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Post by lindahoyland on May 3, 2006 14:47:49 GMT
I copied this from another list as they want it widely posted.I thought it would be a good chance for us to nominate favourite stories to give them the recognition they deserve. Hi guys,
I'm proud to announce that the 2006 Middle-earth Fanfiction Awards are open for nominations. To vote, please go to
www.mefawards.net/MEFA2006 .
Some important reminders:
1. Each member is limited to nominating twenty pieces.
2. Nominators this year provide the story URL, the story title, and the author's name. (If the author does not already have a story nominated, the nominator also needs to provide the author's email address). All other information is provided by the authors.
3. The rules and several FAQs about different aspects of the awards are available at www.mefawards.net/faq/ . If you have any questions you may find this site helpful.
3. The nomination form has changed substantially, hopefully for the better. Authors will now select a time period, genre, and race the story is about, and rank their preference as to which category they most want their story to take place in. This replaces the question last year where authors were asked to give their first-, second-, and third-choice categories.
4. Authors will be asked a series of questions about their stories and this information will be used to form sub-categories. This replaces the question last year where you were asked to list some potential sub-categories.
5. Nominators may now nominate stories posted after the start of nomination season. The only requirement is that the piece be posted at the time you nominate it.
6. Authors may vote on other authors' pieces without being required to join the MEFAwards group. To nominate other stories (by themselves or other authors) they must still join the MEFAwards group. If the author does not have a Yahoo account they can be added as an email only member if they would like.
7. Not a change, but a reminder: make sure the piece you nominated was not nominated before. Each piece can be nominated once as a WIP and once again as a completed piece. 2004's nominations are available at gabrielle.sytes.net/mefa/final2004noms.html; 2005's nominations at
gabrielle.sytes.net/MEFA2005/ .
Members of the MEFAwards Yahoo group can also find stories previously nominated in the databases "Ineligible Complete Works" and "Ineligible Incomplete Works" at
groups.yahoo.com/group/MEFAwards/database .
Those are the most significant changes. Please make sure you are familiar with the pertinent rules and FAQs, and if you have any question feel free to email mefasupport @ gmail dot com .
Marta (MEFA Admin)
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Post by Raksha on May 4, 2006 5:32:22 GMT
What makes the MEFA Awards unique is that the winners (Placing One through Three, plus Honorable Mention, in many, many categories and sub-categories) is determined solely by the number of review commentaries (and the size of each review/comment) given each entry. And anyone can participate in the commenting; as well as the nomination process.
I'm not exactly sure when Nomination Season ends, but I think it's sometime on May 31...
I participated last year and found it enjoyable.
You can nominate your own work or other folks' work, or both. But check first to see who's been nominated, or you'll waste nominations; since each entry can only be nominated once. (if you make a mistake and nominate something that's been nominated already, you have to withdraw the nomination within 24 hours or you won't be able to replace it with another nomination. And it's only 20 nominations per nominator)
RAKSHA
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StefaniaB
Short story writer
Belly Dancin' Gondor Babe
Posts: 113
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Post by StefaniaB on Jun 8, 2006 20:06:44 GMT
Are any of you reviewing the MEFA nominated fics? I've been prowling through my Wish list and reading various stories. I'm impressed by what I've seen so far.
- Steff
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Post by Raksha on Jun 8, 2006 22:08:25 GMT
Still working to finalize my nominated pieces; almost done, thankfully.
I've done 14 or 15 reviews so far. My goal is 75. Last year I did 50. Yes, there's some good stuff in there.
Nomination season has been extended to June 15, btw, so if anyone who hasn't joined the MEFA frenzy feels like doing so, and nominating some stories that might have been missed (and there are some), there is still time.
RAKSHA
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Post by lindahoyland on Jun 8, 2006 23:58:22 GMT
I'm dipping my toes in the MEFA pond.I Have one story entered and am hoping to nominate 20. I hope to write about 30 reviews if I'm able.
