Edwina Harvey – 2018 Chandler Award Winner
Edwina Harvey – Chandler Award Winner 2018
Edwina Harvey is a worthy recipient of this year's A. Bertram Chandler Award. She has been an active member of Australian science-fiction fandom: writing, publishing and with her amazing artwork for 40 years.
She was one of the founding members of Astrex, the Star Trek fan club of NSW, and regularly contributed fiction to the associated fanzine Beyond Antares as well as other SF fanzines from the mid 1970s onwards. She was also an active member of The Hitchers Club of Australia (Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy Fanclub) from approximately 1984 onwards contributing to the newsletter Australian Playbeing through articles and comments and assisting with the copying and distribution of some issues of the newsletter. Known locally as the Fund Raising Queens, Edwina has worked with Karen Auhl on organising fundraiser events for Medtrek 4, Huttcon 90 and two Sydney Worldcon bids. (Late 1980s – mid 1990s) Edwina has been a contributing member of FOLCC (the Friends of Linda Cox Chan) which was an informal group donating monies raised to Diabetes Charities in Australia. Linda Cox Chan was a Sydney-based SF fan artist and writer who passed away in 1991. From 2012 to the present time, Edwina has also run a lucky-dip at Australian SF conventions to raise money for FFANZ.
Edwina has been organiser/co-organiser of three SF relaxacons: Nowracon (with Karen Auhl, 1989), Nelcon (with Sue Pears) 2001 and the highly successful Medtrek Reunion 33 and 1/3rd Reunion in 2015. She worked on the committee as secretary for Huttcon 90, the National Science Fiction Media Convention, 1990, held in St Kilda, Melbourne, November 1990. In 1994, Edwina was the treasurer for Comedycon, a SF/Comedy convention with Hattie Hayridge from TV series Red Dwarf as Guest of Honour.
More recently, in July 2017, Edwina was Guest of Honour at the highly successful Medtrek 6: the 50th Anniversary of Star Trek in Australia.
At Australian conventions, Edwina is a well-known and respected fan huckster, the "Celestial Cobbler", promoting Australian written and published SF, and becoming well known for her own creative works in ceramics, jewellery and painted silk creations.
From 2002 – 2010 Edwina co-edited (with Ted Scribner) the revivified version of The Australian Science Fiction Bullsheet. Edwina was one of the founding members of Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine (ASIM). She worked in various roles on the magazine from 2002 – 2015, including editor for five issues. She has co-edited two anthologies of (mostly Australian) original speculative fiction: Light Touch Paper, Stand Clear (2012) and Use Only As Directed (2014). She is the author of three books with Peggy Bright Books: a young adult SF novel, The Whale's Tale (2009), a collection of interlinked short stories, The Back of the Back of Beyond (2013) and An Eclectic Collection of Stuff and Things, a collection of her writing (2017). A complete bibliography of her works can been checked out on <https://edwinaharvey.wordpress.com/my-writing-and-editing-cv/>.
She currently works as a freelance editor and has edited several SF books for Australian small press, Peggy Bright Books, and US small press, Dragonwell Press. She also gives back to the current Australian SF scene by editing short stories and novels for emerging SF writers.
Edwina also rescues elderly dogs and cats from shelters, the occasional donkey as well — and is looking for a miniature horse to graze in the back yard.
In other words, Edwina is a hard-working treasure.
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Awards Season 2018 Opens
Aurealis Awards — Short list now announced. The Awards will be presented at Swancon 31 March, 2018. <https://aurealisawards.org/>
Ditmar Awards Nominees List and ballot now available. Voting for the Ditmar Award is conducted in accordance with the rules specified at <http://wiki.sf.org.au/Ditmar_rules>, and is open to members of Swancon 43 (including supporting members) and to members of Continuum 13 who were eligible to vote in the 2017 Award. Voting closes 18 March 2016 <http://ditmars.sf.org.au/2018>.
Special mention: immediate Past President Bruce Gillespie nominated for Best Fan Publication in Any Medium.
For more awards news, including overseas events, please join the ASFF
Fan Funds Open For 2018
Both GUFF and DUFF have opened their races for 2018. Fan funds are a long tradition in SF fandom and a wonderful opportunity to connect with fans on the other side of the planet.
DUFF. Nominations are now open for a Down Under Fan Fund delegate from Australia or New Zealand to travel either to San Jose, California, USA for the 76th World Science Fiction Convention, 16–20 August 2018, or to other major conventions in North America in 2018. <https://downunderfanfund.wordpress.com/>
GUFF Nominations are now open for the southbound race, to transport a European fan (or fans) to Continuum <http://www.continuum.org.au> Science Fiction Convention, to be held in Melbourne, Australia over the June long weekend 2018 (8 June to 11 June 2018). Normally the nominated convention would be a national SF convention but due to special circumstances the Continuum convention has been selected for 2018. <http://ozfanfunds.com/?page_id=92>.
Introducing The ASFF Committee 2018
Introducing Your Committee For 2018
President: Rose Mitchell
Vice President: LynC
Treasurer/Secretary: Carey Handfield
Administration Secretary: Cath Ortlieb
Membership Secretary: LynC
General Committee: James Allen, Robin Johnson, David L Russell
The following Appointments were also confirmed:
Web Administrator: Ion Newcombe
Norma K Hemming Award: Tehani Croft (Administrator), Jurors: Stephanie Gunn, Stephanie Lai, Russell Kirkpatrick and Alexandra Pierce who are appointed till the conclusion of the 2018 competition (to be judged early 2019).
