Hugo
Entry updated 16 September 2024. Tagged: Award.
The annual awards given by the World SF Society, comprising members of the Worldcon. The awards were originally known as the Science Fiction Achievement Awards while affectionately termed Hugos in honour of Hugo Gernsback; the name was officially changed to the Hugo Awards when the US authorities declined to allow a service mark on the original name. Hugos were first awarded at the 1953 World SF Convention (see Worldcon); the idea was then dropped for a year (1954), but since 1955 the awards have been annual. They have always been fan-voted awards as opposed to, say, the Nebula or Philip K Dick Award, which are voted on by different categories of professional reader. The original idea, from fan Hal Lynch, was based on the National Film Academy Awards (Oscars). The award takes the form of a rocketship mounted upright on fins. The first model was designed and produced by Jack McKnight; from 1955 a similar design by Ben Jason has normally been used. The rockets have been cast since 1984 (except 1991) in Birmingham, UK, at the foundry of prominent fan Peter Weston; in 1992 they were gold-plated to celebrate the 50th Worldcon, and again in 2003 for the 50th anniversary of the first presentation. The base of the trophy is different every year, with modern Worldcons normally running a competition for the best design.
Awards are made in several categories, which have varied in definition and number from year to year. They are given primarily for fiction, but categories for editing, artwork, film and television, fan writing and illustration have also been included. The rules governing awards are made, and often remade, at Worldcon business meetings, held annually. Occasional special awards are made by Worldcon committees, but these are not generally actual Hugos. The exception is that each Worldcon committee has the right to add one additional category. This power is usually used for trials of proposed new categories.
Works with a specific publication date, such as fiction or dramatic presentations, are normally eligible for Hugos if published in the year before the presenting Worldcon. This was not always the case – in 1955, 1956 and 1958 the winners included works first published in the previous and current years – and the general rule of "previous year only" was applied in 1959. Occasional special exceptions were later made to extend eligibility for works not widely distributed in the previous year; for example, published only in the UK when the relevant Worldcon was in the US.
These days voting on the Hugos takes place prior to the convention with voting by post, and more recently online. Early voting regulations tended to change each year; the 1956 awards, for example, were based on a juried shortlist for most categories (except Best Professional Magazine, where no finalists were listed) but allowed write-in votes on the final ballot. Since the late 1960s the system has settled on a two-stage ballot. The first stage, open to members of the previous and current year's Worldcon (and also, from 2012 to 2019 inclusive, the following year's as well), is known as nominations and allows each voter five equally-ranked choices in each category. These are totalled, and the five (or, from 2017 onward, six) works or people with the most nominations in each category go forward to the final ballot. This is conducted using a preferential voting system, often known as the Australian ballot (after the system used in Australian lower-house elections), or Instant Runoff Voting in the USA. The least successful contender's votes are redistributed, using second or subsequent preferences, after each count, until one candidate has a clear majority. The final ballot is open only to members of the current year's Worldcon. It is not necessary to attend the convention to vote – a lower-cost "supporting membership" is available to people unable to afford the travel to wherever Worldcon is being held that year.
Worldcon was traditionally held over the US Labor Day Weekend in September, but more recently has sometimes slipped earlier owing to school holiday timing and competition from Dragon*Con. The Hugos are given for publication or activity in the preceding calendar year. Hence, for example, a novel which wins a 1998 Hugo will have been published in 1997 (though, if it also wins a Nebula, the latter will be known confusingly as the 1997 Nebula). "No award" votes have for many years been permitted, and have resulted occasionally in void classes.
The definitions of the various categories of short fiction have varied. There was no short-fiction award in 1953. In the years 1955-1959 there were only two classes of short fiction: novelette and short story. These were amalgamated from 1960 to 1966 as "short fiction"; few short stories were nominated during this period, and in 1962 Brian W Aldiss uniquely won the short-fiction award for a series, the Hothouse stories (February-December 1961 F&SF). In 1967 the novelette class was reintroduced, and a new class, novella, was included from 1968. In 1970-1972 the only two classes were short story and novella. Since 1973 there have again been three classes of short fiction. Since the early 1970s a novella has been defined as being 17,500 to 40,000 words, a novelette as 7500 to 17,500 words, a short story as any fiction shorter than a novelette and a novel as any fiction longer than a novella.
Since 1971, the Dramatic Presentation category has included recordings. In 2003 this Hugo was split into Long Form and Short Form categories, broadly intended to cover films and individual television episodes respectively, but kept open to allow for things such as direct-to-tv movies, and also to continue to provide eligibility for stage plays, musicals and other dramatic work.
In 1973 the professional-magazine category changed to a professional-editor category, to acknowledge the increasing importance of original Anthologies. In 2007, this Professional Editor category split into Long Form and Short Form, respectively covering editors of novels (who are often uncredited) and editors of short stories/articles in magazines and anthologies.
In 1980 the category of nonfiction book was added, the first award being given to the first edition of this encyclopedia, and subsequent awards have gone to books of criticism, scholarship, artwork, reminiscence and science fact: a category in which Graphic Novels competed with encyclopedias was perhaps too much of a grab-bag; the 1989 Worldcon committee did choose specifically to exclude A Brief History of Time (1988) by Stephen Hawking (1942-2018), causing some slight controversy. The category was then changed to Related Book, indicating that the work merely had to be of interest to fans, not actually about science fiction, and in 2010 to Related Work to indicate that the work need not be a printed book, making it even more of an eclectic catch-all.
Since 1984 the category of Semiprozine has been included, for publications midway between Fanzines and professional magazines. The specific motivation for this change seems to have been to remove Locus – from which the editor earned significant income – from the "amateur" fanzine category. For many years the Hugo rules defined a semiprozine as a publication meeting two or more of five criteria: circulation, paid staff, editor's income, percentage of advertising and self-announcement as a semiprozine. (After its 2002 fanzine win, Ansible declared itself to be a semiprozine and was subsequently shortlisted in that category.) The domination of the Semiprozine category by Locus led to a successful 2008 vote for its abolition; however, following campaigning by semiprozine editors, the decision was reversed rather than being ratified in 2009. The publicity this gave to other semiprozines resulted in Locus failing to win its customary Hugo in 2009, 2010 or 2011; it won again in 2012, but changes to the Hugo definition of semiprozine, ratified at the 2012 Worldcon business meeting, will henceforth exclude Locus since it has full-time paid staff members.
Also in 2008, a new Graphic Novel category was voted into existence and, although this addition could not be ratified (which it was) until 2009, the 2009 Worldcon added Best Graphic Novel as the one additional Hugo category which each event has the option to include.
The Fancast category, for podcasts and similar free Audiozines distributed online, was first presented in 2012, having been passed as a new category in 2011 and – as with Graphic Novel above – introduced as an additional category prior to its ratification in the following year. A still further addition is Series (of novels etc), run as a trial in 2017 and ratified in that year as a permanent addition thereafter.
The Hugos have for many years been subject to criticism on the grounds that awards made by a relatively small, self-selected group of hardcore fans do not necessarily reflect either literary merit or the preferences of the sf reading public generally; hardcore Fandom probably makes up less than one per cent of the general sf readership. Certainly Hugos have tended to be given to traditional Hard SF, and have seldom been awarded to experimental work, but they have been, on the whole, surprisingly eclectic. While many awards have gone to (good but) conservative writers like Poul Anderson, Robert A Heinlein, Clifford D Simak and Larry Niven, they have also been given to such doyens of the New Wave as Harlan Ellison, Roger Zelazny and James Tiptree Jr, and to a number of works of literary excellence which quite fail to conform to the standard patterns of genre expectation, such as Walter M Miller Jr's A Canticle for Leibowitz (April 1955-February 1957 F&SF; fixup dated 1960 but 1959) and Ursula K Le Guin's The Dispossessed (1974). Neither was Fritz Leiber's eccentric The Big Time (March-April 1958 Galaxy; 1961 dos), which won the award before going into book format, a traditionalist selection. The Hugos are also open to, and have been won by, works of Fantasy. This has always been the case, despite semantic arguments based on the old name "Science Fiction Achievement Award"; an outright fantasy by Robert Bloch won the short story category as early as 1959.
The rival award, the Nebula, is chosen by professional writers, but there is no evidence that they have consistently selected works of superior literary merit; indeed, some critics would argue the contrary case, that the Hugo voters have proved themselves marginally the more reliable judges. Though good books are often ignored, and in some years individual awards have seemed strange, the track record of the Hugos has been, on the whole, quite honourable. Another traditional cavil is that both Hugo and Nebula, being US-centred, are notably chauvinistic, with awards to non-US writers being rare. This may still be argued of the Nebulas, which are limited to works published in the USA. The Hugos are, at least in theory, open to works published in any country, and in any language. The arrival of the internet and the regular awarding of the Worldcon to countries other than the US have changed the nature of the awards: British finalists and winners are now frequently seen, as are some Canadians and Australians. Despite the criticisms to which all awards are readily subject, the Hugos are – or at least used to be – of real value to their recipients in increasing book sales.
