The winners of the sixth annual Ursa Major Awards (formally the Annual Anthropomorphic Literature & Arts Awards), for the best in anthropomorphic/"funny animal" literature and art first published during the calendar year 2006, were announced at a presentation ceremony on Friday, May 4, 2007 at CaliFur III, held at the the Costa Mesa Holiday Inn, Costa Mesa, California.
Voting took place between March 10 and April 14 over the Internet and was open ot all of furry fandom, drawing votes from countries as diverse as Germany, Finland, Russia, the Philippines, Australia, and Trinidad & Tobago.
Next year’s Awards will be announced at Morphicon 2008, held in Columbus Ohio in May 16-19, 2008.
The Ursa Major Awards are Anthropomorphic (a.k.a. Furry) Fandom's equivalents of s-f fandom's Hugo Awards, mystery fandom's Anthony Awards, horror fandom's Bram Stoker Awards, and so forth. The Ursa Majors are administered and presented by the Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Association (ALAA), an organization dedicated to promoting anthropomorphic literature and arts both within and outside of the fandom. Nominations and voting for the awards are open to all furry fandom. The physical award consists of an illustrated trophy certificate or plaque, designed by the artist Heather Bruton.
Eligibility in ten categories is for works featuring intelligent &/or talking animals first published during the calendar year 2006. This can include new compilations of older works, such as a new collection of previously-published separate works. The winners are chosen by popular vote among those participating in Anthropomorphic Fandom who, first, submitted their nominations for the winners, and then voted upon a final ballot consisting of the five finalists (those receiving the most nominations) in each category.
The envelope, please...