There’s been a few posts from authors already letting us know what they have produced that is eligible. I’ll append them on the end (including me).
What iz teh Ditmarz?
The Ditmar Award (formally the Australian SF ("Ditmar") Award; formerly the "Australian Science Fiction Achievement Award") has been awarded annually since 1969 at the Natcon to recognise achievement in Australian science fiction (including fantasy and horror) and science fiction fandom. They are named for Ditmar "Dick" Jenssen, an Australian fan and artist, who financially supported the awards at their inception. (Source: http://wiki.sf.org.au/Ditmar_Award).
In essence our national Science Fiction award recognising Authors, Artists, Academics and Fans.
The times they are a changing?
Fandom is changing, as is publishing. Where once somebody would have sweated blood to produce a fanzine using the school work a photocopier and hand stapler, then posted them out to a mailing list. Now, well now we have even seen professional magazines like Aurealis abandon print and much fan discussion has moved online.
While some may argue that since the barriers to publication have dropped, so have standards I'd counter with - access has improved and science fiction readers are a pretty diverse an sophisticated lot capable of sorting wheat from chaff.
I hadn't thought about my own fan work until I came across Ian Mond’s post on Hugo categories here. Mondy challenges the category of Best Fanzine, arguing it could be replaced with Best Blog. It got me thinking.
Authors and Social Media
I actually hadn’t thought about it until I came across Mondy’s post above but it turns out I did some work last year that a) I am proud of last year b) is eligible for the Ditmars.
You can check out the eligibility list here. If any of your favourite authors are missing (remember the rules for eligibility though) feel free to make a suggestion in the comments and I can add it to the list. The Ditmar rules are located here.
I am eligible to be nominated for:
Best Fan Publication along with Alisa Krasnostein,Tansy Rayner Roberts for Galactic Chat,
and
Best Fan Writer for body of work including "Authors and Social Media" series at Adventures of a Bookonaut.
Nominations
Nominations can be posted here.
You will note it’s a fairly comprehensive form and you have to be known, or active in fandom to nominate. My physical attendance at fan events has been limited until recently owing to living very remotely.
But my blogging and participation online I believe constitutes being active and so should it for you dear reader, who may never have been able to attend a convention, yet contribute to the conversation through forum discussions, comments and perhaps your own blog/publications.
There’s a swathe of eligible works, from people I respect and know, to people and publications I have never heard of. The more the merrier, we want a robust field to chose from.
I harbour no illusions about my work, there are quite a few fans that have produced work that is professional all bar the money exchanging hands. I encourage you, if you are so inclined to check out the eligibility list, note your favourites or discover some new ones.
I intend to go through the list myself and discuss some of the works I discover and post about them here.
I will leave you with a couple of posts from authors who have commented on the Ditmars themselves, mentioning their own eligibility. Some in fandom feel uncomfortable about authors or those eligible mentioning that fact, as if by drawing fans attention to it, that it’s self promotion or campaigning, that there is a gaming of the system.
I side with Paul Cornell on that idea. The more the merrier, the more we have to chose from, the more fans know about what works are available, the more robust the field is, the less chance of a mutual back slapping affair.
On that note, I will not mention my own eligibility again. I will, as all good fans should, mention every author or fan I think is deserving of a nomination.
Current posts floating about the Ditmars:
(feel free to add your own or others in the comments)
Ditmar Awards Pimpage – With Megafauna
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