The winners of the 2009 Shirley Jackson Awards have been announced, and sadly for us, nominee ZOO by Otsuichi didn’t win in its category of Best Collection. Congrats to the winners Tunneling to the Center of the Earth by Kevin Wilson (Harper Perennial) and Love Songs for the Shy and Cynical by Robert Shearman (Big Finish Productions). I suppose a three-way tie out of a field of five finalists would have been too much to ask for.

Luckily, the Jacksons offer a little lagniappe for all the nominees, so soon we’ll be shipping Otsuichi his very own “The Lottery”—style throwing stone:

And now, just for kicks, here’s the brief speech that would have been read out at today’s ceremony, had Otsuichi won:

Hello, everybody. My name is Otsuichi, and I write novels in Japan. I
feel very honored to be receiving this award. Thank you so much for this
acknowledgment of my work. I’m going to tell my wife and parents about
this right away. I know they’ll all be happy for me. When I write, I
never have confidence in my stories. I write in fear of my anxiety, and
every time I think, “I’m going to quit being a writer after I finish
this novel.” However, receiving recognition like this gives me courage.
I feel I can continue writing a bit longer, and I’ll be so happy if more
people read my work as a result of this award. Thank you so much.