Hugo Nomination Deadline Draws Nigh

March 8, 2015 at 5:18 pm

It’s that time again: time for my annual Not A Blog post urging all the fans and readers out there to nominate their favorite books, stories, films, and writers from last year for the Hugo Awards.

Actually, it’s probably PAST that time. Nominations for the 2015 Hugo Awards for the best sf and fantasy of 2014 close in two days, so I probably should have made this post a month ago. What can I say? I was busy. Too little time, too much to do. But here I am regardless.

The Hugos are the oldest awards in our genre, and to my mind, the most meaningful. These are fan awards, given by the readers… your awards, in short. They have been given annually at the World Science Fiction Convention since 1953 (well, except for 1954, but that’s a detail). ((And no, I don’t count the ‘Retro-Hugos,’ which are another thing entirely)). This year they will be award at Sasquan in Spokane, Washington in August. To nominate, you need to be either an attending or supporting member of Sasquan, OR of last year’s London worldcon, Loncon, OR next year’s worldcon, MidAmericon II. Easy enough to become a member if you’re not signed up yet… and if you can’t attend, well, that’s what the inexpensive supporting memberships are for.

You can nominate on line at http://sasquan.org/hugo-awards/nominations/

All the rules and definitions are there as well.

In recent years it has become fashionable in some quarters to bitch about the Hugo ballot (ah, sweet Internet). But the truth is, the ballot is what we make it. Hundreds and sometimes thousands of people vote for the Hugos when presented with the final ballot. Far fewer ever bother to nominate. In some categories, a couple dozen votes is all that’s required to win a place on the shortlist.

And it IS an honor just to be nominated. Even if you lose. (I should know. I’ve won a few, but I’ve lost a lot more. Hell, in 1976 I founded the Hugo Losers’ Club with Gardner Dozois, but that’s a story for another day).

I am going to follow this with a couple more posts wherein I will make my own recommendations of stories and films that you might want to consider when filling in your ballot. Read them or not, as you wish. The important thing is not what you nominate, but that you do nominate.

Friends, fans, readers… this is your award. Let your voice be heard.

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Tags: awards, hugo awards, worldcon

Where Am I Now?

August 22, 2014 at 1:54 pm

And now the latest installment of, "If this isTuesday, that must be Whitechapel."

Jet lags rules, but I think I am in Los Angeles. Beverly Hills, actually. A different city, a different world. But they treat me very well here.

Scotland was grey, wet, rainy, but the Fringe was in full roar. Music everywhere, and some great shows that we did not have time to see. (I was especially chuffed at having to miss the James plays, a triptych of quasi-historical dramas about the reigns of the Stuart kings James I, James II, and James III, all of whom came to bad ends. You'd think the Scotts might have taken the hint and started naming their kings Graham, Rory, Duncan, Alister, Andrew…. anything but bloody James. But no, the Scots are a stubborn folk.
When something isna working, by damn, they stick with it.

But I digress. I missed the plays, and most of the Fringe, but I did get rained on, appeared in several hundred selfies with fans, strangers, and the occasional drunk who did not know who the hell I was but wanted a selfie anyway. I also did two major interviews at the Edinburgh Book Festival. You can find those on line. I will post links when I get home. Signed many books afterwards. I also saw many other terrific authors coming and going, but did not, alas, have time to talk.

In Edinburgh I heard about Robin Williams, which made me very sad. Never met him, but I loved his work. We will never see his like again. We plan to offer free showings of some of his best films at the Cocteau in weeks to come. DEAD POET'S SOCIETY is my own favorite. Oh, captain, my captain…

Next was London. Or rather the Docklands, which are to London as Jersey City and Port Newark are to NYC. But who cares, it was worldcon… and not only that, but the BIGGEST worldcon in thirty years, finally breaking the attendance record set by the 1984 world com in LA. (Well, Anaheim). Worldcon cracks 10,000 at last… it comes twenty years too late, but better late than never.

