NEWS | 2013 Prometheus Award Winners Announced

The Libertarian Futurist Society issued a press release on Saturday, July 20th, announcing this year’s winners of the Prometheus Award for Best Libertarian Novel and the Hall of Fame Award.

Best Novel

Winner

• Cory Doctorow, Pirate Cinema

Finalists

• Tobias S. Buckell, Arctic Rising (review)
• Dani Kollin and Eytan Kollin, The Unincorporated Future
• Sarah Hoyt, Darkship Renegades
• Daniel Suarez. Kill Decision

Hall of Fame

Winner

• Neal Stephenson, Cryptonomicon

Finalists

• Poul Anderson, “Sam Hall” (in Going for Infinity)
• Lois McMaster Bujold, Falling Free
• Harlan Ellison, “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman” (PDF)
• Donald M. Kingsbury, Courtship Rite
• Rudyard Kipling, “As Easy as A.B.C.”

My thoughts on the results briefly: I still wish actual libertarian authors would win more often. Step up, people!

There are a number of familiar names listed here, including past winners Cory Doctorow, Sarah Hoyt, Dani and Eytan Kollin, Neal Stephenson, Poul Anderson, and Donald M. Kingsbury.

Tobias S. Buckell, Daniel Suarez, Lois McMaster Bujold, Harlan Ellison, and Rudyard Kipling have been finalists before.

In other words, no newcomers made it to finalist this year. I hope this doesn’t become a trend and that fresh talent is not being overlooked.

I haven’t read Pirate Cinema, but I have reviewed three of Doctorow’s previous novels: Little Brother (2009 winner), Makers (2010 finalist), and For the Win (2011 finalist). I hope that Doctorow was able to sustain his radical momentum through the end of the book this time around, but if he follows the pattern set in these other books I expect Pirate Cinema to have a rather milquetoast ending as well. I hope I’m wrong, because it won and it deals with timely and important issues surrounding civil liberties, intellectual property, and resistance.

The Unincorporated Future is the third novel in a trilogy; check out Konrad Graf’s review of the first, The Unincorporated Man.

We welcome submissions reviewing the winners, finalists, and even nominees for the Prometheus Awards, past and present.

What are your thoughts on the winners and finalists? Do you think they are deserving of the recognition they received? Was anything overlooked this year?

~*~

Read the full press release below.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, July 20, 2013

2013 PROMETHEUS WINNERS ANNOUNCED

The Libertarian Futurist Society has announced the Prometheus Awards winners for Best Novel and Best Classic Fiction (Hall of Fame), to be presented Friday Aug. 30, 2013 at LoneStarCon3, the 71st Annual World Science Fiction Convention in San Antonio, Texas.

Cory Doctorow won the award for Best Novel for Pirate Cinema (TOR Books). Doctorow also won the Best Novel award in 2009 for Little Brother. Doctorow explores themes of artistic freedom, Internet freedom and peaceful social change while shedding light on issues of copyright and government surveillance in Pirate Cinema, an optimistic young-adult novel about a young pirate filmmaker whose Internet activity threatens his family with government reprisals and who learns to fight back against outdated forms of control.

Cryptonomicon, a 1999 novel by Neal Stephenson, has won the 2013 Prometheus Hall of Fame award for Best Classic Fiction. Set during World War II and during the early 21st century, Stephenson’s novel explores the implications for a free society in the development of computation and cryptography.

At its award ceremony to be held at 1pm on Friday, August 30th at the WorldCon in San Antonio, the Libertarian Futurist Society will present a plaque and one-ounce gold coin to Cory Doctorow. A smaller gold coin and a plaque will be presented to Neal Stephenson.

Also recognized as Best Novel finalists for the best pro-freedom novel of the past year are Arctic Rising, by Tobias Buckell (TOR Books); The Unincorporated Future, by Dani and Eytan Kollin (TOR Books); Darkship Renegades, by Sarah Hoyt (Baen Books); and Kill Decision, by Daniel Suarez (Dutton – Penguin).

Also recognized as Hall of Fame finalists: “Sam Hall”, by Poul Anderson (a short story, published 1953 in Astounding); Falling Free, by Lois McMaster Bujold (a novel, published 1988); “‘Repent, Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman”, by Harlan Ellison (a short story, published 1965 in Galaxy); Courtship Rite, by Donald M. Kingsbury (a novel, published 1982); and “As Easy as A.B.C.”, by Rudyard Kipling (a short story, published in London Magazine in 1912).

The Prometheus Award, sponsored by the Libertarian Futurist Society (LFS), was established in 1979, making it one of the most enduring awards after the Nebula and Hugo awards, and one of the oldest fan-based awards currently in SF. Presented annually since 1982 at the World Science Fiction Convention, the Prometheus Awards include a gold coin and plaque for the winners. The Prometheus awards for Best Novel, Best Classic Fiction (Hall of Fame), and (occasional) Special Awards honor outstanding science fiction and fantasy that explores the possibilities of a free future, champions human rights (including personal and economic liberty), dramatizes the perennial conflict between individuals and coercive governments, or critiques the tragic consequences of abuse of power–especially by the State.

The LFS is announcing the winning works before the ceremony so that fans of the works and the writers can begin to make plans for attending the awards ceremonies. Anyone interested in more information about the awards ceremony or other LFS activities at LoneStarCon3 can send email to programming@lfs.org.

Publishers who wish to submit novels published in 2013 for the 2014 Best Novel award should contact Michael Grossberg, Chair of the LFS Prometheus Awards Best Novel Finalist judging committee online at BestNovelChair@lfs.org domain or via postal mail at 3164 Plymouth Place, Columbus OH 43213.

The Hall of Fame, established in 1983, focuses on older classic fiction, including novels, novellas, short stories, poems and plays. Past Hall of Fame award winners range from Robert Heinlein and Ayn Rand to Ray Bradbury and Ursula LeGuin.

Founded in 1982, the Libertarian Futurist Society sponsors the annual Prometheus Award and Prometheus Hall of Fame; publishes reviews, news and columns in the quarterly “Prometheus”; arranges annual awards ceremonies at the WorldCon; debates libertarian futurist issues (such as private space exploration); and provides fun and fellowship for libertarian SF fans. All members of the LFS are eligible to nominate eligible works for its awards, and to vote on the Hall of Fame. Full members are eligible to vote on the Best Novel.

A list of past winners of LFS awards can be found on the LFS web site at www.lfs.org.

For more information, contact LFS Board President William H. Stoddard (president@lfs.org); Programming coordinator Fran Van Cleave (programming@lfs.org); or Publicity Chair Chris Hibbert (publicity@lfs.org domain).