| Prometheus Award | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | The best science fiction or fantasy fiction promoting individual freedom and human rights, or critiquing tyranny, slavery, war and other abuses of government power. |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | Libertarian Futurist Society |
| First awarded | 1979 |
| Currently held by | Dave Freer (Cloud Castles) |
| Website | lfs.org |
The Prometheus Award is an award for libertarian science fiction given annually by the Libertarian Futurist Society. American author and activist L. Neil Smith established the Best Novel category for the award in 1979, but it was not awarded regularly until the newly founded Libertarian Futurist Society revived it in 1982. The Society created a Prometheus Hall of Fame Award (for classic works of libertarian and anti-authoritarian science fiction and fantasy, not necessarily novels) in 1983, and also presents occasional one-off Special Awards.
While the Best Novel category is limited to novels published in English for the first time during the previous calendar year, Hall of Fame nominees — which must have been published at least 20 years ago — may be in any narrative or dramatic form, including novels, novellas, stories, films, television series or episodes, plays, musicals, graphic novels, song lyrics, or verse.
The Best Novel winner receives a plaque with a one-ounce gold coin, and the Hall of Fame winner a plaque with a smaller gold coin.