Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing Awards

Many groups and societies award works of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Whether you're looking for a good read, or looking to get some recognition for your own work, these awards are worth checking out!

Let's look at a few of them.

Hugo Award:

The Hugo Award was named in honor of Hugo Gernsback, "The Father of Magazine Science Fiction." Gernsback is the founder of the science fiction magazine "Amazing Stories."

The award is also known as the Science Fiction Achievement Award, and is given annually by the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS) for science fiction and fantasy works for the previous year. Nominees and winners are chosen by members of WSFS.

Just a few of the many Hugo Awards given every year:

Best Novelette, Best Short Story, Best Related Book, Best Semiprozine, Best Professional Artist, Best Editor Long Form, Best Editor Short Form, Best Fanzine, Best Fan Artist, Best Fan Writer

The Nebula Award:

The Nebula is an award given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the two previous years.

Each work is eligible to qualify for the ballot for one year following its date of publication. During this one-year window, SFWA members can nominate the work for the Nebula ballot. When a work has received ten nominations, it immediately qualifies for the current year's preliminary Nebula ballot. Early the following year, SFWA members vote on the works on the preliminary ballot, narrowing the field down to a final ballot of about five works in each category. SFWA members then vote on the final ballot.

The first Nebulas were given for the year 1965. Frank Herbert's Dune won as best novel.

The categories for Nebula Awards:

Novel: a work of 40,000 words or more; Novella: a work of at least 17,500 words but under 40,000 words; Novelette: a work of at least 7,500 words but under 17,500 words; Short story: a work of under 7,500 words; Script: a script for movie, tv or radio show, play

World Fantasy Award