2022 Aurealis Awards Judging Reports

Panel members: Caitlin Chisholm (convenor), Charmaine Clancy, Roslyn Phillips, Marija Sijakovska, Christine Titheradge Number of entries: 147 Judging criteria: Originality, creativity, conventions of the genre, literary merit and writing style. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;The horror short story category had a large number of entries in 2022. This made deciding on a shortlist challenging at times as there were many great stories that demonstrated excellence in the field. The entries spanned a wide variety of subgenres and really showcased the variability of horror. There were also many entries that fit into multiple genres such as fantasy and science-fiction. The shortlist the panel decided on represents the variety of horror that Australia has to offer. It is full of well written, tight stories that pack a punch in their relatively short word counts.

Best Horror Short Story Shortlist

“Nona Doesn't Dance” Aaron Dries (Cut to Care: A Collection of Little Hurts, IFWG Publishing Australia) “Lidless Eyes That See”, Geneve Flynn (From the Wasteland, PS Publishing UK) "They Call Me Mother", Geneve Flynn (Classic Monster Unleashed, Crystal Lake Publishing and Black Spot Books “Dread Circus”, Pamela Jeffs (That is TOO Wrong! An Anthology of Offbeat Horror Vol 2, Black Hart Publishers) “The Hunt”, Martin Livings (Light Falling From a Long Dead Star, self-published) “Beach Memories”, Matt Tighe (The NoSleep Podcast, S18E06)

Best Illustrated Work / Graphic Novel Shortlist

Nottingham Vol. 2: A King’s Ransom, David Hazan (Mad Cave Studios) Dark Heart #1, Scott Wilson, Katie Houghton-Ward &amp; Justin Randall (Gestalt) The Tree of Ecstasy and Unbearable Sadness, Matt Ottley (Dirt Lane Press)&nbsp; Neverlanders, Tom Taylor &amp; Jon Sommariva (Penguin Random House Australia)

Panel members: Miffy Farquharson (convenor), Ky Garvey, Emily Meredith, Bron Swasbrick Number of entries: 53 Judging criteria: A key aspect of judging this category is to consider the appeal to the stated target audience of children. Judges also consider word craft, originality, and speculative fiction concepts. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;Children's fiction attracts entries suitable for a wide variety of ages - from pre-school to upper primary and this adds an&nbsp;additional level of complexity&nbsp;for the judging panel, which must make comparisons between picture books, illustrated, and text-only submissions. The panel employed robust and frank discussions whilst discussing the entries, and this has resulted in a very strong shortlist. The shortlist reflects an encouraging trend to write books with strong, thoughtful protagonists, and has a broad range of genres - from horror, through whimsy and adventure, to historical fiction.&nbsp;The panel are confident that the shortlist celebrates quality writing for young people in the speculative fiction arena&nbsp;and encourages those not shortlisted this year to continue writing, illustrating, and publishing.

Best Children's Fiction Shortlist

The Wintrish Girl, Melanie La'Brooy (University of Queensland Press)&nbsp; Gus and the Starlight, Victoria Carless (HarperCollins Publishers) The Wrath of the Woolington Wyrm, Karen Foxlee, illustrated by Freda Chiu (Allen &amp; Unwin) The Raven's Song, Zana Fraillon &amp; Bren MacDibble (Allen &amp; Unwin) The Goodbye Year, Emily Gale (Text Publishing) Mars Awakens, H M Waugh (Allen &amp; Unwin)

Panel members: Jake Corvus (convenor), Anna Hepworth, Aimee Murphy, Donella Reed, Christine Sun Number of entries: 38 Judging criteria: The Horror Novella panel were seeking excellence in voice, style, concept and execution. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;Horror novellas was a competitive category, with a glut of strong entries. Narrowing down the shortlist was a challenge — slight shifts in taste could have resulted in an entirely different list of equally deserving titles. Australia is blessed with a wealth of creative talent, grown and steeped in our uniquely horrifying and awe-inspiring landscape. This heritage shone through in many of the stories, and we are thrilled to present such a diverse and varied shortlist.

