Hugo Award for Best Related Work


The Hugo Award for Best Related Work is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for primarily non-fiction works related to science fiction or fantasy, published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The Hugo Awards have been described as "a fine showcase for speculative fiction" and "the best known literary award for science fiction writing".
It was originally titled the Hugo Award for Best Non-Fiction Book and was first awarded in 1980. In 1999 the Award was retitled to the Hugo Award for Best Related Book, and eligibility was officially expanded to fiction works that were primarily noteworthy for reasons besides their fictional aspects. In 2010, the title of the award was again changed, to the Hugo Award for Best Related Work. In addition to the regular Hugo awards, beginning in 1996 Retrospective Hugo Awards, or "Retro Hugos", have been available to be awarded for years 50, 75, or 100 years prior in which no awards were given. The Retro Best Related Work Hugo was awarded for 1954, 50 years later, but had not been awarded for any other year due to insufficient nominations, eventually reappearing in 2020 for 1945.
During the 43 nomination years, 214 authors or artists and 1 organization have had works nominated; 52 authors and 1 organization have won, including co-authors and Retro Hugos. John Clute has won four times; once by himself, once with John Grant as a co-author, once with Peter Nicholls, and once with Nicholls, David Langford, and Graham Sleight. Nicholls has won a third time, and Grant has won a second time, sharing the award with his co-authors Elizabeth L. Humphrey and Pamela D. Scoville. Thomas Disch and Ursula K. Le Guin have also won twice, both without co-authors; no other author has won more than once. The Organization for Transformative Works was the organization that won, for its Archive of Our Own fanwork repository. Cathy and Arnie Fenner have been nominated eight times for their work on the Spectrum: The Best In Contemporary Fantastic Art series, both the most number of nominations received by any author and the most number of nominations without winning. Clute has been nominated seven times and Farah Mendlesohn seven times with one win; Le Guin five times with two wins; Isaac Asimov and Langford four times with one win; and Mike Resnick four times with no wins. The Writing Excuses team, consisting of Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Tayler, Mary Robinette Kowal, and Jordan Sanderson, have been nominated four times and won once. Seven other authors have been nominated three times. Many of these writers, editors and artists have won Hugos in other categories, from Fan Writer to Best Novel.

Selection

Hugo Award nominees and winners are chosen by supporting or attending members of the annual non-profit World Science Fiction Convention, or Worldcon, and the presentation evening constitutes its central event. The selection process is defined in the World Science Fiction Society Constitution as instant-runoff voting with six nominees, except in the case of a tie. The works on the ballot are the six most-nominated by members that year, with no limit on the number of works that can be nominated. Initial nominations are made by members in January through March, while voting on the ballot of six nominations is performed roughly in April through July, subject to change depending on when that year's Worldcon is held. Prior to 2017, the final ballot was five works; it was changed that year to six, with each initial nominator limited to five nominations. Worldcons are generally held near the start of September, and are held in a different city around the world each year. Members are permitted to vote "no award", if they feel that none of the nominees is deserving of the award that year, and in the case that "no award" takes the majority the Hugo is not given in that category. This happened in the Best Related Work category in 2015 and 2016.

Winners and nominees

In the following table, the years correspond to the date of the ceremony, rather than when the work was first published. Each date links to the "year in literature" article corresponding with when the work was eligible. Entries with a blue background and an asterisk next to the author's name have won the award; those with a white background are the nominees on the short-list.
* Winners and joint winners
+ No winner selected
YearAuthorWorkPublisher or publicationRef.