Would that I could say the growth will continue, but next year's con in Spokane will be lucky to get 3,000. And the Hugo Losers Party, traditionally hosted by next year's worldcon, was a dismal affair, the worst I've seen since I threw the first of those in 1976 at Big Mac in KC, Does not bode well for next year. In the old days a Hugo winner who dared show up at the Hugo Losers party, Hugo in hand, would have been thrown into the hotel pool, or at least had whipped cream sprayed in his hair. Now all the winners get is… congratulations.

I was one one of them. "The Rains of Castamere" won the Hugo for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. David Benioff and Dan Weiss scripted that episode and came down from Belfast to represent, the first time they were able to get to a worldcon. ORPHAN BLACK — a terrific show — also had an episode nominated, and a writer/ producer on hand to accept. But we were both vast underdogs, since the other four nominees were all episodes of DOCTOR WHO, the 600-point gorilla that has ruled this category since its inception. "Blackwater" did break the Doctor'es string last year, but that was at San Antonio. No sane person thought that we had the slightest chance against the Doctor on his home ground, and on his 50th niversary to boot. Even the BBC must have been dead certain they were going to win, since they sent David Tennant to accept… but when the envelope was opened, it was David and Dan who sprang from their seats and rushed to the stage to grab the rockets. I don't think anything could have thrilled them more… well, aside from winning the Emmy on Monday, but the odds against that are long.

What they did afterward was even cooler. D&D did eventually make their way to that dreary Hugo Losers' Party for a belated bow, but they did NOT hang around the empty auditorium for that endless round of group shots of winners and presenters that has somehow become de rigeur after the Hugos of later. Instead they headed right down to the Fan Village where all the party tents were, and bought a round for all the fans in the house, to share the joy and celebration. Now there's a tradition I can get behind.

Anyway, that was cool. GAME OF THRONES collected its third Hugo in a row, in a stunning upset over DOCTOR WHO.

And now I am LA, wondering if we can do it again in the Emmys, and somehow shock the world by coming up ahead of BREAKING BAD and TRUE DETECTIVE. They are the overwhelming consensus choices… but so was DOCTOR WHO.

Tune in Monday night, and find out.

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Tags: conventions, game of thrones, hbo, hugo awards, worldcon

Back From Texas

September 6, 2013 at 11:43 pm

… with a little friend.

His name is Hugo.

Thanks to all of you who gave "Blackwater" your vote. We're thrilled that you enjoyed the episode enough to vote it our genre's greatest honor.

Thanks to Rory, for coming all the way from Glasgow to help me accept the award. He's just as tough as advertised; not only did he survive a Hugo ceremony, he downed TWO ghost pepper shots at the BWB party. And thanks to HBO for sending him, with a special tip o' the hat to Mara and Stephanie, who made it happen.

Thanks to David Benioff and Dan Weiss, world's greatest showrunners. My name is on the "Blackwater" script, but there's an awful lot of their writing in there as well, including that amazing original scene between Bronn and the Hound (I wanted to show that at the Hugos as our clip, but, er, LoneStarCon was concerned about the young lady sitting in Bronn's lap, so we went another way).

Thanks to Neil Marshall, who directed the hell out of "Blackwater," stepping in with barely a week's notice to make the episode everything we dreamed that it could be. (And he's back this year for another battle! There's a brave, brave man).

Thanks to our amazing cast and incredible crew. The wildfire explosion was a thing of beauty, truly, but it's the performances of Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Conleth Hill, Jerome Flynn, Rory McCann, Sophie Turner, Jack Gleeson, Sibel Kekilli, Eugene Simon, Roy Dotrice, Stephen Dillane, Liam Cunningham, Finn Jones, Charles Dance, and the rest of our company that made "Blackwater" what it was, bringing the words to life, and creating scenes that will linger in memory long after the green fire has faded. The SFX were great, but without characters to love and hate and fear for, the big explosion is just a light show.

hugo1

And yes, I was surprised when Paul Cornell called out our name. I had hopes, of course, but DOCTOR WHO has taken this category in six of the past seven years, and we were up against not one Doctor, but three. For those who care about such things, "Blackwater" had the most first place votes, but the Doctor was closing in on us as the lower ranked DR. WHO episodes were eliminated and their votes cascaded into the others. It was only when the episode of FRINGE dropped out and their votes moved to us that "Blackwater" went over the top. Ah, the complexities of the Australian ballot…

FWIW, this was the second Hugo for GAME OF THRONES, and the sixth for me. I've won in five different categories now. And no, it never gets old.