Panel members: Lorraine Cormack, Mark Fazackerley (convenor), Marian Foster, Jan-Andrew Henderson, Paul Voermans Number of entries: 48 Judging criteria: The SF novelist judges this year were looking at originality, depth of characters, world building and clear genre markers. Alongside of these we also looked closely at over all quality of writing and style elements.&nbsp; Overview of nominations:&nbsp;Entries this year used a broad range of techniques and tropes, including some more strongly associated with other genres (such as comedy, fantasy, adventure). This underlined the increasingly broad definition of what might be considered science fiction. Some entries used tropes from multiple genres to good effect. Overall the range of entries was broad in scope and subject matter. Some books would have benefitted from a stronger editorial hand, as good ideas were often obscured by such uneven presentation. The higher participation of self-publishers and small presses than in previous years is welcome but highlighted the benefits of the extra scrutiny and rigour that a larger publishing organisation may afford written works.&nbsp;The diverse shortlist reflects many of these factors.

Best Horror Novel Shortlist

Sallow Bend, Alan Baxter (Cemetery Dance) Scavengers, Robert Hood (Clan Destine Press) The Stranger, Kathryn Hore (Allen &amp; Unwin) The Stone Road, Trent Jamieson (Erewhon Books) Path of Thorns, Angela Slatter (Titan Books)

Best Young Adult Novel Shortlist

Night Lights, Sarah Epstein (Fourteen Press)&nbsp; The Rarkyn's Familiar, Nikky Lee (Parliament House Press) Only a Monster, Vanessa Len (Allen &amp; Unwin)&nbsp; If You Could See the Sun, Ann Liang (HQ Fiction) We Who Hunt the Hollow, Kate Murray (Hardie Grant Children's Publishing) League of Liars, Astrid Scholte (Allen &amp; Unwin)

Panel members: Deborah Brown, Paul Cormack, Irene Davy, Alexandra Pierce (convenor), Lynda Young Number of entries: 19 Judging criteria: [] Overview of nominations:&nbsp;[]

Panel members: Finn Barz, Elizabeth Fitzgerald (convenor), Stephen Hipkiss, Heidi Kneale, Ruth Lawlor Number of entries: 50 Judging criteria: The Fantasy Novel panel judged works according to originality, characterisation, plot, writing style and strong fantasy elements. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;While there was a wide range of works for this category, it is notable that there was a strong showing from the Young Adult age range, as well as trends towards historical fantasy and fantasy romance. The quality of work varied considerably and there was robust competition for a shortlist which it is pleasing to see reflects the diversity of entries.

Panel members: Eugen Bacon (convenor), Sarah Custace, Christopher Marcatili, T R Napper, Lucas Palermo Number of entries: 19 Judging criteria: The entries were judged on criteria of literary merit, originality, artwork and storytelling contributions to genre. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;This year we valued the diverse range of stories submitted, with a variety of art styles, genres and presentation received. the panel were delighted with the uniqueness of the four works listed as finalists, which showcase the opportunities for speculative fiction storytelling through the more visual media.&nbsp;

Panel members: Susan Beasley, Emma Cutting, Mark Phillips, Cathie Tasker (convenor) Number of entries: 28 Judging criteria: The panel&nbsp;judged on criteria of originality, literary merit, themes, variety and depth across the collection. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;It was interesting to see the conventions being stretched, with some collections offering essays and poetry as well as fiction. Some collections offered a variation in tone across the whole which was refreshing. A range of genres were represented and in particular climate change continues to be an important topic for the authors. There were some wonderful examples of a distinct narrative voice, sophisticated storytelling and incredible fresh new ideas.

Panel members: Bethany Barrass, Jess Drake, Stephanie Gunn (convenor), Martha Itzcovitz, Emilie Morscheck Number of entries: 32 Judging criteria: The Young Adult Novel panel judged works against several criteria, including originality of plot, depth of characterisation, reader immersion, and the quality of the writing itself. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;There was a variety of works entered into the Young Adult novel panel, with works being published mostly by small presses and traditional publishers, as well as self-published works. Novels fell into a variety of speculative fiction subgenres, with the majority either being contemporary fantasy set in the real world, to fully fantastical worlds. Target reader ages ranged from the lowest end of the Young Adult audience to the upper limits, with several of the latter works having crossover appeal to adult readers. It was especially gratifying to see that the entered works featured diversity in terms of gender, sexuality and race. Unfortunately, there were only a handful of works that featured disabled characters, and some of these works features ableist tropes, which could be actively harmful for young disabled readers. Overall, the entered novels represent a vibrant publishing scene for young adult books in Australia.