Up-to-date listings of the rules under which Hugo awards are made can be found in the programme booklets for each Worldcon, as Article 3 of the Constitution of the World Science Fiction Society, and on line at the official website [see under links below]. All members of the upcoming Worldcon are by definition members of the WSFS, whose constitution enshrines the current Worldcon and Hugo procedures. "Hugo Award" is a registered service mark of the WSFS in the USA, UK, and Australia. An official Hugo logo designed by Jeremy Kratz – a stylized representation of the Hugo rocket – was adopted in 2009. This is intended for use on prize-winning books, DVDs and so on [again see under links below].
Having evolved only gradually since times when Fandom and the Worldcon were much smaller, the Hugo nominations process has long been exploitable by targeted attacks and protected only by the traditional sense that such things are not done. One notorious example was the shortlisting of L Ron Hubbard's execrable Black Genesis (1986) in the 1987 Hugos, achieved by a bloc vote of many Scientologists who apparently bought Worldcon memberships for this sole purpose. The bloc-voting tactic was revived in campaigns led by generally right-wing US writers and aimed at the Hugos from 2013 onwards. The problem came to a head in 2015, when organized voting slates demonstrated that a relatively small proportion of nominators picking the same five candidates for each Hugo category could, in many categories, control the final ballot by filling all five available slots. As in 1987, the final Hugo voting for 2015 saw a backlash by the larger Worldcon membership against this perceived gaming of the system, with No Award given in all five categories that had contained only slate nominees: Novella, Short Story, Related Work, Professional Editor (Short Form) and Professional Editor (Long Form). Amendments to the nomination system, designed to reduce the potency of slate voting, were introduced in 2015 and ratified in 2016 before coming into effect for the 2017 awards, in which the effect of slates was much reduced.
Much of the Hugo-winning short fiction, from the first such presentation in 1955 to the mid-1990s, has been assembled in a number of Hugo Anthologies (which see) initially edited by Isaac Asimov and after his death by others. The anthology practice then fell into disuse, though a new selection of 2009 winners and nominees was published in 2010. Since 2008, Worldcon members have been entitled to receive a Voter Packet assembling digital copies (in some cases only excerpts) of those works on the final ballot that publishers have agreed to include. This idea had been anticipated by Brad Templeton (1960- ) with the CD-ROM Hugo and Nebula Anthology 1993 (1993), containing amid much else all the Hugo-nominated fiction and almost all the Nebula nominees. The present form of the Packet was initiated by John Scalzi and its distribution has since become standard procedure for the Worldcon.
The John W Campbell Award for best new writer (renamed the Astounding Award between the 2019 and 2020 ceremonies) has long been presented within the framework of the Hugos, being nominated and voted for by the same World SF Society constituency on the same ballot forms, but is not technically a Hugo. An additional award of similar status for Young Adult fiction was added in 2017 for first presentation in 2018, initially with no distinctive name but from 2019 to be called the Lodestar Award.
A further problem with the Hugos emerged when voting statistics (in recent years normally released on the night of the presentation) were finally revealed 90 days after the 2023 Chengdu Worldcon and proved to contain both statistical impossibilities and several arbitrary disqualifications of well-placed nominees apparently regarded by members of the Hugo administration team as likely to offend Chinese authorities. Affected works included R F Kuang's novel Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence (2022) and the Television adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Comics sequence as The Sandman (2022); Xiran Jay Zhao was similarly barred from the Campbell/Astounding award finalists. Further analysis of the figures, along with leaked emails, suggested that many valid Chinese nominees included in Chinese magazines' recommendation lists were removed en masse as a perceived slate vote, despite the understanding of past administrators that they had no power to intervene in this way. [DRL/PN/CM]
see also: SF Magazines; Women SF Writers.
Novel
- 1953: Alfred Bester, The Demolished Man (January-March 1952 Galaxy; 1953)
- 1955: Mark Clifton and Frank Riley, They'd Rather Be Right (August-November 1954 Astounding; edited version 1957; vt The Forever Machine 1958; text restored under original title 1981)
- 1956: Robert A Heinlein, Double Star (February-April 1956 Astounding; 1956)
- 1957: no award
- 1958: Fritz Leiber, The Big Time (March-April 1958 Galaxy; 1961 dos)
- 1959: James Blish, A Case of Conscience (September 1953 If; exp 1958)
- 1960: Robert A Heinlein, Starship Troopers (October-November 1959 F&SF as "Starship Soldier"; 1959)
- 1961: Walter M Miller Jr, A Canticle for Leibowitz (April 1955-February 1957 F&SF; fixup dated 1960 but 1959)
- 1962: Robert A Heinlein, Stranger in a Strange Land (1961; text restored 1990)
- 1963: Philip K Dick, The Man in the High Castle (1962)
- 1964: Clifford D Simak, Way Station (June-August 1963 Galaxy as "Here Gather the Stars"; 1963)
- 1965: Fritz Leiber, The Wanderer (1964)
- 1966: (tie) Roger Zelazny, "... And Call Me Conrad" (October-November 1965 F&SF; exp vt This Immortal 1966), and Frank Herbert, Dune (fixup 1965)
- 1967: Robert A Heinlein, The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress (December 1965-April 1966 If; 1966)
- 1968: Roger Zelazny, Lord of Light (1967)
- 1969: John Brunner, Stand on Zanzibar (1968)
- 1970: Ursula K Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness (1969)
- 1971: Larry Niven, Ringworld (1970)
- 1972: Philip José Farmer, To Your Scattered Bodies Go (January 1965-March 1966 Worlds of Tomorrow; fixup 1971)
- 1973: Isaac Asimov, The Gods Themselves (March/April-May-June 1972 Galaxy; 1972)
- 1974: Arthur C Clarke, Rendezvous with Rama (1973)
- 1975: Ursula K Le Guin, The Dispossessed (1974)
- 1976: Joe Haldeman, The Forever War (June 1972-January 1975 Analog; fixup 1974)
- 1977: Kate Wilhelm, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang (fixup 1976)
- 1978: Frederik Pohl, Gateway (1977)
- 1979: Vonda N McIntyre, Dreamsnake (fixup 1978)
- 1980: Arthur C Clarke, The Fountains of Paradise (1979)
- 1981: Joan D Vinge, The Snow Queen (1980)
- 1982: C J Cherryh, Downbelow Station (1981)
- 1983: Isaac Asimov, Foundation's Edge (1982)
- 1984: David Brin, Startide Rising (1983)
- 1985: William Gibson, Neuromancer (1984)
- 1986: Orson Scott Card, Ender's Game (August 1977 Analog; much exp 1985)
- 1987: Orson Scott Card, Speaker for the Dead (1986)
- 1988: David Brin, The Uplift War (1987)
- 1989: C J Cherryh, Cyteen (1988)
- 1990: Dan Simmons, Hyperion (1989)
- 1991: Lois McMaster Bujold, The Vor Game (1990)
- 1992: Lois McMaster Bujold, Barrayar (1991)
- 1993: (tie) Vernor Vinge, A Fire Upon the Deep (1992), and Connie Willis, Doomsday Book (1992)
- 1994: Kim Stanley Robinson, Green Mars (1993)
- 1995: Lois McMaster Bujold, Mirror Dance (1994)
- 1996: Neal Stephenson, The Diamond Age (1994)
- 1997: Kim Stanley Robinson, Blue Mars (1996)
- 1998: Joe Haldeman, Forever Peace (1997)
- 1999: Connie Willis, To Say Nothing of the Dog (1997)
- 2000: Vernor Vinge, A Deepness in the Sky (1999)
- 2001: J K Rowling, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000)
- 2002: Neil Gaiman, American Gods (2001)
- 2003: Robert J Sawyer, Hominids (2002)
- 2004: Lois McMaster Bujold, Paladin of Souls (2003)
- 2005: Susanna Clarke, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (2004)
- 2006: Robert Charles Wilson, Spin (2005)
- 2007: Vernor Vinge, Rainbows End (2006)
- 2008: Michael Chabon, The Yiddish Policemen's Union (2007)
- 2009: Neil Gaiman, The Graveyard Book (2008)
- 2010: (tie) China Miéville, The City & The City (2009), and Paolo Bacigalupi, The Windup Girl (2009)
- 2011: Connie Willis, Blackout (2010) and All Clear (2010)
- 2012: Jo Walton, Among Others (2011)
- 2013: John Scalzi, Redshirts (2012)
- 2014: Ann Leckie, Ancillary Justice (2013)
- 2015: Cixin Liu, Santi (May-December 2006 Kehuan Shijie; 2007; trans Ken Liu as The Three-Body Problem 2014)
- 2016: N K Jemisin, The Fifth Season (2015)
- 2017: N K Jemisin, The Obelisk Gate (2016)
- 2018: N K Jemisin, The Stone Sky (2017)
- 2019: Mary Robinette Kowal, The Calculating Stars (2018)
- 2020: Arkady Martine, A Memory Called Empire (2019)
- 2021: Martha Wells, Network Effect (2020)
- 2022: Arkady Martine, A Desolation Called Peace (2021)
- 2023: T Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon), Nettle & Bone (2022)
- 2024: Emily Tesh, Some Desperate Glory (2023)
Series
Introduced as an ongoing category in the 2017 awards. There was a one-off "best all-time series" Hugo presentation to Isaac Asimov for the Foundation sequence in 1966; this newer series award requires a relevant series publication in the previous calendar year.