1980*Doubleday
1980In Memory Yet GreenDoubleday
1980Barlowe's Guide to ExtraterrestrialsWorkman Publishing Company
1980Barlowe's Guide to ExtraterrestrialsWorkman Publishing Company
1980Wonderworks
1980Putnam Publishing Group
1980Putnam Publishing Group
1981*CosmosRandom House
1981In Joy Still FeltDoubleday
1981Dream MakersBerkley Books
1981Di Fate's Catalog of Science Fiction HardwareWorkman Publishing Company
1981Di Fate's Catalog of Science Fiction HardwareWorkman Publishing Company
1981Warhoon 28 Richard Bergeron
1982*Danse MacabreEverest Publishing
1982Ballantine Books
1982Ballantine Books
1982Ballantine Books
1982Workman Publishing Company
1982Workman Publishing Company
1982'Macmillan Publishers
1982Anatomy of Wonder, 2nd EditionR.R. Bowker
1983*'Oxford University Press
1983Alfred A. Knopf
1983Alfred A. Knopf
1983Avon Publications
1983Avon Publications
1983Avon Publications
1983Doubleday
1983Fear Itself: The Horror Fiction of Stephen KingUnderwood-Miller
1983Fear Itself: The Horror Fiction of Stephen KingUnderwood-Miller
1984*Advent
1984Bantam Books
1984Dream Makers, Volume IIBerkley Books
1984'
1984Pocket Books
1985*'Bluejay Books
1985Analog Science Fact & Fiction
1985Sleepless Nights in the Procrustean BedBorgo Press
1985In the Heart or in the Head: An Essay in Time TravelAnalog Science Fact & Fiction
1985Berkley Putnam
1986*Science Made StupidHoughton Mifflin Harcourt
1986AC Projects
1986AC Projects
1986AC Projects
1986
1986Benchmarks: Galaxy BookshelfSouthern Illinois University Press
1986Serconia Press
1986Faces of Fear: Encounters with the Creators of Modern HorrorBerkley Books
1987*Trillion Year SpreeVictor Gollancz Ltd
1987*Trillion Year SpreeVictor Gollancz Ltd
1987Batman: The Dark Knight ReturnsDC Comics
1987Batman: The Dark Knight ReturnsDC Comics
1987Batman: The Dark Knight ReturnsDC Comics
1987Industrial Light and MagicDel Rey Books
1987Science Fiction In Print: 1985Locus Press
1987Science Fiction In Print: 1985Locus Press
1987'Arbor House
1988*Michael Whelan's Works of WonderDel Rey Books
1988Imagination: The Art & Technique of David A. CherryStarblaze Graphics
1988Crown Publishing Group
1988Anatomy of Wonder, 3rd EditionR.R. Bowker
1988Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror: 1986Locus Press
1988Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror: 1986Locus Press
1989*Arbor House
1989First MaitzUrsus Publishing
1989Viking Press
1989Greenwood Publishing Group
1989Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror: 1987Locus Press
1989Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror: 1987Locus Press
1990*J. P. Tarcher
1990*J. P. Tarcher
1990Grumbles from the GraveDel Rey Books
1990Dancing at the Edge of the WorldGrove Press
1990Astounding DaysVictor Gollancz Ltd
1990Harlan Ellison's WatchingUnderwood-Miller
1990Noreascon 3 Souvenir BookMassachusetts Convention Fandom, Inc
1991*How to Write Science Fiction and FantasyWriter's Digest
1991Science Fiction in the Real WorldSouthern Illinois University Press
1991Science Fiction Writers of America HandbookWriter's Notebook Press
1991Science Fiction Writers of America HandbookWriter's Notebook Press
1991Bury My Heart at W.H. Smith'sHodder & Stoughton
1991Hollywood GothicW. W. Norton & Company
1992*Alfred A. Knopf
1992Science-Fiction: The Early YearsKent State University Press
1992Mirage Press
1992Mirage Press
19923
1992Clive Barker's Shadows in EdenUnderwood-Miller
1993*SCIFI Press
1993Let's Hear It for the Deaf ManNESFA Press
1993Virgil Finlay's Women of the AgesUnderwood-Miller
1993Lark Books
1993Enterprising Women: Television Fandom and the Creation of Popular MythUniversity of Pennsylvania Press
