The Rainbow Awards: Updating on the voting/reading system

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Today I had to ponder the question of the fairness of this award. People are voting, and I didn't expect such response. There are votes from people I absolutely don't know, people that are way out my field. I'm glad, even if I don't know if they will reach the limit of 5 nominations per category, that I have submission also for the Lesbian and Transgender, that were my worries.

I had to face an issue with jurors / authors. It was questioned their credibility if their books were also in the Categories. I asked to all the authors in the jury if they would prefer to be on the jury or being in the contest. I really hated to do that, but probably it was better for the award. You don't know who they are, well, now probably you know who are the authors who decides to be on the jury, but be sure, it was not an easy decision for me.

Then I had a problem with the voting system... I'm monitoring the thing, I don't see so many "odd" votes, and the votes are varied, in different genres and for very different authors and publishers. But all right, I understand the perplexity of whom see this as unfair for authors that maybe are not so visible online or without the right connection.

My decision is this one: said that from the polls (popularity contest) we will arrive with 15 books, first books in each category, I will leave the chance to the jurors to nominate other 15 books (still try to understand how). Other 2 jurors have to vouch the nomination of a juror, and if I have three positive votes, the book will be included. It's not mandatory that the book was in the poll, it has only to respect the guidelines the other books did. Don't worry, in the jury there are people that or have a strong background in the field, or gained the right to be since they are valueable readers / reviewers. I have plenty of faith in them.

All the books, 15 from the poll + 15 from the jury, will be read by the jurors, each book will be read by 3 jurors. The books nominated from the jurors have to be read by three different jurors from the ones who nominated or vouched it.

I will have to find other 6 jurors to have a jury of 30 jurors, and I will have to find a way to finance the cost to buy the books that the publishers will not willing to provide, more are the books in the finalists, more it's possible that will be a possibility, but I think it will be something I can manage.