Cerece Rennie Murphy

Greg Bear (posthumous)

 

THE KEVIN J. O’DONNELL, JR. SERVICE TO SFWA AWARD

Mishell Baker

 

Award presenters joined in-person and virtually from across the galaxy, including past Nebula Award winners, SFWA Board members, and other notable members of the science fiction and fantasy (SFF) industry: Jeffe Kennedy, Matthew Mercer, Gay Haldeman, Chinaka Hodge, Christine Taylor-Butler, Mur Lafferty, Michael Capobianco, Aydrea Walden, José Pablo Iriarte, Leigh Bardugo, and Anthony Rapp.

The ceremony can be viewed at SFWA’s YouTube.

SFWA Names the 58th Nebula Award Finalists

March 7, 2023 – The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) is pleased to announce the finalists for the 58th Annual Nebula Awards®! Our congratulations go out to each and every finalist for the recognition of their excellent works published in 2022. 

The awards will be presented in a virtual ceremony on Sunday, May 14, 2023, that will stream live as it is held in-person in Anaheim, CA, as part of the 2023 Nebula Conference Online. Winners in each category will be determined by the vote of Full, Associate, and Senior members of SFWA.

Here is the complete list of finalists:

 

Nebula Award for Novel

Legends & Lattes, Travis Baldree (Cryptid; Tor)

Spear, Nicola Griffith (Tordotcom)

Nettle and Bone, T. Kingfisher (Tor; Titan UK)

Babel, R.F. Kuang (Harper Voyager US; Harper Voyager UK)

Nona the Ninth, Tamsyn Muir (Tordotcom)

The Mountain in the Sea, Ray Nayler (MCD; Weidenfeld & Nicolson)

 

Nebula Award for Novella

A Prayer for the Crown-Shy, Becky Chambers (Tordotcom)

“Bishop’s Opening“, R.S.A. Garcia (Clarkesworld 1/22)

I Never Liked You Anyway, Jordan Kurella (Vernacular)

Even Though I Knew the End, C.L. Polk (Tordotcom)

High Times in the Low Parliament, Kelly Robson (Tordotcom)

 

Nebula Award for Novelette

“If You Find Yourself Speaking to God, Address God with the Informal You“, John Chu (Uncanny 7–8/22)

“Two Hands, Wrapped in Gold“, S.B. Divya (Uncanny 5–6/22)

“Murder by Pixel: Crime and Responsibility in the Digital Darkness“, S.L. Huang (Clarkesworld 12/22)

“A Dream of Electric Mothers“, Wole Talabi (Africa Risen)

“The Prince of Salt and the Ocean’s Bargain“, Natalia Theodoridou (Uncanny 9/22)

“We Built This City“, Marie Vibbert (Clarkesworld 6/22)

 

Nebula Award for Short Story

“Destiny Delayed“, Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki (Asimov’s 5–6/22)

“Give Me English“, Ai Jiang (F&SF 5–6/22)

“Rabbit Test“, Samantha Mills (Uncanny 11–12/22)

“Douen“, Suzan Palumbo (The Dark 3/22)

“Dick Pig“, Ian Muneshwar (Nightmare 1/22)

“D.I.Y“, John Wiswell (Tor.com 8/24/22)

 

Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction

Ruby Finley vs. the Interstellar Invasion, K. Tempest Bradford (Farrar, Straus, Giroux)

The Scratch Daughters, H. A. Clarke (Erewhon)

The Mirrorwood, Deva Fagan (Atheneum)

The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester, Maya MacGregor (Astra Young Readers)

Every Bird a Prince, Jenn Reese (Henry Holt)

 

Ray Bradbury Nebula Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation

Andor: “One Way Out”, Beau Willimon, Tony Gilroy (Lucasfilm, Disney+)

Everything Everywhere All at Once, Dan Kwan, Daniel Scheinert (A24, AGBO, IAC Films)

Nope, Jordan Peele (Universal Pictures)

