TransAtlantic Fan Fund
Encyclopedia
The Trans-Atlantic Fan Fund, often known as TAFF, was created in 1953 for the purpose of providing funds to bring well-known and popular members of science fiction fandom
familiar to fans on both sides of the ocean, across the Atlantic.
to the 1947 Worldcon
, though it was the 1949 Worldcon
he eventually attended. TAFF's roots lie in the successful effort to bring Walt Willis
to the 1952 Worldcon
in Chicago. Willis published the founding document for TAFF in Hyphen
4 (October 1953) following a discussion with "the available leaders of British fandom" at that year's Coroncon. Since that time TAFF has regularly brought North America
n fans to Europe
an conventions and European fans to North American conventions. The success of TAFF has inspired other regular fan funds between North America and Australia
, Europe and Australia, and even Eastern and Western Canada
.
In addition to donations, fans hold auctions at science fiction conventions to raise money for TAFF. Frequently art, books, t-shirts, and other ephemera of fandom are auctioned off for this purpose.
.
Voting is by secret ballot, using instant-runoff voting
; and is open to anyone who has been active in fandom for the prior year or more and who contributes to the Fund. Ballots are signed, to prevent ballot-box stuffing and to enable the election administrators to identify each voter as a known member of fandom.
Although the winner is expected to attend Worldcon or a specific national convention, TAFF delegates generally also tour the country before and/or after the convention in order to meet a variety of fans.
Winning TAFF candidates are expected to write a trip report, which customarily takes the form of a fanzine
or a series of fanzine articles. These fanzines are sometimes sold in order to help raise funds towards future TAFF trips. In addition, winners take over the administration of the fund for their region (Europe or North America) until the next regional TAFF delegate is selected (usually a period of two years, unless the next race is delayed). At any given time, there are at least two administrators, one for each region.
Westbound races are marked << and eastbound >>.
There were no TAFF races in 1953, 1967, 1972, 1975, 1978, 1990, 1994, and 1997.
The second 1998 race was announced to "catch up" after the lack of a 1997 race.
The 2007 race between Chris Garcia and Mary Kay Kare was cancelled due to the cancellation of the 2007 Eastercon
; Garcia stood again in 2008 and won.
Science fiction fandom
Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or "fandom" of people actively interested in science fiction and fantasy and in contact with one another based upon that interest...
familiar to fans on both sides of the ocean, across the Atlantic.
History
The first international fan fund, the Big Pond Fund, was established to get Ted CarnellJohn Carnell
Edward John Carnell , known to his friends as either Ted or John, was a British science fiction editor known for editing New Worlds in 1946 then from 1949 to 1963. He also edited Science Fantasy from the 1950s...
to the 1947 Worldcon
5th World Science Fiction Convention
The 5th World Science Fiction Convention, also known as Philcon I, was held 30 August – 1 September 1947 at the Penn-Sheraton Hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA....
, though it was the 1949 Worldcon
7th World Science Fiction Convention
The 7th World Science Fiction Convention, also known as Cinvention, was held September 3–5. 1949, at the Hotel Metropole in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA....
he eventually attended. TAFF's roots lie in the successful effort to bring Walt Willis
Walt Willis
Walter Alexander Willis was a well-known Irish science fiction fan, resident in Belfast.Willis was awarded a 1958 Hugo Award as "Outstanding Actifan" , which replaced the Best Fanzine category that year. He was nominated for a best fan writer Hugo in 1969 and two retro-Hugos in the same category...
to the 1952 Worldcon
10th World Science Fiction Convention
The 10th World Science Fiction Convention was held on Labor Day weekend from August 30 - September 1, 1952 at the Morrison Hotel in Chicago, Illinois...
in Chicago. Willis published the founding document for TAFF in Hyphen
Hyphen (fanzine)
Hyphen was an Irish science fiction fanzine published from 1952-1965 by Walt Willis in collaboration with James White, Bob Shaw and various others . Over that period, they published 36 issues...
4 (October 1953) following a discussion with "the available leaders of British fandom" at that year's Coroncon. Since that time TAFF has regularly brought North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n fans to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an conventions and European fans to North American conventions. The success of TAFF has inspired other regular fan funds between North America and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Europe and Australia, and even Eastern and Western Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Funding
TAFF is funded through the support of fandom. Candidates are voted on by interested fans all over the world, and each vote is accompanied by a donation of not less than $3 or £2. These donations, and the continued generosity of fandom, are what make TAFF possible.In addition to donations, fans hold auctions at science fiction conventions to raise money for TAFF. Frequently art, books, t-shirts, and other ephemera of fandom are auctioned off for this purpose.