- 2017: Lois McMaster Bujold, Miles Vorkosigan
- 2018: Lois McMaster Bujold, World of the Five Gods
- 2019: Becky Chambers, Wayfarers
- 2020: Daniel Abraham and Tyler Corey Franck writing together as James S A Corey, The Expanse
- 2021: Martha Wells, The Murderbot Diaries
- 2022: Seanan McGuire, Wayward Children
- 2023: Adrian Tchaikovsky, Children of Time
- 2024: Ann Leckie, Imperial Radch
Short fiction to 1972
- 1955:
- Novelette: Walter M Miller Jr, "The Darfsteller" (January 1955 Astounding)
- Short story: Eric Frank Russell, "Allamagoosa" (May 1955 Astounding)
- 1956:
- Novelette: Murray Leinster, "Exploration Team" (March 1956 Astounding)
- Short story: Arthur C Clarke, "The Star" (November 1955 Infinity Science Fiction)
- 1957: no award
- 1958: Short story: Avram Davidson, "Or All the Seas with Oysters" (May 1958 Galaxy)
- 1959:
- Novelette: Clifford D Simak, "The Big Front Yard" (October 1958 Astounding)
- Short story: Robert Bloch, "That Hell-Bound Train" (September 1958 F&SF)
- 1960: Short fiction: Daniel Keyes, "Flowers for Algernon" (April 1959 F&SF)
- 1961: Short story: Poul Anderson, "The Longest Voyage" (December 1960 Analog)
- 1962: Short fiction: Brian W Aldiss, the Hothouse series (February-December 1961 F&SF)
- 1963: Short fiction: Jack Vance, "The Dragon Masters" (August 1962 Galaxy)
- 1964: Short story: Poul Anderson, "No Truce with Kings" (June 1963 F&SF)
- 1965: Short fiction: Gordon R Dickson, "Soldier, Ask Not" (October 1964 Galaxy)
- 1966: Short fiction: Harlan Ellison, "'Repent, Harlequin!' said the Ticktockman" (December 1965 Galaxy)
- 1967:
- 1968:
- Novella: (tie) Anne McCaffrey, "Weyr Search" (October 1967 Analog), and Philip José Farmer, "Riders of the Purple Wage" (in Dangerous Visions, anth 1967, ed Harlan Ellison)
- Novelette: Fritz Leiber, "Gonna Roll The Bones" (in Dangerous Visions, anth 1967, ed Harlan Ellison)
- Short story: Harlan Ellison, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" (March 1967 If)
- 1969:
- 1970:
- Novella: Fritz Leiber, "Ship of Shadows" (July 1969 F&SF)
- Short story: Samuel R Delany, "Time Considered as a Helix of Semi-Precious Stones" (December 1968 New Worlds)
- 1971:
- Novella: Fritz Leiber, "Ill Met in Lankhmar" (April 1970 F&SF)
- Short story: Theodore Sturgeon, "Slow Sculpture" (February 1970 Galaxy Science Fiction)
- 1972:
Novella from 1973
- 1973: Ursula K Le Guin, "The Word for World is Forest" (in Again, Dangerous Visions, anth 1972, ed Harlan Ellison; 1976)
- 1974: James Tiptree Jr, "The Girl Who Was Plugged In" (in New Dimensions 3, anth 1973, ed Robert Silverberg)
- 1975: George R R Martin, "A Song for Lya" (June 1974 Analog)
- 1976: Roger Zelazny, "Home is the Hangman" (November 1975 Analog)
- 1977: (tie) Spider Robinson, "By Any Other Name" (November 1976 Analog), and James Tiptree Jr, "Houston, Houston, Do You Read?" (in Aurora: Beyond Equality, anth 1976, ed Vonda McIntyre and Susan J Anderson)
- 1978: Spider and Jeanne Robinson, "Stardance" (March 1977 Analog)
- 1979: John Varley, "The Persistence of Vision" (March 1978 F&SF)
- 1980: Barry B Longyear, "Enemy Mine" (September 1979 Asimov's)
- 1981: Gordon R Dickson, "Lost Dorsai" (February 1980 Destinies)
- 1982: Poul Anderson, "The Saturn Game" (February 1981 Analog)
- 1983: Joanna Russ, "Souls" (January 1982 F&SF)
- 1984: Timothy Zahn, "Cascade Point" (December 1983 Analog)
- 1985: John Varley, "PRESS ENTER _" (May 1984 Asimov's)
- 1986: Roger Zelazny, "24 Views of Mt. Fuji, by Hokusai" (July 1985 Asimov's)
- 1987: Robert Silverberg, "Gilgamesh in the Outback" (July 1986 Asimov's)
- 1988: Orson Scott Card, "Eye for Eye" (March 1987 Asimov's)
- 1989: Connie Willis, "The Last of the Winnebagos" (July 1988 Asimov's)
- 1990: Lois McMaster Bujold, "The Mountains of Mourning" (May 1989 Analog)
- 1991: Joe Haldeman, "The Hemingway Hoax" (April 1990 Asimov's)
- 1992: Nancy Kress, "Beggars in Spain" (April 1991 Asimov's)
- 1993: Lucius Shepard, "Barnacle Bill the Spacer" (July 1992 Asimov's)
- 1994: Harry Turtledove, "Down in the Bottomlands" (January 1993 Analog)
- 1995: Mike Resnick, "Seven Views of Olduvai Gorge" (October/November 1994 F&SF)
- 1996: Allen Steele, "The Death of Captain Future" (October 1995 Asimov's)
- 1997: George R R Martin, "Blood of the Dragon" (July 1996 Asimov's)
- 1998: Allen Steele, "... Where Angels Fear to Tread" (October/November 1997 Asimov's)
- 1999: Greg Egan, "Oceanic" (August 1998 Asimov's)
- 2000: Connie Willis, "The Winds of Marble Arch" (October/November 1999 Asimov's)
- 2001: Jack Williamson, "The Ultimate Earth" (December 2000 Analog)
- 2002: Vernor Vinge, "Fast Times at Fairmont High" (in The Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge, coll 2001)
- 2003: Neil Gaiman, Coraline (2002)
- 2004: Vernor Vinge, "The Cookie Monster" (October 2003 Analog)
- 2005: Charles Stross, "The Concrete Jungle" (in The Atrocity Archives, coll of linked stories 2004)
- 2006: Connie Willis, "Inside Job" (January 2005 Asimov's)
- 2007: Robert Reed, "A Billion Eves" (October/November 2006 Asimov's)
- 2008: Connie Willis, "All Seated on the Ground" (December 2007 Asimov's)
- 2009: Nancy Kress, "The Erdmann Nexus" (October/November 2008 Asimov's)
- 2010: Charles Stross, "Palimpsest" (in Wireless, coll 2009)
- 2011: Ted Chiang, The Lifecycle of Software Objects (2010)
- 2012: Kij Johnson, "The Man Who Bridged the Mist" (October/November 2011 Asimov's)
- 2013: Brandon Sanderson, The Emperor's Soul (2012)
- 2014: Charles Stross, Equoid (24 September 2013 Tor.com; 2013 ebook)
- 2015: no award
- 2016: Nnedi Okorafor, Binti (2015 chap)
- 2017: Seanan McGuire, Every Heart a Doorway (2016)
- 2018: Martha Wells, All Systems Red (2017)
- 2019: Martha Wells, Artificial Condition (2018)
- 2020: Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone, This Is How You Lose the Time War (2019)
- 2021: Nghi Vo, The Empress of Salt and Fortune (2020)
- 2022: Becky Chambers, A Psalm for the Wild-Built (2021)
- 2023: Seanan McGuire, Where the Drowned Girls Go (2021)
- 2024: T Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon), Thornhedge (2023)
Novelette from 1973
- 1973: Poul Anderson, "Goat Song" (February 1972 F&SF)
- 1974: Harlan Ellison, "The Deathbird" (March 1973 F&SF)
- 1975: Harlan Ellison, "Adrift Just Off the Islets of Langerhans: Latitude 38° 54' N, Longitude 77° 00' 13" W" (October 1974 F&SF)