Best Horror Novella Shortlist

“Rat’s Alley”, Jeff Clulow (From the Wasteland, PS Publishing UK) “Kookaburra Cruel”, Aaron Dries (Damnation Games, Clan Destine Press) “Glyphlight”, Matan Elul (The New Mythic, Precipice Fiction) The New Wife, Kirstyn McDermott (Brain Jar Press) “Among the Faded Woods”, Faith Mudge (The Art of Being Human, FableCroft Publishing) “Songs from Dark Annie's Bower”, Angela Slatter (Gaslight Ghouls: Uneasy Tales of Sherlock Holmes, Belanger Books)

2022 Aurealis Awards Judging Reports

Best Fantasy Short Story Shortlist

“The Icecutter's Daughter”, Aiki Flinthart (The Art of Being Human, FableCroft Publishing) “Ashes”, Tania Fordwalker (Aurealis #151) "Tastes like Home", Kiera Lesley (Andromeda Spaceways Magazine #86) “Salon Faerie”, Tansy Rayner Roberts (self-published) “Beautiful Horizon”, Steve Simpson (The Purpose of Reality: Solar, Meerkat Press) “The Past Laid Out On The Table”, Matt Tighe (Cast of Wonders 506)

Panel members: Dianne De Bellis (convener), Nick Hartland, Amy Laurens, Mark Lingane, Wen Moore, Darren Nash Number of entries: 119 Judging criteria: The panel looked for literary merit and originality as well as authentic character interaction. Any world-building or alien concepts needed to be clear and established quickly. The judges sought fully realised stories in the short form with some SF element. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;The top group of 2022 submissions were of a high standard, several with a classic science fiction feel. Many were set in a post-apocalyptic world with themes of relationships and transformations. The panellists particularly noted those with originality, solid writing and good pacing. We also enjoyed subtlety and ‘poetic’ writing as long as the story retained clarity and authenticity.&nbsp;Many stories that did not make it into our top group nevertheless had original ideas and inventive writing. These writers are encouraged to continue to hone their craft and develop their storytelling mechanics. Creators are also encouraged to use the incredible amount of scientific knowledge available to speculate on futures and possibilities to fulfil the science fictional aspects of their story.

Best Science Fiction Novel Shortlist

Hovering, Rhett Davis (Hachette Australia) The Stranger, Kathryn Hore (Allen &amp; Unwin) 36 Streets, T R Napper (Titan Books) Here Goes Nothing, Steve Toltz (Hamish Hamilton) Bootstrap, Georgina Young (Text Publishing)

Best Fantasy Novel Shortlist

The Not So Chosen One, Kate Emery (Text Publishing) The Stone Road, Trent Jamieson (Erewhon Books) A Restless Truth, Freya Marske (Tor) Blitz, Daniel O'Malley (HarperCollins Publishers) Path of Thorns, Angela Slatter (Titan Books)&nbsp; Honour Among Ghosts, Sean Williams (Allen &amp; Unwin)

The Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild (CSFG) would like to thank all the judges for their work this year. With the challenging task of reading almost 800 entries across the 15 categories, each panel volunteers significant time and expertise for this job. It is impressive to see the incredible shortlists that reflect the vast diversity of speculative fiction being published each year in Australia, and it is all due to the work of these brilliant folks. Thank you for continuing to be part of the annual Aurealis Awards.

Best Collection Shortlist

The Art of Broken Things, Joanne Anderton (Trepidatio Publishing) The Fall: Tales From The Gulp 2, Alan Baxter (13th Dragon Books Everything Feels Like the End of the World, Else Fitzgerald (Allen &amp; Unwin) Here be Leviathans, Chris Flynn (University of Queensland Press) Hard Places, Kirstyn McDermott (Trepidatio Publishing) Team Queen, Tansy Rayner Roberts (self-published)

Best Young Adult Short Story Shortlist

"Forbidden Voices", E J Delaney (Cast of Wonders #510) "Crone and the Girl", Pamela Jeffs (The Seasonals, Four Ink Press) "Tastes like Home", Kiera Lesley (Andromeda Spaceways Magazine #86) "Tornadoes, Grief and Poutine", Aline-Mwezi Niyonsenga (Augur Magazine Issue 5.2) "Enter Elias Schmidt", Phoenix Raig (The New Mythic, Precipice Fiction) "Witchy Ways", Tansy Rayner Roberts (Witchy Ways, self-published)

