Best Science Fiction Related Metafilter Post

February 27, 2013 9:47 PM

The finalists for the 2012 Nebula Awards have been announced (list with free fiction links here), but there's still another two weeks to get in nominations for the 2013 Hugo Awards. However, for those works not fiting the regular award categories Tim Pratt and other science fiction writers, fans and interested parties on Twitter have been suggesting #FakeHugoAwardCategories . io9 collects some of the best.
posted by Artw (53 comments total)

This is perfect.

Christopher Moore ‏@TheAuthorGuy

Best Darwinian and Randian Rant by an Author who gets winded riding the Escalator #FakeHugoAwardCategories

Christopher Moore ‏@TheAuthorGuy

Most Unpronounceable Gratuitous Celticfication of a Common Stripper Name #FakeHugoAwardCategories

I'd like to nominate a prominent MeFite for the "Stieg Larsson Award For Hottest Teenage Hacker Punk Who Falls In Love With The Protagonist's Self-Insert", but he'll never beat out Neal Stephenson.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 10:04 PM on February 27 [12 favorites]

Thanks for the nominations, I have read surprisingly few of these, despite reading lots of SF/F. Reading the summaries, one of the best novels seems to be a retelling of Jane Eyre and the other a retelling of Pride and Prejudice. And another is 2312. Odd mix.

Any suggestions on the novel side for those who have read them?
posted by blahblahblah at 10:05 PM on February 27

I'd like to nominate a prominent MeFite for the "Stieg Larsson Award For Hottest Teenage Hacker Punk Who Falls In Love With The Protagonist's Self-Insert", but he'll never beat out Neal Stephenson.

Also of the author comments in thread everyone will have to argue over whether the BSFRMFT is a Fan or Pro Award, which will be a bitter and heated controversy that splits the community in two despite nobody particularly much knowing what the difference is.
posted by Artw at 10:09 PM on February 27

Most obviously mendacious cover blurb. #FakeHugoAwardCategories

Least realistic dialogue spoken by a character explaining the story's central conceit. #FakeHugoAwardCategories

Longest title that is also an entire sentence. #FakeHugoAwardCategories

Most portmanteau neologisms. #FakeHugoAwardCategories
posted by painquale at 10:10 PM on February 27 [6 favorites]

Best Darwinian and Randian Rant by an Author who gets winded riding the Escalator #FakeHugoAwardCategories

Oh, that is vicious.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 10:13 PM on February 27 [12 favorites]

Best Bitter and Heated Controversy That Splits a Community in Two
posted by Phssthpok at 10:19 PM on February 27 [1 favorite]

Great Bear Award For Most Respected Author Writing Videogame Novels
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 10:20 PM on February 27 [5 favorites]

Any suggestions on the novel side for those who have read them?

I haven't read Ironskin or 2312, but all of the others are great. I think The Drowning Girl is probably the best in terms of literary merit, The Killing Moon is the best straight-up fantasy, Throne of the Crescent Moon was fun if visibly a first novel, and Glamour in Glass would have suited me better if the ratio of action to romance was flipped, but I still liked it quite a bit and plan to read the sequel.

(Detailed if spoilery reviews on goodreads via my profile, if you really want to hear All About Them.)
posted by restless_nomad at 10:29 PM on February 27 [5 favorites]

Saladin Ahmed is certainly a writer to watch.
posted by Artw at 10:31 PM on February 27 [1 favorite]

Also I can't resist highlighting my own contribution: Most blatant use of current cultural reference in a far-future story
posted by restless_nomad at 10:34 PM on February 27 [4 favorites]

Meanwhile, for the actually existing Hugo Awards, notable author Nick Mamatas has a modest proposal for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.
posted by MartinWisse at 10:53 PM on February 27 [1 favorite]

Ah, it'll never be a category as random and dodgy as the comics one.
posted by Artw at 10:55 PM on February 27

That's a pretty impressively diverse group of Best Novel nominees, that is.
posted by eugenen at 10:56 PM on February 27

blahblahblah: the Austen homage that is nominated is the sequel. Start with Shades of Milk and Honey - there is a preview, I believe.
posted by jb at 10:58 PM on February 27

Also I can't resist highlighting my own contribution: Most blatant use of current cultural reference in a far-future story
posted by restless_nomad

Replace distance in time with distance in space, and Farscape would win every time.
posted by jb at 11:00 PM on February 27 [1 favorite]

This hashtag appears to be mostly just Tim Pratt gunning to win another Hugo, this time in the little-known "best exploitation of a humorous Twitter meme to eviscerate silly SF tropes" category.
posted by koeselitz at 11:10 PM on February 27

(nota bene: Tim Pratt is completely awesome, and I feel like he's been here to Metafilter before too, probably on the post about that great Israeli short film based on "Impossible Dreams" but yeah I'm too lazy to go check)
posted by koeselitz at 11:12 PM on February 27 [1 favorite]

(That's pretty lazy. MeFi's own timpratt.)
posted by gingerest at 11:18 PM on February 27 [2 favorites]

Good gods, there seems to be only one white dude on the Nebula Awards best novel shortlist *and* it's Kim Stanley Robinson?

