The
Nebula Award is an award given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the two previous years (see rolling eligibility below). There is no cash prize associated with the award, the award itself being a transparent block with an embedded glitter spiral nebula. The fiction Nebulas are awarded in five different categories: novel, novella, novelette, short story, and script. The categories are defined by length in words, as follows: Novel: a work of 40,000 words or more Novella: a work of at least 17,500 words but under 40,000 words Novelette: a work of at least 7,500 words but under 17,500 words Short story: a work of under 7,500 words Script: a script for a movie, TV or radio show, or a play
As opposed to the Hugo Award ballot, which is limited to works published during a specific calendar year, the Nebula Awards employ a rolling eligibility system. Each work is eligible to qualify for the ballot for one year following its date of publication. During this one-year window, SFWA members can "recommend" the work for the Nebula ballot. When a work has received ten recommendations, it immediately qualifies for the current year's preliminary Nebula ballot. Early the following year, SFWA members vote on the works on the preliminary ballot, narrowing the field down to a final ballot of around five works in each category. Special Nebula juries are permitted, but not required, to add one deserving but overlooked work to the final ballot in each category. SFWA members then vote on the final ballot. As a consequence of rolling eligibility, a work published one year can end up on the subsequent year's Nebula ballot, which is voted on in the year following that.
