MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: Aussiecon 4 has released an electronic 2010 Hugo Voter Packet containing full-length works and samples from 2010 Hugo Award and John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer nominees.  The packet is available for download by Aussiecon 4 members to help inform them about the works under consideration before voting.

The works in the Hugo Voter Packet are made available to voters through the efforts of the nominees and their publishers. Aussiecon 4 is grateful for their participation and willingness to share with its members. Remember to vote, and please support these creators! Their work is available in bookstores and online.

The Hugo voting process for works published or otherwise released in 2009 is open to supporting and attending members of Aussiecon 4, the 2010 World Science Fiction Convention.  In order to participate you must purchase a supporting or attending Aussiecon 4 membership by 31 July 2010 23:59 PDT.

http://www.aussiecon4.org.au/index.php?page=66

The following full-length works are included:

Boneshaker by Cherie Priest (Tor)
The City & The City by China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan UK)
Julian Comstock: A Story of 22nd-Century America by Robert Charles Wilson (Tor)
Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente (Bantam Spectra)
Wake by Robert J. Sawyer (Ace; Penguin; Gollancz; Analog)
The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi (Night Shade)

“Act One” by Nancy Kress (Asimov’s 3/09)
The God Engines by John Scalzi (Subterranean)
“Palimpsest” by Charles Stross (Wireless; Ace; Orbit)
Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow (Tachyon)
“Vishnu at the Cat Circus” by Ian McDonald (Cyberabad Days; Pyr; Gollancz)
The Women of Nell Gwynne’s by Kage Baker (Subterranean)

“Eros, Philia, Agape” by Rachel Swirsky (Tor.com 3/09)
“The Island” by Peter Watts (The New Space Opera 2; Eos)
“It Takes Two” by Nicola Griffith (Eclipse Three; Night Shade Books)
“One of Our Bastards is Missing” by Paul Cornell (The Solaris Book of New Science Fiction: Volume Three; Solaris)
“Overtime” by Charles Stross (Tor.com 12/09)
“Sinner, Baker, Fabulist, Priest; Red Mask, Black Mask, Gentleman, Beast” by Eugie Foster (Interzone 2/09)

“The Bride of Frankenstein” by Mike Resnick (Asimov’s 12/09)
“Bridesicle” by Will McIntosh (Asimov’s 1/09)
“The Moment” by Lawrence M. Schoen (Footprints; Hadley Rille Books)
“Non-Zero Probabilities” by N.K. Jemisin (Clarkesworld 9/09)
“Spar” by Kij Johnson (Clarkesworld 10/09)

The following full-length works and links are included:

Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? Written by Neil  Gaiman; Pencilled by Andy Kubert; Inked by Scott Williams (DC Comics) (Complete Work)
Captain Britain And MI13. Volume 3: Vampire State Written by Paul Cornell; Pencilled by Leonard Kirk with Mike Collins, Adrian Alphona and Ardian Syaf (Marvel Comics)  (Links to issues #10 and #11 only)
Fables Vol 12: The Dark Ages Written by Bill Willingham; Pencilled by Mark Buckingham;  Art by Peter Gross & Andrew Pepoy, Michael Allred, David Hahn; Colour by Lee Loughridge  & Laura Allred; Letters by Todd Klein (Vertigo Comics) (Complete Work)
Girl Genius, Volume 9: Agatha Heterodyne and the Heirs of the Storm Written by Kaja and Phil Foglio; Art by Phil Foglio; Colours by Cheyenne Wright (Airship Entertainment) (Link)
Schlock Mercenary: The Longshoreman of the Apocalypse Written and Illustrated by Howard Tayler (Complete Work)

The following works and excerpts are included:

Canary Fever: Reviews by John Clute (Beccon)  (Excerpt)
Hope-In-The-Mist: The Extraordinary Career and Mysterious Life of Hope Mirrlees by Michael Swanwick (Temporary Culture) (Complete Work)
The Inter-Galactic Playground: A Critical Study of Children’s and Teens’ Science Fiction by Farah Mendlesohn (McFarland)  (Excerpt)
On Joanna Russ edited by Farah Mendlesohn (Wesleyan) (Complete Work)
The Secret Feminist Cabal: A Cultural History of SF Feminisms by Helen Merrick (Aqueduct)  (Excerpt)
This is Me, Jack Vance! (Or, More Properly, This is “I”) by Jack Vance (Subterranean)  (Complete Work)

The following works and links are included:

Ansible edited by David Langford
Clarkesworld edited by Neil Clarke, Sean Wallace, & Cheryl Morgan
Interzone edited by Andy Cox
Locus edited by Charles N. Brown, Kirsten Gong-Wong, & Liza Groen Trombi
Weird Tales edited by Ann VanderMeer & Stephen H. Segal

Argentus edited by Steven H Silver
Banana Wings edited by Claire Brialey and Mark Plummer
CHALLENGER edited by Guy H. Lillian III
Drink Tank edited by Christopher J Garcia, with guest editor James Bacon
File 770 edited by Mike Glyer
StarShipSofa edited by Tony C. Smith

Art samples and links by:

Bob Eggleton
Stephan Martiniere
John Picacio
Daniel Dos Santos
Shaun Tan

Brad W. Foster
Dave Howell
Steve Stiles
Taral Wayne

Writing samples and links by:

Claire Brialey
Christopher J Garcia
James Nicoll
Lloyd Penney
Frederik Pohl

Writing samples and works by:

Saladin Ahmed
Gail Carriger
Felix Gilman
Seanan McGuire
Lezli Robyn

The Hugo Awards are the premier award in the science fiction genre, honoring science fiction literature and media as well as the genre’s fans. The first Hugos were awarded at the 1953 World Science Fiction Convention in Philadelphia (Philcon II), and have honored science fiction and fantasy notables such as Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, Robert Silverberg, Ursula K. Le Guin, J.K. Rowling, Neil Gaiman and many others.

Aussiecon 4 (http://www.aussiecon4.org.au/) is the 2010 World Science Fiction Convention (“Worldcon”).  The first Worldcon occurred in 1939, in New York City, and Worldcons have been held annually since then except during World War II. Aussiecon 4 is the 68th Worldcon and the fourth located in Australia. The convention will be held 2-6 September 2010 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. Guests of Honour for Aussiecon 4 are award-winning author Kim Stanley Robinson, award-winning Melbourne artist Shaun Tan, and dedicated fan Robin Johnson.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Please contact Kate Kligman at hugoadmin@aussiecon4.org.au.

Aussiecon® 4 is convened under the auspices of the Victorian Science Fiction Conventions Inc (ABN 90 257 542 182) a not for profit association incorporated under the Victorian Associations Act, 1981. “World Science Fiction Society”, “WSFS”, “World Science Fiction Convention”, “Worldcon”, “NASFiC”, “Hugo Award”, and the distinctive design of the Hugo Award Rocket are service marks of the World Science Fiction Society, an unincorporated literary society.