Nominations for the 2018 BSFA Awards are now open! Visit the nominations page for details of how to take part.

This year we’re making a change to the BSFA Award rules for Best Novel. To bring it into line with all the other awards, we are dropping the publication location requirement for novels. Previously novels were only eligible if they were published for the first time in the UK or Ireland (or solely in e-book format). From this year, novels are eligible in the year of their first publication, regardless of where they were published.

Because occasionally a book can still be hard to find in the UK when it’s only been published elsewhere, novels may also be eligible in the year of their first UK/Ireland publication, at the awards administrator’s discretion.

We’re making this change for several reasons, but in general terms we’re doing it to keep awards eligibility in line with the books that British fans are reading and talking about. Publishing availability has changed dramatically since the rule was written. Books published only in the US are now much more widely available in the UK, which means some books never get a formal UK publication even though they’re really easy to get hold of in the UK. Publishing models are also changing, and it’s getting harder and harder to tell what “counts” as UK publication.

And of course it isn’t the big names who are affected by this, which means that as a side-effect we’re narrowing our focus unnecessarily and ruling out some really great books, often by British authors or authors living and working in Britain. That’s the main motivation behind this change; we want to keep the novel award as relevant and interesting as the novels we’re all reading.

As the nights draw in, it’s time to cast your mind back and help us decide on the best works published in 2017. Nominations for your favourite SF or fantasy novels, short stories, artworks, and non-fiction are open until 31st December 2017. The voting form and the small print are here: https://www.bsfa.co.uk/bsfa-awards/nominate-for-the-bsfa-awards/ or you can email your nominations (4 per category) to awards@bsfa.co.uk

You must be a member of the BSFA in order to take part in award nominations and voting. You can join or renew here: https://www.bsfa.co.uk/join-the-bsfa/ , or email the Membership Secretary to check your status (membership@bsfa.co.uk).

Traditionally, we have a celebratory BSFA Awards Booklet appearing every year just before Eastercon (Mancunicon this year), but alas this year’s publication is not likely to reach your postbox ‘til week commencing 20^th March, so in an effort to encourage all members of the BSFA (and Mancunicon attendees) to vote in the Awards, we’d like to encourage you to read as much of these as you can online…

We would also encourage you to vote online if possible, and the voting form can be found here: https://www.bsfa.co.uk/bsfa-2015-awards-voting-form/

A reminder of all short-listed nominees, and where to find them:

Best Novel

Mother of Eden by Chris Beckett (Corvus):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mother-Eden-Dark-Book-ebook/dp/B00V2JSTW4/

The House of Shattered Wings by Aliette de Bodard (Gollancz):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/House-Shattered-Wings-Aliette-Bodard/dp/1473212553/

Europe at Midnight by Dave Hutchinson (Solaris):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Europe-Midnight-Fractured-Sequence-Book-ebook/dp/B015G5LCNC/

Luna by Ian McDonald (Gollancz):
www.amazon.co.uk/Luna-New-Moon-Ian-McDonald/dp/1473202248/

Glorious Angels by Justina Robson (Gollancz):
www.amazon.co.uk/Glorious-Angels-Justina-Robson-ebook/dp/B00NT7YOK8/

Best Short Story

“Three Cups of Grief, by Starlight” by Aliette de Bodard (Clarkesworld 100):
http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/debodard_01_15/

“Witches of Lychford” by Paul Cornell (Tor.com):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Witches-Lychford-Paul-Cornell-ebook/dp/B00WDVSN5I
excerpt: http://www.tor.com/2015/07/29/excerpts-witches-of-lychford-paul-cornell/

“No Rez” by Jeff Noon (Interzone 260):
http://ttapress.com/1888/no-rez-by-jeff-noon/

“Binti” by Nnedi Okorafor (Tor.com):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Binti-Nnedi-Okorafor-ebook/dp/B00Y7RWXHU/
excerpt: http://www.tor.com/2015/08/17/excerpts-binti-nnedi-okorafor/

“Ride the Blue Horse” by Gareth L. Powell (online Matter magazine):
https://medium.com/matter/ride-the-blue-horse-7c617871ed54#.10879i1fm

** the full text of all of the above stories will appear in the BSFA Awards Booklet **

Best Non-Fiction

“Time Pieces: Doctor Change or Doctor Die” by Nina Allan (Interzone 261):
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Interzone-Nov-Dec-Science-Fiction-Magazine-ebook/dp/B01861SOCA/

Letters to Tiptree by Alisa Krasnostein and Alexandra Pierce (Twelfth Planet Press):
www.amazon.co.uk/Letters-Tiptree-Alexandra-Pierce-ebook/dp/B014WF9Z86/

“What Price Your Critical Agency” by Jonathan McCalmont (Ruthless Culture blog):
http://ruthlessculture.com/2015/07/08/what-price-your-critical-agency/

Rave and Let Die: The SF and Fantasy of 2014 by Adam Roberts (Steel Quill Books):
http://ruthlessculture.com/2015/07/08/what-price-your-critical-agency/

“From Annihilation to Acceptance: A Writer’s Surreal Journey” by Jeff Vandermeer (The Atlantic, January 2015):
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/01/from-annihilation-to-acceptance-a-writers-surreal-journey/384884/

** there are extended excerpts from Letters to Tiptree and Rave and Let Die in the BSFA Awards Booklet, alongside the full text of all of the articles mentioned above **

Best Artwork

Jim Burns for the cover of Pelquin’s Comet (Newcon Press):
http://www.ianwhates.co.uk/uncategorized/a-new-novel-pelquins-comet/

Vincent Sammy for the short story, “Songbird” in Interzone 257:
http://karbonk.deviantart.com/art/SONGBIRD-515008463

Sarah Anne Langton for the cover of Jews Versus Zombies (Jurassic London):
http://www.jurassic-london.com/jews-vs-zombies.html

Once again, we’d like to encourage you to vote sooner rather than later if you can. Thank you!