- 1976: Larry Niven, "The Borderland of Sol" (January 1975 Analog)
- 1977: Isaac Asimov, "The Bicentennial Man" (in Stellar #2, anth 1976, ed Judy-Lynn del Rey)
- 1978: Joan D Vinge, "Eyes of Amber" (June 1977 Analog)
- 1979: Poul Anderson, "Hunter's Moon" (November 1978 Analog)
- 1980: George R R Martin, "Sandkings" (August 1979 Omni)
- 1981: Gordon R Dickson, "The Cloak and the Staff" (August 1980 Analog)
- 1982: Roger Zelazny, "Unicorn Variation" (April 1981 Asimov's)
- 1983: Connie Willis, "Fire Watch" (February 1982 Asimov's)
- 1984: Greg Bear, "Blood Music" (June 1983 Analog)
- 1985: Octavia Butler, "Bloodchild" (June 1984 Asimov's)
- 1986: Harlan Ellison, "Paladin of the Lost Hour" (in Universe 15, anth 1985, ed Terry Carr)
- 1987: Roger Zelazny, "Permafrost" (April 1986 Omni)
- 1988: Ursula K Le Guin, "Buffalo Gals, Won't You Come Out Tonight" (November 1987 F&SF)
- 1989: George Alec Effinger, "Schrödinger's Kitten" (September 1988 Omni)
- 1990: Robert Silverberg, "Enter a Soldier. Later, Enter Another" (June 1989 Asimov's)
- 1991: Mike Resnick, "The Manamouki" (July 1990 Asimov's)
- 1992: Isaac Asimov, "Gold" (September 1991 Analog)
- 1993: Janet Kagan, "The Nutcracker Coup" (December 1992 Asimov's)
- 1994: Charles Sheffield, "Georgia on my Mind" (January 1993 Analog)
- 1995: David Gerrold, "The Martian Child" (September 1994 F&SF)
- 1996: James Patrick Kelly, "Think Like a Dinosaur" (June 1995 Asimov's)
- 1997: Bruce Sterling, "Bicycle Repairman" (October/November 1996 Asimov's)
- 1998: Bill Johnson, "We Will Drink a Fish Together ..." (May 1997 Asimov's)
- 1999: Bruce Sterling, "Taklamakan" (October/November 1998 Asimov's)
- 2000: James Patrick Kelly, "1016 to 1" (June 1999 Asimov's)
- 2001: Kristine Kathryn Rusch, "Millennium Babies" (January 2000 Asimov's)
- 2002: Ted Chiang, "Hell Is the Absence of God" (in Starlight 3, anth 2001, ed Patrick Nielsen Hayden)
- 2003: Michael Swanwick, "Slow Life" (December 2002 Analog)
- 2004: Michael Swanwick, "Legions in Time" (April 2003 Asimov's)
- 2005: Kelly Link, "The Faery Handbag" (in The Faery Reel, anth 2004, ed Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling)
- 2006: Peter S Beagle, "Two Hearts" (October/November 2005 F&SF)
- 2007: Ian McDonald, "The Djinn's Wife" (July 2006 Asimov's)
- 2008: Ted Chiang, The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate (2007 chap)
- 2009: Elizabeth Bear, "Shoggoths in Bloom" (March 2008 Asimov's)
- 2010: Peter Watts, "The Island" (in The New Space Opera 2, anth 2009, ed Gardner Dozois and Jonathan Strahan)
- 2011: Allen M Steele, "The Emperor of Mars" (June 2010 Asimov's)
- 2012: Charlie Jane Anders, "Six Months, Three Days" (8 June 2011 Tor.com)
- 2013: Pat Cadigan, "The Girl-Thing Who Went Out for Sushi" (in Edge of Infinity, anth 2012, ed Jonathan Strahan)
- 2014: Mary Robinette Kowal, "The Lady Astronaut of Mars" (in Rip-Off!, anth 2012 audiobook; February 2013 maryrobinettekowal.com; rev September 2013 Tor.com; 2014 ebook) – the first, audiobook version of this story had been deemed ineligible for the 2013 Hugos
- 2015: Thomas Olde Heuvelt, "The Day the World Turned Upside Down" (trans Lia Belt; April 2014 Lightspeed)
- 2016: Hao Jingfang, "Folding Beijing" trans Ken Liu (January/February 2015 Uncanny Magazine)
- 2017: Ursula Vernon, "The Tomato Thief" (January 2016 Apex Magazine)
- 2018: Suzanne Palmer, "The Secret Life of Bots" (September 2017 Clarkesworld)
- 2019: Zen Cho, "If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again," (29 November 2018 Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi and Fantasy Blog)
- 2020: N K Jemisin, Emergency Skin (2019 ebook)
- 2021: Sarah Pinsker, "Two Truths and a Lie" (17 June 2020 Tor.com)
- 2022: Suzanne Palmer, "Bots of the Lost Ark" (June 2021 Clarkesworld)
- 2023: Hai Ya, "The Space-Time Painter" (April 2022 Galaxy's Edge)
- 2024: Naomi Kritzer, "The Year Without Sunshine" (November/December 2023 Uncanny Magazine)
Short story from 1973
- 1973: (tie) R A Lafferty, "Eurema's Dam" (in New Dimensions II, anth 1972, ed Robert Silverberg), and Frederik Pohl and C M Kornbluth, "The Meeting" (November 1972 F&SF)
- 1974: Ursula K Le Guin, "The Ones who Walk Away from Omelas" (in New Dimensions 3, anth 1973, ed Robert Silverberg)
- 1975: Larry Niven, "The Hole Man" (January 1974 Analog)
- 1976: Fritz Leiber, "Catch that Zeppelin!" (March 1975 F&SF)
- 1977: Joe Haldeman, "Tricentennial" (July 1976 Analog)
- 1978: Harlan Ellison, "Jeffty is Five" (July 1977 F&SF)
- 1979: C J Cherryh, "Cassandra" (October 1978 F&SF)
- 1980: George R R Martin, "The Way of Cross and Dragon" (June 1979 Omni)
- 1981: Clifford D Simak, "Grotto of the Dancing Deer" (April 1980 Analog)
- 1982: John Varley, "The Pusher" (October 1981 F&SF)
- 1983: Spider Robinson, "Melancholy Elephants" (June 1982 Analog)
- 1984: Octavia Butler, "Speech Sounds" (mid-December 1983 Asimov's)
- 1985: David Brin, "The Crystal Spheres" (January 1984 Analog)
- 1986: Frederik Pohl, "Fermi and Frost" (January 1985 Asimov's)
- 1987: Greg Bear, "Tangents" (January 1986 Omni)
- 1988: Lawrence Watt-Evans, "Why I Left Harry's All-Night Hamburgers" (July 1987 Asimov's)
- 1989: Mike Resnick, "Kirinyaga" (November 1988 F&SF)
- 1990: Suzy McKee Charnas, "Boobs" (July 1989 Asimov's)
- 1991: Terry Bisson, "Bears Discover Fire" (August 1990 Asimov's)
- 1992: Geoffrey A Landis, "A Walk in the Sun" (October 1991 Asimov's)
- 1993: Connie Willis, "Even the Queen" (April 1992 Asimov's)
- 1994: Connie Willis, "Death on the Nile" (March 1993 Asimov's)
- 1995: Joe Haldeman, "None So Blind" (November 1994 Asimov's)
- 1996: Maureen F McHugh, "The Lincoln Train" (April 1995 F&SF)
- 1997: Connie Willis, "The Soul Selects Her Own Society: Invasion and Repulsion: A Chronological Reinterpretation of Two of Emily Dickinson's Poems: A Wellsian Perspective" (April 1996 Asimov's)
- 1998: Mike Resnick, "The 43 Antarean Dynasties" (December 1997 Asimov's)
- 1999: Michael Swanwick, "The Very Pulse of the Machine" (February 1998 Asimov's)
- 2000: Michael Swanwick, "Scherzo with Tyrannosaur" (July 1999 Asimov's)
- 2001: David Langford, "Different Kinds of Darkness" (January 2000 F&SF)
- 2002: Michael Swanwick, "The Dog Said Bow-Wow" (October/November 2001 Asimov's)
- 2003: Geoffrey A Landis, "Falling onto Mars" (July/August 2002 Analog)
