Martha Wells is an American writer of speculative fiction. She has published a number of fantasy novels, young adult novels, media tie-ins, short stories, and nonfiction essays on fantasy and science fiction subjects. Her novels have been translated into twelve languages. Wells has won four Hugo Awards, two Nebula Awards and three Locus Awards for her science fiction series The Murderbot Diaries. She is also known for her fantasy series Ile-Rien and The Books of the Raksura. Wells is praised for the complex, realistically detailed societies she creates; this is often credited to her academic background in anthropology.
Becky Chambers is an American science fiction writer. She is the author of the Hugo Award-winning Wayfarers series as well as novellas including To Be Taught, if Fortunate (2019) and the Monk & Robot series, which begins with the Hugo Award-winning A Psalm for the Wild-Built (2021). She is known for her innovative world-building and character-driven stories, and is a pioneer of the hopepunk genre.
The 79th World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), also known as DisCon III, was held on 15–19 December 2021 in Washington, D.C., United States.
The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe is a 2016 fantasy novella by American writer Kij Johnson, revisiting H. P. Lovecraft's The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath from the viewpoint of a woman. It was first published in trade paperback and ebook format by Tor.com.
AnnaLinden Weller, better known under her pen name Arkady Martine, is an American author of science fiction literature. Her first novels A Memory Called Empire (2019) and A Desolation Called Peace (2021), which form the Teixcalaan series, each won the Hugo Award for Best Novel.
The Black Tides of Heaven is a 2017 LGBT fantasy novella by Singaporean author Neon Yang. The story centers around the twin children of the Protector, whose magic powers cause them to become entangled in the political machinations of their mother. It is one of the first two novellas in the Tensorate series, the other being The Red Threads of Fortune. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novella, Locus Award for Best Novella, and World Fantasy Award for Best Novella.
The Red Threads of Fortune is a 2017 LGBT fantasy novella by Singaporean author Neon Yang. After the death of her daughter, Tensor Sanao Mokoya has abandoned her position as prophet and now spends her time hunting naga in the wilderness. She must confront her past while protecting her Machinist allies.
The Bone Shard Daughter is the first book in the Drowning Empire fantasy trilogy by Andrea Stewart, published in 2020.
The Greenhollow Duology is a series of two fantasy romance novellas by British writer Emily Tesh. The first entry in the series, Silver in the Wood, won the 2020 World Fantasy Award for Best Novella.
The Four Profound Weaves is an acclaimed 2020 LGBT+ fantasy novella by R. B. Lemberg. In 2021, it has been nominated in the best novella category for the Ignyte, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Locus awards.
Upright Women Wanted is a 2020 Western LGBT novella by Sarah Gailey, their third published novella. In the novella, Esther escapes from an arranged marriage after her lover Beatriz is executed. She joins the Librarians, a group of women who distribute government propaganda to rural settlements, and finds that they are more than they seem. The work was nominated for the 2020 Hugo Award for Best Novella and 2020 Locus Award for Best Novella.
Riot Baby is a science fiction novella written by Nigerian American author Tochi Onyebuchi published in 2020.
Nghi Vo is an American author of short stories, novellas, and novels. Vo's fantasy novella The Empress of Salt and Fortune has received acclaim and won the Hugo Award for Best Novella and the IAFA Crawford Award.
Everyone on the Moon Is Essential Personnel is a short story collection by Julian K. Jarboe. Jarboe's first collection, it was published in March 2020 by Lethe Press. The stories in the collection relate to the human body, depicting both embodiment in and alienation from it; they address various additional themes and use genres including fairy tale, body horror, and mid-apocalypse stories. Most characters in the collection are queer.
A Master of Djinn is a 2021 fantasy steampunk novel by American writer P. Djèlí Clark, published by Tor.com. The book is part of Clark's the Dead Djinn Universe and follows the events of the novelette "A Dead Djinn in Cairo", and the novella The Haunting of Tram Car 015.
The Past is Red is a 2021 fantasy novella by Catherynne M. Valente. It includes two parts; Part I, The Future is Blue, was previously published as a novelette, winning the Theodore Sturgeon Award in 2017. Part II is an original work entitled The Past is Red. The entire work was nominated for the 2022 Hugo Award for Best Novella, 2022 Locus Award for Best Novella, and inaugural Ursula K. Le Guin Prize.
On a Red Station, Drifting is a 2012 science fiction novella by Aliette de Bodard. Set in her Xuya Universe, it focuses on two women aboard a space station with a failing artificial intelligence. It received critical acclaim, becoming a finalist for the 2012 Nebula Award for Best Novella, the 2013 Hugo Award for Best Novella, and the 2013 Locus Award for Best Novella.
When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain is a 2020 fantasy novella by Nghi Vo. It is the second novella in the Singing Hills Cycle, serving as a standalone sequel to The Empress of Salt and Fortune (2020).
Into the Riverlands is a 2022 fantasy novella by Nghi Vo. It is the third published entry in the Singing Hills Cycle. Each novella can serve as an entry point to the series or as a standalone tale.
Siren Queen (2022) is a historical fantasy novel by Nghi Vo set in a magical 1930s Los Angeles. The story follows an aspiring actor known as Luli Wei, who hopes to achieve immortality through stardom. Hollywood provides obstacles in the form of racism, sexism, queerphobia, and dark magic. Luli rejects stereotypical roles on-screen and off, instead embracing the power of playing movie monsters. The book was Vo's first novel to be written, but the second to be published, preceded by The Chosen and the Beautiful (2021) in a similar magical universe.