So once more, to all of you:

THANKS!

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Tags: game of thrones, hugo awards, worldcon

Finland, Finland, Finland

August 18, 2013 at 5:48 pm

In the comments section to the post immediately below, someone asked about voting for this year's Hugo Awards. Alas, Hugo voting closed some time ago… for the 2013 awards, at least.

You can still cast your vote at LoneStarCon, however… not for the Hugo Awards, but for site selection.

It's the fans who nominate and vote for the Hugos, and the fans who decide where the world science fiction convention will be held. Unlike Dragoncon (always in Atlanta), Comicon (always in San Diego), or other megacons of their ilk, worldcon moves to a different city every year, just as it has since its founding in the 1930s. Cities wishing to host worldcon must put together a concom, find a suitable site and hotels, and bid for the rights to hold the con. Bidding, like American presidential elections, sometimes seems to go on forever, but the actual site selection ballot takes place two years in advance.

At this year's San Antonio worldcon, LoneStarCon 3, fans will decide where the worldcon goes for 2015.

(The site of the 2014 worldcon was determined at Chicon 7, last year's worldcon. The winner was London, England).

There are three contenders for 2015: Spokane, Washington; Orlando, Florida; and Helsinki, Finland. All three will be campaigning vigorously and throwing parties at Texas, I'm sure, selling pre-supporting memberships, and bending the ears of everyone who cares to hear about their wonderful cities, amazing facilities, and experienced committees. So who to choose?

As it happens, I've been to all three cities. Back in the mid 90s, I was GOH at a small regional con in Spokane. Nice fans. The city has its charms, and the surrounding countryside was lovely. It's a small city, though, and it was a small friendly low-key con, which makes me wonder if the committee is ready to tackle something as large and contentious and complex as worldcon.

Orlando hosted the worldcon once before — MagiCon in 1992 — and was supposed to be the site once even earlier — SunCon in 1977. But SunCon was a disaster, had to move to Miami Beach after the fans voted for Orlando, and still ranks as one of the worst worldcons ever. MagiCon was much better… but hot, swelteringly hot. I have fond memories of the Peabody Hotel, but the new Orlando bid isn't using the Peabody, instead they will actually be inside Disney World, using Disney facilities. I like visiting Disney parks from time to time, and I love attending worldcon, but that does not mean I want to mix the two. The Orlando convention set-up has some undeniable advantages… I love the idea of having all of worldcon under a single roof, without elevators… but if you've ever been to Disney World or Disneyland, you probably know that there will be drawbacks as well. Under the Mouse's roof, the Mouse's rules apply. And what with global warming and all, Orlando in 2015 will probably be even hotter than Orlando in 1992. Just thinking about it makes me want to turn the air conditioner up to "ARCTIC BLAST."

Fortunately, I think there's one choice for 2015 that stands head and shoulders above the other two:

<lj-embed id=”362″ />

No, no, no, NOT England. England is next year. I'm talking FINLAND! Helsinki!

Singing, dancing, fish-slapping, reindeer, lingonberries…

Well, no, not really. But Parris and I were guests at Finncon just a few years ago, and we had a great time. Helsinki is a great, lively, historic city, and the Finnish fans are terrific… warm and friendly and hospitable. They all speak English, by the way. Every Finn we met spoke English. So no one need worry about getting lost in a country where you cannot understand the language. You can eat reindeer and lingonberries if you have a yen… but there's plenty of other types of food for those who'd rather not. Saunas are omnipresent… but not compulsory, if you are the shy sort who would rather not take off your clothes around other people. Helsinki's not quite north enough for a midnight sun, but we got a ten-oclock-at-night sun, and that was pretty cool too. Hell, you could even find good pizza. (I prefer never to go anywhere where you cannot find good pizza).