Our Flag Means Death, David Jenkins, Eliza Jiménez Cossio, Zadry Ferrer-Geddes, William Meny, Maddie Dai, Alyssa Lane, John Mahone, Simone Nathan, Natalie Torres, Zackery Alexzander Stephens, Alex J. Sherman, Jes Tom, Adam Stein, Yvonne Zima (Dive, HBO Max)

The Sandman: Season 1, Neil Gaiman, Lauren Bello, Vanessa Benton, Mike Dringenberg, Sam Kieth, Catherine Smyth-McMullen, Heather Bellson, Jim Campolongo, Jay Franklin, Austin Guzman, Alexander Newman-Wise, Ameni Rozsa, David Goyer, Allan Heinberg (DC Entertainment, Netflix)

Severance, Dan Erickson, Chris Black, Andrew Colville, Amanda Overton, Anna Ouyang Moench, Helen Leigh, Kari Drake, and Mark Friedman. (Endeavor Content, Red Hour Films, Apple TV+)

 

Nebula Award for Game Writing

Elden Ring, Hidetaka Miyazaki, George R.R. Martin (FromSoftware, Bandai Namco)

Horizon Forbidden West, Ben McCaw, John Gonzalez, Annie Kitain, Ariadna Martinez, Nick van Someren Brand, Andrew Walsh, Adam Dolin, Anne Toole, Arjan Terpstra, Ben Schroder, Dee Warrick, Giles Armstrong (Guerrilla Games, Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Journeys through the Radiant Citadel, Ajit A. George, F. Wesley Schneider, Justice Ramin Arman, Dominique Dickey, Basheer Ghouse, Alastor Guzman, D. Fox Harrell, T.K. Johnson, Felice Tzehuei Kuan, Surena Marie, Mimi Mondal, Mario Ortegón, Miyuki Jane Pinckard, Pam Punzalan, Erin Roberts, Stephanie Yoon, Terry H. Romero (Wizards of the Coast: Dungeons & Dragons 5th Ed.)

Pentiment, Kate Dollarhyde, Zoe Franznick, Märten Rattasepp, Josh Sawyer (Obsidian Entertainment, Xbox Game Studios)

Stray, Steven Lerner, Vivien Mermet-Guyenet, Colas Koola (BlueTwelve Studio, Annapurna Interactive)

Vampire: The Masquerade – Sins of the Sires, Natalia Theodoridou (Choice of Games, Paradox Interactive)

 

We look forward to celebrating all the finalists with aspiring and professional creators in the science fiction and fantasy genres at the 2023 Nebula Conference, May 12–14, 2023.

Questions about the awards or the upcoming conference may be directed to the SFWA Events Team at events@sfwa.org.

2023 Kate Wilhelm Solstice Awards Go to Cerece Rennie Murphy and Greg Bear

We are pleased to announce that the 2023 Kate Wilhelm Solstice Awards will be presented to Cerece Rennie Murphy and posthumously, to Greg Bear at the 58th Annual SFWA Nebula Awards® ceremony in May. 

The Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award is given by SFWA for significant contributions to the science fiction, fantasy, and related genres community. The award was created in 2008, with Wilhelm named as one of the three original recipients, and was renamed in her honor in 2016. Murphy and Bear join the ranks of distinguished previous Solstice Award winners, including Petra Mayer, Carl Sagan, Octavia Butler, and Gardner Dozois.

Cerece Rennie Murphy

Photography by Imagine Photography

An author of speculative fiction novels, short stories, and children’s books, Cerece Rennie Murphy founded the webzine and newsletter Nazaru in 2016 to share her love for and showcase the best in indie science fiction and fantasy books, comics, and culture. In response to the disproportionate effects of COVID-19 on BIPOC creators, she launched Virtuous Con in 2021. The sci-fi and comic culture convention brings fans together with authors, artists, comic book creators, and craftsmen in a virtual and “virtuous circle of mutual respect, admiration, genuine caring, and generosity,” as the website describes. Recognizing that cost can be a barrier, Murphy has kept the fees affordable through the use of corporate and private sponsorships.

