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This Year's Hugo Nominees Chosen
wrinkledshirt writes "They've announced this year's nominees for the Hugo Awards. Wonder who the next Asimov, Brin, Gibson or [shudder] Rowling is going to be? Find out at Conjose."
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The Hugos are a fan-voted award. So they are, in fact, only based on popularity. Always have been, too.
(The canonical "bad example" is They'd Rather Be Right, generally considered the most forgettable Hugo winning novel.)
She won because she was flavour of the month. Awards such as this would be far better if they were judged and awarded five years after the fact; then it might actually be based on the works themselves.
Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
Nothing is *wrong* with Rowling, per se. I've read and enjoyed all four of the books so far, and I'm anxiously awaiting the fifth. But I was also one of the people who was outraged when she won. Why?
A quick perusal of the list of winners reveals an easy answer. Sure, the Potter books are good, but mostly because, as you said, they're easily accessable. Keeping the list of past winners in mind, giving her the award because she's "technically sound" is crap. Just because someone can manage to tell a decent story doesn't mean they belong on the same list as the forefathers like Clarke, Niven, Heinlein, Dick, and Asimov, or even with some of the newer authors like Gibson or Vinge.
Check the list of winners at Amazon.com and see if it doesn't put her winning in a new light. Personally, this year, I'd like to see Gaiman win, just for overall contribution to the genre.
And as an aside, yes, The Hobbit was written for children, and the differences between it and the full trilogy, for which Tolkien is better known, are astounding. The full trilogy deals with issues of philosophy and delves far deeper into the ideas of good vs. evil than does The Hobbit.
Mark
Anyway, while we're talking about connie willis, can you tell me why "Death on the Nile" one a Hugo for short story? Dreadfully dull story.
Careful, you're dangerously close to sounding like your father. Especially that bit about the music. All you have to do is deride the way kids of today dress and cut their hair and you'll officially qualify for your AARP membership card.
Try reading something new with an open mind, you'll find the books are just as good as ever. I for one am glad SF isn't what it used to be. Why would you want the same ideas recycled by a new generation of writers? I have many favorite books from the past, but the very concept of Science Fiction suggests that as time advances, so should the ideas behind the writing. Your favorite writer may no longer be putting out books, but don't confuse that with the idea that there is no longer any good Science Fiction. A good book is still a good book, no generation has a monopoly on them.
By the way, 20 years from now they'll be some old guy complaining that the current state of Science Fiction is no where near as good as it was back in the good ol' days of 2002.