Interstate Agents/Reps: Gerald Smith (NSW), Van Ikin (Academic), Jean Weber & Eric Lindsay (roaming) and Gillian Polack ACT
Congratulations to all. If you feel you could contribute to the work of the Association please contact us, especially if you could take on an Agent's role promoting the ASFF to those in your state.
ASFF-Supported Swancon Short Story Competition 2018
Swancon 2018, the 57th Australian National Science Fiction Convention, is running a short story competition with the support of the Australian Science Fiction Foundation. Link to the entry form is at the bottom of this page.
Theme: Transformation
Preferred submission format is a PDF file. Font should be 12 point Times or Times New Roman. Story can be in standard manuscript format (double spaced, hanging indent) or can have basic style formatting applied (e.g. justification, single spaced with space between paragraphs, italics and bolding).
Authors having difficulty with supplying a PDF file should contact the competition coordinators (shortstory@swancon.com.au) early to discuss alternative options.
Age categories: Under 14s, Under 18s, Open. Age determined at 31 st March 2018.
Stories must be one or more of science fiction, fantasy, horror, or speculative fiction.
Transformative works, including fan fiction, are acceptable. Minimum word count of 500 words, maximum word count 7500 words.
The work must be the original work of the submitting authors. A maximum of two works per author may be submitted; multiple author works are included in this count.
Eligibility: Stories may be submitted if the author is living in Australia, is an Australian citizen regardless of current country of residence, or will be attending the convention. For multiple author works, it is sufficient for one author to meet these requirements.
Submission Deadline: Individual submissions are due by midnight (Western Australian Time) on Wednesday the 28th February. Class submissions facilitated by a teacher, are due by midnight (Western Australian time) on Friday 2nd of March.
Contact us: shortstory@swancon.com.au
Prizes: First prize in each category $100. Other prizes to be determined based on submissions.
Copyright of submitted works is retained by the author(s).
2018 Australian SF "Ditmar" Awards Nominations Open
Nominations for the 2018 Australian SF ("Ditmar") awards are now open and will remain open until one minute before midnight Perth time on Sunday, 4th of February , 2018 (ie. 11.59pm, GMT+8).
Postal nominations must be postmarked no later than Friday, 2nd of February, 2018.
Anybody active in the Aussie SF scene may nominate but you must be a member of either the 2017 or 2018 Natcon to vote.
Check out the Ditmar Award website to submit nominations: <http://ditmars.sf.org.au/2018/nominations.html>
Norma K Hemming Award Calling For Submissions
21/11/2017 20/11/2017 by Ion Newcombe
The Australian Science Fiction Foundation (ASFF) is pleased to welcome entries in the Norma K Hemming Award for works published in 2016 and 2017. Designed to recognise excellence in the exploration of themes of race, gender, sexuality, class or disability in a published speculative fiction work, the Norma K Hemming Award is now open for entries. The award is open to short fiction, novellas, novels, anthologies, collections, graphic novels and stage plays, and makes allowances for serialised work. For more information: <https://normakhemmingaward.org/2017/11/08/entries-are-now-open-for-the-2018-norma-k-hemming-award/>.
For more SF news why not join the ASFF and get our newsletter "The Instrumentality" delivered straight to your inbox!
A Bertram Chandler Award – Call For Nominations
So why is a person awarded this honour? It's because the recipient has demonstrated over many years untiring commitment and selfless work within Australian fandom or the Aussie SF scene in general. Work such as convention running, local club activities, publishing, writing of merit in the genre whether that be blogs, fanzines, short stories or novels, artistic endeavours such painting, graphics or other such forms. The criteria is not limited to any one activity; but mostly it is for activities that are visible and evident to the Aussie SF community.
So, do you know someone who has made a significant contribution to Australian science fiction and/ or Australian fandom, not just over the last year, but year in, year out? Feel that they should be honoured / recognised for this work? Then why not nominate them for the A Bertram Chandler Award. It is really easy to do: just write to the ASFF and outline why you think that the person is deserving of the award. No forms to fill out, no entrance fee, nothing but a simple few paragraphs outlining the person's achievements.
More information can be found on the ASFF A Bertram Chandler Award Page.
This information is from the ASFF journal Instrumentality October 2017. Please consider joining the ASFF to support Aussie SF and for access to the full journal.
Dr. Alan Finkel Spruiks The Benefits of SF
Take a listen to Dr. Alan Finkel, Australia's chief scientist on Radio National's "Big Ideas" with Paul Barclay, who sums up Finkel's speech in the following way:
"Our future leaders and policy makers should read more science fiction…scifi can be useful for the building of a good society."
Just one quote here from Dr Finkel's speech:
"Take Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game published in 1985. He envisaged a world where students used flat touchscreen computers in class, where citizens could access the 'nets' for worldwide digital communication, and where anyone could comment on politics while hidden behind a digital identity. And today we call these tablets, the internet, and social media. It's a reminder that every great human advance is preceded by a leap in imagination."
You can find the program audio here: <http://radio.abc.net.au/programitem/pgM7rLEl26>, originally broadcast on ABC Radio National on Tuesday September 19 2017.
New Website Manager – Ion "Nuke" Newcombe
The editor of AntipodeanSF, Ion Newcombe, has been appointed as the new ASFF webmaster. "Nuke" has been a zealous reader and occasional writer of science fiction since his childhood. He welcomes all comments, news, and views from within and without the ASFF, and aims to make the website a valuable resource for all.