- 2004: Neil Gaiman, "A Study in Emerald" (in Shadows Over Baker Street, anth 2003, ed Michael Reaves and John Pelan)
- 2005: Mike Resnick, "Travels with My Cats" (February 2004 Asimov's)
- 2006: David D Levine, "Tk'tk'tk" (March 2005 Asimov's)
- 2007: Tim Pratt, "Impossible Dreams" (July 2006 Asimov's)
- 2008: Elizabeth Bear, "Tideline" (June 2007 Asimov's)
- 2009: Ted Chiang, "Exhalation" (in Eclipse 2, anth 2008, ed Jonathan Strahan)
- 2010: Will McIntosh, "Bridesicle" (January 2009 Asimov's)
- 2011: Mary Robinette Kowal, "For Want of a Nail" (September 2010 Asimov's)
- 2012: Ken Liu, "The Paper Menagerie" (March/April 2011 F&SF)
- 2013: Ken Liu, "Mono no Aware" (in The Future is Japanese, anth 2012, ed Nick Mamatas and Masumi Washington)
- 2014: John Chu, "The Water That Falls on You from Nowhere" (20 February 2013 Tor.com)
- 2015: no award
- 2016: Naomi Kritzer, "Cat Pictures Please" (January 2015 Clarkesworld)
- 2017: Amal El-Mohtar, "Seasons of Glass and Iron" (in The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales, anth 2016, ed Dominik Parisien and Navah Wolfe)
- 2018: Rebecca Roanhorse, "Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience™" (August 2017 Apex Magazine)
- 2019: Alix E Harrow, "A Witch's Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies" (February 2018 Apex Magazine)
- 2020: S L Huang, "As the Last I May Know" (23 October 2019 Tor.com)
- 2021: T Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon), "Metal Like Blood in the Dark", (September/October 2020 Uncanny Magazine)
- 2022: Sarah Pinsker, "Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather" (March/April 2021 Uncanny Magazine)
- 2023: Samantha Mills, "Rabbit Test" (November/December 2022 Uncanny Magazine)
- 2024: Naomi Kritzer, "Better Living Through Algorithms" (May 2023 Clarkesworld)
Nonfiction book 1980-1999
- 1980: Peter Nicholls, editor, The Science Fiction Encyclopedia (1979)
- 1981: Carl Sagan, Cosmos (1980)
- 1982: Stephen King, Danse Macabre (1981)
- 1983: James E Gunn, Isaac Asimov: The Foundations of Science Fiction (1982)
- 1984: Donald H Tuck, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy: Volume 3: Miscellaneous (dated 1982 but 1983)
- 1985: Jack Williamson, "Wonder's Child: My Life in Science Fiction" (1984)
- 1986: Tom Weller, Science Made Stupid (1985)
- 1987: Brian W Aldiss with David Wingrove, Trillion Year Spree (1986)
- 1988: Michael Whelan, Michael Whelan's Works of Wonder (1987)
- 1989: Samuel R Delany, The Motion of Light in Water (1988)
- 1990: Alexei and Cory Panshin, The World Beyond the Hill (1989)
- 1991: Orson Scott Card, How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy (1990)
- 1992: Charles Addams, The World of Charles Addams (graph coll 1991)
- 1993: Harry Warner Jr, A Wealth of Fable: An Informal History of Science Fiction Fandom in the 1950s (1976 3vols mimeographed; exp 1992)
- 1994: John Clute and Peter Nicholls, editors, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction: An Illustrated A to Z (1993)
- 1995: Isaac Asimov, I. Asimov: A Memoir (1994)
- 1996: John Clute, Science Fiction: The Illustrated Encyclopedia (1995)
- 1997: L Sprague de Camp, Time & Chance: An Autobiography (1996)
- 1998: John Clute and John Grant, editors, The Encyclopedia of Fantasy (1997)
- 1999: Thomas M Disch, The Dreams Our Stuff Is Made Of: How Science Fiction Conquered the World (1998)
Related book/work from 2000
This broadened category replaced Nonfiction from the 2000 Hugos onward. The 1988 experimental category Other forms can be considered as a precursor of Related book and is included here. In 2008 "Related book" was amended to "Related work", opening subsequent years' awards to online works.
- 1988: Other Forms: Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen (graph 1987)
- 2000: Frank M Robinson, Science Fiction of the 20th Century (1999)
- 2001: Bob Eggleton and Nigel Suckling, Greetings from Earth: The Art of Bob Eggleton (graph 2000)
- 2002: Ron Miller and Frederick C Durant III with Melvin H Schuetz, The Art of Chesley Bonestell (2001)
- 2003: Judith Merril and Emily Pohl-Weary, Better to Have Loved: The Life of Judith Merril (2002)
- 2004: John Grant and Elizabeth L Humphrey with Pamela D Scoville, The Chesley Awards for Science Fiction & Fantasy Art: A Retrospective (2003)
- 2005: Edward James and Farah Mendlesohn, editors, The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction (anth 2003)
- 2006: Kate Wilhelm, Storyteller: Writing Lessons and More from 27 Years of the Clarion Writers' Workshop (anth 2005)
- 2007: Julie Phillips, James Tiptree, Jr.: The Double Life of Alice B. Sheldon (2006) (see James Tiptree Jr)
- 2008: Jeff Prucher, Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction (2007)
- 2009: John Scalzi, Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded (coll 2008)
- 2010: Jack Vance, This Is Me, Jack Vance! (Or, More Properly, This Is "I") (2009)
- 2011: Lynne M Thomas and Tara O'Shea, editors, Chicks Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the Women Who Love It (anth 2010)
- 2012: John Clute, David Langford, Peter Nicholls and Graham Sleight, editors, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Third Edition (2011-current web)
- 2013: Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Howard Tayler and Jordan Sanderson, Writing Excuses, Season 7 (podcast series) (see Audiozine)
- 2014: Kameron Hurley, "We Have Always Fought: Challenging the Women, Cattle and Slaves Narrative" (20 May 2013 A Dribble of Ink)
- 2015: no award
- 2016: no award
- 2017: Ursula K Le Guin, Words Are My Matter: Writings About Life and Books, 2000-2016
- 2018: Ursula K Le Guin, No Time to Spare: Thinking About What Matters (coll 2017)
- 2019: Archive of Our Own (website)
- 2020: Jeannette Ng, "2019 John W. Campbell Award Acceptance Speech" (2019)
- 2021: Maria Dahvana Headley, Beowulf: A New Translation (2020)
- 2022: Charlie Jane Anders, Never Say You Can't Survive (2021)
- 2023: Rob Wilkins, Terry Pratchett: A Life with Footnotes (2022) (see Terry Pratchett)
- 2024: Kelly Weinersmith and Zach Weinersmith, A City on Mars (2023)
Graphic novel/story from 2009
The 1988 experimental category Other forms led to the first Hugo for a graphic novel, whose winner is thus repeated under this heading.
