The World Fantasy Awards are given each year by the World Fantasy Convention for the best fantasy fiction published in English during the previous calendar year. The awards have been described by book critics such as The Guardian as a "prestigious fantasy prize", and one of the three most prestigious speculative fiction awards, along with the Hugo and Nebula Awards (which cover both fantasy and science fiction). The World Fantasy Award—Novel is given each year for fantasy novels published in English or translated into English. A work of fiction is defined by the organization as a novel if it is 40,000 words or longer; awards are also given out for pieces of shorter lengths in the Short Fiction and Novella categories. The Novel category has been awarded annually since 1975.

World Fantasy Award nominees and winners are decided by attendees and judges at the annual World Fantasy Convention. A ballot is posted in June for attendees of the current and previous two conferences to determine two of the finalists, and a panel of five judges adds three or more nominees before voting on the overall winner. The panel of judges is typically made up of fantasy authors and is chosen each year by the World Fantasy Awards Administration, which has the power to break ties. The final results are presented at the World Fantasy Convention at the end of October. Winners were presented with a statue in the form of a bust of H. P. Lovecraft through the 2015 awards; more recent winners receive a statuette of a tree.

During the 52 nomination years, 188 authors have had works nominated; 52 of them have won, including ties. Five authors have won twice: Gene Wolfe, out of eight nominations; Tim Powers, out of five; Patricia McKillip, out of four; Jeffrey Ford, out of three; and James K. Morrow for both of his nominations. Wolfe has the most nominations for an author who has won at least once, while Stephen King has the most nominations without winning, at nine, followed by Charles L. Grant at six and Jonathan Carroll at five.

Winners and nominees In the following table, the years correspond to the date of the ceremony, rather than when the novel was first published. Each year links to the corresponding "year in literature". Entries with a yellow background and an asterisk (*) next to the writer's name have won the award; the other entries are the other nominees on the shortlist.

