World Fantasy Award for Best Novella
| World Fantasy Award—Long Fiction | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | The best fantasy story of 10,000 to 40,000 words published in English in the prior calendar year |
| Presented by | World Fantasy Convention |
| First awarded | 1982 |
| Currently held by | Kelly Barnhill (The Unlicensed Magician) |
| Official website | worldfantasy.org/index.php/awards/ |
The World Fantasy Awards are given each year by the World Fantasy Convention for the best fantasy fiction published in English during the previous calendar year. The awards have been described by book critics such as The Guardian as a "prestigious fantasy prize", and one of the three most prestigious speculative fiction awards, along with the Hugo and Nebula Awards (which cover both fantasy and science fiction). The World Fantasy Award—Long Fiction is given each year for fantasy stories published in English. A work of fiction is eligible for the category if it is between 10,000 and 40,000 words in length; awards are also given out for longer pieces in the Novel category and shorter lengths in the Short Fiction category. The Long Fiction category has been awarded annually since 1982, though between 1975—when the World Fantasy Awards were instated—and 1982 the short fiction category covered works of up to 40,000 words. In 2016, the name of the category was changed from Best Novella to Long Fiction.
World Fantasy Award nominees and winners are decided by attendees and judges at the annual World Fantasy Convention. A ballot is posted in June for attendees of the current and previous two conferences to determine two of the finalists, and a panel of five judges adds three or more nominees before voting on the overall winner. The panel of judges is typically made up of fantasy authors and is chosen each year by the World Fantasy Awards Administration, which has the power to break ties. The final results are presented at the World Fantasy Convention at the end of October. Winners were presented with a statue in the form of a bust of H. P. Lovecraft through the 2015 awards; future ceremonies will present a different, unannounced statuette.
During the 35 nomination years, 124 authors have had works nominated; 35 of them have won, including ties and co-authors. Only four authors have won more than once: Elizabeth Hand, with three wins out of eight nominations; Richard Bowes, with two wins out of three nominations; and K. J. Parker, who also won twice out of three nominations. Of authors who have won at least once, Hand has the most nominations, followed by George R. R. Martin at five and Ursula K. Le Guin at four. Lucius Shepard has the most nominations without winning and the most overall at ten; he is followed by Kim Newman, who has six nominations without winning.
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