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Nebula Award for Best Short Story
Winners of the '“Nebula Award for Best Short Story”'. The stated year is that of publication; awards are given in the following year. Winning titles are listed first, with other nominees listed below.
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Johnny Mnemonic
"Johnny Mnemonic" is a short story by William Gibson, and the inspiration behind the film of the same name. The short story first appeared in Omni magazine in 1981, and was subsequently included in 1986's Burning Chrome, a collection of Gibson's...
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Love Is the Plan the Plan Is Death
"Love Is the Plan the Plan Is Death" is a short story by James Tiptree, Jr. which won a Nebula Award for Best Short Story in 1973.
The story is unusual in that it involves no human characters, but is told entirely from the perspective of a giant...
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"Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman
"'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman" is a short story by speculative fiction writer Harlan Ellison. It is nonlinear in that the narrative begins in the middle, then moves to the beginning, then the end, without the use of flashbacks. First...
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"Aye, and Gomorrah..."
"Aye, and Gomorrah..." is a famous science fiction short story by Samuel R. Delany. It is Delany's first sold short story, and won the 1967 Nebula Award for best short story. Before it appeared in Driftglass and Aye, and Gomorrah, and other stories,...
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Grotto of the Dancing Deer
"Grotto of the Dancing Deer" is one of Clifford D. Simak's later short stories. It won the 1981 Hugo Award for Best Short Story. It involves an archaeologist discovering an ancient painting and its painter.
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Even the Queen
"Even the Queen" is a short story by Connie Willis. A humor story involving the future of gynecological science, it won the 1993 Hugo Award for Best Short Story.
During nomination the editor of Asimov's allegedly gave it the punning description of...
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Bears Discover Fire
"Bears Discover Fire" is a Hugo Award-winning short story by American science fiction author Terry Bisson. It concerns aging and evolution in the US South, the dream of wilderness, and community. The plot is that bears have discovered fire, and are...
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The Way of Cross and Dragon
"The Way of Cross and Dragon" is a science fiction short story by George R. R. Martin. It involves a far-future priest of the One True Interstellar Catholic Church of Earth and the Thousand Worlds (with similarities to the Roman Catholic hierarchy)...
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Jeffty Is Five
Jeffty Is Five is a fantasy short story written by Harlan Ellison. It was first published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction in 1977, then was included in his short story collection Shatterday three years later. According to Ellison, it...
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Morning Child
"Morning Child" (1984) is a science fiction short story written by Gardner Dozois. It was reprinted in Best SF of the Year 14 (edited by Terry Carr), Nebula Awards 20 (edited by George Zebrowski) and in Dozois's own collection, Geodesic Dreams (1992...
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Robot Dreams
"Robot Dreams" is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov, written for the 1986 story collection Robot Dreams.
"Robot Dreams" involves Dr. Susan Calvin, chief robopsychologist at US Robots. At the start of the story a new employee at US Robots...
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Cassandra
"Cassandra" is a science fiction short story written by American science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. It was first published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction in October 1978, and won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story in...
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A Letter from the Clearys
"A Letter from the Clearys" is a short story written by Connie Willis published in the short story collection Fire Watch. In 1983 it won the Nebula Award for best science fiction published in the two years prior to 1983.
The story starts with a girl...
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Founding Father
"Founding Father" is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the August 1965 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction, and reprinted in the 1975 collection Buy Jupiter and Other Stories. It was inspired by a cover painting of...
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Window
"Window" is a science fiction story by Bob Leman, published in 1980 and reprinted numerous times. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for best short story, and the influential science fiction publisher Donald A. Wollheim considered it one of the...
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Eyes Do More Than See
Eyes Do More Than See is a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov.
In 1964, Playboy magazine approached several science fiction writers to create short-short stories based on a photograph of a clay head without ears. The selected stories-...
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The Cure for Everything
"The Cure for Everything" is a science fiction short story written by Severna Park. It won the 2001 Nebula Award for Best Short Story. It is included in the Nebula Awards Showcase 2003.
The story follows Maria, an African albino woman who runs the...
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Five Fucks
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Embracing-the-New
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The Day Before the Revolution
The Day Before the Revolution is a Nebula Award-winning short story by Ursula K. Le Guin, first published in 1974. The story follows the character of "Odo", the woman who led the revolution that founded the anarchist society of The Dispossessed.
The...
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None So Blind
"None So Blind" is a science fiction short story by Joe Haldeman. It won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story and the Locus Award for Short Story in 1995, was nominated for the Nebula Award in 1994.