- 1988: Other Forms: Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen (graph 1987)
- 2009: Kaja and Phil Foglio (colours: Cheyenne Wright), Girl Genius, Volume 8: Agatha Heterodyne and the Chapel of Bones (graph 2008)
- 2010: Kaja and Phil Foglio, Girl Genius, Volume 9: Agatha Heterodyne and the Heirs of the Storm (graph 2009)
- 2011: Kaja and Phil Foglio, Girl Genius, Volume 10: Agatha Heterodyne and the Guardian Muse (graph 2010)
- 2012: Ursula Vernon, Digger (graph 2011)
- 2013: Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples, Saga, Volume 1 (graph 2012)
- 2014: Randall Munroe, "Time" (25 March-29 July 2013 xkcd.com #1190)
- 2015: G Willow Wilson, Adrian Alphona and Jake Wyatt, Ms. Marvel Volume 1: No Normal (graph 2014)
- 2016: Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean and J H Williams III The Sandman: Overture (graph 2015)
- 2017: Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda, Monstress, Volume 1: Awakening (graph 2016)
- 2018: Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda, Monstress, Volume 2: The Blood (graph 2017)
- 2019: Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda, Monstress, Volume 3: Haven (graph 2018)
- 2020: Nnedi Okorafor, Tana Ford and James Devlin, LaGuardia (graph 2019)
- 2021: Octavia Butler, Damian Duffy and John Jennings, Parable of the Sower: A Graphic Novel Adaptation (graph 2020)
- 2022: N K Jemisin and Jamal Campbell, Far Sector (graph 2021)
- 2023: Bartosz Sztybor, Filipe Andrade, Alessio Fioriniello, Roman Titov and Krzysztof Ostrowski, Cyberpunk 2077: Big City Dreams (graph 2022)
- 2024: Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples, Saga – Volume Eleven (graph 2023)
Dramatic presentation to 2002
- 1958: Outstanding movie: The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)
- 1960: The Twilight Zone
- 1961: The Twilight Zone
- 1962: The Twilight Zone
- 1963: no award
- 1965: Special drama: Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1963)
- 1966: not presented (the "no award" option had such overwhelming support at the nominations stage that the category was omitted from the final ballot)
- 1967: Star Trek: "The Menagerie" (1966)
- 1968: Star Trek: "The City on the Edge of Forever" (1967)
- 1969: Drama: 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
- 1970: Dramatic: news coverage of Apollo XI
- 1971: no award
- 1972: A Clockwork Orange (1971)
- 1973: Slaughterhouse-Five (1972)
- 1974: Sleeper (1973)
- 1975: Young Frankenstein (1974) (see Frankenstein)
- 1976: A Boy and His Dog (1975)
- 1977: no award
- 1978: Star Wars (1977) (1977)
- 1979: Superman (1978)
- 1980: Alien (1979)
- 1981: Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- 1982: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) (see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
- 1983: Blade Runner (1982)
- 1984: Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
- 1985: 2010 (1984; vt 2010: The Year We Make Contact)
- 1986: Back to the Future (1985)
- 1987: Aliens (1986)
- 1988: The Princess Bride (1987)
- 1989: Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
- 1990: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) (see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
- 1991: Edward Scissorhands (1990)
- 1992: Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
- 1993: Star Trek: The Next Generation: "The Inner Light" (1992)
- 1994: Jurassic Park (1993)
- 1995: Star Trek: The Next Generation: "All Good Things ..." (1994)
- 1996: Babylon 5: "The Coming of Shadows" (1995)
- 1997: Babylon 5: "Severed Dreams" (1996)
- 1998: Contact (1997)
- 1999: The Truman Show (1998)
- 2000: Galaxy Quest (1999)
- 2001: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) (see Wuxia)
- 2002: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Dramatic presentation, long form
- 2003: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
- 2004: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
- 2005: The Incredibles (2004)
- 2006: Serenity (2005)
- 2007: Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
- 2008: Stardust (2007)
- 2009: WALL-E (2008)
- 2010: Moon (2009)
- 2011: Inception (2010)
- 2012: Game of Thrones Season 1 (2011)
- 2013: The Avengers (2012)
- 2014: Gravity (2013)
- 2015: Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
- 2016: The Martian (2015)
- 2017: Arrival (2016)
- 2018: Wonder Woman (2017) (see Wonder Woman Film/TV)
- 2019: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
- 2020: Good Omens (2019), the Television series (see Neil Gaiman; Terry Pratchett)
- 2021: The Old Guard (2020)
- 2022: Dune: Part One (2021)
- 2023: Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
- 2024: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)
Dramatic presentation, short form
- 2003: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: "Conversations with Dead People" (2002)
- 2004: Gollum's Acceptance Speech at the 2003 MTV Movie Awards (2003)
- 2005: Battlestar Galactica: "33" (2004)
- 2006: Doctor Who: "The Empty Child" (2005) and "The Doctor Dances" (2005)
- 2007: Doctor Who: "Girl in the Fireplace" (2006)
- 2008: Doctor Who: "Blink" (2007)
- 2009: Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (2008)
- 2010: Doctor Who: "The Waters of Mars" (2009)
- 2011: Doctor Who: "The Pandorica Opens" (2010) and "The Big Bang" (2010)
- 2012: Doctor Who: "The Doctor's Wife" (2011)
- 2013: Game of Thrones: "Blackwater" (2012)
- 2014: Game of Thrones: "The Rains of Castamere" (2013)
- 2015: Orphan Black: "By Means Which Have Never Yet Been Tried" (2014)
- 2016: Jessica Jones: "AKA Smile" (2015)
- 2017: The Expanse: "Leviathan Wakes" (2016)
- 2018: The Good Place: "The Trolley Problem" (2017)
- 2019: The Good Place: "Janet(s)" (2018)
- 2020: The Good Place: "The Answer" (2019)
- 2021: The Good Place: "Whenever You're Ready" (2020)
- 2022: The Expanse: "Nemesis Games" (2021)
- 2023: The Expanse: "Babylon's Ashes" (2022)
- 2024: The Last of Us: "Long, Long Time" (2023)
Professional magazine to 1972
- 1953: (tie) Galaxy Science Fiction and Astounding Science-Fiction
- 1955: Astounding
- 1956: Astounding
- 1957: US, Astounding; UK, New Worlds
- 1958: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1959: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1960: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1961: Analog
- 1962: Analog
- 1963: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1964: Analog
- 1965: Analog
- 1966: If
- 1967: If
- 1968: If
- 1969: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1970: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1971: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1972: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
Professional editor, 1973-2006
This category replaced the 1953-1972 award for Professional magazine; from 2007 it was divided into "long form" and "short form" awards.
- 1973: Ben Bova
- 1974: Ben Bova
- 1975: Ben Bova
- 1976: Ben Bova
- 1977: Ben Bova
- 1978: George H Scithers
- 1979: Ben Bova
- 1980: George H Scithers
- 1981: Edward L Ferman
- 1982: Edward L Ferman
- 1983: Edward L Ferman
- 1984: Shawna McCarthy
- 1985: Terry Carr
- 1986: Judy-Lynn del Rey (declined by Lester del Rey)
- 1987: Terry Carr
- 1988: Gardner Dozois
- 1989: Gardner Dozois
- 1990: Gardner Dozois
- 1991: Gardner Dozois
- 1992: Gardner Dozois
- 1993: Gardner Dozois
- 1994: Kristine Kathryn Rusch
- 1995: Gardner Dozois
- 1996: Gardner Dozois
- 1997: Gardner Dozois
- 1998: Gardner Dozois
- 1999: Gardner Dozois
- 2000: Gardner Dozois
- 2001: Gardner Dozois
- 2002: Ellen Datlow
- 2003: Gardner Dozois
- 2004: Gardner Dozois
- 2005: Ellen Datlow
- 2006: David G Hartwell
Professional editor, long form
- 2007: Patrick Nielsen Hayden
- 2008: David G Hartwell
- 2009: David G Hartwell
- 2010: Patrick Nielsen Hayden
- 2011: Lou Anders
- 2012: Betsy Wollheim
- 2013: Patrick Nielsen Hayden
- 2014: Ginjer Buchanan
- 2015: no award
- 2016: Sheila E Gilbert
- 2017: Liz Gorinsky
- 2018: Lynne M Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas
- 2019: Navah Wolfe
- 2020: Navah Wolfe
- 2021: Diana M Pho
- 2022: Ruoxi Chen
- 2023: Lindsey Hall
- 2024: Ruoxi Chen
Professional editor, short form
- 2007: Gordon Van Gelder
- 2008: Gordon Van Gelder
- 2009: Ellen Datlow
- 2010: Ellen Datlow
- 2011: Sheila Williams
- 2012: Sheila Williams
- 2013: Stanley Schmidt
- 2014: Ellen Datlow
- 2015: no award
- 2016: Ellen Datlow
- 2017: Ellen Datlow
- 2018: Sheila E Gilbert
- 2019: Gardner Dozois
- 2020: Ellen Datlow
- 2021: Ellen Datlow
- 2022: Neil Clarke
- 2023: Neil Clarke
- 2024: Neil Clarke
Professional artist
Early versions of this award were differently named, as indicated – usually as "illustrator" but with separate illustrator and cover artist categories in 1953.
