Shortlist for the 2026 Manly Wade Wellman Award

The North Carolina Speculative Fiction Foundation was proud to announce this list of 20 semi-finalists for the 2026 Manly Wade Wellman Award for North Carolina Science Fiction and Fantasy, presented in alphabetical order by author last name:

• The Unseen by Ania Ahlborn
• Cathedral of the Drowned by Nathan Ballingrud
• Queen of Mercy by Natania Barron
• Where Dark Things Rise by Andrew K. Clark
• The Blood of the Bull by Jo Graham
• Across an Ocean of Stars by Robert E. Hampson
• Reaper by John G. Hartness
• Last Chance Live! by Helena Haywoode Henry
• Transmentation: Transience by Darkly Lem
• Infinite Archive by Mur Lafferty
• The Coming Dark by D.J. Molles
• A Burning in the Bones by Scott Reintgen
• Last Chance to Save the World by Beth Revis
• The Crimson Throne by Beth Revis (and Sara Raasch)
• Labyrinth by A.G. Riddle
• Shadows Upon Time by Christopher Ruocchio
• Point of Hearts by Melissa Scott
• Children of Solitude by Michael G. Williams
• Closing Time at the Sunny-Side-Up by David Niall Wilson
• Fallen City by Adrienne Young

The winner(s) will be announced at ConGregate 12 on Friday, July 17, 2026 in Greensboro, NC as part of the convention’s opening ceremonies.

The Manly Wade Wellman Award was founded in 2013 to recognize outstanding achievement in science fiction and fantasy novels written by North Carolina authors. The 2026 award covers novels published in 2025. The award is named for long-time North Carolina author Manly Wade Wellman with the permission of his estate.