The 30th anniversary of Dragon Con seems a fitting year for the inception of the Dragon Awards to honor the creators of the science fiction and fantasy at the heart of the convention. The great thing is that this is a fan award, so everyone is welcome to nominate and vote, no con membership required.
Famed author and editor Bill Fawcett welcomed the storytellers and story-readers in the audience to the ceremony in the Hyatt Centennial I on Sunday afternoon. He spoke of fire and language as the first steps toward humanity, when early man sat around the fire and told stories, beginning the tradition celebrated today. The awards, gorgeous tongues of flame encased in sparkling glass, are meant to embody the rare, creative fire that blazes in the hearts of the recipients and burns forever in the hearts of the fans whose lives they enrich.
One of Dragon Con’s cofounders, Dave Cody, who has worked hard to make the awards become a reality, said that he was pleased with the amount of chatter and discussion about the nominations on the Dragon Con Facebook page. Pat Henry, another cofounder, hopes that the awards will help fans learn about some of the top SF/F offerings each year.
Although many of the winners were unable to attend the ceremony, they sent words of gratitude and support. Neil Gaiman, who won the Best Graphic Novel award for The Sandman: Overture, sent a message saying that although he had won many awards, this was only his third fan award, and fan awards are the ones that mean to most to him. Perhaps Brian Neimeier, who won Best Horror Novel for Souldancer, said it best: “Fans, long may they reign. Dragon Awards, long may they serve.”
You can find the list of winners here.