Murphy’s platform has expanded beyond its initial scope to include summer workshops on craft and has set the stage for bold new voices to emerge in art, media, and print. She has used her fifteen years of experience in program development, management, and fundraising in the community and international development arenas to make a difference and offer something new and valuable to the SF community.

Christine Taylor-Butler, SFWA Director-At-Large, remarks, “Cerece Rennie Murphy’s work in the community showcases how a single individual can expand opportunities for inclusivity in science fiction. The science fiction community continues to reap the benefits from her efforts.”

Greg Bear

Photography by Bill Wadman

The literary achievements of Greg Bear (1951–2022), including over 50 books and multiple Nebula Awards and nominations, constitute a significant contribution to the science fiction and fantasy fields on their own. But Bear also spent decades building up the SFF community by volunteering his time and efforts to many different projects that left a mark. Those include his terms as vice president and president of SFWA, his time spent editing the SFWA Forum and the 2015 SFWA Nebula Showcase, his service on the board of advisors for the Museum of Science Fiction, and being part of the founding group of the Golden State Comic Book Convention, the predecessor to what is now known as the San Diego Comic-Con International.

Our November 2022 In Memoriam in honor of Bear attests to the lasting influence of his personal relationships with writers as well. In it, several SFWA past presidents comment on how he positively affected their lives and work.

SFWA President Jeffe Kennedy offered the following remarks on this year’s recipients: “Congratulations to Cerece Rennie Murphy on her extraordinary contributions to the SFF community. We look forward to seeing what she’ll do next. It’s bittersweet to honor Greg Bear for the legacy of a lifetime, knowing how greatly he’ll be missed.”

The 58th Annual Nebula Awards Ceremony will stream live to the public on SFWA’s YouTube and Facebook channels in May. The ceremony will be held during the 2023 Nebula Conference, taking place online and in-person in Anaheim, CA. Registration for the annual professional development conference for aspiring and established professionals of the speculative fiction industry can be purchased here.

Mishell Baker to Receive 2023 Kevin O’Donnell, Jr. Service to SFWA Award

We are pleased to announce that the 2023 Kevin O’Donnell, Jr. Service to SFWA Award will be presented to Mishell Baker at the 58th Annual SFWA Nebula Awards® for her outstanding work on behalf of the organization.

The Service to SFWA Award recognizes a volunteer of SFWA who best exemplifies the ideal of service to their fellow members. In 2012, the award was renamed in honor of author Kevin O’Donnell, Jr. who dedicated 20+ years of volunteer service to the organization.
Mishell Baker's headshot

Mishell Baker

Mishell Baker has served as the primary contact for SFWA’s Estate Program since 2016. She has liaised with publishers interested in reprinting works by science fiction and fantasy authors who are no longer with us, and acted as an intermediary for individual heirs who wish to keep their contact information confidential. Baker has a well-earned reputation for handling these communications with consistency and sensitivity, providing help in sometimes difficult and confusing situations.

Michael Capobianco, co-chair of the SFWA Estates-Legacy Committee and former SFWA president, remarked, “Mishell has been the steadfast, behind-the-scenes heart and soul of the Estates Project for going on seven years and I can’t think of anyone who deserves this volunteer service award more.”

SFWA’s Estate Program was created in 2007 by Bud Webster, the 2011 recipient of this same award. The program promotes and preserves the work of writers who helped build the science fiction and fantasy genres. Today, the SFWA Estates-Legacy Committee, among other duties, oversees the Estates database to facilitate legitimate paid publication of reprinted works, enabling editors, publishers, and agents to seek reprint permissions, make payments to estates and heirs, and double-check publication rights.

For her years of dedication and excellence in undertaking this essential volunteer work for the organization and the SFF community, SFWA is proud to offer the 2023 Kevin O’Donnell, Jr. Service to SFWA Award to Mishell Baker. She will join many distinguished recipients of the award, including Connie Willis, Victoria Strauss, Julia Rios, Bud Sparhawk, Lee Martindale, Vonda McIntyre, and Jim Fiscus.
Promo graphic for the 2023 Nebula Conference. This year's star deity has hands outstretched in a spell, casting petals that appear to become meteorites.

