World Fantasy Award—Life Achievement

Template:Short description Template:Infobox award The World Fantasy Awards are given each year by the World Fantasy Convention for the best fantasy fiction and fantasy art published in English during the preceding calendar year. The awards have been described by sources such as The Guardian as a "prestigious fantasy prize",<ref name="AwardBust"/> and as one of the three most renowned speculative fiction awards, along with the Hugo and Nebula Awards (which cover both fantasy and science fiction).<ref name="STARquote"/><ref name="CHICquote"/> The World Fantasy Award—Life Achievement is given each year to individuals for their overall career in fields related to fantasy. These have included, for example, authors, editors, and publishers. The specific nomination reasons are not given, and nominees are not required to have retired, though they can only win once. The Life Achievement category has been awarded annually since 1975.<ref name="Locusrules"/>

World Fantasy Award nominees 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 of each category. Unlike the other World Fantasy Award categories, the nominees for the Life Achievement award are not announced; instead, the winner is announced along with the nominees in the other categories.<ref name="Locusrules"/><ref name="WFArules"/> The panel of judges is typically made up of fantasy or horror authors, editors, publishers, booksellers, and others connected to the genres of fantasy and horror in some way<ref name="TORstats"/> and is chosen each year by the World Fantasy Awards Administration, which has the power to break ties.<ref name="Locusrules"/> The final results are presented at the World Fantasy Convention at the end of October.<ref name="WFArules"/> Through 2015, winners were presented with a statuette of H. P. Lovecraft; more recent winners receive a statuette of a tree.<ref name="AwardBust2"/>

During the 51 nomination years, 83 people have been given the Life Achievement Award. Multiple winners have been awarded 25 times, typically two co-winners, though five were noted in 1984. Since 2000, it has become an unofficial tradition for two winners to be announced, often with one winner primarily an author and the other not.<ref name="tradition"/> While most winners have been authors and editors, six winners have been primarily artists of fantasy art and book covers, and six winners are best known for founding or running publishing houses that produce fantasy works.

Winners

In the following table, the years correspond to the date of the ceremony. Items in the Work(s) column are items and companies that the winner created or worked at; they are meant to be representative of the winner's career in the field of fantasy to that point, but the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement is not given for any specific achievement, and no such achievements are listed by the World Fantasy Convention as reasons for the award. In many cases the winner is well known for their non-fantasy works, such as science fiction novels, which are not listed.

