Nebula Awards 1998: Complete list of winners

The 1998 Nebula Awards ceremony celebrated some of science fiction’s most imaginative voices, with Joe Haldeman’s Forever Peace securing the top prize for Best Novel. Haldeman, already revered for his influential work in the genre, brought his characteristic blend of hard science fiction concepts and deeply human storytelling to this exploration of warfare and consciousness. The novel’s victory underscored the Nebula Awards’ continued tradition of recognizing ambitious, thought-provoking science fiction that pushes both philosophical and technical boundaries.

Beyond the novel category, the 1998 Nebula Awards (also known as the Nebula Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature) showcased remarkable diversity across the shorter fiction categories. Jane Yolen claimed the Novelette award for Lost Girls, while Sheila Finch earned recognition in the Novella category with Reading the Bones, and Bruce Holland Rogers took the Short Story prize for Thirteen Ways to Water. These winners demonstrated the vitality of shorter science fiction forms, where authors could explore concentrated ideas with precision and originality. Presented by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, the Nebulas have long served as a counterpoint to fan-voted awards, reflecting what working authors themselves most admire in the field.

Below, we’ve compiled the complete list of 1998 Nebula Award winners across all major categories:

Best Novel

• Forever Peace by Joe Haldeman

Best Novelette

• Lost Girls by Jane Yolen

Best Novella

• Reading the Bones by Sheila Finch

Best Short Story

• Thirteen Ways to Water by Bruce Holland Rogers