1993Monad Number TwoPulphouse Publishing
1994*Orbit Books
1994*Orbit Books
1994Bantam Spectra
1994Once Around the Bloch: An Unauthorized AutobiographyTor Books
1994Understanding Comics: The Invisible ArtTundra Books
1994PITFCS: Proceedings of the Institute for Twenty-First Century StudiesAdvent
1995*I. Asimov: A MemoirDoubleday
1995Fantagraphics Books
1995Silent Interviews: On Language, Race, Sex, Science Fiction, and Some ComicsUniversity Press of New England
1995Making BookNESFA Press
1995Underwood Books
1995Underwood Books
1996*'Dorling Kindersley
1996Yours, Isaac AsimovDoubleday
1996Alien Horizons: The Fantastic Art of Bob EggletonPaper Tiger Books
1996Underwood Books
1996Underwood Books
1996To Write Like a Woman: Essays in Feminism and Science FictionIndiana University Press
1997*'Donald M. Grant
1997Vista Books
1997Look at the EvidenceSerconia Press
1997NESFA Press
1997Tor Books
1998*Orbit Books
1998*Orbit Books
1998Infinite Worlds: The Fantastic Visions of Science Fiction ArtPenguin Studio
1998Space TravelWriter's Digest Books
1998Space TravelWriter's Digest Books
1998Reflections and Refractions: Thoughts on Science-Fiction, Science and Other MattersUnderwood Books
1998Underwood Books
1998Underwood Books
1998Underwood Books
1999*Free Press
1999NESFA Press
1999Science-Fiction: The Gernsback YearsKent State University Press
1999Advent
1999Underwood Books
1999Underwood Books
2000*Science Fiction of the 20th CenturyCollector's Press
2000Vertigo
2000Vertigo
2000Ebury Publishing
2000Ebury Publishing
2000Ebury Publishing
2000Underwood Books
2000Underwood Books
2000Minicon 34 Restaurant GuideRune Press
2000Minicon 34 Restaurant GuideRune Press
2001*'Paper Tiger Books
2001*'Paper Tiger Books
2001Robert A. Heinlein: A Reader's CompanionNitrosyncretic Press
2001Concordance to Cordwainer Smith, Third EditionNESFA Press
2001Terry Pratchett: Guilty of LiteratureScience Fiction Foundation
2001Terry Pratchett: Guilty of LiteratureScience Fiction Foundation
2001Terry Pratchett: Guilty of LiteratureScience Fiction Foundation
2001Putting It Together: Turning Sow's Ear Drafts Into Silk Purse StoriesWildside Press
2002*Paper Tiger Books
2002*Paper Tiger Books
2002*Paper Tiger Books
2002Being Gardner DozoisOld Earth Books
2002'HarperCollins
2002Meditations on Middle-earthSt. Martin's Press
2002Paper Tiger Books
2002Paper Tiger Books
2002I Have This Nifty Idea...Now What Do I Do With It?Wildside Press
2003*'Between the Lines
2003*'Between the Lines
2003Ray Bradbury: An Illustrated LifeWilliam Morrow and Company
2003DragonhengePaper Tiger Books
2003DragonhengePaper Tiger Books
2003Underwood Books
2003Underwood Books
2003Wesleyan University Press
2004*Artist's and Photographer's Press
2004*Artist's and Photographer's Press
2004*Artist's and Photographer's Press
2004Night Shade Books
2004Night Shade Books
2004Spectrum 10: The Best in Fantastic Contemporary ArtUnderwood Books
2004Spectrum 10: The Best in Fantastic Contemporary ArtUnderwood Books
2004Dreamer of Dune: The Biography of Frank HerbertTor Books
2004Scores: Reviews 1993–2003Beccon Publications
2004Master Storyteller: An Illustrated Tour of the Fiction of L. Ron HubbardGalaxy Press
2005*Cambridge University Press
2005*Cambridge University Press
2005With Stars in My Eyes: My Adventures in British FandomNESFA Press
2005Futures: 50 Years in Space: The Challenge of the StarsArtists' and Photographers' Press
2005Futures: 50 Years in Space: The Challenge of the StarsArtists' and Photographers' Press
2005Dancing Naked: The Unexpurgated William Tenn, Volume 3NESFA Press
2005Tachyon Publications
2006*'Small Beer Press
2006Transformations: The Story of the Science Fiction Magazines from 1950 to 1970Liverpool University Press
