ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Results & Diagrams

As a conclusion to ARB’s series on the 2021 Hugos, I wanted to share a quick analysis on the results. That “quick analysis” turned into an extensive infographic-making project. My hope is that there are others who share my Venn diagram of “election/statistics/SF nerdery”. If you do, please enjoy the infographics below. First, a thumbnail … Continue reading ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Results & Diagrams

An Open Letter to Worldcon

Updated 23 December: Discon 3 has posted a statement and apology from con chair Mary Robinette Kowal. To the Discon 3 Committee, the Hugo Awards Administrators, and the World Science Fiction Society, I’m writing to you because of your decision to use Raytheon as a sponsor for the 2021 Hugo Awards ceremony. I am posting … Continue reading An Open Letter to Worldcon

ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Short Stories

Jake Casella Brookins The Hugo for Best Novel is arguably “the big one”. Other awards are important recognitions of and commentaries on the the field and its communities—but, personally, for me, the Hugo for Best Short Story is the most valuable: I don’t get around to reading much new short fiction through the year, so … Continue reading ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Short Stories

ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Novelettes

Jake Casella Brookins Ah, the Hugo for Best Novelette, which is also a perennial excuse to go “wait, what’s a novelette again?” Shorter than a novella, longer than a short story, novelettes exist in a bit of a limbo for most readers—they’re infrequently available as standalone printed books, and perhaps less likely to be included … Continue reading ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Novelettes

ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Novellas

Jake Casella Brookins The novella as a form has been growing in popularity for a little while now. While popular genre novels have been subject to various species of bloat—massive wordcounts, sprawling series, or both—the novella offers a complete, novel-like experience in terms of plot, character, and themes, but with the promise to keep it … Continue reading ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Novellas

ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Novels

Jake Casella Brookins The Best Novel Award is usually talked about as “the big one” of the Hugos. Some of the awards are mostly internal to the professional/fan community, and I’m not sure what impact, if any, the Hugos for film and television have. The Hugo for best novel, by contrast, has a big and … Continue reading ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Novels

ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Introduction

Jake Casella Brookins This year’s Hugo Awards are nearly upon us—voting wraps up in mid-November, with the awards to be presented in December. The Hugos are a pretty big deal in the speculative fiction world, but not all fans and scholars of the genre follow the awards, nominated works, or surrounding controversies very closely: this … Continue reading ARB Guide to the ’21 Hugos: Introduction