Procedure
Each candidate posts a bond, promising to travel (if elected) to a major convention on the other side of the Atlantic; and has provided signed nominations and a platformParty platform
A party platform, or platform sometimes also referred to as a manifesto, is a list of the actions which a political party, individual candidate, or other organization supports in order to appeal to the general public for the purpose of having said peoples' candidates voted into political office or...
.
Voting is by secret ballot, using instant-runoff voting
Instant-runoff voting
Instant-runoff voting , also known as preferential voting, the alternative vote and ranked choice voting, is a voting system used to elect one winner. Voters rank candidates in order of preference, and their ballots are counted as one vote for their first choice candidate. If a candidate secures a...
; and is open to anyone who has been active in fandom for the prior year or more and who contributes to the Fund. Ballots are signed, to prevent ballot-box stuffing and to enable the election administrators to identify each voter as a known member of fandom.
Although the winner is expected to attend Worldcon or a specific national convention, TAFF delegates generally also tour the country before and/or after the convention in order to meet a variety of fans.
Winning TAFF candidates are expected to write a trip report, which customarily takes the form of a fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
or a series of fanzine articles. These fanzines are sometimes sold in order to help raise funds towards future TAFF trips. In addition, winners take over the administration of the fund for their region (Europe or North America) until the next regional TAFF delegate is selected (usually a period of two years, unless the next race is delayed). At any given time, there are at least two administrators, one for each region.
List of TAFF winners
Past TAFF winners by year.Westbound races are marked << and eastbound >>.
- 1952 << Walt WillisWalt WillisWalter Alexander Willis was a well-known Irish science fiction fan, resident in Belfast.Willis was awarded a 1958 Hugo Award as "Outstanding Actifan" , which replaced the Best Fanzine category that year. He was nominated for a best fan writer Hugo in 1969 and two retro-Hugos in the same category...
- 1954 << Vin¢ ClarkeVin¢ ClarkeA Vince Clarke , often known as Vin¢ Clarke, was a well-known British science fiction fan.He first made contact with fandom in 1938, and was active as a fanwriter and editor from 1948, including Science Fantasy News. He shared the fannish Epicentre flat in London with Ken Bulmer...
- 1955 << Ken Bulmer
- 1956 >> Lee HoffmanLee HoffmanLee Hoffman, born Shirley Bell Hoffman, was an American science fiction fan, an editor of early folk music fanzines, and an author of science fiction, Western and romance novels.In 1950-53, she edited and published the highly-regarded science fiction fanzine, Quandry...
- 1957 >> Robert A Madle
- 1958 << Ron Bennett
- 1959 >> Don FordDonald E. FordDon Ford was an influential American science fiction fan from Ohio.Don began reading science fiction in 1930, and his lifelong love of the genre led him into fandom where he made many notable contributions in fan writing, fanzine editing and convention-running. He possessed a notably large SF...
- 1960 << Eric Bentcliffe
- 1961 >> Ron Ellik
- 1962 << Ethel Lindsay
- 1963 >> Wally Weber
- 1964 << Arthur ThomsonArthur Thomson (fanzines)Arthur Thomson was a British artist and writer, a highly regarded member of British science fiction fandom from the 1950s onwards, both as a fanzine writer/editor and prolific artist...
("Atom") - 1965 >> Terry CarrTerry CarrTerry Gene Carr was a U.S. science fiction author, editor, and teacher.Terry Carr was born in Grants Pass, Oregon...
- 1966 << Thomas Schlück
- 1968 >> Steve Stiles
- 1969 << Eddie Jones
- 1970 >> Elliot K Shorter
- 1971 << Mario Bosnyak
- 1973 >> Len & June Moffatt
- 1974 << Peter WestonPeter WestonPeter Weston is a British science fiction fan. Now retired, he lives in Birmingham, UK.Weston's made many contributions in fan writing, fanzine editing, convention-running and in local science fiction clubs. His 1960s pseudonym "Malcolm Edwards" caused some confusion several years later, when a...
