Parsec Awards
The Parsec Awards are a set of annual awards created to recognize excellence in science fiction podcasts and podcast novels. The awards were created by Mur Lafferty, Tracy Hickman and Michael R. Mennenga and awarded by FarPoint Media. They were first presented in 2006 at DragonCon[1][2][3][4] and have since become "one of the most recognizable honors in science and fiction podcasting".[5]
Nominations are accepted from the listening public annually in each of the categories. The list is vetted for eligibility by the steering committee, before producers are invited to submit samples of work for consideration by a panel of judges. The panel reduces the list of nominees to five finalists in each category. The finalists' work is submitted for judging and the winner is selected by that panel of authors, podcasters, and others knowledgeable in the field of speculative fiction, podcasting, and/or publishing.[6] Past finalist judges have included Catherine Asaro, Charles de Lint, Cory Doctorow, and Evo Terra.[7]
Award categories
(Current for 2013 Nomination Year)
Categories are modified from year to year. This is a list of some past categories:
- Best Speculative Fiction Story: Small Cast(Short Form)
- Best Speculative Fiction Story: Small Cast (Novella Form)
- Best Speculative Fiction Story: Small Cast (Long Form)
- Best Speculative Fiction Story: Large Cast (Short Form)
- Best Speculative Fiction Story: Large Cast (Long Form)
- Best Speculative Fiction Audio Drama (Short Form including Independents)
- Best Speculative Fiction Audio Drama (Long Form including Independents)
- Best Speculative Fiction Video Story Podcast
- Best Speculative Fiction Magazine or Anthology Podcast
- Best Speculative Fiction Comedy/Parody Podcast
- Best Speculative Fiction Fan or News Podcast (Specific)
- Best Speculative Fiction Fan or News Podcast (General)
- Best Podcast About Speculative Fiction Content Creation
- Best Fact Behind the Fiction Podcast ("Infotainment")
- Best New Speculative Fiction Podcaster/Team
- Best Speculative Fiction Music Podcast
References
- ^ Silver, Steven H. (August 6, 2008). "Parsec Awards". SF Site.
The nominations for the first Parsec Awards, given for science fiction podcasting, have been announced. The winner will be announced at Dragon*Con, held this year from September 1–4.
- ^ Sloan, Sam (September 6, 2006). "2006 Parsec Awards Winners". Slice of SciFi.
- ^ Foster, Cymbre (December 28, 2007). "Podcasting with a purpose". Traverse City Record-Eagle.
The Parsec awards, which began in 2006, are dedicated to rewarding excellence in various aspects of Speculative Fiction Podcasting. They are presented at Dragon*con, a popular culture convention with a focus that includes science fiction, fantasy and gaming that is held on Labor Day weekend in Atlanta, GA.
- ^ "2009 Parsec Awards Nominations Open". Wired. April 29, 2009.
- ^ "365 Days of Astronomy Podcast Wins Prestigious Parsec Award". September 9, 2009. Retrieved 8 March 2010.
- ^ "Parsec Awards 2009 Award Determination Process".
- ^ "2009 Parsec Judge Biographies". Retrieved 11 March 2010.