Artwork for "The Never Never Wizard of Apalachicola" by Hugo Award finalist Julie Dillon.
In which I continue my recommendations for this year's Hugo Awards.
Best Related Work
My recommendation: Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction by Jeff VanderMeer, with Jeremy Zerfoss.
Seriously, have you seen this book? It's beautiful. It's innovative. It's the freshest take on how to write imaginative fiction I've seen in years. Hell, I wish I'd had this book when I was young. It'll be exciting to see what the new writers inspired by this book create in the coming decades.
Best Professional Artist
My recommendation: Julie Dillon
I first discovered the art of Julie Dillon when she illustrated my story "The Never Never Wizard of Apalachicola." The artwork, which you can see above, not only perfectly captured the mix of science fiction and fantasy in my story, it also knocked my brain out of my head before feeding me new beliefs about what genre artwork could accomplish. You can check out more of Julie's artwork on her website.
Best Fanzine
My recommendation: Journey Planet, edited by James Bacon, Christopher J Garcia, Lynda E. Rucker, Pete Young, Colin Harris, and Helen J. Montgomery.
Journey Planet had a great 2013, releasing four issues well worth reading, including a special issue (Number 16) focused on Philip K. Dick. You can download all of their issues here.
Best Fancast
My recommendation: The Skiffy and Fanty Show, Shaun Duke, Jen Zink, Julia Rios, Paul Weimer, David Annandale, Mike Underwood, and Stina Leicht.
Yeah, I'm totally biased in this selection — evidently I was the first guest ever to appear on the Skiffy and Fanty Show. But don't hold that against Shaun and Jen and everyone else. The Skiffy and Fanty Show is what a fancast should be. It's unscripted, unpredictable and full of opinionated, outspoken hosts and guests who demand you listen to their every word. You can listen to the shows here.
My previous Hugo Award recommendations