Show Notes
John is nominating board games, Alison should read more, and Liz bought two memberships. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Andrew Hogg (Discord) Chris Garcia (email) Ivan Sinha (Facebook) Kev McVeigh (Facebook) Phil Dyson (Facebook) Esther MacCallum-Stewart (Facebook) Jonny Harden (Mastodon) Paul Weimer (email) We also heard from Brian Nisbet, Bridget Bradshaw, Els, Farah Mendlesohn, Kin-Ming Looi
Worldcon 2026: LAcon V in Los Angeles, USA
Staff memberships are $100 Hugo nominations are open
Hugo Spreadsheet of Doom We’re not recusing this year! Best Novel:
On the Calculation of Volume I by Solvej Balle, translated by Barbara J Haveland A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino Every Version of You by Grace Chan The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami Slow Gods by Claire North Luminous by Silvia Park There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm
We believe this is eligible because (a) the version published in 2025 is different to the previously self-published version and (b) there is precedent through Old Man’s War by John Scalzi
When There Are Wolves Again by EJ Swift The Incandescent by Emily Tesh The Singing Hill Cycle by Nghi Vo The Salt Oracle by Lorraine Wilson
Best Game/Interactive Work:
Newfangled electric games:
Blue Prince Hades II
Good old-fashioned games:
The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game Galactic Cruise The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship The Old King’s Crown Star Trek: Captain’s Chair Star Wars: Battle of Hoth Take Time Vantage
Niall Harrison’s list of Best Translated Novels
Fan funds
Eurocon 2026: Metropol Con Berlin Natcon/Swancon 2026: Swancon 50 in Perth, Australia The TAFF candidates are Lisa Hertel and Kat Templeton, to Metropol Con The GUFF candidates are Farah Mendlesohn and Misha Sumra, to Swancon 50 EFF nominations close on 15 March, to Metropol Con
Picks
John: Murderbot Alison: The UFO 50 soundtrack
VVVVVV
Liz: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
Credits
Cover art: “Alison forgot she had to do the cover” by Alison Scott
Alt text: Text reading “OCTOTHORPE 154* *See, it’s like this. This is the first day of 2026 that hasn’t been cold, or wet, or both, so instead of doing the Octothorpe cover I went for a nice walk. And bought no board games, but a jigsaw. And did the jigsaw. Sorry.” The text is on top of a photograph of a bridge and some trees underneath a blue sky.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
More from Octothorpe
John is at Fantasycon, Alison is wrong, and Liz is right. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: None
John, Alison and Liz are live from Octocon! An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: It’s a live recording!
John parties, Alison queues, and Liz betrays. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode:
John is tired, Alison is listening to music, and Liz is catsitting. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: Clowns (Chapter 1), Hugo Award statistics (Chapter 3)
John, Alison, and Liz fix the Hugo Awards once and for all. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: