Nominating process complete

[Master of the Game]

I mentioned it on my blog, but I thought I'd post it here as well. The judges for this year's Ennie Awards have completed their nominating process, so look for an announcement in the next couple days. This doesn't include the fan's Best Publisher award though, so keep those nominations coming.

I'll also be doing a Q&A about the nominations and the process on my blog, which I'll post here as well if there's any interest. If you have any questions just post them, and I'll get to them as soon as the nominations are officially announced.

The other judges and I spent just about every waking moment over the last couple days coming to mutual consensus, and I think everyone is happy with the results. That said, I think we're all pretty much exhausted, so if you see one of the other judges offer them a hug

Anywho, thanks for all the comments and advice throughout the process. It was a blast.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Can't wait to see the nominees for this year.

Now go get some sleep for the next week.

 

[Piratecat]

Done. Done! Bwah ha ha ha ha!

I can't believe how much of my psychic landscape this was taking up. Doing it was a great honor, and a larger challenge than I remembered.

 

[Teflon Billy]

I slept the sleep of the righteous dead last night....from about 3am on.

 

[Umbran]

Congrats, judges! And thank you for your effforts!

 

[Nifft]

Yes, thanks!

When does the bribing voting process begin?

Cheers, -- N

 

[fusangite]

I have a lot of good things to say about the process:
(a) PirateCat and Teflon Billy, as the two senior judges were, on the one hand, a great resource while, at the same time never pulling rank on anyone as the most senior and experienced.
(b) We new judges were given a lot of scope to propose doing things differently and while the board was firm on what was important, they were incredibly flexible when a proposal to change tradition didn't conflict with the awards' basic mandate. For instance, MoTG, for instance, was given the chance to run with the ball and make the new Podcasts category happen with support form the board. Kudos to Dextra, Morrus and Cthulhu's Librarian on their firm but light guiding touch.
(c) MoTG was an incredibly hard-working, dedicagted and organized judge. It's just a matter of time before a bigger and more important charity or advocacy non-profit discovers him and starts trying to scoop his work ethic and organizational skills.
(d) It was great to finally have a female judge after the six year sausage-fest that preceded this year's panel. Liz gave us well-considered, unique and helpful perspectives, despite having a very demanding professional life. She also represents an equally important generational change. It's nice to see the people born in the 80s really coming into their own as part of the hobby.

I want to end by saying that I'm not going to run again next year. People tell you that being a judge is a lot of work but somehow it doesn't register until you're actually in the thick of reading 300 pages a day during the last minute product delivery rush as all the companies struggle to get the rest of their stuff submitted. Despite having the most flexible schedule of any of the judges, I found myself totally overwhelmed. I don't know how PirateCat and Teflon Billy manage to do this kind of work year in and year out, especially given their professional and family responsibilites.

It's been a slice. But a very thick one and one I'll be continuing to digest for a few months yet.

 

[Cthulhu's Librarian]

Congrats on another year done! You guys did a great job this year. The new judges certainly brought new energy and perspective to the process, the returning judges brought their knowledge and familiarity, and those of us on the board didn't really need to do much as the 5 of you all handled the review, discussion, and nominations very well. Having been there, I know what it's like, and you guys made it look easy (even if it didn't feel that way on your end). I think there is a great slate of nominations, and all of you deserve a round of applause for the hard work you've done. Thanks!

 

[Master of the Game]

I posted this to my blog a while back, but I thought I'd drop it in here to show everyone how much was entered this year. There are two products, Campaign Cartographer 3 and Vampire: Dark Influences, that aren't pictured, but everything else is there.

 

[Cathix]

Hey! I can spot Against the Darkness. Bad-ass, baby.