It's that time of the year again. The siren's call of the ENnies has been sounded and the question goes out; who will answer? Do you think you have what it takes to be an ENnies judge? Do you have the fortitude to stand up against the barrage of RPG products, the reflexes to navigate the plethora of text and toys, and the will to emerge with the finest goods produced during the year? If so, then this is a great opportunity for you! Starting on July 1, 2010, people will be able to throw their hats in the ring and nominate themselves. The last day for nominating will be July 11, so you'll have plenty of time to make your decision. Voting for the judges will take place alongside voting for products and the winners will be announced at the ENnie Awards ceremony on August 6, 2010. Keep any eye out for my next post with a link to the form. If you want more information about the current judges, please visit the judges page on the ENnie Awards site: http://www.ennie-awards.com/about/judges.asp. Also, all current judges will be following this post, so feel free to ask questions of them. If you are thinking about running, here's a list of criteria you'll need to remember. All judges must: be at least 18 years of age as of August 6th, 2010 and able to enter into a legal contract; not have any professional relationship with any RPG publisher during the period from January 1st, 2009 to August 1st, 2011. Such relationships include unpaid work and work on free products; declare any relationship with any publisher (including EN Publishing, except for the Ceramic DM line) in which they receive money, product, or special consideration in exchange for their services; be able to read English and communicate clearly therein. If you have a relationship with a publisher, even as a playtester, it is important that you notify the ENnies board of this so that they may determine whether you are eligible to seek a judge position. In cases of rule violation, conflict of interest, misrepresentation, or other factor(s) detrimental to the awards, the Board of Directors retains the right to alter the composition of the judging panel at any time. Physical location is irrelevant - so long as you can accept packages year-round. When you apply, you will be expected to fill out a questionnaire to help people best gauge how well they think you'll work as a judge. Here a couple of sample questions: What styles and genres of RPGs do you enjoy most? Are there any styles or genres that you do not enjoy? Which games best exemplify what you like? Do you consider yourself a particular system’s, publisher’s or genre’s “fanboy/girl”? How would you like to see the ENnies change (categories, policies, etc)? What should remain inviolate? If you want to run, here is what is expected of you. All judges shall: access the ENnie Awards boards/e-mailing lists (for the purposes of corresponding with judges and interacting with directors and staff); weekly on the designated ENnies forums and sharing an accurate list of what products they have received; daily on the designated ENnies forums during judge deliberations (expected dates for 2011: June 1 - July 1); act in a professional and impartial manner; sign a non-disclosure agreement; in the event that they are removed from office, bear the expense of returning and/or forwarding the products received for review; pay any customs duties charged for submissions; if they attend Gen Con – Indy, work a minimum of two hours at the ENnies booth; if they attend Gen Con – Indy, attend the awards ceremony smartly attired; report to the Submissions Coordinator and Business Manager. And, besides being able to say "I'm an ENnies Judge!" what else do you get? Judges: upon completion of reviewing, retain for personal use or otherwise dispose of products reviewed; receive a free Gen Con Indy 4-day pass. Tony Law ENnies Assistant Business Manager [email protected]
And the time is now, folks! If you want to throw your hat into the ring, fill out the application here: http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform ... WlkeFE6MA..
You can visit this page at any time to view the applications for those that have already nominated themselves: http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/?page_id=675 It will be updated as the applications come in.
And the good thing is that quite a few people (including me) have already put their names forwards. Read what we have to say, ask questions here or elsewhere, and decide for whom you'd like to vote!
Hi! My name is Princesskeyblade (PKB for short) and I am running to become an ENnies Judge! As Megan said, ask questions and get to know us a bit better!
Hi everyone, My name is Francois "Kaladhan" Labrecque and I have put my name forward to be considered for an Ennie judge. Like everyone said before me, I'm open for any questions, comments, insults and death threats.
I'm Mark Green and I'm in the running to be an ENnies judge again this year. I've served for the last year as an ENnies judge, participating in this years review, awards, and nomination process. You can read my my full profile on the ENnies website. Just a s a quick summary: I've been an ENnies judge for the last year, so I'm very familiar with the process and the rigors of reviewing and playing with 250-300 submissions. I've been gaming for 25 years (I started on Red Box D&D). I'm a fig fan of old school games, fantasy, sci-fi and pulp. My views on reviewing are pretty simple: read it, then play it. Feel free to ask me any questions about my profile or the ENnies in general. Thanks for your support (both to me and the ENnies)! -Mark
The deadline for nominating yourself as a judge has passed. Thank you to all the folks who are running. You can get a list of them here so you can get to know them better before voting begins on July 16: http://www.ennie-awards.com/blog/?page_id=675
Effectively immediately, Kennon Bauman has withdrawn his name as a 2011 ENnies Judge Nominee and has made the following statement: The statement that led to his resignation was one made in an e-mail to his family and friends asking people to vote for him. Unfortunately, he worded his letter in such a way that one could construe that he wanted them to "stuff the ballot box." I have known Kennon for many years and I know that he did not mean this in any way, shape, or form and was just trying to help the receipients understand the voting process better. Although he was not asked to withdraw, he did so and we respect his decision.