2006Cosmos
2006Science Fiction QuotationsYale University Press
2006Soundings, Reviews 1992–1996Beccon Publications
2007*'St. Martin's Press
2007Worldcon Guest of Honor SpeechesISFiC Press
2007Worldcon Guest of Honor SpeechesISFiC Press
2007Heinlein's Children: The JuvenilesAdvent
2007About Writing: Seven Essays, Four Letters, and Five InterviewsWesleyan University Press
2007Cover Story: The Art of John PicacioMonkeyBrain Books
2008*Brave New Words: the Oxford Dictionary of Science FictionOxford University Press
2008Breakfast in the Ruins: Science Fiction in the Last MillenniumBaen Books
2008Kent State University Press
2008Emshwiller: Infinity x TwoNonstop Press
2008Arthur A. Levine Books
2009*'Subterranean Press
2009Rhetorics of FantasyWesleyan University Press
2009What Is It We Do When We Read Science FictionBeccon Publications
2009Baen Books
2009Baen Books
2009Spectrum 15: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic ArtUnderwood Books
2009Spectrum 15: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic ArtUnderwood Books
2010*This is Me, Jack Vance! Subterranean Press
2010Canary Fever: ReviewsBeccon Publications
2010Hope-In-The-Mist: The Extraordinary Career and Mysterious Life of Hope MirrleesTemporary Culture
2010McFarland & Company
2010On Joanna RussWesleyan University Press
2010Aqueduct Press
2011*'Mad Norwegian Press
2011*'Mad Norwegian Press
2011Bearings: Reviews 1997-2001Beccon Publications
2011McFarland & Company
2011McFarland & Company
2011Robert A. Heinlein: In Dialogue with His Century, Volume 1: : Learning CurveTor Books
2011Writing Excuses, Season 4Writing Excuses
2011Writing Excuses, Season 4Writing Excuses
2011Writing Excuses, Season 4Writing Excuses
2011Writing Excuses, Season 4Writing Excuses
2012*Victor Gollancz Ltd
2012*Victor Gollancz Ltd
2012*Victor Gollancz Ltd
2012*Victor Gollancz Ltd
2012Jar Jar Binks Must Die…and other Observations about Science Fiction MoviesFantastic Books
2012Abrams Image
2012Abrams Image
2012Wicked GirlsSeanan McGuire
2012Writing Excuses, Season 6Writing Excuses
2012Writing Excuses, Season 6Writing Excuses
2012Writing Excuses, Season 6Writing Excuses
2012Writing Excuses, Season 6Writing Excuses
2012Writing Excuses, Season 6Writing Excuses
2013*Writing Excuses, Season 7Writing Excuses
2013*Writing Excuses, Season 7Writing Excuses
2013*Writing Excuses, Season 7Writing Excuses
2013*Writing Excuses, Season 7Writing Excuses
2013*Writing Excuses, Season 7Writing Excuses
2013Cambridge University Press
2013Cambridge University Press
2013Chicks Dig Comics: A Celebration of Comic Books by the Women Who Love ThemMad Norwegian Press
2013 andChicks Dig Comics: A Celebration of Comic Books by the Women Who Love ThemMad Norwegian Press
2013Chicks Unravel Time: Women Journey Through Every Season of Doctor WhoMad Norwegian Press
2013Chicks Unravel Time: Women Journey Through Every Season of Doctor WhoMad Norwegian Press
2013I Have an Idea for a Book... The Bibliography of Martin H. GreenbergBattered Silicon Dispatch Box
2013I Have an Idea for a Book... The Bibliography of Martin H. GreenbergBattered Silicon Dispatch Box
2014*
2014Queers Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the LGBTQ Fans Who Love ItMad Norwegian Press
2014Queers Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the LGBTQ Fans Who Love ItMad Norwegian Press
2014Speculative Fiction 2012: The Best Online Reviews, Essays and CommentaryJurassic London
2014Speculative Fiction 2012: The Best Online Reviews, Essays and CommentaryJurassic London
2014Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative FictionAbrams Image
