Nebula Nominations Announced

[AE35Unit]

Originally Posted by J-Sun

That and thirteen other Nebula nominees (and counting). I'm not all that inspired to read... well, any of them, but I guess I will get around to reading at least some.

And look at all those hardcore SF novels... there's 2312 and... and... 2312. (I hope - I don't actually read Robinson any more but it seems like it's supposed to be actual SF and its title could only be ironic if it weren't).

Still not read any KSR other than an attempt at Icehenge years ago, which actually sounds interesting! 2312, a story set 300 years hence?
Is there somewhere we can get synopses of these novel nominations?

[iansales]

I thought 2312 was excellent, see here.

[Nerds_feather]

Originally Posted by Count Zero

I enjoyed Throne of the Crescent Moon and 2312, but I wouldn't say either were among the six best novels of last year.

It's a shame half the shortlisted novelists aren't even published in the UK.

I think THE KILLING MOON and 2312 are the best on that list, by far, but I don't think it's a great list.

But that's more a function of 2012 not being a great year for SF/F novels. Much better for novellas and short stories, I think.

[AE35Unit]

Originally Posted by iansales

I thought 2312 was excellent, see here.

Cheers Ian!

[iansales]

Originally Posted by Nerds_feather

I think THE KILLING MOON and 2312 are the best on that list, by far, but I don't think it's a great list.

But that's more a function of 2012 not being a great year for SF/F novels. Much better for novellas and short stories, I think.

For sf, the BSFA Award novel shortlist is better, though it is sadly entirely white and male - Dark Eden, Empty Space, Intrusion, Jack Glass and 2312.

But then there didn't seem to be that many notable titles by women writers published in the UK in 2012. I can think of vN, Black Opera, and, er, I'm sure there must be more but my mind's a blank this morning...

Happily, 2013 is shaping up much better with UK appearances of books first published in the US such as Osiris and God's War.

[Nerds_feather]

The omission of Empty Space is baffling to me.

But this brings up an important question: what's more important, to have a diverse and representative list of authors, or to nominate the best books and stories at the cost of it occasionally being "too white" and/or "too male?"

In the Nebula case, it's not an issue for the novella, novellete or short story categories this year because many of the best stories in those categories were not written by white males. It certainly wasn't the case last year either, and I think it won't be the case in the foreseeable future either. Why? Because many or perhaps most of the top practitioners in those categories are not white males--when I looked at my 6 favorite short stories of recent years, I discovered that only 1 was written by a white male. But in the novel category, there can be years where most of the best published novels are written by white males.

If I were to hazard a guess as to *why* this is still possible in novels and not elsewhere, I'd be inclined to say that it's partially a small sample size issue, marked by large standard deviations and, as such, prone to frequent outlier years. But I think it's also because the magazine and anthology editors are less conservative than book publishers and agents, less inclined to sign up people doing basically the same thing as other successful people and more willing to take risks. It's probably changing, but changing more slowly than in the categories where the magazines, rather than the big publishing houses, are mediating. I don't know...could be wrong, but that's my guess.

[Extollager]

Most of these authors are ones I don't remember having heard of! I just read the old stuff.

Here's a quick list of some sf that I've liked. Maybe you can triangulate what I like from them. If there is anything on the lists that might appeal strongly to someone with my tastes, maybe someone could tip me off.

Kuttner and Moore -- "Vintage Season"
Leiber -- "A Pail of Air"
Budrys -- Rogue Moon
Tucker -- Year of the Quiet Sun
Ishiguro -- Never Let Me Go (the book -- never saw the movie)
Knight -- "Stranger Station"
Lewis -- Out of the Silent Planet
Silverberg -- Downward to the Earth
Ellison -- "Jeffty Is Five" (but some other Ellison things seem pretty wretched to me!)
Lovecraft -- "Colour Out of Space"
Katherine Maclean -- "Pictures Don't Lie"
Walter M. Miller -- "Conditionally Human," "Dark Benediction"
van Vogt -- "Far Centaurus"
Phil Dick -- Martian Time-Slip
Robert Charles Wilson -- The Chronoliths

Conversely, I generally find galactic empire stuff unreadable.

[Nerds_feather]

Are you looking for novels or shorter fiction?

[AE35Unit]

Originally Posted by Extollager

Most of these authors are ones I don't remember having heard of! I just read the old stuff.

Here's a quick list of some sf that I've liked. Maybe you can triangulate what I like from them. If there is anything on the lists that might appeal strongly to someone with my tastes, maybe someone could tip me off.

Kuttner and Moore -- "Vintage Season"
Leiber -- "A Pail of Air"
Budrys -- Rogue Moon
Tucker -- Year of the Quiet Sun
Ishiguro -- Never Let Me Go (the book -- never saw the movie)
Knight -- "Stranger Station"
Lewis -- Out of the Silent Planet
Silverberg -- Downward to the Earth
Ellison -- "Jeffty Is Five" (but some other Ellison things seem pretty wretched to me!)
Lovecraft -- "Colour Out of Space"
Katherine Maclean -- "Pictures Don't Lie"
Walter M. Miller -- "Conditionally Human," "Dark Benediction"
van Vogt -- "Far Centaurus"
Phil Dick -- Martian Time-Slip
Robert Charles Wilson -- The Chronoliths

Conversely, I generally find galactic empire stuff unreadable.

Nice list there! Old school sf!

[AE35Unit]

I presume these are the 2012 nominations (to be awarded this year) .

[Extollager]

Originally Posted by Nerds_feather

Are you looking for novels or shorter fiction?

Recommendations for either form would be welcome. I'm not even "looking," exactly -- I have more good stuff on hand than I have time and energy for as it is; yet I thought perhaps someone would be able to point out something as being so likely to appeal to someone with my tastes, that I should not miss it. And, as I said, the names of most of these authors are unknown to me. Of the authors, I recognized Kiernan, Robinson, Miéville,and Kress -- I don't know that I'd ever heard of the others. And I would guess that a lot of this is stuff that would not appeal to someone with my tastes. But maybe someone would say, "If you like Budrys's 'Rogue Moon,' then you really should look up Sylvester Murgatroyd's 'Uncooperative Satellite'!"

Not interested in hi-tech "bend your mind" stuff; tend to prefer relatively near-future stories written with some degree of literary quality. I shy away from series and even from sf novels that are more than, say, 400 pages or so.

[Southern Geologist]

Originally Posted by Nerds_feather

But this brings up an important question: what's more important, to have a diverse and representative list of authors, or to nominate the best books and stories at the cost of it occasionally being "too white" and/or "too male?"

Personally, I think the latter is more important.

[AE35Unit]

Originally Posted by Extollager

tend to prefer relatively near-future stories written with some degree of literary quality. I shy away from series and even from sf novels that are more than, say, 400 pages or so.

You sound like me! And yay for Budrys!!

[Extollager]

Originally Posted by AE35Unit

You sound like me! And yay for Budrys!!

Yes -- Who? is superb.

I have to confess, though, that The Amsirs and the Iron Thorn didn't please me very much. Haven't read The Falling Torch yet.

[AE35Unit]

Originally Posted by Extollager

Yes -- Who? is superb.

I have to confess, though, that The Amsirs and the Iron Thorn didn't please me very much. Haven't read The Falling Torch yet.

Ive only read a few of his stories, all good, and its been way too long since I saw Who?!
Plus he has the coolest sounding sfnal name!