The award will be presented at the 58th Nebula Awards® Ceremony, taking place on May 14, 2023 in Anaheim, CA, and online. The ceremony is part of the 2023 Nebula Conference. Registrations for the conference and tickets for the ceremony banquet are available here.

Please join us in congratulating Mishell for receiving this award!

SFWA Announces the Winners of the 57th Annual Nebula Awards®

May 21, 2022 – The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. (SFWA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 57th Annual Nebula Awards®. These awards are given to the writers of the most outstanding speculative fiction works released in 2021, as voted on by Full, Associate, and Senior SFWA members. The awards were presented at the live broadcast of the 57th Annual Nebula Awards Ceremony, hosted by Toastmasters Connie Willis and Neil Gaiman.

The winners are as follows:

NEBULA AWARD FOR NOVEL

A Master of Djinn, P. Djèlí Clark (Tordotcom; Orbit UK)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR NOVELLA

And What Can We Offer You Tonight, Premee Mohamed (Neon Hemlock)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR NOVELETTE

“O2 Arena”, Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki (Galaxy’s Edge 11/21)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR SHORT STORY

“Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather”, Sarah Pinsker (Uncanny 3–4/21)

 

THE ANDRE NORTON NEBULA AWARD FOR MIDDLE GRADE AND YOUNG ADULT FICTION

A Snake Falls to Earth, Darcie Little Badger (Levine Querido)

 

THE RAY BRADBURY NEBULA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING DRAMATIC PRESENTATION

WandaVision: Season 1, Peter Cameron, Mackenzie Dohr, Laura Donney, Bobak Esfarjani, Megan McDonnell, Jac Schaeffer, Cameron Squires, Gretchen Enders, and Chuck Hayward (Marvel Studios)

 

NEBULA AWARD FOR GAME WRITING

Thirsty Sword Lesbians, April Kit Walsh, Whitney Delaglio, Dominique Dickey, Jonaya Kemper, Alexis Sara, and Rae Nedjadi (Evil Hat Games)

 

Additional awards and honors presented:

THE SFWA DAMON KNIGHT MEMORIAL GRAND MASTER AWARD

Mercedes Lackey

 

THE KATE WILHELM SOLSTICE AWARD

Arley Sorg

Troy L. Wiggins

Petra Mayer (posthumous)

 

THE KEVIN J. O’DONNELL, JR. SERVICE TO SFWA AWARD

Colin Coyle

Presenters joined virtually from around the country, including many past Nebula Award winners among them, and former and current SFWA Board members: Martha Wells, DaVaun Saunders, Greg Kasavin, John Scalzi, Amal El-Mohtar, Steven H Silver, Henry Lien, A. T. Greenblatt, C.L. Polk, and SFWA President Jeffe Kennedy and Vice President Tobias S. Buckell.

The ceremony can be viewed at SFWA’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.

2022 Kate Wilhelm Solstice Awards Go to Arley Sorg, Troy L. Wiggins, and Petra Mayer

We are pleased to announce that the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award will be presented to Arley Sorg and Troy L. Wiggins, and posthumously, to Petra Mayer at the 57th Annual SFWA Nebula Awards®. The ceremony takes place Saturday, May 21, 2022, at 5pm Pacific Time.
Image of the Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award, which features a giant butterfly.

 

The Kate Wilhelm Solstice Award is given by SFWA for distinguished contributions to the science fiction and fantasy community. Sorg, Wiggins, and Mayer join the ranks of previous Solstice Award winners, including Octavia E. Butler, James Tiptree, Jr., and Carl Sagan.

Arley Sorg
Headshot of Arley Sorg with multiple awards in the background

It’s possible that no other person has attended as many science fiction and fantasy conventions as Arley Sorg, primarily in his role as a senior editor and photographer for Locus Magazine. His convention reports, interviews, and book reviews have given many up-and-coming and established creators a moment in the spotlight. But Sorg’s work with several of the genres’ most celebrated short fiction markets is arguably more influential, including his recent reprisal of Fantasy Magazine with Christie Yant. Sorg has also been a relentlessly empowering voice for many storytellers behind-the-scenes, giving countless pep talks and good advice online and in person. 

