闲聊2007年星云奖初始提名

2007年星云奖初始提名出来了。候选作品里，长篇提名居然有13部之多。看来英文科幻作家里写长篇的比写中短篇的多得多。其中有4位候选人是加拿大的（Czerneda, Hopkinson, Sawyer, and Watts）。看来加拿大科幻大有崛起之势。长篇候选人强手如林，如Joe Haldeman，Jack McDevitt（上届长篇得主），Robert J. Sawyer，Peter Watts，甚至哈利波特的作者J.K. Rowling也在里面，竞争显然会非常激烈。

长中篇(Novella)的候选作品总共只有5篇。因为篇数少，大概所有5篇作品都会进入最终候选名单。评审也许会再加上一篇，不过最终候选名单里一般是由6篇的。
长中篇的候选人虽少，但几乎个个都是超级强手：Nancy Kress，Lucius Shepard，Bruce Sterling，Gene Wolfe，最不出名的大概是Matt Hughes。不过这位加拿大（又是加拿大！）科幻奇幻作家的小说也很别具一格。属于科幻/奇幻/侦探/搞笑的混杂品种。这位老兄前段时间急于推销自己，在自己的网上（http://www.archonate.com/）免费赠送53本自己的书。后来赠送出去26本。我有幸得到一本，还没来得及看。不过我看过他的一篇中篇Mastermindless，感觉不错，非常搞笑。长中篇候选作品里，我只看过Nancy Kress的Fountain of Age。Nancy去年发表了无数篇中短篇科幻作品，以至有位老兄在自己的恶搞科幻网站上宣称Nancy是圣母玛利亚转世（http://thesfdaily.livejournal.com/2058.html）。Nancy去年发的小说我作为学生基本上都学习过了。我认为Fountain of Age是她去年发的最好的科幻。她最近还有篇关于中国的科幻长中篇，我觉得比Fountain of Age还好，不过好像还没发表，估计会到明年去候选了。

短中篇提名也有13篇。提名作者里，除了Ted Chiang, Nancy Kress, Mike Resnick和Michael A. Burstein，其它作者名字我都比较陌生。 这里面我看过三篇。Ted Chiang的The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate（大多中国科幻读者都应该看过了），Nancy Kress的Safeguard （飞来飞去的Denovo将它翻译出来了，不知道科幻世界出了没有？），和Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter（双峰驼的Leonaries新鲜翻译，大家去看吧：http://www.douban.com/group/topic/2461976/）。三篇都翻成了中文。Ted Chiang不用说了，他一出现，估计其他候选人都会感到有些失落。。。不过Nancy的Safeguard也很强，Mike Resnick那篇听说也很不错。Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter（Fantasy）一般般，不知为什么居然连续在雨果奖和星云奖获提名。不过这种作品好像也是星云奖喜欢的调调。新人的那些，好多都不知是从哪里冒出来的，既然入选，大概也有些长处。总之，短中篇里，虽然有Ted Chiang这个独孤求败在，竞争也还是有的。

短篇候选人里，David D. Levine是2006年雨果奖获奖短篇Tk'tk'tk的作者。Tk'tk'tk世界科幻博览上有翻译，题目改成星际推销员。另外Andy Duncan曾经两次获得过世界奇幻奖，Karen Joy Fowler是最近颇受好评的电影The Jane Austen Book Club的原作作者。其他人没怎么听说过，估计大都也是新人。

电影剧本里，我挺Pan's Labyrinth（潘神的迷宫）。

这次的星云奖候选中短篇里，三大科幻奇幻杂志里《科幻与奇幻》（SF&F）杂志占了7篇，《阿西莫夫科幻杂志》4篇，《类似》（Analog）才一篇。《阿西莫夫科幻杂志》和《类似》基本上只登科幻的。SF&F的候选作品比另外两本杂志加起来还多。看起来奇幻又占了上风。另外，Helix（http://www.helixsf.com/）这个不太出名的网上免费科奇幻杂志居然也占了3篇。其他的有不少是小说选集里出来的。这次名单看起来是新人和老人之间的较量。估计还是老家伙功夫老到，占据一定的优势。

附：2007年星云奖初始提名名单
http://www.sfwa.org/awards/2008/NebPrelim2007.html
（有不少中短篇候选作品可以在上面链接里直接点击欣赏）

2007 Preliminary Nebula Ballot


April 25–27, 2008
Nebula Awards® Weekend

Novels

Ragamuffin, by Tobias Buckell
(Tor, Jun07)

The Yiddish Policemen's Union, by Michael Chabon
(HarperCollins, May07)

Species Imperative #3: Regeneration, by Julie E. Czerneda (full PDF on Private Edition)
(DAW, May06)

Vellum: The Book of All Hours, by Hal Duncan
(Del Rey, Apr06 (Macmillan hardcover Nov05 (UK)))

The Accidental Time Machine, by Joe Haldeman
(Ace, Aug07)

The New Moon's Arms, by Nalo Hopkinson
(Warner Books, Feb07)

Mainspring, by Jay Lake
(Tor, Jun07)

Odyssey, by Jack McDevitt (full PDF on Private Edition)
(Ace, Nov06)

The Outback Stars, by Sandra McDonald
(Tor, May07)

Strange Robby, by Selina Rosen (full PDF and hardcopy offer on Private Edition)
(Meisha Merlin Publishing Jul06)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling
(Scholastic Press, Jul07)

Rollback, by Robert J. Sawyer
(Analog, Feb07 (serialized in Oct06 through Jan/Feb07 issues; Tor book, Apr07))

