The winners of the 2005 World Fantasy Awards have been announced. I have definite thoughts on the winners, agreeing with some and not with others. The main thing is that both the ballot and results were definitely credible, and I think the judges acquitted themselves very well indeed. Further than that I will not go, as I am bound the rules of the secret former World Fantasy Award judges cabal.

This weekend was all about finishing the first volume of The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year. I had to turn a stack of stories files into a manuscript, write the story notes, the introduction and all the other bits and pieces. Well, I’m pretty much done. There’s a file on my computer here at home that contains all of that stuff. At the moment there are twenty three stories in the final book, and I’ve got permissions etc for twenty two of them. I’ll know in the next two days about that last one, but I do have another story that I really love and that it hurt not to squeeze into the final book sitting as a pinch hitter. So, I’ll do another read over of the new stuff tonight, confirm the permission tomorrow, and the book file should reach San Francisco not long after Jeremy and Jason get back from WFC, which will be a huge relief.

And next? Well, I’ve got to do the line edit on the best of Bruce Sterling that Subterranean are doing, begin serious work on Locus’s recommended reading lists, assemble an ms. for Best Short Novels: 2007, get some invites out for two new projects I’m doing, and there’ll be some Locus proofing in there too. That should keep me busy till Christmas, I think.

James Sallis has a great review of Peter Beagle’s The Line Between and Jeffrey Ford’s The Empire of Icecream in the December issue of F&SF. You can read it online. Oh, and you can subscribe to F&SF here.

Paul Kincaid also has an interesting review of David Hartwell and Kathryn Cramer’s Year’s Best Fantasy 6 at SF Site. The review’s not terribily positive, and doesn’t gel with the starred PW review the book got, but is interesting for what it says about year’s best annuals. Apparently Kincaid’s going to review my Best Short Novels: 2006, so I’d like to say a few things here before I see that review. For what it’s worth, I think Kincaid has some valid points, but isn’t entirely on the money.

So, Christmas is coming, you’re going to be in Austin for World Fantasy (lucky swine!), and you’re wondering what to get that special loved one. Can I recommend stopping by the Old Earth Books table and picking up a case or two of the latest Howard Waldrop title?

Mike Walsh will be launching Things Will Never Be The Same: Selected Science Fiction 1980-2006 by Howard Waldrop, the first major career overview from America’s national treasure. It features sixteen stories, and is going to be mega-terrific. And, if you buy this one, Mike might be able to afford to do the second one that collects the novellas!

The contents are:

1. The Ugly Chickens
2. Heirs of the Perisphere
3. Flying Saucer Rock and Roll
4. The Lions Are Asleep This Night
5. Night of the Cooters
6. Do Ya,Do Ya,Wanna Dance?
7. Wild Horses
8. French Scenes
9. Household Names
10. The Sawing Boys
11. Heart of Whitenesse
12. Mr Goober’s Show
13. US
14. The Dynasters
15. Calling My Name
16. King of Where I Go

Oh, and if you’re in Austin Howard will be there. You could get him to *sign* the books for you. I bet he would! And you could buy Cross Plains Universe, a new antho with a Howard story in it. Lots of Waldrop goodness (and I’m stuck in Perth, sigh).