🥁Drum roll, please! 🥁
Your nominations have been tallied!
We had 130 eligible stories this year, and a total of 42 stories made the short list across 19 categories. You all nominated a whopping third of the eligible stories! That’s amazing!
Feel free to scroll right on down to the Nominee Short Lists, but first we wanted to share more about how the short lists are compiled so that you can fully follow along with the nomination process and see why some categories have different numbers of stories/people/art!
The Kerth Awards have long aimed to have 5 nominations per category (which is why we encourage voters to submit 5 nominations each)! But, as the K-Com is reminded every year, it’s never quite as simple as taking the top 5 stories/people/art, and calling that the short list.
Well, once in a wonderful while, it IS that easy—exactly 5 stories in a particular category will have a really strong showing of people nominating them, and the number of nominations creates a clear and easy cutoff that looks like this (*not real numbers):
Story A: 13 nominations
Story B: 10 nominations
Story C: 10 nominations
Story D: 8 nominations
Story E: 7 nominations
(And all other stories have 6 or fewer nominations, and therefore didn’t make the short list, which here is the top 5 that the model is built for.)
But sometimes the short list for a category looks like this (*also not real numbers):
Story A: 14 nominations
Story B: 13 nominations
Story C: 8 nominations
Story D: 8 nominations
Story E: 8 nominations
Story F: 8 nominations
Story G: 8 nominations
(And all other stories have 7 or fewer nominations and therefore didn’t make the short list.)
In this example, there’s no easy way to cap this category at 5 stories since there’s a 5-way tie for “third” spot on the list. And cutting it off at just 2 stories isn’t enough for the ballot. So then, this category would get the rare but sometimes necessary 7 slots for the short list.
Because of this, you’ll see that this year’s categories have a range of nominee tallies—4, 5, 6 or even 3 or a whopping 7!
We should also mention that we see categories where the short list of nominees is smaller, either because there were a lot of aligned nominators or because the list of eligible stories in that category just had a smaller number to start with (waves enthusiastically at the beloved NFic category, which joins the general Kerth Awards for the first time this year!).
In all story categories, the short-listed stories received at least a quarter of the nominations! Definitely a super feat, especially when there were so many nominations across the board! Whether a category has 3 nominees or 7 (or the magical 5!), we’re excited because you all nominated so many wonderful stories this year.
At the end of this list, there’s more information on voting and the ceremony and more fun stuff, so don’t stop scrolling after the categories short lists below!
📣
Without further ado, we are thrilled to present your chosen 2024 Kerth Nominees: 📣
Best Micro-Short Story (1-5kB)Family Road Trip by KSaraSara – 5 kB (776 words) –
StoryHow to Change a Lightbulb by SuperBek – 5 kB (939 words) –
StoryMartha... A Gift From the Stars by KSaraSara – 5 kB (845 words) –
StoryNew Year's Season 5 by CarrieRene – 5 kB (916 words) –
StoryPractice Makes Purrfect by SuperBek – 5 kB (886 words) –
StoryBest Super-Short Story (6-10kB)110 Kisses: Can I Join You? by KSaraSara – 7 kB (1,245 words) –
StoryBetter With Clark by KSaraSara – 9 kB (1,570 words) –
