Press Release #9

Hugo Base Designs Solicited

May 1, 2003

Noreascon Four
The 62nd World Science Fiction Convention
P.O. Box 1010
Framingham, MA 01701
info@noreascon.org
http://www.noreascon.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BOSTON -- From the sublime to the amazing, the elegant to the astounding, the bases for the Hugo Awards change yearly, depending on the whim and aesthetic judgment of each year's Worldcon committee.

Noreascon Four would like your creative insights and other-worldly engineering proposals for the perfect base on which to mount the treasured silver rocket denoting excellence in science fiction and fantasy.

We request that all proposals conform to certain basic principles:

1. They must be designed in such a way that the silver Hugo rocket is an integral part of the design. We will supply the rockets, which are bolted to the base from below the tailfins. Ease of attachment should be a design consideration.
   See our design specifications and some past Hugo Award designs at http://www.noreascon.org/hugo/HugoBaseDesigns.html
2. The design must stand on a flat surface in some way (please do not craft a *hanging* design, or one only appropriate for zero-G).
3. You must allow space for a plaque indicating the winner and category of the award won.
4. Oh, and just so you know: we're wicked allergic to bases that have small bits falling off of them (or which disintegrate in someone's luggage!).

Designs should be submitted by 1 October 2003 and should include drawings/sketches/sample of the proposed base unit. Please tell us (1) how much it would cost to fabricate 20 bases, (2) the lead time needed for fabrication, and (3) your ability to either craft the bases or arrange for the work to be done. As a guideline, bases should cost $100 each or less to fabricate, and the finished bases should be sent to Noreascon Four not later than 15 July 2004.

Noreascon Four will also be awarding Retrospective Hugos for work done in 1953, and we will use a different Hugo base design for those awards. If you have a remarkable idea for a base honoring this historic work in the field, please send that to us, too. You may submit designs in either or both categories.

Please send designs, sketches, comments, and samples to us at: Noreascon Four, P.O. Box 1010, Framingham, MA 01701, by October 1, 2003. You may also submit a proposal to us electronically; see the instructions at http://www.noreascon.org/hugo/HugoBaseDesigns.html

For general information about Noreascon Four, see our web site at http://www.noreascon.org or write us at info@noreascon.org.

Noreascon Four, the 62nd World Science Fiction Convention, will be held in Boston, Massachusetts, September 2-6, 2004. Our Guests of Honor are Terry Pratchett, William Tenn, Jack Speer, and Peter Weston.