- 1953:
- Interior Illustrator: Virgil Finlay
- Cover Artist: (tie) Ed Emshwiller and Hannes Bok
- 1955: Illustrator: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1956: Illustrator: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1957: no award
- 1958: Illustrator: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1959: Illustrator: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1960: Illustrator: Ed Emshwiller
- 1961: Illustrator: Ed Emshwiller
- 1962: Ed Emshwiller
- 1963: Roy G Krenkel
- 1964: Ed Emshwiller
- 1965: John Schoenherr
- 1966: Frank Frazetta
- 1967: Jack Gaughan
- 1968: Jack Gaughan
- 1969: Jack Gaughan
- 1970: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1971: Diane and Leo Dillon
- 1972: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1973: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1974: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1975: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1976: Frank Kelly Freas
- 1977: Rick Sternbach
- 1978: Rick Sternbach
- 1979: Vincent Di Fate
- 1980: Michael Whelan
- 1981: Michael Whelan
- 1982: Michael Whelan
- 1983: Michael Whelan
- 1984: Michael Whelan
- 1985: Michael Whelan
- 1986: Michael Whelan
- 1987: Jim Burns
- 1988: Michael Whelan
- 1989: Michael Whelan
- 1990: Don Maitz
- 1991: Michael Whelan
- 1992: Michael Whelan
- 1993: Don Maitz
- 1994: Bob Eggleton
- 1996: Bob Eggleton
- 1997: Bob Eggleton
- 1998: Bob Eggleton
- 1999: Bob Eggleton
- 2000: Michael Eggleton
- 2001: Bob Eggleton
- 2002: Michael Whelan
- 2003: Bob Eggleton
- 2004: Bob Eggleton
- 2005: Jim Burns
- 2006: Donato Giancola
- 2007: Donato Giancola
- 2008: Stephan Martiniere
- 2009: Donato Giancola
- 2010: Shaun Tan
- 2011: Shaun Tan
- 2012: John Picacio
- 2013: John Picacio
- 2014: Julie Dillon
- 2015: Julie Dillon
- 2015: Abigail Larson
- 2017: Julie Dillon
- 2018: Sana Takeda
- 2019: Charles Vess
- 2020: John Picacio
- 2021: Rovina Cai
- 2022: Rovina Cai
- 2023: Enzhe Zhao
- 2024: Rovina Cai
Semiprozine
- 1984: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1985: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1986: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1987: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1988: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1989: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1990: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1991: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1992: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1993: Andrew Porter, editor of Science Fiction Chronicle
- 1994: Andrew Porter, editor of Science Fiction Chronicle
- 1995: David Pringle, editor of Interzone
- 1996: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1997: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1998: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 1999: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 2000: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 2001: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 2002: Charles N Brown, editor of Locus
- 2003: Charles N Brown, Jennifer A Hall and Kirsten Gong-Wong, editors of Locus
- 2004: Charles N Brown, Jennifer A Hall and Kirsten Gong-Wong, editors of Locus
- 2005: David Langford, editor of Ansible
- 2006: Charles N Brown, Kirsten Gong-Wong and Liza Groen Trombi, editors of Locus
- 2007: Charles N Brown, Kirsten Gong-Wong and Liza Groen Trombi, editors of Locus
- 2008: Charles N Brown, Kirsten Gong-Wong and Liza Groen Trombi, editors of Locus
- 2009: Ann VanderMeer and Stephen H Segal, editors of Weird Tales
- 2010: Neil Clarke, Sean Wallace and Cheryl Morgan, editors of Clarkesworld
- 2011: Neil Clarke, Sean Wallace and Cheryl Morgan, editors of Clarkesworld
- 2012: Kirsten Gong-Wong and Liza Groen Trombi, editors of Locus
- 2013: Neil Clarke, Jason Heller, Sean Wallace and Kate Baker, editors of Clarkesworld
- 2014: John Joseph Adams, editor of Lightspeed
- 2015: John Joseph Adams, editor of Lightspeed
- 2016: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, and Erika Ensign & Steven Schapansky, Uncanny Magazine
- 2017: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, Julia Rios, and Erika Ensign & Steven Schapansky, Uncanny Magazine
- 2018: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, Julia Rios, and Erika Ensign & Steven Schapansky, Uncanny Magazine
- 2019: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, Julia Rios, Erika Ensign & Steven Schapansky and Elsa Sjunneson-Henry & Dominik Parisien, Uncanny Magazine
- 2020: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Michi Trota, Chimedum Ohaegbu, Erika Ensign and Steven Schapansky, Uncanny Magazine
- 2021: Troy L Wiggins, DaVaun Sanders, Eboni Dunbar, Brandon O'Brien, Brent Lambert, L D Lewis and the FIYAH Team, Fiyah Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction
- 2022: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Chimedum Ohaegbu, Elsa Sjunneson, Erika Ensign and Steven Schapansky, Uncanny Magazine
- 2023: Lynne M Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas, Chimedum Ohaegbu, Monte Lin, Meg Elison, Erika Ensign and Steven Schapansky, Uncanny Magazine
- 2024: Gautam Bhatia, Romie Stott and many others, Strange Horizons
Fanzine
This category was temporarily dropped in 1958.
- 1955: James V Taurasi and Ray Van Houten, editors of Fantasy Times
- 1956: Ron Smith, editor of Inside and Science Fiction Advertiser (combining the fanzines Inside and Science Fiction Advertiser)
- 1957: James V Taurasi, Ray Van Houten and Frank Prieto, editors of Science Fiction Times (see Fantasy Times)
- 1959: Terry Carr and Ron Ellik, editors of Fanac
- 1960: F M and Elinor Busby, Burnett Toskey and Wally Weber, editors of Cry of the Nameless (see Cry)
- 1961: Earl Kemp, "Who Killed Science Fiction?"
- 1962: Richard Bergeron, editor of Warhoon
- 1963: Richard and Pat Lupoff, editors of Xero
- 1964: George H Scithers, editor of Amra
- 1965: Robert and Juanita Coulson, editors of Yandro
- 1966: Camille Cazedessus Jr, editor of ERB-dom
- 1967: Ed Meskys and Felice Rolfe, editors of Niekas
- 1968: George H Scithers, editor of Amra
- 1969: Richard E Geis, editor of Science Fiction Review
- 1970: Richard E Geis, editor of Science Fiction Review
- 1971: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1972: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1973: Michael Glicksohn and Susan Wood Glicksohn, editors of Energumen
- 1974: (tie) Andrew Porter, editor of Algol, and Richard E Geis, editor of The Alien Critic
- 1975: Richard E Geis, editor of The Alien Critic
- 1976: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1977: Richard E Geis, editor of Science Fiction Review
- 1978: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1979: Richard E Geis, editor of Science Fiction Review
- 1980: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1981: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1982: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1983: Charlie and Dena Brown, editors of Locus
- 1984: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 1985: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 1986: George "Lan" Laskowski, editor of Lan's Lantern
- 1987: David Langford, editor of Ansible
- 1988: Pat Mueller, editor of Texas SF Enquirer
- 1989: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 1990: Leslie Turek, editor of The Mad 3 Party
- 1991: George "Lan" Laskowski, editor of Lan's Lantern
- 1992: Rich and Nicki Lynch, editors of Mimosa
- 1993: Rich and Nicki Lynch, editors of Mimosa
- 1994: Rich and Nicki Lynch, editors of Mimosa
- 1995: Dave Langford, editor of Ansible
- 1996: Dave Langford, editor of Ansible
- 1997: Rich and Nicki Lynch, editors of Mimosa
- 1998: Rich and Nicki Lynch, editors of Mimosa
- 1999: Dave Langford, editor of Ansible
- 2000: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 2001: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 2002: Dave Langford, editor of Ansible
- 2003: Rich and Nicki Lynch, editors of Mimosa
- 2004: Cheryl Morgan, editor of Emerald City
- 2005: Alison Scott, Steve Davies and Mike Scott, editors of Plokta
- 2006: Alison Scott, Steve Davies and Mike Scott, editors of Plokta
- 2007: Lee Hoffman, Geri Sullivan, and Randy Byers, editors of Science-Fiction Five-Yearly
- 2008: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 2009: John Klima, editor of Electric Velocipede
- 2010: Tony C Smith, editor of StarShipSofa
- 2011: Christopher J Garcia and James Bacon, editors of The Drink Tank
- 2012: John DeNardo, editor of SF Signal
- 2013: John DeNardo, J P Frantz and Patrick Hester, editors of SF Signal
- 2014: Aidan Moher, editor of A Dribble of Ink
- 2015: James Bacon, Christopher J Garcia, Colin Harris, Alissa McKersie and Helen J Montgomery, editors of Journey Planet
- 2016: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 2017: Clare, Ira, Jodie, KJ, Renay and Susan, editors of Lady Business
- 2018: Mike Glyer, editor of File 770