StoryCat's Eye View (Part 3 of the "Like Herding Cats" trilogy 1/1) by lovetvfan – 9 kB (1,652 words) –
StoryMartha... She Just Knows by KSaraSara – 10 kB (1,860 words) –
StoryMay I Have This Dance, Mrs. Kent? by SuperBek – 8 kB (1,501 words) –
StoryMy Lost Sister by SuperBek – 9 kB (1,643 words) –
StoryWish Upon A Leonid by Toomi8 – 8 kB (1,521 words) –
StoryBest Short Story (11-50kB)The Dating Game Super Edition by KateSO – 50 kB (8,792 words) –
StoryFade to Black: Individual Priorities by KSaraSara – 49 kB (8,902 words) –
Story |
Story (nFanfic)Fortunately, There Are No Doors Here Tonight by KSaraSara – 50 kB (9,109 words) –
StoryIBM: Darkest Before the Dawn by JadedEvie – 31 kB (5,503 words) –
StoryLeading Questions by SuperBek – 15 kB (2,670 words) –
StoryPaper Cut by Blueowl – 34 kB (6,024 words) –
StoryBest Mid-Length Story (51-200kB)Can't Take My Eyes Off You by Socomama and KSaraSara – 161 kB (29,270 words) –
StoryCould'a, Would'a, Should'a by Toomi8 – 150 kB (28,727 words) –
StorySave A Slice of Pie For Me by SuperBek – 87 kB (15,658 words) –
StoryUndercover Reporter by JadedEvie – 84 kB (14,893 words) –
StoryBest Long Story (201+kB)Investigate: Beckoning by Blueowl – 258 kB (45,570 words) –
StoryMagiKal AU Series by bakasi – 364 kB (66,867 words) –
StoryA Matter Of Trust by bakasi – 674 kB (124,102 words) –
StoryMurder Over Metropolis by CarrieRene – 245 kB (46,099 words) –
StoryBest Comedy StoryAITA - The Clark Kent Version by Toomi8 – 9 kB (1,553 words) –
StoryChat Logs by Queen of the Capes – 7 kB (953 words) –
StoryThe Dating Game Super Edition by KateSO – 50 kB (8,792 words) –
StoryI'm Superman by SuperBek – 5 kB (864 words) –
StoryLeading Questions by SuperBek – 15 kB (2,670 words) –
StoryBest Dramatic StoryCould'a, Would'a, Should'a by Toomi8 – 150 kB (28,727 words) –
StoryInvestigate: Beckoning by Blueowl – 258 kB (45,570 words) –
StoryA Matter Of Trust by bakasi – 674 kB (124,102 words) –
StoryBest Waffy StoryCan't Take My Eyes Off You by Socomama and KSaraSara – 161 kB (29,270 words) –
StoryFortunately, There Are No Doors Here Tonight by KSaraSara – 50 kB (9,109 words) –
StoryGood Luck Finding Something by SuperBek – 7 kB (1,262 words) –
StoryMay I Have This Dance, Mrs. Kent? by SuperBek – 8 kB (1,501 words) –
StoryThat Forgotten Journal by SuperBek – 11 kB (1,905 words) –
StoryBest RevelationFortunately, There Are No Doors Here Tonight by KSaraSara – 50 kB (9,109 words) –
StoryLeading Questions by SuperBek – 15 kB (2,670 words) –
StoryPaper Cut by Blueowl – 34 kB (6,024 words) –
StoryWish Upon A Leonid by Toomi8 – 8 kB (1,521 words) –
StoryBest Episode Adaptation (rewrite/fix-it/in-betweenie)110 Kisses: You're Family by KSaraSara – 14 kB (2,509 words) –
StoryCan't Take My Eyes Off You by Socomama and KSaraSara – 161 kB (29,270 words) –
StoryFortunately, There Are No Doors Here Tonight by KSaraSara – 50 kB (9,109 words) –
StoryIBM: Darkest Before the Dawn by JadedEvie – 31 kB (5,503 words) –
StoryUndercover Reporter by JadedEvie – 84 kB (14,893 words) –
StoryBest Elseworlds/AU StoryAnchor: Part II - Kal-El by SuperBek – 588 kB (112,774 words) –
Story |
Story (nFanfic)Destined by SuperBek – 1,532 kB (279,152 words) –
Story (nFanfic)Investigate: Alternate Possibilities by KSaraSara – 61 kB (10,967 words) –
StoryInvestigate: Beckoning by Blueowl – 258 kB (45,570 words) –
StoryInvestigate: Horizons by Blueowl – 306 kB (53,765 words) –