Cue the wailing and gnashing of teeth around the Vox Dayian parts of the sf blogosphere.
posted by MartinWisse at 11:22 PM on February 27 [2 favorites]

Great Bear Award For Most Respected Author Writing Videogame Novels

I assume you're referring to this book which when I saw it at Barnes & Noble the following occurred:

*browses SF/Fantasy shelves*
*sees a Crysis novel by Peter Watts*

Eh? Surely not. It's a pretty common name I'm sure.

*keeps walking...slows down*

But what if?

*grabs book, flips to author bio page*
*faints*
posted by Doleful Creature at 11:31 PM on February 27 [3 favorites]

#FakeHugoAwardCategories Hugo for Most Thinly-Veiled Libertarian Political Allegory

#FakeHugoAwardCategories Best One-Star Review for Reasons Unrelated to the Book's Content

#FakeHugoAwardCategories The Ayn Rand Prize For Exceptional Achievement in Monologue Length

#FakeHugoAwardCategories The Alan Moore Award for Excellence In Really Creepy Author Photos
(Ourveryowncharliestross is an early contender here.)
posted by Joe in Australia at 1:34 AM on February 28

cstross doesn't look particularly creepy, his jacket looks like he should be doing a serious minded reality show, maybe as a peado-hunter.
posted by biffa at 3:49 AM on February 28

Man, I've usually read at least one of the nominated novels, but this year I think the only thing I've read off this list is Robert Reed's novella "Katabasis" (which was excellent).
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 4:21 AM on February 28 [1 favorite]

cstross doesn't look particularly creepy

Are you serious? The eyes, they follow you around the room. And they are not happy.

Cstross has judged you and found you wanting. It's no good trying to make things better. Everything you do is besmirched with the foul reek of failure. The best, the best thing you can do is curl into a little ball and pray that you will be squashed by accident rather than dissected as a lesson to others.

This, by the way, is the background of his Laundry novels.
posted by Joe in Australia at 4:34 AM on February 28 [2 favorites]

I'm super pleased that Cait Kiernan's The Drowning Girl was nominated because not only is it an excellent novel, it's a challenging read given the way it's written.
posted by Kitteh at 5:25 AM on February 28

It's pretty cool that Beasts of the Southern Wild made into the Dramatic Presentation category. It's such a wonderful movie, and I thought it got snubbed a bit at the Oscars and Golden Globes. Though, I'm not sure it's the writing that makes it so good as much as the directing, acting, and design/cinematography (and looking at past winners of the Nebula/Bradbury, it seems that "indie films" rarely win).
posted by bluefly at 6:10 AM on February 28

painquale: "Least realistic dialogue spoken by a character explaining the story's central conceit. #FakeHugoAwardCategories"

That's the "As you know, Bob" award.
posted by Chrysostom at 6:59 AM on February 28 [6 favorites]

IIRC working on videogames is or was Peter Watts' day job - pretty much the best day job you can have if you're going to write SF, I'd think.
posted by Artw at 7:12 AM on February 28 [2 favorites]

#FakeHugoAwardCategories The Robin Cook Award for a Mysterious Medical Conspiracy that has Transformed Me into Someone Who Writes the Same Book Over and Over Again.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 7:20 AM on February 28

The James Nicoll Brain Eater prize.
posted by Chrysostom at 7:42 AM on February 28

Best Darwinian and Randian Rant by an Author who gets winded riding the Escalator #FakeHugoAwardCategories

But wouldn't Dafydd ab Hugh just win that every year?
posted by octobersurprise at 7:47 AM on February 28

Imma gonna get myself a supporting membership to Worldcon just to nominate Constellation Games for best novel (and to get eventually the voter packet of nominee ebooks.)

Hugo Award Nominee Recommendations livejournal
NESFA Recommended Reading List
SF Signal Podcast suggestions
Your 2013 SF/F Award Nomination Awareness Post: Readers and Fans thread on Scalzi's blog
Reddit's The Big List: Potential 2013 Hugo Award works by r/Fantasy AMA participants
Ruthless Culture's Draft ballot also has a lot of links to other lists of recommendations and discussion
posted by Zed at 8:14 AM on February 28 [2 favorites]

The voter packet was totally worth the money last year, and I expect it will be again this year (although it's all totally voluntary on the part of the publishers/authors, so they can't promise anything.)

