Why the merger of two categories?

[Dextra]

I'm curious- is it possible to find out how many nominees for each of these combined categories there were?

Nope.

 

[zacharythefirst]

I'd definitely like to see us look at some ways of creating greater accessibility for podcasters, fan products, e-publishers alike. I know some ideas are being tossed around, and I'm all for anything that gives a higher level of accessibility to the awards.

 

[Meghan]

Nope.

Can we know if each of the categories had a lack of submissions, or if it was just one?

There was a page on the site (which I think has been overwritten now) that listed all of the publishers who submitted at there were at least 5 podcasts listed there (and at least one of the actual noms wasn't there, so there must've been more received) whereas the fansite category just said "coming soon".

This discussion seems to be focusing on podcasts, and I'm curious if it was actually the fansite category that we should be looking at as to how to get more submissions.

 

[Mike Jones]

Wow.

I am absolutely ecstatic to see Animalball make the nominee list. For us, this is huge. I'm thrown off by the combination of fan categories (and we talked about that in our last episode before we knew we were nominated), but I'm also not so proud that I would pull us from consideration as Ryan suggests. My brother and I are a couple of dudes trying to have fun and entertain. We're happy to be recognized in any way, even if some people feel the nomination is flawed or cheapened by these circumstances.

I'm just sorry that people didn't choose to submit for whatever reason. Most especially, I wish Animalball could have been considered alongside Have Games Will Travel and Master Plan... two of the very best 'casts out there. I would have loved to see Fear the Boot in the pool too, but they have their own reasons for not submitting.

Maybe next year.

[In the meantime... VOTE FOR ANIMALBALL! WHOOOOOO!]

 

[Xath]

Interesting. On average, how long do you expect them to spend assessing a particular book, such as Pinnacle's Solomon Kane? I certainly don't think anything less than 2-4 hours on a single entry such as that is going to do it justice.

Took this one to my blog.

I'm happy to answer any questions I can through my experiences as a judge this year, and a staff member in years previous.

 

[madwabbit]

Took this one to my blog.

I'm happy to answer any questions I can through my experiences as a judge this year, and a staff member in years previous.

I'll check there -- need to fix your link, though -- too many http's in it.

 

[HalWhitewyrm]

Can we know if each of the categories had a lack of submissions, or if it was just one?

There was a page on the site (which I think has been overwritten now) that listed all of the publishers who submitted at there were at least 5 podcasts listed there (and at least one of the actual noms wasn't there, so there must've been more received) whereas the fansite category just said "coming soon".

This discussion seems to be focusing on podcasts, and I'm curious if it was actually the fansite category that we should be looking at as to how to get more submissions.

A quick roll call on the podcasters group revealed at least 8 different shows by 7 different creators. I'm starting to get the feeling that it wasn't us who had the significant lack of entries.

 

[HalWhitewyrm]

Took this one to my blog.

Link not working (you have a double "http://").

 

[dpmcalister]

A quick roll call on the podcasters group revealed at least 8 different shows by 7 different creators. I'm starting to get the feeling that it wasn't us who had the significant lack of entries.

There are two fan sites that submitted (according to this thread), so that's 4 there. Maybe the fan site category is the one that "let the side down" I'll be certain to make sure I put forward lots of sites next year!

 

[zacharythefirst]

Took this one to my blog.

I'm happy to answer any questions I can through my experiences as a judge this year, and a staff member in years previous.

For me, most products get at least that amount of time. With late-night readings, reading while waiting to go into work each day, I've often figured the time on a book is anywhere from 3-8 hours (as some books/products are much larger than others). In the close categories or really close decisions, or if I felt I didn't get something, multiple rereads were in order.

I also made it a goal to playtest as many products as I could this year, even if for only a single session. I feel actual play is hugely important for me in my judging process of how a game plays and inspires/enhances gaming. With 3 gaming groups to draw on (2 online), I managed to playtest almost everything (but not quite everything) we got in. Items I just couldn't get in playtest I made sure got the most thorough reading possible. My goal for next year, if elected, is 100% playtesting, and I think I can do it. Not easily, but I can do it.

And, of course, I'm happy to field any questions here or at my blog (see sig).