Seething about the 2023 Dragon Awards - Worst People in Fandom upset people have a vote

[Boston Brand]

For those out of the loop, this is the last week to vote in the Dragon Awards, one of the big genre fiction awards, and one of the few open to public voting.

Here are the nominees:

1. Best Science Fiction Novel
Eversion by Alastair Reynolds
The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal
Children of Memory by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Translation State by Ann Leckie
Neom by Lavie Tidhar
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Icarus Plot by Timothy Zahn

2. Best Fantasy Novel (Including Paranormal)
The Witch King by Martha Wells
Tower of Silence by Larry Correia
Babel by R. F. Kuang
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson
Into the Vortex by Charles E. Gannon
The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake

3. Best Young Adult / Middle Grade Novel
The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik
The Scratch Daughters by H. A. Clarke
Rust in the Root by Justina Ireland
Academy Arcanist by Shami Stovall
Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong
Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn

4. Best Alternate History Novel
Lost In Time by A.G. Riddle
Hidden Voices by Dan Willis
Halcyon by Elliot Ackerman
The Mother by B.L. Blanchard
The Revolutionary War by Christopher G. Nuttall

5. Best Horror Novel
The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias
Reluctant Immortals by Gwendolyn Kiste
A House With Good Bones by T. Kingfisher
No Gods For Drowning by Hailey Piper
The Pallbearers Club by Paul Tremblay
The Only One Left by Riley Sager

6. Best Illustrative Cover
Ashes of Man by Kieran Yanner
River of Ashes by Sam Shearon
But Not Broken by Cedar Sanderson
Titan Mage: Apocalypse by Jackson Tjota
Tower of Silence by Kurt Miller
Wraithbound by Jeff Brown

7. Best Comic Book or Graphic Novel
Dune: House Harkonnen by Brian Herbert, Kevin J Anderson, Michael Shelfer
Kaya by Wes Craig
Dawn of DC: Green Arrow by Joshua Williamson, Sean Izaakse
Wolverine by Benjamin Percy, Juan Jose Ryp
X-Men by Gerry Duggan, Joshua Cassara
Night Fever by Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, Jacob Phillips

8. Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series, TV or Internet
Andor, Disney+
The Last of Us, HBO
The Sandman, Netflix
Strange New Worlds, Paramount+
The Mandalorian, Disney+
Picard, Paramount+
House of the Dragon, HBO

9. Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Movie
Avatar: The Way of Water by James Cameron
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves by Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley
Everything Everywhere All at Once by Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert
Guardians of the Galaxy 3 by James Gunn
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish by Joel Crawford
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson

10. Best Digital Game
Diablo IV, Blizzard Entertainment
Hogwarts Legacy, Avalanche Software
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Respawn Entertainment
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Nintendo EPD
Overwatch 2, Blizzard Entertainment
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, Infinity Ward

11. Best Tabletop Game
Frosthaven, Cephalofair Games
Earth, Inside Up Games
Magic the Gathering: The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth, Wizards of the Coast
Dorfromantik – The Boardgame, Pegasus Spiele
Turing Machine, Scorpion Masque
Alien Role-playing Game: Heart of Darkness, Free League

Now a few rock solid choices made it to the ballot, so naturally, all the worst people in fandom are pissed, be it John Scalzi or Mike Glyer/File 770, Cora Buhlert, and Camelstros Flapaton. They're digging up the ghost of Sad Puppies and Gamergate becaus quite a few non SFWA endorsed books made the ballot.

Naturally I'm all about pissing them off as much as possible, and seeing if we can't get enough votes to push the most SFWA-unfriendly books over the top.

Please help me make John Scalzi cry.

For anyone who wants to vote, and perhaps have the maximum amount of upset SFWA members?

You can request a ballot here, and vote accordingly:
1. Best Science Fiction Novel
The Icarus Plot by Timothy Zahn

2. Best Fantasy Novel (Including Paranormal)
Tower of Silence by Larry Correia

3. Best Young Adult / Middle Grade Novel
Academy Arcanist by Shami Stovall

4. Best Alternate History Novel
Hidden Voices by Dan Willis

5. Best Horror Novel
The Pallbearers Club by Paul Tremblay

6. Best Illustrative Cover
Wraithbound by Jeff Brown

7. Best Comic Book or Graphic Novel
Dune: House Harkonnen by Brian Herbert, Kevin J Anderson, Michael Shelfer

8. Best Science Fiction or Fantasy TV Series, TV or Internet
House of the Dragon, HBO

9. Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Movie
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish by Joel Crawford

10. Best Digital Game
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Nintendo EPD

11. Best Tabletop Game
Frosthaven, Cephalofair Games

 

[Mexican_Wizard_711]

I don't know who any of those people are but I hope Larry Correia wins

 

[Mikoyan]

Also the seethe potential if Hogwarts Legacy wins the vidya award.

