Officially the Princess of the Kingdom of Poison and Flame.: seanan

Officially the Princess of the Kingdom of Poison and Flame.

You guys.

This is so hard to write. I've literally started this post eight times, and deleted it every time, and started over, trying to find the words I want. Words are usually something that I find pretty easy—sometimes too easy, as my tendency to never shut the hell up can testify. Not right now. Right now, the words are very hard. So very hard.

I spent most of this year's WorldCon in a cheerful fugue state, throwing myself into things as hard as I could in order to keep from thinking about the Hugo Awards. Jeanne, Cat, Rob, Liz, Paul, Mondy, Jay, Shannon, John, seriously, thank you so much, because if you hadn't been there, I would probably have spontaneously combusted. As it was, it was occasionally difficult not to ask how people could be so damn calm when the votes were in and there was nothing we could do and why couldn't we just know already?

Sunday, Jeanne, Gretchen, and I descended on Cat's hotel room to get ready for the Hugos. Cat met us at the door, and ordered me to close my eyes. I am a trusting blonde; I closed my eyes. She led me into the main room, and let me open my eyes, to find myself facing a bed covered in tiaras. Covered in tiaras. "Because," she said, "your friends wanted to be sure that no matter what, you went home with a tiara."

You guys.

I love you so much.

Susan came to do our hair. We put on dresses and makeup and nail polish and smiles, like nothing about the night mattered...and to a degree, right then, it didn't. We sang along to "Firebird's Child" and "Ship Full of Monsters," and the Night Kitchen in Seattle filled with people watching the live feed and sending all their love across the sea. We were together, and the world was full of magic, and we went to the reception and drank free champagne and had people tell us how amazing we looked, and it was amazing. (Cat and I managed, totally accidentally, to acquire dresses in basically the same colors. I felt like I should have brought her a corsage.)

Then we went to the actual award ceremony. Cat and I sat in the second row; Gretchen and Jeanne sat right behind us. The order of the evening was "opening speech, video presentation, First Fandom Award, Big Heart Award, Campbell Award." Jay Lake and John Scalzi presented the Campbell. They took the stage together, and explained the tiara, and read the nominees, and I clutched Cat's hand like the audience was an ocean and I was going to go under. Kathryn Daugherty came out, holding the award, name turned toward her so no one could see it. John opened the envelope.

"And the winner of this year's John W. Campbell Award for best new writer is..."

And they said my name.

And I sat there, because the room was spinning and I could taste sounds and they couldn't mean me. And Cat pushed me to my feet, and everyone was clapping, and I walked to the stage while the Buffy: the Vampire Slayer theme played and the room spun and tears made everything blurry, and I just said "Oh my God" over and over again, because there was nothing else in the whole world that I could say. And Kathryn gave me the plaque, and John and Jay gave me hugs, and they put the tiara on my head, and you guys...oh, you guys...

I am the Princess of the Kingdom of Poison and Flame. I am the 2010 Campbell Award winner. I am the first urban fantasist to win the Campbell Award. Because they said my name.

I will be more coherent soon. I will write about my acceptance speech soon. I will stop gasping a little every time I see the tiara soon. But oh, you guys.

I won.

cuddlycthulhu

September 9 2010, 18:29:46 UTC 6 years ago

New comment

Grats!

seanan_mcguire

September 10 2010, 03:35:32 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you!

sheistheweather

September 9 2010, 18:30:37 UTC 6 years ago

Congratulations. So, so many congratulations. You deserve it because you are amazing.

So freaking happy you won. Oh man.

September 10 2010, 03:38:03 UTC 6 years ago

Me, too. :)

danjite

September 9 2010, 18:32:50 UTC 6 years ago

It was a glorious moment and a joy to behold.

Damn fine to actually meet you, for that matter!

September 10 2010, 03:41:10 UTC 6 years ago

Absolutely agreed, good sir! Until next time!

beccastareyes

September 9 2010, 18:33:36 UTC 6 years ago

Congrats!

September 10 2010, 03:41:26 UTC 6 years ago

groblek

September 9 2010, 18:34:28 UTC 6 years ago

Congratulations! You earned it - your books are truly excellent.

September 10 2010, 03:41:49 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you so much.

sidhefire

September 9 2010, 18:35:45 UTC 6 years ago

You completely and totally rock.
And you write really awesome books too.

September 10 2010, 03:42:01 UTC 6 years ago

scholarinexile

September 9 2010, 18:36:09 UTC 6 years ago

Oh, Seanan....I'm so, so proud of you. Congratulations doesn't seem like a big enough word to express it. This brought tears to my eyes. You didn't get the Campbell because they said your name; you got it because you earned it, in blood and sweat and tears and long, painful nights with the scalpel and the machete, drenched in the blood of your darlings. No one could have deserved it more, and I feel honored to have been here to watch your rise and now to witness your well-deserved recognition.

::hugs and kisses::

September 10 2010, 03:42:30 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you, darling.

aliciaaudrey

September 9 2010, 18:36:26 UTC 6 years ago

I was so pleased when I checked the award recipients the next morning and saw that you had won. Congrats, you worked hard to get there, and deserved it!