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StefaniaB
Short story writer
Belly Dancin' Gondor Babe
Posts: 113
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Post by StefaniaB on Jun 9, 2006 23:22:15 GMT
I've already got about 13 reviews written, though some of them are place holders for the stories I've nominated. I wish things weren't so quiet here at Creative Juices, but I suppose that's the way things go. The huge Tolkien fandom brought on by the LOTR movies is slowly petering off. I just read that the Gathering of the Fellowship event in Toronto, Canada might be cancelled due to a small registration. That makes me sad, even though I never went to the original event.
- Steff
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Post by Raksha on Jun 10, 2006 5:17:42 GMT
I think we would need a larger membership in order to guarantee more frequent posting. We have a nice group here! But I've seen on other sites that a large percentage of a membership lurks, and only a few keep up the lively discussion - and I would think a membership of 100 or more would help in that regard.
But I'm not unhappy with the way things are at CJ. I don't have time to post five times a day here.
It's inevitable that the huge surge in LOTR fanfiction, and fandom, produced by the movie trilogy, would eventually lessen. I think that many fans ignited by the movie were not particularly interested in the book, so, as the movies move into history with no new EE's, those fans will seek other more current movie/TV fandoms. However, the people whom the movie re-introduced, or introduced for the first time, the LOTR books, igniting an interest in the story and the films and Tolkien's work, will stay longer. There's so much to explore, in terms of writing and reading (fanfictionally) in Tolkien's world!
At least I hope so. What will be interesting to see is how the Harry Potter fandom fares 10 years after the appearance of the last movie. I still believe that there will be people reading and writing Tolkien fanfic though...
RAKSHA, who has written 19 reviews at MEFA, and will now go write the 20th
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laerien
Short story writer
Posts: 192
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Post by laerien on Jun 10, 2006 10:37:40 GMT
Hi! Now that you were talking about how rare the replies are here, I felt too ashamed not to write something... The main reason why I didn't write for so long is that I am lazy. But I didn't have that much time either, because this is the last time in school when you can improve your marks. And I enjoy simply reading these posts. Usually, I do not really have much to add. I am not a MEFA member, nor do I think I should be, I do not know what Sharpe is, etc. I hope that when the school is over, I will have more time to write more.
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Post by lindahoyland on Jun 11, 2006 2:10:48 GMT
You would probably make a good MEFA member,Laerien as you know how to write nice long reviews ! Sharpe is a soldier in the Napoleonic wars played by Sean Bean in series of enjoyable swashbuckling TV dramas.You would like them, I am sure.
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StefaniaB
Short story writer
Belly Dancin' Gondor Babe
Posts: 113
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Post by StefaniaB on Jun 19, 2006 23:27:41 GMT
MEFA nominations just closed, and many of us have stories on the huge list of 600. Yay, us.
The review season is coming up shortly, after a few brave souls attempt to group the big list into categories. It will be interesting to see what they come up with.
- Steff
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StefaniaB
Short story writer
Belly Dancin' Gondor Babe
Posts: 113
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Post by StefaniaB on Aug 16, 2006 22:56:05 GMT
Just reviving this thread. For those of you who are reviewing stories for the MEFA's, have you discovered any true "finds"? One story I particularly enjoyed was "Birnam Wood" -- a critical scene in MacBeth, as Tolkien would have rewritten it.
- Steff
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Post by Raksha on Aug 17, 2006 10:40:56 GMT
I like the story Birnam Wood too; and happily voted for it.
Birnam Wood, by Inkling3 www.fanfiction.net/s/2734774/1/
Here's another gem that I finally got around to reading and reviewing:
A Matter of Honor, by Meckinock www.storiesofarda.com/chapterlistview.asp?SID=3820
It's an excellent pre-LOTR Aragorn and Halbarad (and Rivendell elves and Gandalf) story, a sequel to an earlier story of hers, but understandable on its own. Great characterisations, dialogue, touches of humor and credible throughout...