2014Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative FictionAbrams Image
2014Writing Excuses, Season 8Writing Excuses
2014Writing Excuses, Season 8Writing Excuses
2014Writing Excuses, Season 8Writing Excuses
2014Writing Excuses, Season 8Writing Excuses
2014Writing Excuses, Season 8Writing Excuses
2015+
2015Riding the Red Horse
2015Letters from GardnerThe Merry Blacksmith Press
2015Transhuman and Subhuman: Essays on Science Fiction and Awful TruthCastalia House
2015Baen.com
2015Wisdom from My InternetPatriarchy Press
2016+
2016Between Light and Shadow: An Exploration of the Fiction of Gene Wolfe, 1951 to 1986Castalia House
2016jeffro.wordpress.com
2016castaliahouse.com
2016SJWs Always Lie: Taking Down the Thought PoliceCastalia House
2016askthebigot.com
2017*Words Are My Matter: Writings About Life and Books, 2000-2016Small Beer Press
2017'Tor Books
2017'Blue Rider Press
2017Traveler of Worlds: Conversations with Robert SilverbergFairwood
2017Traveler of Worlds: Conversations with Robert SilverbergFairwood
2017'William Morrow
2017Tor.com
2018*'Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
2018Crash Override: How Gamergate Destroyed My Life, and How We Can Win the Fight Against Online HatePublicAffairs
2018Iain M. Banks University of Illinois Press
2018'NESFA Press
2018Luminescent Threads: Connections to Octavia E. ButlerTwelfth Planet Press
2018Luminescent Threads: Connections to Octavia E. ButlerTwelfth Planet Press
2018Sleeping with Monsters: Readings and Reactions in Science Fiction and FantasyAqueduct Press
2019Organization for Transformative Works*Archive of Our OwnSelf-published
2019Astounding: John W. Campbell, Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein, L. Ron Hubbard, and the Golden Age of Science FictionDey Street Books
2019Self-published via YouTube
2019Self-published via YouTube
2019Tor Books
2019www.mexicanxinitiative.com: The Mexicanx Initiative at Worldcon 76Self-published
2019www.mexicanxinitiative.com: The Mexicanx Initiative at Worldcon 76Self-published
2019www.mexicanxinitiative.com: The Mexicanx Initiative at Worldcon 76Self-published
2019www.mexicanxinitiative.com: The Mexicanx Initiative at Worldcon 76Self-published
2019Ursula K. Le Guin: Conversations on WritingTin House Books
2019Ursula K. Le Guin: Conversations on WritingTin House Books
2020Becoming Superman: My Journey from Poverty to HollywoodHarper Voyager
2020Joanna RussUniversity of Illinois Press
2020Hanover Square
2020Unbound
2020"2019 John W. Campbell Award Acceptance Speech"Jeannette Ng
2020Worlds of Ursula K. Le GuinArwen Curry

Retro Hugos

Beginning with the 1996 Worldcon, the World Science Fiction Society created the concept of "Retro Hugos", in which the Hugo award could be retroactively awarded for 50, 75, or 100 years prior. Retro Hugos may only be awarded for years after 1939 in which no awards were originally given. The Hugo Award for Best Related Work has only been retroactively awarded twice, in 2004 and 2020; all other years it was not on the ballot or was dropped due to insufficient response.
YearYear awardedAuthorWorkPublisherRef.
19452020FancyclopediaForrest J. Ackerman
1945202042 To 44: A Contemporary Memoir Upon Human Behavior During the Crisis of the World RevolutionSecker & Warburg
19452020Mr. Tompkins Explores the AtomCambridge University Press
19452020Rockets: The Future of Travel Beyond the StratosphereViking Press
19452020Writer's Digest
19452020
19542004*Conquest of the MoonViking Press
19542004*Conquest of the MoonViking Press
19542004*Conquest of the MoonViking Press
19542004Science-Fiction HandbookHermitage Press
19542004Modern Science Fiction: Its Making and FutureCoward-McCann