A nerd falls in love with a blind musician, and...
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Why I Left Harry's All-Night Hamburgers
"Why I Left Harry's All-Night Hamburgers" is a science fiction short story by Lawrence Watt-Evans. It won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story in 1988, and was nominated for the Nebula Award in 1987.
A young man tells his story about growing up...
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Travels with My Cats
"Travels with My Cats" is a fantasy/magic realism short story by Mike Resnick. It won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story in 2005, was nominated for the Nebula Award in 2004.
Small town newspaper editor and failed novelist Ethan Owens leads a...
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Passengers
"Passengers" is a science fiction short story by Robert Silverberg. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Short Story 1970, and won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story in 1969.
All Earth is subject to the will of the "Riders"—-intangible...
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Rat
"Rat" is a science fiction short story by James Patrick Kelly. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Short Story 1987, and the Nebula Award for Best Short Story in 1986.
In a chaotic, decentralized future, a drug-running rat tries to make a...
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When It Changed
"When It Changed" is a science fiction short story by Joanna Russ. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Short Story 1973, and won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story in 1972. It was included in Harlan Ellison's anthology Again, Dangerous...
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Macs
macs is a science fiction short story written in 1999 by Terry Bisson.
The story consists entirely of dialogue between several people and an investigator. The people are telling the investigator about clones that were used to satisfy the Victims’...
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They're Made Out of Meat
They're Made Out of Meat is a Nebula Award-nominated short story by Terry Bisson. It was originally published in OMNI. It consists entirely of dialogue between two characters, and Bisson's website hosts a theatrical adaptation. A film adaptation won...
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Henry James, This One's For You
Henry James, This One’s For You is a 2005 science fiction short story by Jack McDevitt.
It was among the 6 nominees for the 2006 Nebula Award for Best Short Story.
The story is narrated by Jerry, an editor at a smaller publisher. After receiving an...
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In the Pound, Near Breaktime
"In The Pound, Near Breaktime" is a science fiction short story written in 1995 by Kent Brewster. It was nominated for the 1997 Nebula Award for Best Short Story.
The story is about a desk clerk who is checking in all the animals that are brought to...
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The Lincoln Train
The Lincoln Train is a science fiction short story published in 1995 by Maureen F. McHugh. It won the 1996 Hugo Award for Best Short Story and the 1996 Locus Award. It was also nominated for the 1996 Nebula Award for Best Short Story.
The story...
A Cabin on the Coast
"A Cabin on the Coast" is a science fiction / fantasy short story published in 1984 by Gene Wolfe. It was nominated for the 1985 Nebula Award for Best Short Story as well as the 1985 Locus award.
The story follows Timothy Ryan Neal, the son of a...
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Lambing Season
Lambing Season is a science fiction short story published in 2002 by Molly Gloss. It was nominated for the 2003 Hugo Award for Best Short Story as well as the Nebula Award for Best Short Story.
The story follows Delia, a woman who enjoys the...
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The Dog Said Bow-Wow
"The Dog Said Bow-Wow" is a science fiction short story written in 2001 by Michael Swanwick. It won the 2002 Hugo Award for Best Short Story and was nominated for the 2003 Nebula Award for Best Short Story. "The Dog Said Bow-Wow" is the title story...
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Scherzo with Tyrannosaur
"Scherzo with Tyrannosaur" is a science fiction short story published in 1999 by Michael Swanwick. It won the 2000 Hugo Award for Best Short Story and was nominated for the 2000 Locus Poll, Asimov's Reader Poll and Nebula Award.
The story follows...
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Ancient Engines
"Ancient Engines" is a science fiction short story published in 1999 by Michael Swanwick. It was nominated for the 2000 Hugo Award for Best Short Story as well as the 2000 Nebula Award for Best Short Story.
The story begins when a drunken human...
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Salvador
Salvador is a science fiction short story published in 1984 by Lucius Shepard. In 1985 it won the Locus Poll award for Best Short Story, the SF Chronicle award for Short Story and was nominated for the Hugo and Nebula awards for Best Short Story....
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Always
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Not Long Before the End
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Boobs
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After King Kong Fell
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Game
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An End To All Things
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The Mountain to Mohammed
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In the Queue
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The Ommatidium Miniatures
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The Pope of the Chimps
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War Beneath the Tree
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The Fort Moxie Branch
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Helen Remembers the Stork Club
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Lost Boys
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In the Late December
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Going Under
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Coming to Terms
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Zeke
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Voices of the Kill
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Dead Men on TV
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