Meckinock also wrote For Love of a City, which features excellent characterisation of Faramir; it takes place after Sauron's fall and has Faramir meeting Halbarad's son on the Pelennor. It was written after the MEFA nominations closed, I think, or at least posted, but I would think it will be nominated next year.
RAKSHA
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Post by lindahoyland on Aug 17, 2006 16:36:00 GMT
I've been reading "A Matter of Honour" as it was posted.AN excellent story, which I always read at once when I get an update alert. I must remember to vote for it as it is so well written.I've discovered some excellent drabbles.The reviews have inspired me to mark (and maybe review) a few more stories
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Post by Raksha on Aug 17, 2006 21:49:59 GMT
I've done 155 Final MEFA Reviews. My original goal was 75, then 150; and now that I've met it, I'll go to 160...or more.
Of course, I started doing Draft reviews before the stories were even placed in Sub-categories; just to get a head start, so I only had to do 1-2 reviews a day, and could even skip a day or two now and then.
There are 650-odd nominated stories, and over 1400 Final Reviews (though the last 200 or so of those won't be visible until tomorrow night). Last year, there were 1200 nominated stories and over 6000 reviews, so I expect the number of 2006 MEFA Final Reviews to reach 2500 or more before the voting ends (which, I believe, is in November).
RAKSHA
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StefaniaB
Short story writer
Belly Dancin' Gondor Babe
Posts: 113
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Post by StefaniaB on Aug 17, 2006 22:05:03 GMT
We can continue to review stories during the voting season, right?
I'm currently reading three Epics but don't want to review them until I have them close to finished.
- Steff
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Post by Raksha on Aug 17, 2006 22:59:53 GMT
We can continue to review stories during the voting season, right? I'm currently reading three Epics but don't want to review them until I have them close to finished. - Steff I think so, since votes are reviews, but I'm far from expert on MEFA timelines/rules - you can ask your MEFA Liaison or the email list.
I believe that the only difference between Voting Season and Reading Season (which is now) is that during Voting Season, Final reviews can't be edited by the reviewer after they're made Final, but I could be wrong on this...
RAKSHA
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Post by Raksha on Oct 28, 2006 22:58:22 GMT
It's not too late to cast votes for the many wonderful fics in the MEFA contest. You don't have to be a participating writer to vote. Steff and Linda and others have good stories running in the MEFAs...
The deadline for voting is November 20, though it would be best to do it by the end of 11/19, since I can't remember what time (and it's not U.S. time) the voting ends on the 20th.
It's really not that difficult to register to participate; and voting is easy. Stories can be found by category, or characters, or authors...
RAKSHA
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Post by Rosie on Dec 6, 2006 13:21:44 GMT
Congratulations to all our winners and runners up/recommendees!Linda, Raksha, Branwyn, Stef......any more? I only read the list quickly, so apologies if I've missed someone. If I have - tell us! Don't be shy. Kudos to all of you.
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Post by lindahoyland on Dec 6, 2006 23:05:03 GMT
Thank you so much, Rosie, I was thrilled and honoured to have won an award.
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StefaniaB
Short story writer
Belly Dancin' Gondor Babe
Posts: 113
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Post by StefaniaB on Dec 7, 2006 1:24:24 GMT
(That's a hula dancer above this sentence, as far as I'm concerned.) Juno Magic had some winners, too. And Make It Stop from ADW was also a winner. I'm so happy that the stories that I rated a 10 came out as winners in their respective categories. I wound up reading 50 stories and posting reviews for 42 of them. It was a great reading experience. I was thrilled that Raksha's "Gaiety in Gondor" came in 1st place for Humor ficlets and my "17 Cunning Corsairs" (my novice ficlet) came in third. They were both part of last year's HASA's 25 days of Yule challenge, as was "16 Singing Eagles," another winner. - Steff
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