{"id":2665,"date":"2019-02-25T19:45:05","date_gmt":"2019-02-25T19:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/johnpicacio.com\/onthefront\/?p=2665"},"modified":"2019-02-25T20:15:18","modified_gmt":"2019-02-25T20:15:18","slug":"2019-hugo-award-thoughts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/johnpicacio.com\/onthefront\/2019\/02\/25\/2019-hugo-award-thoughts\/","title":{"rendered":"2019 Hugo Award Thoughts"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>There\u2019s a new Hugo Award<\/a> category this year. It\u2019s called \u201cBest Art Book\u201d \u2014 not to be confused with \u201cBest Graphic Story\u201d.\n

And yet, I suspect some will confuse the two, so I\u2019ll offer how I\u2019m clarifying my own ballot selections, choosing from works released in 2018.<\/p>\n

If a book tells a story with pictures carrying the narrative (with or without words) \u2014 whether that be comics, big illustration \/ word spreads, pictures and words as call-and-response, or pictures alone \u2014 then consider it under \u201cGraphic Story\u201d.<\/p>\n

If a book is a folio of pictures without story, and the words are nothing more than museum text stating the title of the picture and not much more \u2014 then consider it under \u201cBest Art Book\u201d.<\/p>\n

So for instance, Shaun Tan\u2019s Tales from the Inner City<\/em><\/a> (published by Scholastic \/ Arthur A. Levine Books) and Jeffrey Alan Love\u2019s The Thousand Demon Tree<\/em><\/a> (published by Flesk) both tell complete visual stories. Tan\u2019s features more prose, but the interplay with his pictures is essential to the storytelling. Remove either, and you have a very different animal. On the other hand, Love\u2019s story is wordless and builds a dynamic, evocative tale. Both works belong under \u201cBest Graphic Story\u201d.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, illustration annuals such as Infected By Art, Volume 6<\/em><\/a> (edited by Todd Spoor and Bill Cox \/ published by Art Order) fit perfectly in the Best Art Book category. So do single artist folios such as Beyond Science Fiction: The Alternative Realism of Michael Whelan<\/em><\/a> (published by Baby Tattoo Books), which is essentially a \u2018greatest hits collection\u2019 of the one of sf\/f\u2019s most influential visual artists. These books are not works of storytelling, so much as essential visual showcases. So go with \u201cBest Art Book\u201d for selections like these.<\/p>\n

Hopefully that helps!<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve got a couple of other Hugo-related suggestions, in other categories.<\/p>\n

THE JOHN W. CAMPBELL AWARD FOR BEST NEW WRITER:<\/strong><\/em> Remember that there is a growing wave of creators who are both artist and author, debuting with dynamic and deserving story works. Gregory Manchess\u2019 Above The Timberline<\/em><\/a> released in 2017, but because it\u2019s his debut as a writer, that would mean 2019 is his final year of eligibility for this award because new writers have two years of eligibility for this recognition. Same goes for Armand Baltazar\u2019s Timeless<\/em><\/a>, a 600-page(!!) graphic epic. Both stories required years in the making, and are singular works poised to stand the test of time. Both writers are deserving of consideration in the John W. Campbell category and shouldn\u2019t be forgotten because they wrote stories that weave pictures with words.
\n $\"The$
\nBEST RELATED WORK:<\/strong><\/em> Finally, I will humbly offer that on the morning after Mexican actress Yalitza Aparicio became only the second Mexican woman to ever be nominated for the Best Actress Oscar, the 2019 Hugo Awards have a chance to make history as well. Editor Julia Rios has curated an amazing website: www.mexicaninitiative.com \/ The Mexicanx Initiative Experience at Worldcon 76<\/a>. It crystallizes the groundbreaking Mexicanx Initiative that brought 42 all-star creators together for the first time, opening the door to a new wave of Mexicanx sf\/f. That website grants (free of charge) access to exclusive words and images from these creators, as well as Libia Brenda\u2019s stunning anthology A Larger Reality \/ Una Realidad M\u00e1s Amplia<\/em>, which debuted at Worldcon 76<\/a>.
\n
\nTHE OFFICIAL ENTRY BEING OFFERED FOR HUGO AWARD CONSIDERATION IN THE BEST RELATED WORK CATEGORY IS:
\nwww.mexicanxinitiative.com \/ The Mexicanx Initiative Experience at Worldcon 76
\n(Julia Rios, Libia Brenda Castro, Pablo Defendini, John Picacio)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Full disclosure: Julia and Libia have asked that Pablo and I be included in the entry because Pablo created the site, and I founded the M.I.<\/em><\/p>\n

If nominated, Libia would become the first Mexican woman ever nominated for a Hugo Award in its 77-year history \u2014 a ceiling long overdue<\/em> to be shattered.<\/strong><\/p>\n

BEST PROFESSIONAL ARTIST:<\/strong> And yes \u2014 in case you\u2019re wondering if I\u2019m eligible for Best Professional Artist \u2014 I am!<\/a> But I\u2019m curious who else you\u2019re considering in this category. I\u2019m wondering if I should do a blog post down the road on this.<\/p>\n

On that note \u2014 any suggestions in the Best Art Book and Best Graphic Story categories? Any other artist \/ authors that should be considered for the Campbell? Let me know. Happy Nominating! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"