If you, like me, didn’t notice, the 2020 Hugo Award shortlist went up almost a month ago.
Like so many other events, the 2020 Worldcon in New Zealand, where the Hugo’s are being handed out, are cancelled due to Covid-19. However, a virtual con and award ceremony is being arranged instead.
And like most other years, I haven’t read nearly enough of the Hugo finalists. The only ones I’m absolutely certain I’ve read are the Ted Chiang stories (which I commented on here). The finalist field includes some very strong contenders, though, which are going straight on my to-read list. The Best Novelette category looks especially strong with contenders like N.K. Jemisin, Sarah Pinsker, and Caroline M. Yoachim.
S.L. Huang’s short story “As the Last I May Know” also looks very interesting. And if you’re contemplating getting into reading short stories, the Hugo Awards Best Short Story and Best Semi Prozine categories are great places to start (the hugo nominations don’t use the more common SFWA distinction between pro and non-pro paying magazines, so even though the category is called semi-pro, these are some of the top paying markets, publishing some of the best stories out there).
Toby Backman 