As a (admittedly lacking) science fiction reader/author, I’ve been following the rumpus surrounding the 2015 Hugo Awards for Science Fiction. Simply put, they’re fan-based awards, given to works of science fiction* that exemplify the best talent in the industry.
* Or at least, that’s what it used to be. In the last 2 years, we’ve discovered it was a thinly disguised club who used it to promote works that were neither science fiction, nor the best that the industry had to offer.
Naturally, people were upset about this and pressed back, and so the Hugo Awards ended up burning themselves to the ground instead of letting “unapproved” authors and editors get their coveted awards.
Honestly, Larry Corriea explains it perfectly here.
I’ve noticed over the last year or so, with GamerGate and now the Hugo Awards, that being a moderate in these areas is ineffective and counterproductive. Not wanting to hurt people’s feelings ends up backfiring 99% of the time, because the people you’re trying not to offend don’t care if they offend you.
So as believers, do we simply smile and back away? Do we take our toys and go play in another sandbox? Or do we put our foot down, insist on playing by the same rules, and beat them at their own game?
Part of me feels dirty for even entertaining the idea that someone like me could play by the rules set by the extreme leftists. It just feels wrong. But if playing by the “nice” rules gets you nowhere, what other options do we have?
I think the difference is in how we execute the plan, and what our expected results will be. Some would say “just make your own award and ignore them.” Others would say “we cannot allow this prestigious award to be corrupted, so it must be destroyed.” Is there a middle ground? I don’t really know.
The question is, do the Hugo Awards really matter, and if so, are they worth saving? Can they be saved? Should they even be saved?
Ultimately, I guess it really doesn’t matter, because if the Hugo Awards get burned to the ground they will just move on to something else to corrupt and turn into a mockery. I can understand fighting for something that’s valuable, but sadly, it looks like the Hugo Awards have proven themselves to be not worth the plastic they’re shaped from. The Hugos, and their associated factions, no longer represent anything good or worthwhile.
How should this affect me as a fan (and sometimes author) of Sci-Fi?
It shouldn’t. If I’m writing books just to pat myself on the back and get some award that no longer means anything, then I’m writing for the wrong reasons to start with. It should always be about telling a good story. Whether or not I’m successful depends solely on that. If I win an award, that’s cool I guess, but the real reward is hearing from your readers. That you touched somebody’s life. That you made them think.
I suppose if I were heavily invested in the Hugos to start with, I’d be concerned. But as it stands, it’s just polishing the brass on the RMS Titanic. It’s all going down. Why would I waste time trying to save it? Let it sink, and rot on the bottom as an example to the rest of the world. I won’t have to lift a finger; they’re sealed their own fate.
And if by some bizarre happenstance one of my works ever gets nominated for a Hugo, you can rest assured I’ll want nothing to do with it, unless by some miracle things change.