It’s that time of the year again. The good folk at Conjure have announced that nominations for the Ditmars are open.
The Australian Science Fiction Awards, commonly referred to as the Ditmar Awards, recognise excellence by Australians in Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. The Ditmars are an annual highlight of the National Science Fiction Convention and the 2006 Ditmar Awards will be presented at Conjure on Saturday, April 15th 2006. They are being coordinated by Conjure committee member, Richard Pitchforth.
We encourage you to nominate your favourite authors, artists and SF fans in the various Ditmar categories. Award categories include awards for best novel, short story and collection, best artwork, fan production, critical work and more.
Nominations
You can download the Nomination Form. Please distribute the nomination form to your friends and colleagues in the Australian science fiction community. We encourage your participation – and theirs! – in this popular national award.
Voting Eligibility
While members of the Australian speculative fiction fan community may nominate people for the awards, only current members of Conjure (Supporting or Attending Members) may vote. You can purchase a Supporting Membership for only $20.00. We encourage all fans, artists and writers in the Australian speculative fiction community to support the awards. You can purchase your Supporting Membership online here. Even better, purchase an Attending Membership and join in the fun at the con!!
Awards Timeline
Nominations will be open until February 17th, 2006. Voting commences Monday February 27th and will close at midnight (AEST) Tuesday, April 9th. Awards presented at Conjure on Saturday, April 15th, 2006. Rules and information about eligibility and voting are available at the Conjure website at www.conjure.org.au/ditmars.htm. If you have questions about the Ditmars, please contact the convenor of the 2006 Ditmar Awards Sub-Committee – Richard Pitchforth. Richard can be emailed at awards@conjure.org.au We look forward to receiving your nomination form! Nominations close February 17th, 2006!
That first link is broken!
Fixed! Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
Hi, Jonathan – just posted on this on our FPI blog: http://www.fpigraphics.co.uk/blogger/2006/01/austalian-sf.html. Have to ask though – I know where we get the names forthe Hugos, Harveys, Clarkes etc but where does the name Ditmar come from?
Best,
Joe
Like a lot of fannish things, it’s a bit silly. Back when the awards were first put together, only a few people were involved. They were trying to come up with a name, and decided to name it after one of their own number: a fan artist by the name of Ditmar Jensen. It stuck.