NOMINATION PROCESS
In June of each year, all affiliated writers participating in the annual APA's are asked to pre-nominate a maximum of two characters per award category. In addition, each pre-nomination should include one supporting episode for use in the judging process. The judges will use the supporting episode to rank the candidates from each category within a specified range, such as 1 to 10, where "1" is the most deserving for the award.
For the "Outstanding Episode" award category, a maximum of two episodes can be pre-nominated. Similar to the character-based award categories, each individual episode is ranked within a specified range to determine the top five semi-finalists. The semi-finalists for "Outstanding New Series" and "Favorite Non-Affiliated Series" are determined based on the position they ranked on each voter's suggestion list.
Once all pre-nominees have been ranked, the final nomination list is compiled based on our point system (see below). The semi-finalists are usually announced in mid-August.
* Please note: Unless the affiliated writer expresses otherwise, all participating series are also automatically entered in the running for Outstanding Series, Outstanding Website, Outstanding Graphic Design, and Reader's Choice: Favorite Serial.
The point system is calculated based on the following formula:
2 x [ total # of nominees - (nominee's ranking -1) ] = Total Points
Therefore, if there are 10 possible nominees for each category, then the final point breakdown would look something like this:
- Rank #1: 20 points
- Rank #2: 18 points
- Rank #3: 16 points
- Rank #4: 14 points
- Rank #5: 12 points
- Rank #6: 10 points
- Rank #7: 8 points
- Rank #8: 6 points
- Rank #9: 4 points
- Rank #10: 2 points
Once the points are tallied for each candidate, those ranking in the Top 5 (not including a possible tie) will make the final nomination ballot. This formula will also be used to determine the finalist for each award.
If you have any additional questions or concerns about the APA's nomination process, feel free to contact us.
