Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, or SFWA ( /ˈsɪfwə/ or /ˈsɛfwə/) is a nonprofit association of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. It was founded in 1965 by Damon Knight under the name Science Fiction Writers of America, Inc. and it retains the acronym SFWA after a very brief use of the SFFWA. Its stated mission is "SFWA informs, supports, defends and advocates for our members".[1]
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SFWA has approximately 1,500 members as of 2009.[1]
Most members live in the United States. Active membership is limited to professionally published authors in the genres of science fiction, fantasy, or horror; the minimum qualification is the sale of one novel or dramatic script, or three short stories, to venues with certain minimum circulations or pay rates. Associate membership is for professionally published authors who have not yet qualified for active membership. Affiliate memberships are available for science fiction and fantasy professionals who are not authors.[2]
Authors, regardless of nationality or residence, must be professionally published in a qualifying market as listed by SFWA in order to become SFWA members. At present, all listed qualifying markets publish only in the English language.
Annually since 1965, SFWA members select by vote the Nebula Awards for best short story, novelette, novella, and novel published during the previous year, where the four categories are defined by numbers of words.
During the Nebula ceremony, SFWA also presents the annual Andre Norton Award since 2005 for best young adult novel. Not always annually there are also the Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award since 1975 for lifetime achievement in science fiction or fantasy,[3][4] the Bradbury Award since 1992 for best dramatic presentation, the Author Emeritus title since 1995 to a senior writer whose major impact was long ago or overlooked. Since 2009 the Solstice Award which may be posthumous recognizes lifetime contributions to the science fiction and fantasy field.[5]
SFWA publishes a bimonthly magazine called the Bulletin. SFWA Members receive the Bulletin as part of their membership, but anyone can subscribe. The Bulletin carries nonfiction articles of general interest to writers, especially genre writers, and reprints one Nebula Award-winning story per issue. It accepts submissions, for which the pay is 7 cents a word. Mark Kreighbaum is currently the editor of the SFWA Bulletin.[6]
According to Todd McCaffrey, the organization immediately "acquired great status in its efforts to help J.R.R. Tolkien get fair recompense in America for pirated sales of The Lord of the Rings."[7]
SFWA sponsors the Writer Beware Blog, the public face of their Committee on Writing Scams, to expose problems and pitfalls that face aspiring writers. Writer Beware also receives sponsorship from the Mystery Writers of America. Its mission is to raise awareness of the prevalence of fraud and other questionable activities in and around the publishing industry.[8]
As part of this mission, SFWA members submitted an 'unpublishable' manuscript to independent publishing house PublishAmerica, to test their claimed editorial rigor. When PublishAmerica offered to send them a contract to publish Atlanta Nights, they revealed the hoax, and PublishAmerica withdrew the contract offer.[9] SFWA subsequently listed the book for sale through a Print On Demand service, with all profits to benefit their Emergency Medical Fund.[10]
In 2009, SFWA joined the Open Book Alliance to oppose the Google Book Settlement.[11]
In 1982, Lisa Tuttle withdrew her short story "The Bone Flute" from the final Nebula ballot, to protest what she saw as excessive campaigning for awards and that voters did not receive copies of nominated works. Her withdrawal was sent after voting had been completed. When informed she had won, she contacted SFWA and told them she refused to accept it. She was told that her reasons for doing so would be announced. Her publisher accepted the award in her place, apparently with no knowledge of her withdrawal, and there was no mention of her objection.[12]
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