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Hugo Awards - HP:MoR

51 Post author: Eneasz 21 January 2011 07:06PM

This year I'm a supporting member of WorldCon for the first time, and I noticed that the Hugo's have a category for Best Fan Writer ("Any person whose writing has appeared in semiprozines or fanzines or in generally available electronic media during 2010."). I do believe Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality counts, and I plan on nominating it.  Even making it onto the ballot will probably expose it to a wider audience.  Is anyone else here a WorldCon member and thinking of nominating MoR?

Comments (18)

Comment author: Eliezer_Yudkowsky 22 January 2011 12:20:50AM 9 points [-]

I'd planned to try and get HPMOR nominated for Best Novel in the 2011 awards (which will be awarded in 2012). I'm not sure if my personally being nominated for Best Fan Writer makes the work ineligible, or if it would be considered bad sport to try twice.

Comment author: NancyLebovitz 22 January 2011 01:01:00AM 9 points [-]

The same names keep coming up.

I don't know whether Best Fan Writer has ever been given for fiction, but I think that's just habit.

Comment author: Desrtopa 22 January 2011 03:00:13AM 8 points [-]

Does this mean that you expect HPMOR to be completed some time in 2011?

Comment author: orthonormal 22 January 2011 06:33:58AM 4 points [-]

I'd planned

Past tense. I hope you didn't fall prey to the planning fallacy...

Comment author: Airedale 22 January 2011 03:22:59PM *  3 points [-]

I am not an IP lawyer, and this is not legal advice, but isn’t there a risk that successfully placing HPMOR on the Hugo ballot for best novel could attract legal attention from JK Rowling and Co? They previously sued the HP Lexicon when it achieved a higher profile (although that situation included the factor of professional publication and compensation, which is not present here), so they’ve already shown that they’re not adverse to lawsuits in the right instance.

Comment author: HonoreDB 22 January 2011 03:45:33PM 5 points [-]

Shouldn't be a problem, so long as it doesn't get printed, raise money, or devolve into erotica.

Comment author: Airedale 22 January 2011 04:00:03PM *  9 points [-]

Fair point, but that's no guarantee that something as high profile as a Hugo award nomination wouldn't raise flags with the legal team.

Edited to add: Having seen the cost and disruption of litigation from the lawyer's side, I may be more cautious than typical on such matters. But as the article states, JKR still holds the copyright, and even if statements like that in the paper could be used to argue for a safe harbor, I don't think that's a slam dunk response that would automatically get one out of the lawsuit with a minimal expenditure in time and money. Plus ,something like being nominated for a Hugo for Best Novel may still be non-commercial activity (there's no monetary prize), but it's getting closer to the line. [This is still not legal advice.]

Comment author: JoshuaZ 23 January 2011 01:05:14AM 13 points [-]

Shouldn't be a problem, so long as it doesn't get printed, raise money, or devolve into erotica.

So Harry and Hermione working together to rationally optimize sex would be a bad idea then? There goes my idea for a second degree fanfic.

Comment author: PhilGoetz 23 January 2011 06:57:41PM 2 points [-]

You could still put "Hugo-winning author" on future books whether you got Best Fan Writer or Best Novel - and you have a higher probability of getting Best Fan Writer. Remember the Hugos are a popularity contest.

I think I've seen the same work nominated in separate categories in past years. Not sure. Ask Keith Lynch.

Comment author: Raemon 21 January 2011 08:02:40PM 4 points [-]

Not a member, but I'm excited for this possibility.

Comment author: Eneasz 21 January 2011 10:28:31PM 6 points [-]

I found out about this via the sci-fi book club I joined mid last year, and it's actually really cool if you read a lot of sci-fi. For $50 not only do you get to nominate & vote in the final balloting, but you also get a digital copy of every nominated novel, novella, & short story!

Comment author: David_Gerard 22 January 2011 09:31:00AM 0 points [-]

Heh. That'd be worth $50 :-)

Comment author: Vladimir_Nesov 21 January 2011 09:12:59PM 8 points [-]

Does the fact that it's not finished matter? Can this be fixed by officially extracting its part as a "first volume"?

Comment author: Normal_Anomaly 22 January 2011 12:15:13AM *  12 points [-]

If you do call it a "first volume," make sure to put the cutoff right after Ch. 63 "TSPE Aftermaths" if possible. It'll make more sense that way because its the end of an arc.

Comment author: Raemon 22 January 2011 12:44:23AM 6 points [-]

I am in favor of the first volume being standalone, period. I'd rather chapter 64 be listed as chapter 1 of a second work.

Comment author: Eneasz 21 January 2011 10:19:01PM 2 points [-]

That's a good question, I'll look into it and report back. If nothing else, it couldn't hurt.

Comment author: David_Gerard 21 January 2011 10:44:53PM 6 points [-]

As I understand it, that award is usually for fan-based nonfiction commentary and news, rather than for fan fiction. Or has this changed?

Comment author: Quirinus_Quirrell 22 January 2011 09:01:07PM 1 point [-]

Good idea. I'd vote at least once for this.