Even more than the charms of the city, however, it was the competence and experience of the committee that impressed me. We have had too many badly-run worldcons in recent years (need I mention Montreal, anyone?). The Finncon we attended was huge, drawing something like 30,000 people to Helsinki as I recall. That's six times as large as any worldcon since the 80s, yet the con ran smoothly start to finish, and everyone seemed to have a great time. I have no doubt that a Helsinki worldcon would be well run as well… and I know the Finnish fans would love to show your their city, their castles, the herds of reindeer wandering the streets. Oh, there's vodka too. And saunas. Did I mention the saunas?

But seriously… if you'd like to know more about the Finnish bid, check out their website here: http://www.helsinkiin2015.org/

Anyway, those of you who will be attending LoneSTarCon should be sure to visit the site selection booths, check out the literature for the competing bid, then sign up for 2015 and cast your ballot.

Me, I'll be voting for Helsinki… to put the "world" back in worldcon.

(And for KANSAS CITY IN 2016 as well, but that vote is next year, in London).

POST LONESTARCON ADDENDUM

Alas, Helsinki did not win the rights to host the 2015 worldcon. The Finns threw the best parties and had the most first place votes, but after leading on all the early ballots, they lost out in the end when Orlando was finally eliminated, and their votes swung en masse to Spokane. The vagaries of the Australian ballot.

The Finns will rise again, I hope. But it's Spokane in 2015.

(Future bids announced or rumored at the con included New Orleans, Washington DC, and Dublin. I like the sound of all of those. ]]> Con Time!2013 Aug 18 13:10:00worldcon, conventions, signings, fandom, signed books==========
Friday Aug 23        7:30 pm            READING
Saturday Aug 24 12:00 noon         Dark Fantasy discussion, w/ Tim Powers
                               5:20 pm            mass autographing
LONESTARCON 3
================
Thursday Aug 29       4:00pm          signing
Friday     Aug 30        5:00pm          READING
Saturday Aug 31      4:00pm          Howard & George Show, w/ Howard Waldrop
Sunday   Sept 1         8:00pm          HUGO AWARDS
Monday   Sept 2       11:00am          signing Some will observe that this schedule looks light. Hoo hah. These are only my public events. What's not showing here are all the parties, lunches, parties, breakfasts, parties, dinners, business meetings, and… did I mention the parties? The parties are the heart of any good con, and I expect to be at several. I am, alas, not the party animal I was twenty years ago, but I still love hanging with others writers, and my fellow fans. And yes, I still consider myself a fan. I have been going to SF cons since 1971 (and comic cons since 1964). Some are better than others, mind you, and I've seen a lot of changes over my years… some of which are cool, others that I really hate, but cons are still are important part of my life. Especially worldcon. I've said this a hundred times, but let me say it once more — bookstore signings are great if all you want is to get your book signed, but if you really want to meet me (or any of the other SF or fantasy writers whose work you have enjoyed), hang, talk, flirt, drunkenly debate the state of the field or the nature of the universe, you need to come to a convention. Speaking of signing, though… if you look at the schedule above, you'll see that I've got an autographing at Bubonicon (the mass signing, a truly terrific concept, where all the writers at the con are available to sign in the same room at the same time, a collector's nirvana), and two dealer's room signing for LoneStarCon. If you want your books defaced with my illegible scrawl, you should try to get yourself to one of those. I am not going to be signing in the hallways, before or after panels, while eating dinner (or lunch, or breakfast), and I am REALLY not going to be signing books at parties. Parties for partying, not autographing. It is a major lapse of con etiquette to ask me (or any other writer) to sign your books at a party. The only worse no-no is is thrusting a manuscript or screenplay — or these days, a self-published book — into my hand for me to read and/or blurb. So don't. Please. The big excitement at any worldcon is, of course, the Hugo Awards, the oldest major honor in our field, and still the most important. (I hope you all nominated. I hope you all voted). GAME OF THRONES is up this year in the "Best Dramatic Presentation – Short Form" category, for the season two episode "Blackwater," which I scripted. Last year we won in "Best Dramatic Presentation – Long Form," but this year the competition is fierce, since we're up against an episode of FRINGE and three, count 'em THREE, episodes of DOCTOR WHO. The Doctor has pretty much owned the Short Form category ever since it was created, and it remains to be seen if we can prevail against three Doctors at once. I'd rate us as underdogs, but we shall see. If we do somehow prevail over the Doctor, his companions, and all those legions of Daleks, Time Lords, and Whoovians, however, I will have some terrific help in accepting the award. HBO is flying in our very own Hound, Rory McCann, to accept the award on behalf of Dan and David and the rest of the cast and crew (all of whom are very busy at the moment filming season four), should we win. Parris has been been trying to convince him to wear his kilt to the awards ceremony. Come to the Hugos and find out if she's been successful. (And if we lose, feel free to buy me a drink afterward and tell me 'you wuz robbed.' You'll need to find me at the secret chili party first, though, drowning my sorrows in a bowl of Keith Kato's hottest red).