Template:Sronly

Year	Winner(s)	Work(s)	Template:Abbr
1975	Template:Sortname	Psycho, "That Hell-Bound Train"	<ref name="Loc75"/>
1976	Template:Sortname	"Gonna Roll the Bones", Ill Met in Lankhmar	<ref name="Loc76"/>
1977	Template:Sortname	Dandelion Wine, The Illustrated Man	<ref name="Loc77"/>
1978	Template:Sortname	The Hounds of Tindalos, The Horror from the Hills	<ref name="Loc78"/>
1979	Template:Sortname	"The Garden of Forking Paths", Ficciones	<ref name="Loc79"/>
1980	Template:Sortname	Worse Things Waiting, Who Fears the Devil?	<ref name="Loc80"/>
1981	Template:Sortname	Jirel of Joiry, Northwest of Earth	<ref name="Loc81"/>
1982	Template:Sortname	The Baron in the Trees, The Castle of Crossed Destinies	<ref name="Loc82"/>
1983	Template:Sortname	James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory	<ref name="Loc83"/>
1984	Template:Sortname	The Goblin Tower, Land of Unreason	<ref name="Loc84"/>
	Template:Sortname	Bid Time Return, I Am Legend	<ref name="Loc84"/>
	Template:Sortname	"Through the Gates of the Silver Key", Far Lands, Other Days	<ref name="Loc84"/>
	Template:Sortname	The Dying Earth, Lyonesse Trilogy	<ref name="Loc84"/>
	Template:Sortname<ref group="Note">Donald Wandrei refused to accept the 1984 Life Achievement award, as he felt the award bust was a demeaning caricature of Lovecraft, whom he had known personally.<ref name="Wandrei"/><ref name="Wandrei2"/></ref>	The Web of Easter Island, Strange Harvest	<ref name="Loc84"/>
1985	Template:Sortname	Without Sorcery, E Pluribus Unicorn	<ref name="Loc85"/>
1986	Template:Sortname	The Phoenix and the Mirror, Vergil in Averno	<ref name="Loc86"/>
1987	Template:Sortname	The Body Snatchers, Marion's Wall	<ref name="Loc87"/>
1988	Template:Sortname	Editing Guide to Supernatural Fiction, A Treasury of Victorian Ghost Stories	<ref name="Loc88"/>
1989	Template:Sortname	The Island of the Mighty, The Song of Rhiannon	<ref name="Loc89"/>
1990	Template:Sortname	Serpent's Egg, The Devil is Dead	<ref name="Loc90"/>
1991	Template:Sortname	The Bishop's Daughter, The Devil's Mirror	<ref name="Loc91"/>
1992	Template:Sortname	Artwork for Unknown, Fantasy Press	<ref name="Loc92"/>
1993	Template:Sortname	Deathbird Stories, Mefisto in Onyx	<ref name="Loc93"/>
1994	Template:Sortname	"Hocus Pocus Universe", Darker Than You Think	<ref name="Loc94"/>
1995	Template:Sortname	A Wizard of Earthsea, Always Coming Home	<ref name="Loc95"/>
1996	Template:Sortname	The Book of the New Sun, Soldier of the Mist	<ref name="Loc96"/>
1997	Template:Sortname	A Wrinkle in Time, A Swiftly Tilting Planet	<ref name="Loc97"/>
1998	Template:Sortname	Editing The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, The Best from Fantasy and Science Fiction	<ref name="Loc98"/>
	Template:Sortname	Witch World, The Halfblood Chronicles	<ref name="Loc98"/>
1999	Template:Sortname	Murgunstrumm and Others, Death Stalks the Night	<ref name="Loc99"/>
2000	Template:Sortname	The Mists of Avalon, Darkover	<ref name="Loc00"/>
	Template:Sortname	Elric of Melniboné, The Knight of Swords	<ref name="Loc00"/>
2001	Template:Sortname	Artwork such as Conan the Destroyer, Death Dealer	<ref name="Loc01"/>
	Template:Sortname	Hadon of Ancient Opar, Inside Outside	<ref name="Loc01"/>
2002	Template:Sortname	Editing Famous Monsters of Filmland, work as a literary agent	<ref name="Loc02"/>
	Template:Sortname	Editing Weird Tales, Amra	<ref name="Loc02"/>
2003	Template:Sortname	The Black Cauldron, The High King	<ref name="Loc03"/>
	Template:Sortname	Founding/running Donald M. Grant, Publisher, Centaur Press	<ref name="Loc03"/>
2004	Template:Sortname	The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, It	<ref name="Loc04"/>
	Template:Sortname	Artwork for The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, The New Yorker	<ref name="Loc04"/>
2005	Template:Sortname	Founder of Tor Books, publisher for Ace Books	<ref name="Loc05"/>
	Template:Sortname	The Mount, The Start of the End of It All	<ref name="Loc05"/>
2006	Template:Sortname	Little, Big, Great Work of Time	<ref name="Loc06"/>
	Template:Sortname	Artwork for Dungeons & Dragons, Ladies & Legends	<ref name="Loc06"/>
2007	Template:Sortname	Co-founded Bantam Books, Ballantine Books	<ref name="Loc07"/>
	Template:Sortname	Howl's Moving Castle, Charmed Life	<ref name="Loc07"/>
2008	Template:Sortname	Artwork for Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears, Ashanti to Zulu	<ref name="Loc08"/>
	Template:Sortname	Harpist in the Wind, The Forgotten Beasts of Eld	<ref name="Loc08"/>
2009	Template:Sortname	Editor of Science Fiction Book Club, New American Library	<ref name="Loc09"/>
	Template:Sortname	Owl Moon, Lost Girls	<ref name="Loc09"/>
2010	Template:Sortname	Necroscope, Blood Brothers	<ref name="Loc10"/>
	Template:Sortname	The Colour of Magic, Mort	<ref name="Loc10"/>
	Template:Sortname	Ghost Story, The Talisman	<ref name="Loc10"/>
2011	Template:Sortname	The Last Unicorn, "Two Hearts"	<ref name="Loc11"/>
	Template:Sortname	Kalpa Imperial, Opus dos	<ref name="Loc11"/>
2012	Template:Sortname	The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, "The Owl Service"	<ref name="Loc12"/>
	Template:Sortname	A Song of Ice and Fire, Sandkings	<ref name="Loc12"/>
2013	Template:Sortname	The Dark Is Rising, The Grey King	<ref name="Loc13"/>
	Template:Sortname	Death's Master, The Birthgrave	<ref name="Loc13"/>
2014	Template:Sortname	Editing Omni, Year's Best Fantasy and Horror	<ref name="Loc14"/>
	Template:Sortname	The Palace, Ariosto	<ref name="Loc14"/>
2015	Template:Sortname	To Wake the Dead, Alone with the Horrors	<ref name="Loc15"/>
	Template:Sortname	The True Game, Beauty	<ref name="Loc15"/>
2016	Template:Sortname	Editor of The New York Review of Science Fiction, Tor Books	<ref name="Loc16"/>
	Template:Sortname	The Witcher Saga	<ref name="Loc16"/>
2017	Template:Sortname	Shannara series, Magic Kingdom of Landover series	<ref name="Loc17"/>
	Template:Sortname	Research and non-fiction works on fairy tales and myths	<ref name="Loc17"/>
2018	Template:Sortname	Newford series	<ref name="Loc18"/>
	Template:Sortname	President, co-Publisher, and co-Editor-in-Chief of DAW Books	<ref name="Loc18"/>
2019	Template:Sortname	Co-founder of Studio Ghibli, and animator, filmmaker, screenwriter, author, and manga artist of multiple works	<ref name="Loc19"/>
	Template:Sortname	Academic and folklorist on fairy tales	<ref name="Loc19"/>
2020	Template:Sortname	We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, "Always", cofounded the Otherwise Award	<ref name="Loc20"/>
	Template:Sortname	Science fiction and fantasy illustrations	<ref name="Loc20"/>
2021	Template:Sortname	The Farseer Trilogy, Wizard of the Pigeons	<ref name="Loc21"/>
	Template:Sortname	Science fiction and fantasy short stories	<ref name="Loc21"/>
2022	Template:Sortname	Science fiction and fantasy novels, criticism, and essays	<ref name="Loc22"/>
	Template:Sortname	Year's Best Fantasy and Horror and other anthologies	<ref name="Loc22"/>
2023	Template:Sortname	Co-founder of PS Publishing and editor of anthologies	<ref name="Loc23"/>
	Template:Sortname	Science fiction and fantasy editing	<ref name="Loc23"/>
2024	Template:Sortname	Editor-in-Chief at Ace Books and Roc Books	<ref name="Loc24"/>
	Template:Sortname	Founder and publisher of Jo Fletcher Books	<ref name="Loc24"/>
2025	Template:Sortname	Fantasy novels	<ref name="Loc25" />
	Template:Sortname	Science fiction and fantasy illustrations	<ref name="Loc25" />

External links

• World Fantasy Convention official site