The Broadsheet's November Comix Issue featured interviews with three Australian women who work in comics; Mandy Ord, Nicola Scott, and Tonia Walden. Two panels of artwork, from Tonia and Mandy, are included.

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Amazon's Omnivoracious Blog has an interview with Isobelle Carmody on the release of all currently available Obernewtyn series books in the US. The next two books in the series, The Sending and Red Queen will be released in 2010.

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New publishing endeavour, Book View Cafe, will offer fiction in a range of options from free to subscription. Participating authors include Ursula Le Guin, Vonda N. McIntyre, and 2008 Aurealis Award nominee Sylvia Kelso.

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Australia's Jenny Blackford has been named as one of the judges of the 2009 World Fantasy Awards.

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Fifty six writers of science fiction, fantasy and horror have been shortlisted for awards in 13 categories, honouring excellence in Australian speculative fiction.

This year, new categories were introduced to recognise anthologies and collections, and illustrated books and graphic novels for adults.

Award winners will be announced at the Aurealis Awards Gala Ceremony on Saturday, 24 January 2009 at the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts in Brisbane. Anyone interested in attending the Awards ceremony should visit the Aurealis Awards website for further information or to book their place at the event.

 

best science fiction novel

K A Bedford, Time Machines Repaired While-U-Wait, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing

Marianne de Pierres, Chaos Space, Book Two of the Sentients of Orion, Orbit

Simon Haynes, Hal Spacejock: No Free Lunch, Fremantle Press

Kim Westwood, The Daughters of Moab, HarperVoyager

Sean Williams, Earth Ascendant, Astropolis Book Two, Orbit

 

best science fiction short story

Simon Brown, ‘The Empire’, Dreaming Again, HarperVoyager

Nathan Burrage, ‘Black and Bitter, Thanks’, The Workers’ Paradise, Ticonderoga Publications

Trent Jamieson, ‘Delivery’, Cosmos, #21

Margo Lanagan, ‘The Fifth Star in the Southern Cross’, Dreaming Again, HarperVoyager

Tansy Rayner Roberts, ‘Fleshy’, 2012, Twelfth Planet Press

 

best fantasy novel

Alison Goodman, The Two Pearls of Wisdom, HarperCollins

Sylvia Kelso, Amberlight, Juno Books

Margo Lanagan, Tender Morsels, Allen & Unwin

Juliet Marillier, Heir to Sevenwaters, Macmillan Australia

Karen Miller, The Riven Kingdom, Godspeaker Book Two, HarperVoyager

 

best fantasy short story

Thoraiya Dyer, ‘Night Heron’s Curse’, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, #37

Karen Maric, ‘The Last Deflowerer’, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, #32

Angela Slatter, ‘Dresses, Three’, Shimmer, Vol 2 #4

Cat Sparks, ‘Sammarynda Deep’, Paper Cities, Senses 5 Press

Kim Westwood, ‘Nightship’, Dreaming Again, HarperVoyager

 

best horror novel

Jack Dann, The Economy of Light, PS Publishing

Nick Gadd, Ghostlines, Scribe Publications

John Harwood, The Séance, Jonathan Cape

 

best horror short story

Lee Battersby, ‘In From the Snow’, Dreaming Again, HarperVoyager

Deborah Biancotti, ‘Pale Dark Soldier’, Midnight Echo, #1

Trent Jamieson, ‘Day Boy’, Murky Depths, #4

Kirstyn McDermott, ‘Painlessness’, Greatest Uncommon Denominator (GUD), #2

Ian McHugh, ‘Bitter Dreams’, L Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future, Vol XXIV

 

best anthology

Bill Congreve & Michelle Marquardt (editors), The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy and Science Fiction, Fourth Annual Volume, MirrorDanse Books

Jack Dann (editor), Dreaming Again, HarperVoyager

Jonathan Strahan (editor), The Starry Rift, Viking Children’s Books

 

best collection

Robert Hood, Creeping in Reptile Flesh, Altair Australia Books

Sean Williams and Russell B. Farr (editor), Magic Dirt: The Best of Sean Williams, Ticonderoga Publications

 

best illustrated book / graphic novel

Steve Hunt (illustrator/co-author) & David Richardson (co-author), The Cloudchasers, ABC Books

Shaun Tan, Tales from Outer Suburbia, Allen & Unwin

Colin Thompson, The Floods Family Files, Random House Australia

Julie Watts (author) & Graeme Base (illustrator), The Art of Graeme Base, Penguin/Viking

 

best young adult novel

Isobelle Carmody, The Stone Key, Obernewtyn Chronicles, Volume Five, Penguin/Viking

David Cornish, Lamplighter, Monster Blood Tattoo Book Two, Omnibus Books

Alison Goodman, The Two Pearls of Wisdom, HarperCollins

Melina Marchetta, Finnikin of the Rock, Penguin/Viking

Sean Williams, The Changeling, The Changeling series book one, Angus & Robertson

 

best young adult short story

Deborah Biancotti, ‘The Tailor of Time’, Clockwork Phoenix, Norilana Books

Dirk Flinthart, ‘This Is Not My Story’, Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, #37

Trent Jamieson, ‘Cracks’, Shiny, #2

Kevin MacLean, ‘Eye of the Beholder’, Misspelled, DAW Books

 

best children’s novel

Simon Higgins, Moonshadow, Eye of the Beast, Random House Australia

Sophie Masson, Thomas Trew and the Island of Ghosts, Hodder Children’s

Emily Rodda, The Wizard of Rondo, Omnibus Books

Carole Wilkinson, Dragon Dawn, Black Dog Books

Sean Williams, The Changeling and The Dust Devils, The Changeling series books one and two, Angus & Robertson

 

best children’s illustrated work/picture book

Anna Fienberg, Barbara Fienberg & Kim Gamble, Tashi and the Phoenix, Allen & Unwin

Richard Harland & Laura Peterson (illustrator), Escape!, Under Siege, Race to the Ruins, The Heavy Crown, The Wolf Kingdom series, Omnibus Books

Ian Irvine & David Cornish (illustrator), Thorn Castle, Giant’s Lair, Black Crypt, Wizardry Crag, The Sorcerer’s Tower series, Omnibus Books

Sally Morgan with Ezekiel, Ambelin and Blaze Kwaymullina & Adam Hill (illustrator), Curly and the Fent, Random House Australia

Richard Tulloch & Terry Denton (illustrator), Twisted Tales, Random House Australia

Faster Than Light Podcast recently interviewed Melina Marchetta. The interview is spread over two podcasts. Finnikin of the Rock has been shortlisted for Best Young Adult Novel in the Aurealis Awards.

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Tor.com points us to a short documentary that features Shaun Tan talking about the adaptation of The Lost Thing to animation.

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