Random Static offers its congratulations to editors Anna Caro and Cassie Hart, who on Sunday evening were presented with the Sir Julius Vogel Award for Best Collected Work in the field of science fiction and fantasy for the anthology Tales for Canterbury. Their efforts are doubly deserving of the award, being both worthy in purpose and having produced a fiction collection of extremely high standard.
The anthology was put together very rapidly in response to last year’s devastating earthquake in Christchurch, with many writers kindly donating their stories. The collection is a fairly even mix of reprints and new works, and features both local authors such as Mary Victoria, Helen Lowe, and Juliet Marillier, and international names including Neil Gaiman, Jeff VanderMeer, and Gwyneth Jones.
This is Ms Caro’s second SJV award; A Foreign Country: New Zealand Speculative Fiction (co-edited with Juliet Buchanan) won the same category in 2011. Submissions for New Zealand Speculative Fiction 2 have just opened, with the new anthology scheduled for launch at the National Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention next year. The SJV Awards are administered by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Association of New Zealand (SFFANZ), and recognise excellence in New Zealand science fiction, fantasy, and horror.
A few copies of “Tales for Canterbury” are still available, but only until the end of the month. All proceeds go to the Red Cross Earthquake Appeal.