September 10 2010, 03:42:56 UTC 6 years ago

spectralbovine

September 9 2010, 18:39:20 UTC 6 years ago

She led me into the main room, and let me open my eyes, to find myself facing a bed covered in tiaras. Covered in tiaras. "Because," she said, "your friends wanted to be sure that no matter what, you went home with a tiara."

You guys.

I love you so much.
Aw, that's adorable! A tiarasplosion!

everyone was clapping, and I walked to the stage while the Buffy: the Vampire Slayer theme played
Confusing, but awesome!

I just said "Oh my God" over and over again
Yeah, that sounds about right.

I am the Princess of the Kingdom of Poison and Flame. I am the 2010 Campbell Award winner. I am the first urban fantasist to win the Campbell Award.
Really? Like I said, WELCOME TO SFF HISTORY, MY FRIEND.

I will stop gasping a little every time I see the tiara soon.
When can I see the tiara? Hey, what are you doing this weekend? It's my birthday and stuff.

I won.
Thank you, moon ponies.

September 10 2010, 03:43:23 UTC 6 years ago

The moon ponies rule. And I shall see you Saturday! We will have a Chris. It will be awesome.

jslinder

September 9 2010, 18:39:34 UTC 6 years ago

For once I actually wished I was at the Hugos because someone I wanted to won (actually 2 people did)..

But there's something I really want to emphasize from your post:

"I am the first urban fantasist to win the Campbell Award"

That is so important for the acceptance of Urban Fantasy that I don't have words for it. Aspiring UF authors are out there now, buckling down and going 'That could be Me someday'.

Be very very proud of that...

vixyish

September 9 2010, 18:56:20 UTC 6 years ago

I hadn't thought about that part of it until now, but I like that thought, too. I like the thought of urban fantasy authors saying to themselves, "I could be the next Seanan McGuire..."

tintiger

6 years ago

swevene

tuftears

September 9 2010, 18:40:04 UTC 6 years ago

Woohoo, congratulations! }:D

September 10 2010, 03:44:23 UTC 6 years ago

Deleted comment

September 10 2010, 03:44:38 UTC 6 years ago

They really and truly are.

archangelbeth

September 9 2010, 18:41:43 UTC 6 years ago

Congrats!

(Of the two journals I'm following, who went to the Land of Poison and Flame, both got awards! Excellent!)

September 10 2010, 03:44:51 UTC 6 years ago

Awesome!

September 10 2010, 03:46:46 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you. So much.

aliseadae

September 9 2010, 18:43:00 UTC 6 years ago

Congratulations!

September 10 2010, 03:46:57 UTC 6 years ago

dimloep_suum

September 9 2010, 18:43:02 UTC 6 years ago

That's so amazing. I'm so, so proud of you, and so happy for you.

September 10 2010, 03:47:11 UTC 6 years ago

Thank you. Very much. :)

sirriamnis

Congratulations!!

September 9 2010, 18:58:20 UTC 6 years ago

Love the icon!

cheerfulolygirl

rarelylynne

September 9 2010, 18:43:15 UTC 6 years ago

*HUGS*

September 10 2010, 03:47:55 UTC 6 years ago

HUGS!!

textileowl

September 9 2010, 18:43:50 UTC 6 years ago

Congrats! It was awesome to wake up to cheering people on LJ this weekend.

September 10 2010, 03:48:13 UTC 6 years ago

Hee.

Yay.

autographedcat

September 9 2010, 18:44:26 UTC 6 years ago

You utterly and totally deserved it, sweetie. You rock like a granite weeble.

exapno

September 10 2010, 03:10:25 UTC 6 years ago

This! This is a truly excellent way of saying it.

*huggs&love&congrats*

dornbeast

September 9 2010, 18:46:15 UTC 6 years ago

Everybody else has said everything I could think of to say, and more.

So I'm just going to finish arranging my day so I can leave work, go to my Friendly Local Bookstore, and pick up An Artificial Night.

September 10 2010, 03:48:50 UTC 6 years ago

Hooray!

_jems_

September 9 2010, 18:46:18 UTC 6 years ago

September 10 2010, 03:49:03 UTC 6 years ago

priscellie

September 9 2010, 18:48:27 UTC 6 years ago

AN EXPLOSION OF CONGRATS coming at you from New York! I squeed like a moron when I saw your name. May the confetti never stop falling in your heart.

September 10 2010, 03:49:31 UTC 6 years ago

It seems very unlikely!

trialia

September 9 2010, 18:48:35 UTC 6 years ago

I am so, SO happy for you. *hugs tight* :DDD

September 10 2010, 03:52:43 UTC 6 years ago

sweetmusic_27

September 9 2010, 18:50:13 UTC 6 years ago

Just so you know, I talked to Wesley last night and we both got our smuggest smugpants on about how much cooler we are than other people because we know you. It was a very Old Spice Man moment.