Balrog Awards Explained

The Balrog Awards were a set of awards given annually from 1979 to 1985 for the best works and achievements of speculative fiction in the previous year. The awards were named after the balrog, a fictional creature from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium.^[1] The awards were originally announced by editor Jonathan Bacon in Issue #15 of Fantasy Crossroads and presented at the Fool-Con II convention on April Fool's Day, 1979 at Johnson County Community College, Kansas.^[2] The awards were never taken seriously and are often referred to, tongue-in-cheek, as the "coveted Balrog Awards".

Awards (by year)

1979

• Best Novel: Blind Voices, Tom Reamy
• Best Short Fiction: "Death from Exposure", Pat Cadigan
• Best Collection/Anthology: Born to Exile, Phyllis Eisenstein
• Best Poet: Ray Bradbury
• Best Artist: Tim Kirk
• Best Amateur Publication: Shayol
• Best Professional Publication: Age of Dreams, Alicia Austin
• Best Amateur Achievement: Paul C. Allen (for Fantasy Newsletter and "Of Swords & Sorcery")
• Best Professional Achievement: J. R. R. Tolkien and Donald M. Grant (tie)
• Judges' Choice: Jonathan Bacon (for Fantasy Crossroads)
• Judges' Choice: Andre Norton (for lifetime achievement)

1980

• Best Novel: Dragondrums, Anne McCaffrey
• Best Short Fiction: "The Last Defender of Camelot", Roger Zelazny
• Best Collection/Anthology: Night Shift, Stephen King
• Best Poet: H. Warner Munn
• Best Artist: Michael Whelan
• Best Amateur Publication: Fantasy Newsletter
• Best Professional Publication: Omni
• Best Amateur Achievement: Paul Allen (for Fantasy Newsletter and "Of Swords and Sorcery")
• Best Professional Achievement: Anne McCaffrey
• SF Film Hall of Fame: 2001: A Space Odyssey and Star Wars (tie)
• Fantasy Film Hall of Fame: Fantasia
• Special Award: Ian Ballantine & Betty Ballantine

1981

• Best Novel: The Wounded Land, Stephen R. Donaldson
• Best Short Fiction: "The Web of the Magi", Richard Cowper
• Best Collection/Anthology: Unfinished Tales, J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien
• Best Poet: H. Warner Munn
• Best Artist: Frank Frazetta
• Best Amateur Publication: Fantasy Newsletter
• Best Professional Publication: F&SF
• Best Amateur Achievement: Paul C. Allen & Susan Allen (for Fantasy Newsletter)
• Best Professional Achievement: George Lucas (for contributions, including the Star Wars saga)
• SF Film Hall of Fame: The Empire Strikes Back
• Fantasy Film Hall of Fame: The Wizard of Oz
• Special Award: Jorge Luis Borges
• Special Award: Fritz Leiber

1982

• Best Novel: Camber the Heretic, Katherine Kurtz
• Best Short Fiction: "A Thief in Korianth", C. J. Cherryh
• Best Collection/Anthology: Shadows of Sanctuary, Robert Lynn Asprin, ed.
• Best Poet: Frederick Mayer
• Best Artist: Real Musgrave
• Best Amateur Publication: Eldritch Tales
• Best Professional Publication: Omni
• Best Amateur Achievement: Robert A. Collins (for saving Fantasy Newsletter)
• Best Professional Achievement: George Lucas and Steven Spielberg (tie)
• SF Film Hall of Fame: Forbidden Planet
• Fantasy Film Hall of Fame: King Kong
• Judges' Choice: Leo & Diane Dillon

1983

• Best Novel: The One Tree, Stephen R. Donaldson
• Best Short Fiction: "All of Us Are Dying", George Clayton Johnson
• Best Collection/Anthology: Storm Season, Robert Lynn Asprin, ed.
• Best Poet: Frederick J. Mayer
• Best Artist: Tim Hildebrandt
• Best Amateur Publication: Shayol
• Best Professional Publication: F&SF
• Best Amateur Achievement: Allan Bechtold (for SF workshops)
• Best Professional Achievement: Ben Bova (for writing and editing Omni and Analog)
• SF Film Hall of Fame: The Day the Earth Stood Still
• Fantasy Film Hall of Fame: The Dark Crystal
• Special Award: Kirby McCauley

1984

• Best Novel: The Armageddon Rag, George R. R. Martin
• Best Short Story: "Wizard Goes A-Courtin'", John Morressy
• Best Collection/Anthology: Unicorn Variations, Roger Zelazny
• Best Poet: Frederick J. Mayer
• Best Artist: Real Musgrave
• Best Amateur Publication: Fantasy Newsletter
• Best Professional Publication: F&SF
• Best Amateur Achievement: Stan Gardner (for saving the Balrogs)
• Best Professional Achievement: Pendragon Gallery (for promoting fantasy artwork)
• SF Film Hall of Fame: Blade Runner
• Fantasy Film Hall of Fame: Bambi
• Judges' Choice: Mercer Mayer (for educating children in fantasy art)

1985

• Best Novel: The Practice Effect, David Brin
• Best Short Story: "A Troll and Two Roses", Patricia A. McKillip
• Best Collection/Anthology: Daughter of Regals and Other Tales, Stephen R. Donaldson
• Best Poet: Ardath Mayhar
• Best Artist: Richard Pini & Wendy Pini
• Best Amateur Publication: Eldritch Tales
• Best Professional Publication: Masques, J. N. Williamson, ed.
• Best Amateur Achievement: David B. Silva (for The Horror Show)
• Best Professional Achievement: Hap Henriksen (for the National SF/Fantasy Hall of Fame)
• SF Film Hall of Fame: Starman
• SF Film Hall of Fame: E.T. The Extraterrestrial
• Fantasy Film Hall of Fame: Raiders of the Lost Ark
• Special Award: Lester del Rey

See also

• Bram Stoker Award
• Hugo Award
• Nebula Award
• World Fantasy Award
• List of science fiction awards

Notes and References

1. https://web.archive.org/web/20111016205602/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Balrog.html Locus Index to SF Awards: About the Balrog Awards
2. http://www.robert-e-howard.org/NemedianChroniclers4.pdf Nemedian Chroniclers