I'm always amazed at how passionate some people are about awards. Yes, it's wonderful to be nominated. The feeling is beyond great! And the nomination says that you're good at what you do and people admire your work.
What really puzzles me is the way some people actually seem to sit down and calculate how many awards they are eligible for. At which point I begin to wonder, do they actually enjoy writing and working at their craft or are they just about grabbing nomination spots so they can get their name out there and buff their nails on their shirt?
What is it about awards that turn people so crazy? I've seen them on various sites begging people to vote for them. I've seen tag lines and bios stating that the author has been nominated for or won umpteen thousand awards. Can anyone sit down with a calculator and prove that "winner of ______" actually sells more books, gets the author submission invitations to better markets, or gets more money thrown in their bank account?
I suppose it could, or it could be that you're just good at your craft and people have finally noticed. And the award, well, it's something for you to hang on your wall or set on a shelf and know that you've accomplished something you're proud of. And there's no calculating the pleasure in that.
I know I've talked about this before but there's something about awards season that sets my head to spinning.
16 comments:
I feel most awards become popularity contests and the writer with the most friends (votes) win. I may have been guilty of this myself at one time but no more. I will announce when a BTAP writer is nominated or wins but that's about it. No more active campaigning.
But awards do translate to higher visibility and then sales (in some cases) and I can see why folks are desperate to have award-winning before their name.
Awards mean contests, and I hate them. I grew to hate them in music, where so many contests are just ways for venues to take advantage of musicians and get them to work for free. What I've seen in "literary" circles is different, but I still hate to see them. I really don't like to get caught up in the whole "vote for me!" parade. I feel guilty and awkward enough just posting my own things on my own blog!
Have you noticed that writers with significant genre awards--Edgar, Shamus, Nebula, Hugo, Stoker, etc.--don't usually make a big deal about their awards? It's usually writers with awards you've never heard of who make a big deal about their awards.
I'm sure one can draw conclusions from this, but I won't...
(My verification word is "boximp." Now I want to write a story about a boximp.)
Sandra, I nominated your for an aw....... Oh, sorry!
I think awards can help writers piush their work out to further markets etc, BUT I think if a writer won an award years ago and still uses it to sell his/her work then that smacks of desperation to me.
I love that people announce that they've been nominated or won an award, David. It's just the constant dragging out for display over and over that tends to irk me. And yes, there are times when those words award-winning are necessary and helpful in a career.
I know what you mean, Chris, I hate contests, too! And I always feel weird saying I won something. I feel like I'm bragging.
That's true, Michael. I've also noticed that the older writers don't trot out those credentials, of course, if they're well know the publications are the ones adding those credentials. EQ and AHMM bios make me feel like a complete amateaur and unworthy of submitting. Oooo, boximp, now that's a story I'd like to read!
Maybe I'm old-fashioned, David, but I always feel like the story should be the only thing the editor is seeing when I submit. I know that those award winning writers can bring more readers to a publication and they need to consider their bottom line, but I hate seeing good stories get lost just because they don't have an award attached to shove them through the door.
I couldn't win an award if I were the only nominee and one of the two judges.
:) I know exactly how you feel, Fred!
In elementary school, I won spelling bee awards three years in a row! WOOOO HOOOOO!!! :D
We all like to have our egos stroked from time to time (or, is that just me? Haha!), and awards are good for that, but are they really a true measure of how good a story is?
Several years ago, I read an "award-winning" book that... to borrow a phrase from Uncle Tomas, "stunk on ice". The "award-winning" tag heightened my expectations of the book, which in turn heightened my disappointment when the story didn't meet my expectations. I have since learned to judge a book, not by its cover or award status, but by what's inside. To do otherwise is a disservice to the author.
I don't want to sound dismissive of awards. They do have their place; just don't trot one out you won back in 1980. Show me what you've done lately. And, you can bet your mortgage that the first award I win, EVERYONE is going to know about! LOL!!
Seriously though, if you've won an award, I am happy for you and your accomplishments.
I agree with you, Sandra... the story should be the only thing the editor sees.
Now... I have to figure out how to make a widget for my blog and Facebook page to display those spelling bee awards! :)
To tell you the honest truth, just because a writer won an award, well known or otherwise, doesn't really impress me.
What impresses me is the story (or book) itself that won. You could win a slew of awards for your writing, but if the story/book doesn't impress me or make me want to search out more of your stuff, then whats the point?
I think the literary ones (not the genre ones) don't impress me one bit, because that only tells me that your writing is the best in a seriously small niche/academic market that designed for people who take their reading material way too seriously.