 

[Peanut Butter in Peril]

Best science fiction novel is a category and Fatrick doesn't have a book in the running? Maybe if our favorite niggeroni producer wasn't dodging debt collection he could've written a book to get such a prestigious award.

 

[Saddam Hussain Obama]

The only science fiction writers I know are Vox Day, Patrick Tomlinson, and Phillip K. Dick.

 

[BoomerSperg1922]

Hold up, isn't that Zahn book old? Really, really old? Oh nevermind, apparently Icarus Hunt turned into a series and I never knew. His name along with Correia and Sanderson are (along with Scalzi, who fortunately doesnt appear to be listed) the only author's names that I recognized at a glance. Though to be fair I am really bad at remembering the names of authors I haven't read recently.

I actually hated every television series they listed. Earlier seasons of the mandalorian were good but everything else on the list (aside from last of us, which I didn't watch because I hate zombie stuff and Andor which I skipped because I'm simply done with starslop) was bad.

 

[Hazard Crab]

Please help me make John Scalzi cry.

I'm doing my part!

Best science fiction novel is a category and Fatrick doesn't have a book in the running? Maybe if our favorite niggeroni producer wasn't dodging debt collection he could've written a book to get such a prestigious award.

Your eyes are lying to you, stalker child. Fat is, and always has been, in the running and has received many dragon awards in the mail. His wife assure him their massive girth and bright colors are a recognition of his unique contribution to the genre. You have been instructed numerous times to cease observing these ballot entries. Continuing to do so constitutes felony voting for things.

 

[BoobWhiskers]

Since I'm an art sperg I had to go look at the nominees for Best Cover Art and god it's fucking embarrassing. I don't know if the rule was 'nominate yourself' and most of the good artists were too embarrassed to be that self-important or if the rule was that it could only be self-published books that the writers furnished art for by any means necessary, but...

Dragoncon (and fantasy/scifi in general) are both known for good art. Really good art. It's where tons of top end artists got their start, guys like Brom and Todd Lockwood and about a billion others. So I was expecting really top end stuff.

I did not get it.

One legitimately pretty cover. Two or three 'perfectly serviceable if not very imaginative' covers. And then we get to shit like...


Now mind you, its a lot better than the rest of my picks here, but holy shit is it "I got a commission of my OC on Deviantart" for a 'harem fantasy adventure'. I think it's self-published Amazon e-book fapfiction ad the title is not helping with that, but hey, the tiddy looks alright so there's that at least.

'I too can download a Sketchfab model'. The artist claimed there were four versions of this picture and I can't even imagine what they look like if THIS was the most exciting one.

And finally,

Which I'm sure will win because the it hits the sweet spot of weebshit+muhtrauma (it's a 'stories of trauma' anthology) that the Alphabet People drool over, but it's also an absolute travesty of graphic design + MidJourney AI by a 'lady' who is either a troon or breathtakingly ugly.
Her actual art prior to the release of MidJourney looks like this:

Similarly, in the vein of AI desperately trying to fix ugly reality, please enjoy her pfp vs her face and help solve my dilemma, troon or dumpy middleaged romance novelist trying to cope.



Dragoncon is not sending their best. I'll take my stickers now.

 

[Mikoyan]

Which I'm sure will win because the it hits the sweet spot of weebshit+muhtrauma (it's a 'stories of trauma' anthology) that the Alphabet People drool over, but it's also an absolute travesty of graphic design + MidJourney AI by a 'lady' who is either a troon or breathtakingly ugly.
Her actual art prior to the release of MidJourney looks like this:

I wish the trend of looking at kintsugi as 'omg it's totally my trauma and perseverence personified' when they can't get out of bed half the time would end. Also the 'system' motherfuckers have adopted it as their thing which those people are insufferable.

But more importantly, is that MidJo? Like I thought all of the SF/F nerds had closed ranks and gone NO AI REEEEE, so I'm shocked that would be allowed in the competition. Actually kind of an important question here.

And I'll vote 'ugly'. Pam isn't a troon name, equestrian picture: actual girls love horses (not like that you weirdo), and some other things.

 

[Boston Brand]

Ironically, that Kurt Miller cover you pointed out won for best illustrative cover - though not his best, Miller has been a cover illustrator for 20 years, and genuinely wept upon winning, so I'm happy for him.