- 2019: Ira, Jodie, KJ, Renay and Susan, editors of Lady Business
- 2020: Ana Grilo and Thea James, editors of The Book Smugglers
- 2021: Adri Joy, Joe Sherry, The G and Vance Kotrla, editors of nerds of a feather, flock together
- 2022: Lee Moyer and Seanan McGuire, editors of Small Gods
- 2023: RiverFlow and Ling Shizhen, editors of Zero Gravity Newspaper
- 2024: Adri Joy, Joe Sherry, G Brown and Vance Kotrla, editors of nerds of a feather, flock together
Fan writer
- 1967: Alexei Panshin
- 1968: Ted White
- 1969: Harry Warner Jr
- 1970: Bob (Wilson) Tucker
- 1971: Richard E Geis
- 1972: Harry Warner Jr
- 1973: Terry Carr
- 1974: Susan Wood
- 1975: Richard E Geis
- 1976: Richard E Geis
- 1977: (tie) Richard E Geis and Susan Wood
- 1978: Richard E Geis
- 1979: Bob Shaw
- 1980: Bob Shaw
- 1981: Susan Wood
- 1982: Richard E Geis
- 1983: Richard E Geis
- 1984: Mike Glyer
- 1985: David Langford
- 1986: Mike Glyer
- 1987: David Langford
- 1988: Mike Glyer
- 1989: David Langford
- 1990: David Langford
- 1991: David Langford
- 1992: David Langford
- 1993: David Langford
- 1994: David Langford
- 1995: David Langford
- 1996: David Langford
- 1997: David Langford
- 1998: David Langford
- 1999: David Langford
- 2000: David Langford
- 2001: David Langford
- 2002: David Langford
- 2003: David Langford
- 2004: David Langford
- 2005: David Langford
- 2006: David Langford
- 2007: David Langford
- 2008: John Scalzi
- 2009: Cheryl Morgan
- 2010: Frederik Pohl
- 2011: Claire Brialey
- 2012: Jim C Hines
- 2013: Tansy Rayner Roberts
- 2014: Kameron Hurley
- 2015: Laura J Mixon
- 2016: Mike Glyer
- 2017: Abigail Nussbaum
- 2018: Sarah Gailey
- 2019: Foz Meadows
- 2020: Bogi Takács
- 2021: Elsa Sjunneson
- 2022: Cora Buhlert
- 2023: Chris M Barkley
- 2024: Paul Weimer
Fan artist
- 1967: Jack Gaughan
- 1968: George Barr
- 1969: Vaughn Bodē
- 1970: Tim Kirk
- 1971: Alicia Austin
- 1972: Tim Kirk
- 1973: Tim Kirk
- 1974: Tim Kirk
- 1975: William Rotsler
- 1976: Tim Kirk
- 1977: Phil Foglio
- 1978: Phil Foglio
- 1979: William Rotsler
- 1980: Alexis Gilliland
- 1981: Victoria Poyser
- 1982: Victoria Poyser
- 1983: Alexis Gilliland
- 1984: Alexis Gilliland
- 1985: Alexis Gilliland
- 1986: joan hanke-woods (1945-2013)
- 1987: Brad W Foster
- 1988: Brad W Foster
- 1989: (tie) Brad W Foster and Diana Gallagher Wu
- 1990: Stu Shiffman
- 1991: Teddy Harvia
- 1992: Brad Foster
- 1993: Peggy Ranson
- 1994: Brad W Foster
- 1995: Teddy Harvia
- 1996: William Rotsler
- 1997: William Rotsler
- 1998: Joe Mayhew
- 1999: Ian Gunn
- 2000: Joe Mayhew
- 2001: Teddy Harvia
- 2002: Teddy Harvia
- 2003: Sue Mason
- 2004: Frank Wu
- 2005: Sue Mason
- 2006: Frank Wu
- 2007: Frank Wu
- 2008: Brad W Foster
- 2009: Frank Wu
- 2010: Brad W Foster
- 2011: Brad W Foster
- 2012: Maurine Starkey
- 2013: Galen Dara
- 2014: Sarah Webb
- 2015: Elizabeth Leggett
- 2016: Steve Stiles
- 2017: Elizabeth Leggett
- 2018: Geneva Benton
- 2019: Likhain (Mia Sereno)
- 2020: Elise Matthesen
- 2021: Sara Felix
- 2022: Lee Moyer
- 2023: Richard Man
- 2024: Laya Rose
Fancast
Introduced in 2012.
- 2012: Elizabeth Bear, Paul Cornell, Seanan McGuire, Lynne M Thomas and Catherynne M Valente, presenters, SF Squeecast (see Audiozines)
- 2013: Elizabeth Bear, Paul Cornell, Seanan McGuire, Lynne M Thomas and Catherynne M Valente, presenters, and David McHone-Chase, technical producer, SF Squeecast (see Audiozines)
- 2014: John DeNardo, editor of SF Signal Podcast
- 2015: Alisa Krasnostein, Alexandra Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts (presenters) and Andrew Finch (producer), for Galactic Suburbia Podcast
- 2016: no award
- 2017: Emma Newman with Peter Newman (presenters), Tea and Jeopardy
- 2018: Mur Lafferty and Matt Wallace (presenters), Ditch Diggers
- 2019: Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz, Our Opinions Are Correct
- 2020: Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz, Our Opinions Are Correct
- 2021: Jonathan Strahan and Gary K Wolfe, The Coode Street Podcast
- 2022: Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz, Our Opinions Are Correct
- 2023: Haley Zapal, Amy Salley, Lori Anderson and Kevin Anderson, Hugo, Girl!
- 2024: Liz Batty, John Coxon and Alison Scott, Octothorpe
Other Hugo awards:
Early experiments
- 1953:
- 1956:
- Feature writer: Willy Ley
- Best or most promising new author: Robert Silverberg
- Book reviewer: Damon Knight
- 1958: Most outstanding actifan (active fan): Walter A Willis
- 1959: Best or most promising new author: no award (Brian Aldiss, as the highest-voted author finalist, received a plaque: see also Special Committee Awards below)
- 1966: Best all-time series: Isaac Asimov, Foundation series
Publisher 1964-1965
- 1964: Ace Books
- 1965: Ballantine Books
Other forms 1988
Awarded once during the era of the Hugo for Nonfiction, this prefigured the wider category of Related book/work which replaced Nonfiction.
Original artwork 1992-1996
A 1990 presentation to Don Maitz for best original artwork, though nominated and voted for alongside the Hugos proper and often cited as a Hugo, was strictly speaking a committee award – see below.
- 1992: Michael Whelan, cover for The Summer Queen (1991) by Joan D Vinge, published by Warner Questar
- 1993: James Gurney, Dinotopia (1992), published by Turner
- 1994: Stephen Hickman, Space Fantasy Commemorative Stamp Booklet, published by the US Postal Service
- 1995: Brian Froud and Terry Jones, Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book (1994), published by Pavilion
- 1996: James Gurney, Dinotopia: The World Beneath (1995), published by Turner
Art book
A Hugo category added on a one-off basis by the 2019 Worldcon.
- Ursula K Le Guin and Charles Vess, The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition (graph omni 2018)
Web site 2002/2005
This category has twice been awarded on an experimental basis, as the one extra Hugo which each Worldcon is allowed to add for the present year only.
- 2002: Mark R Kelly, editor/webmaster, Locus Online
- 2005: Ellen Datlow, editor, and Craig Engler, general manager, Sci Fiction
Videogame
The Videogame category was added on a one-off basis by the 2021 Worldcon.
Special Committee Awards
These non-Hugo awards, usually taking the form of a plaque rather than the traditional rocket, have been given from time to time by the current Worldcon committee. They are not generally voted on by the membership at large; the experimental 1990 award for Best Original Artwork was an exception, being nominated and voted for by the convention membership as an extra "not a Hugo" category on the Hugo ballot.
- 1955: Lou Tabakow; Sam Moskowitz
- 1959: Brian Aldiss, as highest-voted author finalist for the best or most promising new author Hugo, the actual winner being "no award"
- 1960: Hugo Gernsback, for being "The Father of Science Fiction"
- 1962: Cele Goldsmith, for Amazing Stories; Fritz Leiber; Donald H Tuck, for A Handbook of Science Fiction and Fantasy (1954; rev 1959 2vols)
- 1963: Isaac Asimov, for science articles in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction; P Schuyler Miller, for book reviews in Analog
- 1967: CBS Television, for 21st Century
- 1968: Harlan Ellison, for Dangerous Visions; Gene Roddenberry, for Star Trek
- 1969: Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin Aldrin, for the Moon landing
- 1972: Club du Livre d'Anticipation; Harlan Ellison, for Again, Dangerous Visions (anth 1972); Nueva Dimensión (see Spain)
- 1973: Pierre Versins, for L'Encyclopédie de l'Utopie et de la science fiction ["Encyclopedia of Utopia and SF"] (1972)
- 1974: Chesley Bonestell for artwork
- 1975: Walt Lee and Bill Warren, for Reference Guide to Fantastic Films: Volume 1 A-F (1972), Volume 2 G-O (1973) and Volume 3 P-Z (1974); Donald A Wollheim, for DAW Books
- 1976: James Gunn, for Alternate Worlds: The Illustrated History of Science Fiction (1975)
- 1977: George Lucas, for Star Wars
- 1981: Edward L Ferman, for The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
- 1982: Mike Glyer, for File 770
- 1984: Larry T Shaw; Robert Bloch
- 1988: The Science Fiction Oral History Association
- 1989: Alex Schomburg, for artwork; SF-Lovers Digest
- 1990: Don Maitz, cover for Rimrunners (1989) by C J Cherryh, published by Warner. This was a trial run for the Hugo for Best Original Artwork.
- 1991: Elst Weinstein; Andrew I Porter, for Science Fiction Chronicle
- 1993: Takumi Shibano
- 1996: Forrest J Ackerman; A E van Vogt; Walt Daugherty; William Rotsler
- 2004: Erwin S Strauss
- 2005: David Pringle, for editing/publishing Interzone
- 2006: Betty Ballantine, for Ballantine Books; Harlan Ellison; Fred Patten (1940-2018)
- 2008: NESFA Press; NASA
- 2012: Robert E Weinberg
- 2015: Jay Lake
- 2019: George R R Martin and Parris McBride Martin
- 2022: Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- 2024: Dungeons and Dragons (on the occasion of this Role Playing Game's 50th anniversary)
links
previous versions of this entry