  *   Winners + YearAuthorNovelPublisher(s)/publicationRef. 1975 * Atheneum Books Merlin's Ring Ballantine Books Doubleday 1976 * Bid Time Return Viking Press 'Salem's Lot Doubleday 1977 * Doctor Rat Alfred A. Knopf Farrar, Straus and Giroux Dark Crusade Warner Bobbs-Merrill Company Ballantine Books Quartet, DAW Books 1978 * Our Lady of Darkness Berkley Books Holt, Rinehart & Winston Doubleday 1979 * Gloriana Avon Publications Charles Scribner's Sons Night's Master DAW Books Doubleday Doubleday 1980 * Watchtower Berkley Books Berkley Books Atheneum Books Harpist in the Wind Atheneum Books Doubleday St. Martin's Press 1981 * Simon & Schuster Ariosto Pocket Books Firelord Doubleday Dark Forces (Viking Press) Shadowland Coward, McCann & Geoghegan 1982 * Little, Big Bantam Books Timescape Books Macmillan Publishers Timescape Books Viking Press 1983 * Nifft the Lean DAW Books Fevre Dream Poseidon Press Pocket Books Phantom Atheneum Books Timescape Books 1984 * Timescape Books Poseidon Press Lyonesse Berkley Books Pet Sematary Doubleday Tea with the Black Dragon Bantam Books Taplinger 1985 * Bridge of Birds St. Martin's Press * Mythago Wood Victor Gollancz Archer's Goon Methuen Publishing Viking Press Viking Press 1986 * Song of Kali Bluejay Books Weidenfeld & Nicolson Bantam Spectra Illywhacker Harper & Row Alfred A. Knopf Winterking Atlantic Monthly Press 1987 * Perfume Alfred A. Knopf It Viking Press Tor Books Soldier of the Mist Tor Books Strangers Putnam Publishing Group Talking Man Arbor House J. M. Dent & Sons 1988 * Replay Arbor House Ægypt Bantam Spectra Misery Viking Press On Stranger Tides Ace Books Seventh Son Tor Books Swan Song Pocket Books Weaveworld Poseidon Press, William Collins, Sons 1989 * Koko E. P. Dutton, Viking Press Bantam Spectra Fade Victor Gollancz, Delacorte Press Mark V. Ziesing, Ace Books St. Martin's Press Sleeping in Flame Legend, Doubleday 1990 * Madouc Underwood–Miller Carrion Comfort Dark Harvest Legend, Century In a Dark Dream Tor Books Soldier of Arete Tor Books Ace Books 1991 * Only Begotten Daughter William Morrow and Company * Thomas the Rhymer William Morrow and Company Good Omens Victor Gollancz, Workman Publishing Company Mary Reilly Doubleday Tigana Viking Press 1992 * Boy's Life Pocket Books Bone Dance Ace Books Hunting the Ghost Dancer HarperCollins William Morrow and Company Outside the Dog Museum Macdonald Ace Books 1993 * Last Call William Morrow and Company Anno Dracula Simon & Schuster, Carroll & Graf Publishers Briar Rose Tor Books Photographing Fairies Ballantine Books Was HarperCollins, Alfred A. Knopf 1994 * Glimpses William Morrow and Company Drawing Blood Delacorte Abyss Roc Books Millennium, Morrow AvoNova Lord of the Two Lands Tor Books Skin Delacorte Abyss E. P. Dutton, Borderlands Press 1995 * Towing Jehovah Harcourt Brace Brittle Innings Bantam Books Harcourt Brace From the Teeth of Angels HarperCollins, Doubleday Love & Sleep Bantam Books Waking the Moon HarperCollins, HarperPrism 1996 * Touchstone Books All the Bells on Earth Ace Books Expiration Date HarperCollins, Tor Books Red Earth and Pouring Rain Little, Brown and Company Requiem Michael Joseph, Signet Creed AvoNova 1997 * Godmother Night St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press Doubleday Devil's Tower Del Rey Books HarperCollins Voyager, Bantam Spectra DAW Books Shadow of Ashland Forge Books 1998 * Avon Publications American Goliath St. Martin's Press (nomination withdrawn) Harcourt Brace Dry Water Avon Publications Tor Books Trader Tor Books 1999 * HarperFlamingo Forge Books Mockingbird Ace Books Sailing to Sarantium Earthlight, Viking Press Someplace to Be Flying Tor Books 2000 * Thraxas Orbit Books Gardens of the Moon Bantam Books Ace Books Ace Books Tamsin Roc Books Forge Books 2001 * Declare Subterranean Press, William Morrow and Company * Galveston Ace Books Scholastic, Alfred A. Knopf Bantam Spectra Lord of Emperors Viking Press, HarperPrism Perdido Street Station Macmillan Publishers, Del Rey Books 2002 * Harcourt American Gods William Morrow and Company Brown Harvest Four Walls Eight Windows Eos From the Dust Returned William Morrow and Company Tor Books Tor Books 2003 * Victor Gollancz * Ombria in Shadow Ace Books Fitcher's Brides Tor Books William Morrow and Company Macmillan Publishers, Del Rey Books 2004 * Tooth and Claw Tor Books Prime Books Fudoki Tor Books Ace Books Veniss Underground Prime Books 2005 * Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Bloomsbury Press Iron Council Del Rey Books, Macmillan Publishers Perfect Circle Small Beer Press Putnam Publishing Group, Victor Gollancz Tor Books 2006 * Kafka on the Shore Harvill Press, Alfred A. Knopf Victor Gollancz, Atria Lunar Park Alfred A. Knopf, Macmillan Publishers Od Magic Ace Books Tor Books Vellum Macmillan Publishers, Del Rey Books 2007 * Soldier of Sidon Tor Books Victor Gollancz, Bantam Spectra Lisey's Story Charles Scribner's Sons, Hodder & Stoughton In the Night Garden Bantam Spectra Bantam Spectra, Small Beer Press 2008 * Ysabel Viking Press, Roc Books Fangland Penguin Press Tor Books Earthling Publications Territory Tor Books 2009 * William Morrow and Company * Tender Morsels Allen & Unwin, Alfred A. Knopf HarperCollins, Bloomsbury Press Tor Books Pandemonium Del Rey Books 2010 * Macmillan Publishers, Del Rey Books Blood of Ambrose Pyr Finch Underland Press In Great Waters Jonathan Cape, Del Rey Books Roc Books 2011 * Who Fears Death DAW Books Orbit Books Redemption in Indigo Small Beer Press Victor Gollancz, Doubleday Under Heaven Viking Press, Roc Books Zoo City Jacana Media, Angry Robot 2012 * Osama DAW Books 11/22/63 Charles Scribner's Sons Among Others Tor Books Tor Books Those Across the River Ace Books 2013 * Alif the Unseen Grove, Corvus Orbit Books Some Kind of Fairy Tale Victor Gollancz Roc Books Crandolin Chomu Press 2014 * Small Beer Press Dust Devil on a Quiet Street Lethe Press Tor Books William Morrow and Company Harper Tor Books 2015 * Random House Area X: The Southern Reach Trilogy Farrar, Straus and Giroux City of Stairs Jo Fletcher Books Tor Books My Real Children Tor Books 2016 * Sceptre Orbit Books Uprooted Del Rey Books Savages Subterranean Press Alfred A. Knopf William Morrow and Company 2017 * Redhook Books Borderline Saga Press Lovecraft Country Harper Orbit Books Roadsouls Aqueduct Press 2018 * Spiegel & Grau * Jade City Orbit Books Harper Voyager Ka: Dar Oakley in the Ruin of Ymr Saga Press Spoonbenders Alfred A. Knopf Saga Press 2019 * Witchmark Tor.com Publishing In the Night Wood John Joseph Adams Books MCD Harper Voyager Trail of Lightning Saga Press 2020 * Queen of the Conquered Orbit Books Redhook Books/Orbit UK Orbit Books Gideon the Ninth Tor.com Publishing Pantheon Books/Harvill Secker (translator) 2021 * Trouble the Saints Tor Books Piranesi Bloomsbury Press Saga Press/Titan UK Mexican Gothic Del Rey Books/Jo Fletcher UK Erewhon/Orbit UK 2022 * Orbit Books Black Water Sister Ace Books/Macmillan Publishers Inkyard Press Nightfire Books/Viper Books Tor.com Publishing/Orbit UK 2023 * Saint Death's Daughter Solaris Books Babel Harper Voyager Redhook Books/Orbit UK Siren Queen Tordotcom Spear Tordotcom 2024 * Saga Press/Titan UK Looking Glass Sound Viper Books/Nightfire Books Random House Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon DAW Books/Victor Gollancz Starling House Tor Books Witch King Tordotcom 2025* Del Rey Books/Hodderscape Henry Holt and Company/Quercus UK Counterpoint/Titan UK Viking Press/Del Rey UK Tachyon Publications 2026 Audition for the Fox Tachyon Publications Once Was Willem Orbit Books Saga Press Tor Books Tachyon Publications

Notes

References

External links World Fantasy Convention official site