I hate awards. Always have. I like to think the achievement is enough without it being judged. Also hate contests. I don't like to either win or lose because someone gets hurt either way.
I don't know that I agree that people who win the awards that are better known or more prestigious don't use it as a promotional tool. The reality is, a lot of the people winning those awards are often already well-known, so they don't have to beat their own drum the same way as up-and-comers do.
For better or worse, awards can help a book start selling, gain recognition or contribute to better book deals for the authors.
I therefore take it pretty seriously that there be some degree of credibility to the process, and that awards not merely become some anonymous person promoting their favorite writers or friends. On the one hand, I know first-hand from judging for major industry awards that no system is flawless. But if an award fails to meet a standard of internal consistency then I don't take it too seriously.
Hence my recent inflammatory opinions upon the topic. I have decided, out of respect for those currently under award consideration, that I won't blog on the topic until after the awards are announced and the current season is closed. However, I will say this quietly here. As an editor, I consider it part of my responsibility to try to ensure some of our stories are submitted for awards because I'm doing it for the writers. It's a small payback to people who don't get a big check for what they do to entertain hundreds, if not thousands, of readers.
But as a writer I have not chosen to submit my eligible short stories for consideration for some awards. I don't find it to be a justifiable time investment when I have concerns about the process in question, and when judging trends year to year have been noted by others publicly.
People can draw their own conclusions from my deliberate decision not to enter my own work for certain awards. I'm not the only writer to make that decision about some awards - perhaps it's just as simple as the need to check myself out of all the award craziness you're blogging about.
RE: award = popularity contest. This is the name of the game. I just try to accept it and go from there. But I'm more ok with an actual popularity contest (ie: public voting) them I am with closed door political bullshit (oh well so and so has paid their dues so we should nominate their book).
I work my tuchus off to provide a filter for the current years releases. This is an actual judging and comparison process tht I agonize over for the whole year. Nominees hopefully carry something away from being nominated for a Spinetingler award. Beyond the short list -- the actual voting -- IS essentially a popularity contest because I believe that voting should be as easy and inclusive as possible. That's ok too.
I will say that some industry people pay attention to our awards. I know because I speak to them privately and they want either an advance look at the short list (which I don't do) OR to be notified the moment they are posted.
The Spinetingler awards are blessed for the amount of people who care enough to vote in them and we are thankful for their participation.
Chris, hope you still vote at our site in a couple of weeks buddy even if you hate us :)
As for the constant touting of winning and/or being nominated yes I agree that folks probably shouldn't do it as much. It's hard to begrudge them their excitement but damn y'all it's up there with the constant BSP.
Someone. I forget who...maybe Harlan Ellison...said something to the effect that you only had to win an award once and for the rest of your life and career you are an *** winner so STFU about winning the award 5 times.
The currency that the Spinetingler awards trades in isn't sales or popularity but exposure. We hope to surprise you at least once and that you'll say dayum, I never heard of that one I need to go check it out.
I have nothing against the awards themselves. As Brian says about the Spinetinglers, they're a means to get good work and writers noticed. I love that about awards and one of the reasons I cheer for those nominated.
What bothers me and one of the reasons for this post was a writer explained to me that he/she actually sat down and figured out exactly how many awards they were eligible for and submitted to each and every one of them. I never thought about plotting out the awards season. As a matter of fact such a thing never even occurred to me. I was flabbergasted to put it mildly.
Like I said before, I think awards are good on so many levels. But I wouldn't set down planning battle stategies to win one.
Sandra, I'm so sorry your message didn't post. I just found it in the spam folder this evening and I have no idea where it was floating around before that!
I agree that no system is flawless and we have to make do with the rules that are in place and interpreted by the people in charge.
I have only nominated two of my shorts for the Derringers. Once because the coordinator was complaining that there were only three entries in the flash category which at that time was a 500 word maximum. And the second time because I thought the story was one of my best. But I didn't and still don't feel comfortable about nominating my own stories. For me the real thrill is when an editor (or anyone) nominates one of my stories and whether it's a finalist or not that belief in my work is what makes it worth while.
Of course, I'm easy to please, a pat on the head is usually enough. :)
Sandra - I so know what you mean by "pat on the head"... lol!! I get such a thrill when someone comments or praises something I have written... I can't honestly say that feeling is better than winning an award, since I have not had that honor bestowed upon me... yet! But... it feels really good!!
I still remember the comment Paul D Brazill wrote on my first story... I don't think my feet touched the ground for about a week after that! Haha!
Hearing from a writer you admire that they liked your work is so much better, Veronica, at least for me! Reader comments say that your story touched someone in some way and that's what a story is supposed to do. Move the reader.
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