(Admin note: This is largely a cut and paste job from last year's FAQ,
so there may be a couple small inaccuracies. But for the most part all
this info still applies).
1. WHAT ARE THE SQUIDDIES?
The Squiddies are the rec.arts.comics newsgroups' annual comics
industry awards. Except for the CBG awards, no still-existing industry
award is older. Known originally as "the Great Usenet Comics Poll,"
the Squiddies have been continuously awarded every year since the
mid-1980's.
2. WHY ARE THEY CALLED "SQUIDDIES"?
The Squiddies were named after Suicide Squid--a mythical comic book
character accidentally created in April 1991 when Mitsuhiro Sakai
wanted to ask about developments in the series Suicide Squad, but
typed "i" instead of "a". Many rec.arts.comics regulars responded with
earnest and elaborate accounts of what was going on in the Suicide
Squid comic--which didn't really exist. The rec.arts.comics awards
(already several years running by that time) were nicknamed in his
honor.
3. WHO CAN VOTE?
All readers of any of the rec.arts.comics.* newsgroups are eligible to
vote. Whether lurker or poster, occasional or regular reader, we want
to hear from you. Every year, vote totals in some categories are
extremely close. Every vote makes a difference--including yours.
4. WHAT ABOUT COMICS PROFESSIONALS? RETAILERS? CAN THEY VOTE TOO?
Absolutely. In the past, there has been a perception among some comics
creators/retailers/editors/etc. that the Squiddies are a "fan award,"
and it would be inappropriate for them to vote. Nothing could be
farther from the truth. The Squiddies are for every member of the
rec.arts.comics* community--whether comics reader or a comics
professional.
The various rec.arts.comics newsgroups constitute the oldest online
forum for the discussion of comics and the comics industry. In
Internet years, we are positively dinosaurian--pre-web (by a good
decade), even. And for most of that time, comics creators and
retailers have participated on an equal basis with the rest of us
(except for occasional outbreaks of flaming or gratuitous sucking-up)
in the RAC* community.
The Squiddies are just another aspect of that community. So make no
mistake; your participation--your vote--is welcome and appropriate.
5. HOW DO THE SQUIDDIES WORK?
When the Squiddy voting period begins, (normally in January) ballots
are posted to the following Usenet groups:
rec.arts.comics.dc.lsh
rec.arts.comics.dc.universe
rec.arts.comics.dc.vertigo
rec.arts.comics.elfquest
rec.arts.comics.info
rec.arts.comics.marketplace
rec.arts.comics.marvel.universe
rec.arts.comics.marvel.xbooks
rec.arts.comics.misc
rec.arts.comics.strips
The ballots contain the voting rules and the eligibility requirements
for the various categories. However, the categories are blank--no
nominees. Once you've got a ballot, just vote for the
comics/creators/websites/etc. that you want to.
During the balloting (which usually lasts about 20 days), lists of
"pseudo-nominees" are regularly posted to rec.arts.comics.misc and
rec.arts.comics.info (at least). These lists show all candidates that
have received at least one vote so far.
The purpose of these pseudo-nominee lists is three-fold:
To provide an informal list of "nominations" for voters who would like
their memory jogged (although voters are free--and encouraged--to
consider others not already listed as well; the names on the
"pseudo-nominee" lists are in no way the only ones you can vote for),
To point out votes that the administrators have determined to be
ineligible, and
To ask for the help of the rec.arts.comics* community in determining
whether questionable votes are eligible or not. We need the help,
because the task is HUGE. During the 2000 Squiddy Balloting, the
administrators received votes for a total of 1108 separate items. All
of which had to be checked for eligibility (the NCRL lists are a big
help here).
Once the voting closes, the administrators tally the votes, make final
eligibility rulings, and announce the results. The announcements take
two forms: The first is a press release summarizing the winners (like
the one posted here), the other is a long version listing every item
that got at least one vote, and how many votes the item got (broken
down by category).
You can see an example of this long form at the Squiddies website (
http://www.squiddies.org/2002.html
). We also send out emails to all
winners that are reachable via the internet.
Then we rest for ten months, and do it all over.
6. HOW DO YOU GET ON THE SQUIDDY BALLOT?
Unlike many industry awards, the Squiddies do not have a formal
nomination process, nor do the administrators select nominees. The
only "nominees" are the creators/comics/etc. that appear on the lists
of "pseudo-nominees" are posted to the rec.arts.comics.* newsgroups.
Thus, if you want your choices to be "seen" by the most voters, you
should vote for it in the first few days of the Squiddy balloting,
ensuring they get on the first posted "pseudo-nominee" list. The
downside of voting early is that you don't get to look at the various
pseudo-nominee lists to help you make up your mind.
7. IS THERE A SQUIDDY WEBSITE?
Yes. www.squiddies.org, maintained by Todd VerBeek. Lists of past
winners, going back as far as we have records, are available there.
8. WHO ADMINISTERS THE SQUIDDIES?
Jeremy Henderson (squiddyawards@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
), who is widely acknowledged
as being cooler than all previous administrators put together. And he
could beat Thor in a fight.
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