Reading for the Hugos

A terrific privilege of buying a support membership for Worldcon, and thus voting rights for the Hugos, is the ton of goodies included in the Hugo voters' packet - even this year's one, which is of course stuffed with unreadable Puppy rubbish. The "graphic story" examples in particular were a joy to read - juicy slabs of the new Ms Marvel, Rat Queens (a D&D-like series full of blood and brio), and the, erm, remarkable Sex Criminals, which I think will get my #1 vote for sheer originality.

This morning I read Kary English's short story Totaled, a Puppy pick, but IMHO one of the few stories they slated which has any business being on the ballot. (Like the other authors placed on the slate, English was not asked, and recently gave head Rabid Puppy honcho Vox Day the finger.)

Anyway, being about creepy brain stuff, Totaled is right up my alley. (Basically, I've never recovered from reading Greg Egan's The Jewel.) I enjoyed it, the use of neuroscience was simple but clever, it was Twilight Zone nightmare poignant. Now I'm hopping from foot to foot trying to decide whether I should give it a vote in the Short Story category, and if so, whether I should put it above or below No Award.

Because it is good, but - and it shares this with pretty much every other SF short story I'm encountering in contemporary magazines and anthologies - it needed one more draft, or the input of a wise editor. It's far from being a dog's breakfast, like Flow was. It's just that there are dropped stitches here and there. An example: ( SPOILERS )

Totaled is available to read for free online. If you have a read, feel free to leave me a comment - it'd be interesting to compare notes.

Refugee Update

Gillian Triggs: offshore detention centre secrecy laws are worrying for democracy: "President of the Human Rights Commission says laws that could jail doctors, nurses and social workers for speaking out diminish freedom of speech." (GA 2 July)

Detention centre staff speak out in defiance of new asylum secrecy laws: "More than 40 health workers and humanitarian staff challenge the government to prosecute them for disclosing abuses at detention centres." Read their Open letter on the Border Force Act and their reasons for speaking out. (GA, 1 July)

Border Force Act could see immigration detention centre workers jailed for whistleblowing: "This is the sort of legislation that you wouldn't find unsurprising in countries that don't have real democracy."

Australian Medical Association joins protest against asylum law that can jail detention centre staff (GA, 1 July)

Leaked Documents Confirm Restrictions On Manus Refugees And Reveal Disturbing Self-Harm Incident (New Matilda, 1 July)

Deaths and injuries at immigration detention centres revealed: "Nine deaths, spewing raw sewage and snake bites are some of the workplace and safety incidents faced by Department of Immigration and Border Protection workers and asylum seekers over a year." (SMH, 30 June)