I will also mention my Hugo nom AskMe, and the campaign to nominate Mark Oshiro as Best Fan Writer, which I am firmly behind because Mark Does Stuff is fucking awesome.
posted by restless_nomad at 10:10 AM on February 28

Ooh, and confirmation that this is the Best Tag Ever.
posted by restless_nomad at 10:11 AM on February 28 [1 favorite]

With Paul Cornell that should be fun.
posted by Artw at 11:20 AM on February 28 [1 favorite]

blahblahblah: the Austen homage that is nominated is the sequel. Start with Shades of Milk and Honey - there is a preview, I believe.
posted by jb at 10:58 PM on February 27

Actually, I wrote it to stand alone.

(Trying for Best Author Response to a Random Internet Comment #FakeHugoAwardCategories)
posted by maryrobinette at 12:54 PM on February 28 [3 favorites]

Man, we have to have a Worldcon meetup again and this time get all of our SF writer Mefi's Own to actually show up.
posted by restless_nomad at 2:40 PM on February 28 [2 favorites]

The 2014 one is in London, I'm tempted to build a trip back home around it.
posted by Artw at 5:02 PM on February 28

I might make it to London - my mom has been dying to go overseas and our trip keeps getting put off - but San Antonio is basically in my backyard so y'all better show up.
posted by restless_nomad at 7:54 PM on February 28

I'll be at San Antonio for certain.
posted by maryrobinette at 10:06 PM on February 28 [1 favorite]

Best Dr. Who Episode, Script, Character or Anything Else Dr.Who-Related #FakeHugoAwardCategories

— Miquel Codony (@Qdony) February 27, 2013

I don't understand this one. Best short form dramatic presentation isn't a fake category!
posted by moss at 10:20 PM on February 28 [2 favorites]

Also, count me in for a London Worldcon Mefi meetup.
posted by moss at 10:21 PM on February 28

Heh. Even in 2010 when Who was only doing awful "specials" it won... Mostly against itself.

Not a lot of other SF on TV these days, I guess. Still, Fuck Me Ray Bradbury was robbed.
posted by Artw at 10:29 PM on February 28

Fringe should pick up something, assuming this season is as good as the last one. And Who has been weak this year.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 10:32 PM on February 28

They happily zoomed past Fringe when it was its absolute best though, which is a shame. I wonder if Black Mirror will get the nod it deserves.

Of course Hugo's that are not about books or shirt stories are largely bullshit. As I mentioned above the comics ones are pretty worthless, to the point when I'll be stunned if any of the actually for-reals science fictional comics that have been making a big splash the last year or so get a look in over, say, a bunch of assorted Fables spin-offs.
posted by Artw at 10:44 PM on February 28

Hmm, no good SF shirt stories come to mind. "I'm Dangerous Tonight" is more fantasy, and besides, that's a cloak. Asimov's "For the Birds" is about a fashion designer, at least.

What ARE the great SF shirt stories?
posted by Chrysostom at 5:46 AM on March 1

The obvious choice is Redshirts, by MeFi's Own John Scalzi.
posted by moss at 9:37 PM on March 1 [1 favorite]

An Evening at the Kitschies Awards
posted by Artw at 10:30 AM on March 2

Black Mirror was a lot stronger last series. The second episode of this series was really good, but the third was really not.

It's still some of the best SF on TV.
posted by painquale at 2:18 PM on March 2

Not least in that it's an actual genuine attempt at Science Fictional writing rather just shoving a few tropes in a blender, which is rare as hell on screen.
posted by Artw at 2:43 PM on March 2

At last! Here's one I'm actually eligible for:

heresiarch ‏@heresiarch
Best As You Know Bob #FakeHugoAwardCategories

posted by AsYouKnow Bob at 7:28 PM on March 3 [2 favorites]

Hmm, no good SF shirt stories come to mind. "I'm Dangerous Tonight" is more fantasy, and besides, that's a cloak. Asimov's "For the Birds" is about a fashion designer, at least.

What ARE the great SF shirt stories?

Bradbury's 'The Rorschach Shirt' is probably the gold standard. Paul Di Flippo's 'The Cobain Sweater' is good, and I recall a comic or something about a guy who painted shirts with demonic powers, though I may be confusing it with the Vampire Beach Babes' song 'Hawaiian Shirt from Hell'. Moving on to general clothing you have Bradbury again with 'The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit' and that old movie about a man who invents an indestructible suit that can't get dirty.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 1:15 PM on March 4 [1 favorite]

That's The Man in the White Suit, starring none other than Alec Guinness.
posted by Chrysostom at 7:06 PM on March 4 [2 favorites]