ANNOUNCEMENT BOOK | Pokémon Watty Awards

12/6/17- New Judging System, Judging Applications

When people find our account, it's usually because they want to compete in a writing competition. The allure of competing can kill any thoughts of judging—and we totally understand that. It can be hard, especially when you are currently working on a story, to give up a year of competing to read 70-100 stories. In an effort to make judging a more available option for people, we've decided to start categorical judging.

In every year prior, applying to judge meant dedicating yourself to every single category. That meant that in a couple months, you would have to read, analyze, and judge up to 100 fics. That is a ton of work to take on, especially as something that you're doing alongside all your normal duties. This year, you have the option to judge as many or as few categories as you want.

Say you're willing to take on the workload of judging multiple categories, but you've got a romance fic you're really eager to enter. This year, you can apply to judge every category except the one you're entering in.

Say you want to judge, but you know you don't have the time or willpower to read every single entry. This year, you can apply to judge as few categories as you want!

On top of that, Scarlet and I have created a Discord server for everyone who is accepted as a judge! It will serve as a means of efficiently sharing announcements, as well as a place for the judges and admins to bond. For the past years, the PWA staff have been really disconnected. Scarlet and I talked frequently, but we only ever talked to one judge at a time. The judges never interacted, and they were left alone for months, expected to manage their time well with judging. We hope that this chat can help us make sure judges are staying on track, as well as help the PWA staff grow closer.

With all that said, judging applications are now open until January 6! The link will be in the comments, as well as on our message board and in our bio.