Arley Sorg is co-editor-in-chief at Fantasy Magazine, a 2021 World Fantasy Award Finalist and a 2022 Locus Award Finalist. He is also a finalist for two 2022 Ignyte Awards, for his work as a critic as well as for his creative nonfiction. Arley is a senior editor at Locus Magazine, associate editor at both Lightspeed & Nightmare, and a columnist for The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. He takes on multiple roles, including slush reader, movie reviewer, and book reviewer, and conducts interviews for multiple venues, including Clarkesworld Magazine and his own site: arleysorg.com. He has taught classes and run workshops for Clarion West, Augur Magazine, and more, and has been a guest speaker at a range of events. 

Troy L. Wiggins

Troy L. Wiggins has been supporting Black speculative fiction storytelling for years through curation, criticism, editorial work, and of course, his own fiction. For over a decade, he’s contributed both commentary on the influence of Black writing in the speculative genres and helped shape it, most recently through his contribution to Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda. As the publisher and former co-editor at the groundbreaking FIYAH Magazine, Wiggins carries this important work to the African diaspora at large.

Troy L. Wiggins is an award-winning writer and editor from Memphis, Tennessee. His short fiction has appeared in the Griots: Sisters of the Spear, Long Hidden: Speculative From the Margins of History, and Memphis Noir anthologies, and in Expanded Horizons, Fireside, Uncanny and Beneath Ceaseless Skies Magazines. His essays and criticism have appeared in the Memphis Flyer, Literary Orphans Magazine, People of Colo(u)r Destroy Science Fiction, Strange Horizons, PEN America, and on Tor.com.

Troy is the former co-editor of the Hugo and World Fantasy Award-winning FIYAH Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction. He was inducted into the Dal Coger Memorial Hall of Fame for his contributions to Speculative Fiction in Memphis in 2018. Troy infrequently blogs about writing, nerd culture, and race at afrofantasy.wordpress.com. He lives in Memphis, Tennessee, with his wife and entirely too many books. 

Petra Mayer

Photo Credit: Allison Shelley/NPR

Petra Mayer loved the speculative fiction genres, and passionately celebrated them throughout her career in the news media. In choosing what writers she worked with and what books to feature, she repeatedly uplifted marginalized creators and introduced a host of readers to their stories. Mayer made space for unheard voices and developed guides like the Book Concierge, that fans of all backgrounds could use to discover new favorites. Her work and joy were gifts to the industry.

Petra Mayer was an editor at NPR Books. She shared her enthusiasm for genre fiction on air at NPR in the form of book reviews, as a regular guest on the podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour, through her reporting on the San Diego Comic-Con, and through the Book Concierge book recommendation tool. In her earlier career, Mayer was an associate director and producer for All Things Considered. She began working in the news media in 1997.

Mayer passed away at the young age of 46 in November 2021. Her parents established the Petra Mayer Memorial Fund for Internships. This dedicated fund “will support internships with NPR’s Culture Desk, helping to develop passionate journalists who—like Petra—can inspire audiences with a love of learning, passion for books, and dedication to sharing stories that matter.”

SFWA President Jeffe Kennedy remarks, “Arley, Troy, and Petra are shining examples of how people contribute to the greater genre community by pursuing their own personal passions. I’m delighted to celebrate Arley’s and Troy’s wonderful contributions and look forward to what they’ll go on to do. I mourn the loss of Petra and all she contributed to the SFF genre and community. I hope this award will help put a light on someone we lost far too young.”

The 57th Annual Nebula Awards Ceremony will stream live on SFWA’s YouTube and Facebook channels for the public. The ceremony takes place during the 2022 Nebula Conference Online, an annual professional development conference organized by SFWA for aspiring and established professionals of the speculative fiction industry. Registration is $150 and may be purchased at events.sfwa.org.