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Tags: worldcon

Once More, At Home

September 4, 2012 at 5:34 pm

Home from Chicago and Chicon 7.

A terrific worldcon, one of the best in years. Everything a worldcon should be.

More later, when I catch my breath and answer some of my emails.

((LATER))

For those who could not be with us at Chicon, YouTube has my moment in the sun, the presentation of the award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form.

<lj-embed id=”328″/>

FWIW, the voting stats released after the awards ceremony reveal that GAME OF THRONES would have placed two episodes (“Baelor” and “The Pointy End”) on the ballot in Short Form, if the concom had not decided to place us in Long Form instead. A third episode would just have missed the cut.

Thanks for everyone who nominated us in either category… thanks to everyone who nominated, period. That really is the heart of the Hugo process.

((STILL LATER))

And for those who missed my GAME OF THRONES panel, Mo Ryan has chronicled it with a blog and podcast. Check it out here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/04/game-of-thrones-season-3-characters_n_1854918.html

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Tags: conventions, worldcon

Chicon Looms

August 28, 2012 at 8:53 am

We’re off to the airport in a couple of hours, on our way to Chicago for worldcon.

And I’ve got some great news for the GAME OF THRONES fans who will be joining us there… HBO is sending in our own late, lamented Ser Rodrik Cassel, RON DONACHIE, and his lovely wife to represent the series at the con.

Ron tells me that he’ll be glad to sign autographs, do interviews, kaffeeklatches, and whatever, and I’ve passed that word along to the concom. It’s late, of course, and the program book is already at the printers, but they should be able to add him to some program items. Watch the daily newsletter for updates on that.

Looking forward to seeing him… and all of you.

Worldcon! Accept no substitutes.

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Tags: convention, game of thrones, worldcon

Coming to Chicago

August 13, 2012 at 11:01 pm

Leaving for Chicon TOMORROW, so I figured I’d bump this one back up to the top.

Should be a great con! See you there, boys and girls.
===================================================================

Worldcon is coming up soon: Chicon 7, to be held in Chicago over Labor Day Weekend (worldcon’s traditional weekend, where it AND IT ALONE belongs). I’ll be there. Hell, I’ve only missed one worldcon in the last thirty years. Of course I will be there.

Just finished nailing down the details of my programming at the con.

