Advice from Gaiman

I'd meant to post the 2011 Nebula Award Winners as I am wont to do. So here they are:

• Novel Winner: Among Others, Jo Walton (Tor)
• Novella Winner: ”The Man Who Bridged the Mist,” Kij Johnson (Asimov’s Science Fiction, October/November 2011)
• Novelette Winner: ”What We Found,” Geoff Ryman (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, September/October 2011)
• Short Story Winner: ”The Paper Menagerie,” Ken Liu (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, March/April 2011)
• Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation Winner: Doctor Who: “The Doctor’s Wife,” Neil Gaiman (writer), Richard Clark (director) (BBC Wales)
• Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Winner: The Freedom Maze, Delia Sherman (Big Mouth House)
• 2011 DAMON KNIGHT GRAND MASTER AWARD: Connie Willis

Congratulations to all the winners! Read more about it over at SFWA.

But speaking of Neil Gaiman, in the meantime, I got very distracted by his May 17 excellent commencement address at The University of the Arts. Here are the bullet points:

1. When you start out on a career in the arts you have no idea what you are doing.
2. If you have an idea of what you want to make, what you were put here to do, then just go and do that.
3. When you start off, you have to deal with the problems of failure.
4. I hope you'll make mistakes. If you're making mistakes, it means you're out there doing something.
5. While you are at it, make your art. Do the stuff that only you can do.
6. So make up your own rules.
7. So be wise, because the world needs more wisdom, and if you cannot be wise, pretend to be someone who is wise, and then just behave like they would.

Check out the entire thought-provoking, encouraging speech here.