SIDEWISE AWARDS  FOR  ALTERNATE HISTORY 1996-2003

The Sidewise Awards for Alternate History were conceived in late 1995 to honor the best "genre" publications of the year, and the first awards were announced in summer 1996. The award takes its name from Murray Leinster's 1934 short story "Sidewise In Time", in which a strange storm causes portions of Earth to swap places with their analogs from other timelines.
   Two awards are given each year. To be considered, a work must have either first English-language publication or first American publication* in the calendar year prior to the year in which the award is to be presented. In other words, awards announced in 2002 honored works published in 2001 and were called the "2001 Sidewise Awards".
   The Short-Form Award is presented for the best work of less than 60,000 words. This includes short stories, novelettes and novellas, and poems.
   The Long-Form Award is presented for the best work longer than 60,000 words. This category includes individual novels and longer works. If a book is part of a series, it must be able to stand on its own to be considered. If it is part of a serial novel -- a series in which the storyline is continuous and no volume can stand on its own -- the complete serial novel will be considered at such time as the final volume is published. In 2003 there was a tie for the Long Form Award.