Here’s where you will find me:

THURSDAY August 30
3:00 – 4:30 pm autographing, dealer’s room

FRIDAY August 31
1:30 – 3:00 pm autographing, dealer’s room
4:30 – 6:00 pm WILD CARDS panel, Crystal A

SATURDAY September 1
12:00 – 1:30pm GAME OF THRONES discussion w/ Mo Ryan of THE HUFFINGTON POST,
Columbus EF
3:00 – 4:30pm SECRET HISTORY OF SCIENCE FICTION panel w/ Resnick, Dozois, Silverberg,
Crystal B

SUNDAY September 2
1:30 – 3:00pm reading from THE WINDS OF WINTER, Columbus EF
8:00 pm HUGO AWARDS, Hyatt Regency Grand Ballroom

MONDAY September 3
1:30 – 3:00pm autographing, dealer’s room

Of course, I will also be found partying in the evenings. Look for the Brotherhood Without Banners bash. It will be the best party at the con, it always is. If I’m not there, I likely will be soon. I will also be at the Hugo Loser’s Party and Keith’s chili party, but you probably can’t get into those… the BWB parties are open. And if Kansas City throws a bid party (I expect they will), I will be there too.

Cons, as I have said many a time, are a MUCH better place to meet and hang with your favorite author (or me, if your favorite isn’t there) than any booksigning.

Do please note, however: I have scheduled myself for three ninety-minutes autograph sessions, so I will be defacing books for four and a half hours at this worldcon. If you want your book signed, come to one of those. PLEASE do not ask me to sign outside of those scheduled events.

If you come across me walking through the hall, visiting the art show, browsing in the dealer’s room, attending a program item, leaving my panel or rushing to the next one, waiting for a cab, eating dinner, eating lunch, eating breakfast… by all means say hi, but don’t ask me to sign anything. That’s what those autograph sessions are for.

And at parties, or in the bar, hey, by all means, come up, say hi, introduce yourself, start a conversation, offer to buy me a drink (I may or may not accept), flirt with me (I may or may not respond)… but DON’T ask me to sign stuff, okay? And while I certainly don’t mind talking about my books or the TV show, remember, I have done a thousand interviews on these subjects, and asking me about my favorite character or telling me who YOUR favorite character is will likely just send me slouching off to find someone who wants to talk about Jack Vance, sing old TV theme songs, or argue whether Sanchez or Tebow should QB the Jets.

’nuff said.

See you in Chicago, I hope.

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Tags: conventions, signings, worldcon

Hugo Nominations

January 18, 2012 at 12:50 pm

Chicon 8, this year’s World Science Fiction Convention, has opened nominations for 2011.

The nominating ballot can be found here:

https://chicon.org/hugo/nominate.php

You do need to be a member to nominate. A member (attending or supporting) of Chicon, the 2012 worldcon, OR Renovation, the 2011 worldcon in Reno, OR LoneStarCon, the 2013 worldcon in San Antonio. Any one of the three will do. If you’re not a member, and want to nominate, you can join. Even if you cannot attend. Supporting memberships are cheap, and get you all the publications as well as the right to nominate and vote.

All works first published or broadcast in 2011 are eligible.

The Hugo is the oldest award in our genre, the most prestigious, and the most important. It is a fan award. No juries. The readers choose the finalists, and the readers pick the winners. There will be five (sometimes six, in the event of a tie) nominees in each category.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again here: nominations are the most important part of the Hugo process. Hundreds of people cast Hugo ballots, but far fewer ever bother to nominate. You cannot win unless you are on the ballot, and sometimes the difference between being a finalist and an also-ran is a single nomination. Yes, even in the big categories, like Best Novel and Best Dramatic Presentation. And in the less popular categories, hell, people have been known to make the Hugo ballot with twenty votes.

So NOMINATE.

As to what you should nominate… well, that’s your choice, of course. Right now, all over Ye Olde InterWeb, people are making their recommendations and writers are reminding the world about their own eligible works. I’ll do the same, as I have in past years. But not in this post. Watch this space for my own favorites.

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Tags: awards, hugo awards, worldcon

Not a Blog

Hugo Nomination Deadline Draws Nigh

Where Am I Now?

Back From Texas

Finland, Finland, Finland

Once More, At Home

Chicon Looms

Coming to Chicago

Hugo Nominations

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