MEDIA RELEASE

LOCAL AUTHORS PARTICIPATE IN NATIONWIDE RECOGNITION EVENT

Bookstores Sponsor Signings in Conjunction with The Nebula Awards

For immediate release					For more information contact:
April 15, 2000						__(name)_____  __(phone)__


- New York, NY - Bookstores across the country are joining the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) in celebrating the prestigious Nebula Awards [TM] with a series of author book signings on May 19 and 20, 2000.

The Nebula is awarded each year to outstanding works of speculative fiction in the categories Best Novel, Best Novella, Best Novelette, and Best Short Story.  Winners are selected from an extensive list of nominees by their colleagues in SFWA [SM] and are honored at a banquet, which is being held this year in New York.  Bookstores in numerous cities including ___(city)__ are joining in celebrating the 2000 Nebula Awards by hosting author book signings featuring local writers of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and other speculative genres.  The Barnes and Noble SuperStore at _____(address)________ will host the event in __(city)_ on May 19 and 20 at __(time)__.  __(State/Region)___ writers planning to participate include _______________.

[Optional paragraph:  Among the nominees for awards this year are local writers __________________________.]

In recognition of the popularity of speculative fiction themes in television and motion pictures, this year The Nebula Awards [TM] will include a category for Best Script.  The broad appeal of science fiction in film and television is illustrated by the fact that so many of the top grossing movies since 1970 have been science fiction films.  The recent nomination of "Sixth Sense" for an Academy Award reflects a trend begun in SF literature toward a wider range of subjects and venues, from the present and personal to the futuristic and epic.

Today's science fiction and fantasy literature, often referred to as speculative fiction or SF, shows a growth and maturity in the genre over the ray guns and little green men of the 1930s.  The average SF reader today is well-educated, often holding an advanced degree, and demands high quality writing and plausible storylines.  The genre itself has expanded, also.  In addition to "hard science" stories of advanced technology, there are "soft science" stories that explore the affects of technology on societies and individuals; in addition to grand, sweeping fantasy epics, there are light-hearted looks at otherwise ordinary people who happen to have magic powers.  Recently, a new area of speculative fiction has begun to grow in popularity:  "alternate history" explores how our world might be different if some critical event in history had played out differently.

SFWA [SM], which sponsors The Nebula Awards, is a writers advocacy group.  Founded in 1965 with 78 charter members, today it boasts more than 1400 members, among them most of the leading writers of science fiction and fantasy.

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1999 Final Ballot

The winners will be announced at the 2000 Nebula Awards(tm) Weekend to be held in 
New York City on May 19 - 21, 2000.

Novels
    Butler, Octavia E.: Parable of the Talents (Seven Stories Press, Nov98; 
    Warner Books, Jan00) 
    MacLeod, Ken: The Cassini Division (Tor, Jul99) 
    Martin, George R.R. : A Clash of Kings (Bantam Spectra hb, Feb99) 
    McHugh, Maureen F.: Mission Child (Avon Eos hb, Dec98; Eos pb, Nov99) 
    Stewart, Sean: Mockingbird (Ace hb, Aug98; Ace pb, Mar00) 
    Vinge, Vernor: A Deepness in the Sky (Tor hb, Feb99; Tor pb, Jan00) 
Novellas
    Burstein, Michael A.: Reality Check (Analog, Nov99) 
    Castro, Adam-Troy and Oltion, Jerry: The Astronaut From Wyoming (Analog, 
    Aug99 [July/Aug99 issue]) 
    Chiang, Ted: Story of Your Life (Starlight 2, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Ed., 
    Tor hb, Nov98; Tor pb, Sep99) 
    Duchamp, L. Timmel: Living Trust (Asimov's, Feb99) 
    Duncan, Andy: The Executioners' Guild (Asimov's, Aug99) 
    Marusek, David: The Wedding Album (Asimov's, Jun99) 
Novelettes
    Eisenstein, Phyllis: The Island in the Lake (F&SF, Dec98) 
    Friesner, Esther M.: How to Make Unicorn Pie (F&SF, Jan99) 
    Hopkins, Brian A.: Five Days in April (Chiaroscuro Webzine, Jul99) 
    [Printable version here] 
    McDevitt, Jack & Schmidt, Stanley: Good Intentions (F&SF, Jun98) 
    Sterling, Bruce: Taklamakan (Asimov's, Nov98 [Oct/Nov98 issue]) 
    Turzillo, Mary A.: Mars is No Place for Children (SF Age, May99) 
Short Stories
    Ash, Constance: Flower Kiss (Realms of Fantasy, Aug98) 
    Rogers, Bruce Holland: The Dead Boy at Your Window (The North American 
    Review, Dec98 [Nov/Dec98 issue; Also in Realms of Fantasy, Apr00]) 
    Sherwood, Frances: Basil the Dog (Atlantic Monthly, Sep99) 
    Swanwick, Michael: Ancient Engines (Asimov's, Feb99) 
    Swanwick, Michael: Radiant Doors (Asimov's, Sep98) 
    What, Leslie: The Cost of Doing Business (Amazing Stories, Kim Mohan, Ed., 
    WotC, Feb99 [Win99 issue]) 
Scripts
    Avrech, Robert J.: The Devil's Arithmetic (Showtime Television, 28Mar99; 
    Based on the novel The Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen) 
    Bird, Brad & McCanlies, Tim: The Iron Giant (Warner Bros., Aug99; based on 
    the book The Iron Man by Ted Hughes) 
    Millerman, John: The Uranus Experiment: Part 2 (Private Black Label, Jun99 
    [DVD, CD & VHS U.S. release; Mar99 in Europe]) 
    Shyamalan, M. Night: The Sixth Sense (Hollywood Pictures, Aug99) 
    Wachowski, Larry & Andy: The Matrix (Warner Bros., Mar99)