- 1976 >> Bill Bowers & Roy TackettRoy TackettRoy Tackett was a rifleman with the United States Marine Corps during World War II who was credited with the introduction of science fiction to Japan following the war when he was stationed in that nation as part of the American occupation.-Career:During the early 1950s Tackett was a Drill...
(tie) - 1977 << Peter Roberts
- 1979 >> Terry Hughes
- 1980 << Dave Langford
- 1981 >> Stu Shiffman
- 1982 << Kevin SmithKevin Smith (editor)Kevin Smith was an active British science fiction fan from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, producing such science fiction fanzines as Drilkjis and Dot, writing for fanzines , chairing British science fiction conventions, editing a 1979 anthology of British fanwriting titled Mood 70 for Seacon '79,...
- 1983 >> Avedon CarolAvedon CarolAvedon Carol is an American-born feminist, anti-censorship, and civil liberties campaigner and a researcher in the field of sex crime, residing in England...
- 1984 << Rob Hansen
- 1985 >> Patrick Nielsen HaydenPatrick Nielsen HaydenPatrick James Nielsen Hayden , is an American science fiction editor, fan, fanzine publisher, essayist, reviewer, anthologist, teacher and blogger. He is a World Fantasy Award and Hugo Award winner , and is an editor and the Manager of Science Fiction at Tor Books...
& Teresa Nielsen HaydenTeresa Nielsen HaydenTeresa Nielsen Hayden is an American science fiction editor, fanzine writer, essayist, and teacher. She is a consulting editor for Tor Books. She has also worked for Federated Media Publishing, where in 2007 she revived the comment section for the blog Boing Boing...
- 1986 << Greg PickersgillGreg PickersgillGreg Pickersgill, born in Haverfordwest, Wales in 1951, is an influential British science fiction fan. He lived in London between 1971 and 1992, then returned to Haverfordwest....
- 1987 >> Jeanne Gomoll
- 1988 << Lilian EdwardsLilian EdwardsLilian Edwards is a UK academic and frequent speaker on issues of Internet law and intellectual property. She is on the Advisory Board of the Open Rights Group and the and is the Professor specialising in Internet law at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.- Academic career :Edwards has...
& Christina Lake - 1989 >> Robert Lichtman
- 1991 << Pam Wells
- 1992 >> Jeanne Bowman
- 1993 << Abigail Frost
- 1995 >> Dan SteffanDan SteffanDan Steffan is an American cartoonist and writer who has contributed to both mainstream and underground publications for several decades.-1970s:...
- 1996 << Martin TudorMartin Tudor (science fiction activist)Martin Tudor is an active British science fiction fan, editor or co-editor of several science fiction fanzines , and a member of various convention committees, most notably Novacon . He ran the fan programme at the 1987 worldcon in Brighton...
- 1998 >> Ulrika O'Brien
- 1998 << Maureen Kincaid Speller
- 1999 >> Velma J Bowen ("Vijay")
- 2000 << Sue MasonSue MasonSue Mason is a British illustrator of science fiction fanzines and other works. She has won two Hugo Awards.- Background :Mason claims to have been thrown out of Sunday School at the age of 12 for wanting to be The Morrigan when she grew up...
- 2001 >> Victor M. Gonzalez
- 2002 << Tobes Valois
- 2003 >> Randy Byers
- 2004 << James Bacon
- 2005 >> Suzanne Tompkins ("Suzle")
- 2006 << Bridget Bradshaw ("Bug")
- 2008 >> Christopher J Garcia
- 2009 << Steve GreenSteve Green (journalist)Steve Green is a former newspaper reporter turned freelance journalist, who has also written short fiction and poetry...
- 2010 >> Anne KG Murphy & Brian Gray (joint)
- 2011 << John Coxon
There were no TAFF races in 1953, 1967, 1972, 1975, 1978, 1990, 1994, and 1997.
The second 1998 race was announced to "catch up" after the lack of a 1997 race.
The 2007 race between Chris Garcia and Mary Kay Kare was cancelled due to the cancellation of the 2007 Eastercon
Eastercon
Eastercon is the common name for the British national science fiction convention. From 1948 until the 1960s, the convention was held over the three-day Whitsun bank holiday at the end of May. Since then it has been held over the four-day Easter holiday weekend...
; Garcia stood again in 2008 and won.
External links
- TAFF website
- Fan Funds website
- Shockwave Radio Theater podcast Interview with 2006 TAFF winner Bridget Bradshaw