THE AWARD NOMINATION THREAD IS NOW OPEN! viewtopic.php?f=31&t=362678
Some things that came up since the last few:
- "It's a popularity contest."
I have to agree there. We've had sour grapes all around: nominations submitted after deadlines winning because the player's entire RP group flooded with votes; players nominated but without any links to the posts that would lend to them winning their category. Talent and popularity are not the same thing. - "Shit posts win because of player popularity."
We have a lot of talented people in our community. Most did not participate in last year's event because they felt they would not have a chance due to the smaller size of their RP group. - "Original characters are not original."
I also have to agree with this one, especially as a bunch of people sent TGs during one contest... with links to that "original character" nomination coming directly from an online anime story game (even the picture had been ripped off). - "Puppet voting!"
I'm not so sure on this one. Other contests on NS (Sexiest NSer, for example) have a bit of Mod review to them. We could ask Mods to keep track of that stuff, if necessary. By and large, we seem to be a mature and honest community, however. - "VOTE FOR ME!" incessant solicitation.
Uh, no. This will be taboo this year. If your stuff is good, peeps will vote for it. Begging for votes is the most annoying thing anyone can do. I'm all for the suggestion of disqualifying a nomination if the nominee can't refrain from acting like a barking spider in the actual nomination thread (they can campaign to their heart's delight in their own OOC threads, via TG, whatever).
So, all that said, here are some suggestions for changes:
- WINNER SELECTION
- CATEGORY: Roleplayer. This is based upon the number of nominations received. Nominations without supporting links/information will not be counted. ("Because they're awesome!" doesn't cut it.)
- CATEGORY: Roleplay. This is based upon the number of nominations received. Nominations without supporting links/information will not be counted. ("Because it's awesome!" doesn't cut it.)
- CATEGORY: Character. This is based upon the number of nominations received. Nominations without supporting links/information will not be counted. ("Because they're awesome!" doesn't cut it.)
- CATEGORY: Scene. Determination process - panel of judges.
- CATEGORY: Single Post. Determination process - panel of judges.
- CATEGORY: Collaborated Post. Determination process - panel of judges.
The first three categories are cut and dry. A nomination counts as a vote. We eliminate some of the popularity contest bullshit by requiring links to posts rather than just shout-outs. "Swith is best worldbuilder!"... why?... "Because she's cool!"... balls, show me something she's built.
I also cut out "Best OVERALL RPer/RP" because, once again, votes are determined by how large a RP group is. Do we really need a "best in show" when we have so many talented people in P2TM?
These wonky things...
CATEGORY: Scene. Determination process - panel of judges.
CATEGORY: Single Post. Determination process panel of judges.
CATEGORY: Collaborated Post. Determination process panel of judges.
Yeah, those categories are always a bitch. We could let it be a poll, but those piss off a lot of people. Popular "vote by nomination" likewise causes rancor when it comes to actual writing.
What I'd like to do is have mentors skim stuff over, tossing away dreadful text walls or recognized plagiarism, and then bring it before a panel of judges pulled from the community. The judges would only see the posts, not the person's name. Selection would be based upon writing skill, content, and talent alone. Perhaps a simple point system would negate quarrels? 1-5, with five being best.
Grammar
Spelling
Flow
Content/whatever/etc
How well did it hold your attention
Where do we get judges? You guys... volunteer! A judge should be someone that has a good grasp of writing basics, doesn't mind reading through long posts, and is familiar with RP in general.
What if the judge's own work is up for nomination? The judge is recused from that genre's category.
What if the judges aren't being fair? Like what if someone from PL or EH is a judge, and awards high marks for posts from their own games? The whole world will see it, peeps. Anyone at any time can cry "foul!" over it, and that judge will be dropped. However, if the post is worth high marks - meaning any fool can see that the post flows, engages the reader, has proper grammar etc, then it's worthy of those marks.
Here's an example of the nomination code. PLEASE do NOT nominate people here. The form is ONLY for discussion purposes!
Your thoughts?
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ("THE SKINNY"): viewtopic.php?p=27025591#p27025591
Judge Volunteers:
Burning Sun
Cer
Dutch
Esty
Lavan Tiri
Nature-Spirits
SaintB
Star
Swith
Tilt
TriStates
Ularn
Zark the Minty
Backup Judge Volunteers:
Highfort