Best Anthology Shortlist

Queer Weird West Tales, Julie Bozza (Ed.) (LIBRAtiger) The Art of Being Human, Tehani Croft with Stephanie Lai (Eds.) (FableCroft Publishing) We are Providence, L E Daniels &amp; Christa Carmen (Eds.) (Weird House Press) Unlimited Futures, Rafeif Ismail (Ed.) (Fremantle Press) Clamour and Mischief, Narrelle M Harris (Ed.) (Clan Destine Press) This All Come Back Now, Mykaela Saunders (Ed.) (University of Queensland Press)

Best Science Fiction Novella Shortlist

Resembling Lepus, Amanda Kool (Grey Matter Press) “The Goruden-Mairu Job”, T R Napper (Night, Rain, and Neon, NewCon Press) “The Sisters of Saint Nicola of The Almost Perpetual Motion vs the Lurch”, Garth Nix (Tor.com) Cobalt Blue, Matthew Reilly (Pan Macmillan)

Panel members: Georgina Banfield, J M Merryt, Glenn George, Celia Pearce, Nathan Phillips (convenor) Number of entries: 24 Judging criteria: The panel assessed quality of the writing, engagement with genre elements, and originality of stories and style.&nbsp; Overview of nominations:&nbsp;Overall, the diversity of entries across the Horror Novel category did a fantastic job of demonstrating the broad reach of horror. From genre-smashing retellings, to psychological terrors, to created worlds of demons and monsters, the stories were an eclectic mix. Though a high number of quality entries were presented,&nbsp;several such stories did not make the finalist list due to falling the wrong side of the thin, nebulous line between horror and thriller genres. This does not take away from the quality demonstrated across such stories, which served to showcase the high caliber of authors across genres. The experience of reading through the entries was a disturbing and horrifying activity (in the best possible way) for all involved. While the entry list is one of the smallest of the categories, the standard of entries demonstrate that Australian horror is in good hands, delivering all the frights expected and more.

Panel members: Debbie Berger, Jess Gately (convenor), Melanie Ifield, Samara Lo, Louise Nice Number of entries: 40 Judging criteria: The YA Short Story this year was particularly interested in stories that were captivating in both concept and voice and which displayed a solid command of language and storytelling techniques. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;The entries in this category were, for the most part, well-written with some truly out-of-the-box, new and eye-opening ways of telling both classic and new stories. Following the recent trends in Young Adult speculative fiction, there were a lot of fantasy submissions this year, but there were also some truly left-of-field and genre-bending entries too. Typical YA themes such as loss, friendship, and identity were widely explored, although some stories did so while also experimenting with unique structures to complement these themes. Many stories also reflected the growing trend for New Adult audiences to be classified as YA, reflecting the ongoing nature of these themes throughout our lifetimes. The final shortlist represents a truly excellent standard of storytelling and writing.

Panel members: Paula Boer (convenor), Natalie Haigh, Cary Lenehan, Allister Smith, Sarah Swarbrick Number of entries: 142 Judging criteria: The stories were judged on&nbsp;originality, satisfaction of the ending, plot, characterisation, and quality of writing. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;The many entries covered a broad range of topics, with quite a few judged down as they had stronger elements from genres other than fantasy. The quality of the writing varied, from lovely worldbuilding and character development to works that could have been improved with more depth or editing. The shortlisted pieces showed fresh ideas, were beautifully written, and lingered long after being read.

Best Science Fiction Short Story Shortlist

“As Though I Were a Little Sun”, Grace Chan (Fireside Magazine #102) “Death By Water”, Grace Chan (From the Wasteland, PS Publishing UK) “Fake Plants”, Scott Limbrick (The Furphy Anthology 2022, Hardie Grant) “Synaesthetics”, Helena O'Connor (Nature) “Sharing a Meal at the End of the World”, Anya Ow (Haven Speculative Issue Six) “One Man Army”, Scott Steensma (Aurealis #156)

Panel members: Susan Beasley, Emma Cutting, Mark Phillips, Cathie Tasker (convenor) Number of entries: 27 Judging criteria: The panel&nbsp;judged on criteria of originality, literary merit, themes, and cohesion. Overview of nominations:&nbsp;Many anthologies were themed, and that helped to offer a cohesion to the whole. The anthologies covered a range of genres with fairy tales, SF, fantasy, horror and more. There is a trend for more dystopian stories than in previous years. There were several “own voices” anthologies, and these contained fresh ideas and themes. Many were strong and sophisticated and very well executed, with some even "heartbreakingly brilliant". The judges were especially pleased when the themes and imagery were consistent across the anthology.

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