''The 1974 Annual World's Best SF'' is an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

short stories edited by

Donald A. Wollheim Donald Allen Wollheim (October 1, 1914 – November 2, 1990) was an American science fiction editor, publisher, writer, and fan. As an author, he published under his own name as well as under pseudonyms, including David Grinnell, Martin Pearso ...

and Arthur W. Saha, the third volume in a

series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...

of nineteen. It was first published in paperback by DAW Books in May 1974, followed by a hardcover edition issued in September of the same year by the same publisher as a selection of the

Science Fiction Book Club Bookspan LLC is a New York–based online bookseller, founded in 2000. Bookspan began as a joint endeavor by Bertelsmann and Time Warner. Bertelsmann took over control in 2007, and a year later, sold its interest to Najafi Companies, an Arizo ...

. For the hardcover edition the original cover art of

Jack Gaughan John Brian Francis "Jack" Gaughan, pronounced like 'gone' (September 24, 1930 – July 21, 1985) was an American science fiction artist and illustrator who won the Hugo Award several times. Working primarily with Donald A. Wollheim at Ace Book ...

was replaced by a new cover painting by

Victor Valla The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

. The paperback edition was reissued by DAW in December 1979 under the variant title ''Wollheim's World's Best SF: Series Three'', this time with cover art by

Vicente Segrelles Vicente Segrelles (born 9 September 1940 in Barcelona) is a Spanish comic book artist and writer. Segrelles gained popularity in Europe for his painted comic book epic ''The Mercenary'' ('' El Mercenario''), started in 1980. Set in a medieval f ...

. A British hardcover edition was published by The Elmfield Press in October 1975 under the variant title ''The World's Best SF Short Stories No. 1''. The book collects ten novelettes and short stories by various science fiction authors, with an introduction by Wollheim. Most of the stories were previously published in 1973 in the magazines ''

Galaxy A galaxy is a system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar gas, dust, dark matter, bound together by gravity. The word is derived from the Greek ' (), literally 'milky', a reference to the Milky Way galaxy that contains the Solar System. ...

'', ''

Worlds of If ''If'' was an American science fiction magazine launched in March 1952 by Quinn Publications, owned by James L. Quinn. The magazine was moderately successful, though for most of its run it was not considered to be in the first tier of American ...

'', ''

Vertex Vertex, vertices or vertexes may refer to: Science and technology Mathematics and computer science *Vertex (geometry), a point where two or more curves, lines, or edges meet * Vertex (computer graphics), a data structure that describes the positio ...

'', ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher a ...

'', and ''

Amazing Science Fiction Amazing may refer to: Music Performers * The Amazing, a Swedish indie rock band Albums * ''Amazing'' (Banaroo album), 2006 * ''Amazing'' (Elkie Brooks album), 1996 * ''Amazing'' (Marcia Hines album) or the title song, 2014 * ''Amazin'' (Tri ...

'', and the anthologies '' View from Another Shore'' and '' New Writings in SF 22''.

*"Introduction" (

) *"A Supplicant in Space" (

Robert Sheckley Robert Sheckley (July 16, 1928 – December 9, 2005) was an American writer. First published in the science-fiction magazines of the 1950s, his many quick-witted stories and novels were famously unpredictable, absurdist, and broadly comical. ...

) *"Parthen" ( R. A. Lafferty) *"Doomship" (

Frederik Pohl Frederik George Pohl Jr. (; November 26, 1919 – September 2, 2013) was an American science-fiction writer, editor, and fan, with a career spanning nearly 75 years—from his first published work, the 1937 poem "Elegy to a Dead Satelli ...

and

Jack Williamson John Stewart Williamson (April 29, 1908 – November 10, 2006), who wrote as Jack Williamson, was an American list of science fiction authors, science fiction writer, often called the "Dean of Science Fiction". He is also credited with one of t ...

) *"Weed of Time" (

Norman Spinrad Norman Richard Spinrad (born September 15, 1940) is an American science fiction author, essayist, and critic. His fiction has won the Prix Apollo and been nominated for numerous awards, including the Hugo Award and multiple Nebula Awards. Pe ...

) (Originally published in 1970) *"A Modest Genius" (translation of "''Skromnyi Geniy''", 1963) (

Vadim Shefner Vadim Sergeevich Shefner (russian: Вади́м Серге́евич Ше́фнер); (December 30, 1914 (January 12, 1915) - January 5, 2002) was a Soviet and Russian poet and writer who started publishing poetry in 1936. His first poetry collectio ...

) *"The Deathbird" (

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'' ...

) *"Evane" ( E. C. Tubb) *"Moby, Too" (

Gordon Eklund Gordon Eklund (born July 24, 1945 in Seattle, Washington) is an American science fiction author whose works include the "Lord Tedric" series and two of the earliest original novels based on the 1960s '' Star Trek'' TV series. He has written under ...

) *"Death and Designation Among the Asadi" ( Michael Bishop) *"Construction Shack" (

Clifford D. Simak Clifford Donald Simak (; August 3, 1904 – April 25, 1988) was an American science fiction writer. He won three Hugo Awards and one Nebula Award. The Science Fiction Writers of America made him its third SFWA Grand Master, and the Horror W ...

)

Awards

"The Deathbird" was nominated for the 1973

Nebula Award for Best Novelette The Nebula Award for Best Novelette is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) to a science fiction or fantasy Novella#Versus novelette, novelette. A work of fiction is defined by the organization as a novele ...

, won the 1974

Hugo Award for Best Novelette The Hugo Award for Best Novelette is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The novelette award is available for works of fiction of ...

, and placed first in the 1974 Locus Poll Award for Best Short Fiction. "Death and Designation Among the Asadi" was nominated for the 1973

Nebula Award for Best Novella The Nebula Award for Best Novella is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) for science fiction or fantasy novellas. A work of fiction is defined by the organization as a novella if it is between 17,500 and 4 ...

and the 1974

Hugo Award for Best Novella The Hugo Award for Best Novella is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The novella award is available for works of fiction of between ...

, and placed seventh in the 1974 Locus Poll Award for Best Novella. "Construction Shack" was nominated for the 1974

Hugo Award for Best Short Story The Hugo Award for Best Short Story is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The short story award is available for works of fiction o ...

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:1974 Annual World's Best SF, The 1974 anthologies

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

DAW Books books

Contents

Awards

External links