Blindsight, by Peter Watts (free Creative Commons versions)
(Tor, Oct06)

Novellas

"The Helper and His Hero," by Matt Hughes (link to Private Edition)
(F&SF, Mar07 (Feb07 & Mar07))

"Fountain of Age," by Nancy Kress
(Asimov's, Jul07)

"Stars Seen Through Stone," by Lucius Shepard (link to Private Edition)
(F&SF, Jul07)

"Kiosk," by Bruce Sterling (link to Private Edition)
(F&SF, Jan07)

"Memorare," by Gene Wolfe (link to Private Edition)
(F&SF, Apr07)

Novelettes
"The Children's Crusade," by Robin Wayne Bailey (link to Private Edition)
(Heroes in Training, Martin H. Greenberg and Jim C. Hines, Ed., DAW, Sep07)

"A Flight of Numbers Fantastique Strange," by Beth Bernobich (link to Private Edition)
(Asimov's, Jun06)

"Things That Aren't," by Michael A. Burstein and Robert Greenberger (link to Private Edition)
(Analog, Apr07)

"The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate," by Ted Chiang
(F&SF, Sep07)

"Sister of the Hedge," by Jim C. Hines (link to Private Edition)
(Realms of Fantasy, Jun06)

"The Evolution of Trickster Stories Among the Dogs Of North Park After the Change," by Kij Johnson (link to Private Edition)
(Coyote Road, Trickster Tales, Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, Ed., Viking Juvenile, Jul07)

"The Sun God at Dawn, Rising from a Lotus Blossom," by Andrea Kail (link to Private Edition)
(Writers of the Future Volume 23, Algis Budrys, Ed., Galaxy Press, Sep07)

"Safeguard," by Nancy Kress
(Asimov's, Jan07)

"Alastair Baffle's Emporium of Wonders," by Mike Resnick
(Asimov's, Jan08)

"Tonino and the Incubus," by Peg Robinson
(Helix: A Speculative Fiction Quarterly, WS & LWE, Ed., Oct06 (Fall06 issue -- #2))

"Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter," by Geoff Ryman (link to Private Edition)
(F&SF, Nov06)

"The Fiddler of Bayou Teche," by Delia Sherman (link to Private Edition)
(Coyote Road, Trickster Tales, Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling, Ed., Viking Juvenile, Jul07)

"Not of this Fold," by William Shunn (link to Private Edition)
(An Alternate History of the 21st Century, Spilt Milk Press, Sep07)

Short Stories

"Unique Chicken Goes In Reverse," by Andy Duncan (link to Private Edition)
(Eclipse 1: New Science Fiction And Fantasy, Jonathan Strahan, Ed., Night Shade Books, Oct07)

"The Padre, the Rabbi, and the Devil His Own Self," by Melanie Fletcher
(Helix: A Speculative Fiction Quarterly, WS & LWE, Ed., Oct06 (Fall06 issue -- #2))

"Always," by Karen Joy Fowler
(Asimov's, May07 (apr/may07 issue))

"For Solo Cello, op. 12," by Mary Robinette Kowal (link to Private Edition)
(Cosmos, Mar07 (Feb/Mar07))

"Titanium Mike Saves the Day," by David D. Levine (link to Private Edition)
(F&SF, Apr07)

"The Story of Love," by Vera Nazarian (link to Private Edition)
(Salt of the Air, Prime Books, Sep06)

"Captive Girl," by Jennifer Pelland
(Helix: A Speculative Fiction Quarterly, WS & LWE, Ed., Oct06 (Fall06 issue -- #2))

Scripts

Children of Men, by Alfonso Cuaron, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Mark Fergus, and Hawk Ostby
(Universal Studios, Dec06)

Pan's Labyrinth, by Guillermo del Toro
(Time/Warner, Jan07)

The Discarded, by Harlan Ellison and Josh Olson (script on Private Edition)
(Masters of Science Fiction, ABC-TV, Apr07)

Blink, by Steven Moffat (script on Private Edition)
(Doctor Who, BBC/The Sci-Fi Channel, Sep07 (Aired on SciFi Channel 14 Sep07))

The Prestige, by Christopher Nolan and Jonathon Nolan
(Newmarket Films, Oct06 (Oct 20, 2006 -- based on the novel by Christopher Priest))

V for Vendetta, by Larry Wachowski and Andy Wachowski
(Warner Films, Mar06 (released 3/17/2006 -- Written by the Wachowski Brothers, based on the graphic novel illustrated by David Lloyd and published by Vertigo/DC Comics))

World Enough and Time, by Marc Scott Zicree and Michael Reaves (script on Private Edition)
(Star Trek: New Voyages, http://www.startreknewvoyages.com, Aug07 (Aired 8/23/07))

Andre Norton Award

Vintage: A Ghost Story, by Steve Berman
(Haworth Positronic Press, Mar07)

Into the Wild, by Sarah Beth Durst
(Penguin Razorbill, Jun07)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling
(Scholastic Press, Jul07)

Flora Segunda: Being the Magickal Mishaps of a Girl of Spirit, Her Glass-Gazing Sidekick, Two Ominous Butlers (One Blue), a House with Eleven Thousand Rooms, and a Red Dog, by Ysabeau S. Wilce
(Harcourt, Jan07)


Note that the Novel, Short Fiction, and Script juries may each add one work to the final ballot in their categories; the Norton jury may add up to three works to the Norton final ballot.