Plus, much seething over a Baen title winning. TWICE.

Which is far smaller than the seething over Timothy Zahn's The Icarus Plot winning Best Scifi Novel. There is a ton of cope over how "it has no Goodreads reviews how can anyone have voted for it" and "Its just caryover from his Star Wars fans".

They're pissed aside from horror, the SFWA/Wokie slate mostly got rebuked.

Don't worry SFWA! The Hugos are in October, and you can pretend your dildo statues that are literally paid for this year in Chinese blood reflect reality.

 

[Mikoyan]

Ironically, that Kurt Miller cover you pointed out won for best illustrative cover - though not his best, Miller has been a cover illustrator for 20 years, and genuinely wept upon winning, so I'm happy for him.

Plus, much seething over a Baen title winning. TWICE.

Which is far smaller than the seething over Timothy Zahn's The Icarus Plot winning Best Scifi Novel. There is a ton of cope over how "it has no Goodreads reviews how can anyone have voted for it" and "Its just caryover from his Star Wars fans".

They're pissed aside from horror, the SFWA/Wokie slate mostly got rebuked.

Don't worry SFWA! The Hugos are in October, and you can pretend your dildo statues that are literally paid for this year in Chinese blood reflect reality.

Having not paid much attention since the aforementioned Star Wars novels - which should've been the second trilogy - why don't they like Zahn, is he unexpectedly based or something?

 

[Boston Brand]

Having not paid much attention since the aforementioned Star Wars novels - which should've been the second trilogy - why don't they like Zahn, is he unexpectedly based or something?

Aside from his Star Wars novels, nearly all of his books are published by Baen Books, a publisher whom lefty scifi hates with the passion of a thousand suns.

Also? His victory undercuts their giant push for lefty/female/ethnic fiction as the dominant style of the genre. They really wanted Silvia Moreno Garcia to win... and instead a fun space adventure by a white guy won.

Thus the seething and claiming its jsut because people like Star Wars. It couldn't be people actually like this stuff more than the party line, right?

Honestly, as I said in the Star Wars thread, damn near everyone owes to to themselves to read some kf Tim Zahn's non Star Wars books. The Icarus Plot is the first in a new series with book two out in December. Cobra, the first book in a ten book military scifi series is literally FREE on the Baen website. The man is more than just Thrawn and Mara Jade, and I'm happy to see him get some glory for it.

 

[BoobWhiskers]

But more importantly, is that MidJo? Like I thought all of the SF/F nerds had closed ranks and gone NO AI REEEEE, so I'm shocked that would be allowed in the competition. Actually kind of an important question here.

Almost certainly Midjourney, which surprises me too considering the context here. Her own photoshop is more on par with that horse cover I posted and extremely clumsy. Right about when Midjourney gets popular, she starts posting a whole bunch of stuff on Insta using it (tagged as Midjourney), and it's what she does for every subsequent one of these anthologies-with-bad-graphic-design story collections she seems to post with some frequency.
I do wonder what the rules for the contest were. I'm just happy that the most conceptually annoying cover didn't win tbh, so a win's a win.

Ironically, that Kurt Miller cover you pointed out won for best illustrative cover - though not his best, Miller has been a cover illustrator for 20 years, and genuinely wept upon winning, so I'm happy for him.

Christ alive, did it really? I'm glad if it went to a guy who really appreciated it, and that is heartwarming to hear, but... damn. I would not have pegged the guy as a professional illustrator beyond self-publishing circles. If he's a longtime artist I could see him being a crowd favorite on that alone though.

Spoiler: art sperging about book illustration

I looked at his body of work and even setting aside the fact that uncanny-valley 3d modeling isn't my cup of tea, the effect it has on his work is absolutely disastrous; there's no hierarchy of detail because it's all rendered out to the same jarring artificial sharpness, and he likes compositions with ten thousand things shoved in there.
I can definitely see that he got his start(?) doing box art for nineties PC strategy games, it definitely has that feel, but God, even doing some strategic paintover of the 3d models would help a LOT. His best pictures by far are the ones where he just tones things the fuck down a little in terms of not needing a space marine and explosions and blackjack and hookers in the background of absolutely everything.

Idk, fantasy art is such an incredibly saturated-with-talent market that I'm really mystified what the process was for picking any of this stuff. Just pick up literally any copy of Spectrum (less faggy than it sounds, it's an annual of fantasy illustration, much of it the commercial work) and its like 2000 images that belong in an awards ceremony over whatever the hell these were.