StoryMagiKal AU Series by bakasi – 364 kB (66,867 words) –
StoryBest Kiss110 Kisses: I Care About You by KSaraSara – 19 kB (3,408 words) –
Story110 Kisses: You're Family by KSaraSara – 14 kB (2,509 words) –
StoryThe End Of The Fight by bakasi – 28 kB (5,174 words) –
StoryFade to Black: Individual Priorities by KSaraSara – 49 kB (8,902 words) –
Story |
Story (nFanfic)Fortunately, There Are No Doors Here Tonight by KSaraSara – 50 kB (9,109 words) –
StoryBest Original Character/Supporting CharacterKal-El: Destined by SuperBek – 1,532 kB (279,152 words) –
Story (nFanfic)Houdini: MagiKal AU Series by bakasi – 364 kB (66,867 words) –
StoryJon Kent: Save A Slice of Pie For Me by SuperBek – 87 kB (15,658 words) –
StoryBest Challenge ResponseChat Logs by Queen of the Capes – 7 kB (953 words) –
StoryThe Dating Game Super Edition by KateSO – 50 kB (8,792 words) –
StoryFicathon: Don’t Let Go (for Queen of the Capes) by KSaraSara – 66 kB (12,098 words) –
StoryTiming Is Everything by Deadly Chakram – 12 kB (1,996 words) –
StoryBest Nfic StoryAnchor: Part II - Kal-El by SuperBek – 588 kB (112,774 words) –
Story |
Story (nFanfic)Destined by SuperBek – 1,532 kB (279,152 words) –
Story (nFanfic)Fade to Black: Individual Priorities by KSaraSara – 49 kB (8,902 words) –
Story |
Story (nFanfic)Fade to Black: Stop the Presses (Do You Still Need Me?) by lovetvfan and KSaraSara – 26 kB (4,882 words) –
Story (nFanfic)Two Weeks by SuperBek – 18 kB (3,429 words) –
Story (nFanfic)Best New Author90sfangirl79JadedEvieKateSOSocomamaSuperBekVal-ElBest Overall StoryCan't Take My Eyes Off You by Socomama and KSaraSara – 161 kB (29,270 words) –
StoryDestined by SuperBek – 1,532 kB (279,152 words) –
Story (nFanfic)MagiKal AU Series by bakasi – 364 kB (66,867 words) –
StoryA Matter Of Trust by bakasi – 674 kB (124,102 words) –
StoryBest Commenter/Feedback GiverDarth MichaelJadedEvieKSaraSaraSuperBekbakasiBest Original FanartAction Figure Line by Matt Truex –
FanartDestined Graphics by KSaraSara –
FanartKerth Winner Banners by CarrieRene –
FanartLois & Clark’d: The New Podcasts of Superman by Matt Truex –
FanartTikTok Videos by 90stvfangirl –
FanartVillains Song by KateSO –
FanartThree cheers for all of our nominees!
An enormous, SUPER ‘thank you’ to everyone who sent in their nominations—we literally could not get the short list without you.
Here’s What Comes Next:YOU VOTE!
If you haven’t read all/most/some of these, you still have some time! (And some of these stories are short, delicious little snacks that are fast reads.)
Voting will open THIS SUNDAY, March 31st 0:00 UTC and close two weeks after on Sunday, April 14th 23:59 UTC—there will be a separate post coming up on that!
The way we have things set up and automated (YAY MICHAEL FOR AUTOMATING), only Annette and our neutral third-party verifier will see the votes (in most cases*). TriciaW, who was Kerth Coordinator for many years, will return to be our neutral third-party verifier and is delighted to be helping out again this year!
In years past, there has been a rule of sorts that no story shall be allowed to have more than a certain number of spots on the ballot. K-Com discussed for a long time last year and decided not to resurrect this rule. But given the phenomenal (and unexpected by the K-Com) sweep by
What the Heart Wants last year, we’ve decided that it’s warranted to bring back this rule and revamp it a bit—with the important distinction that we’ve decided to limit SOLE wins to three awards (not including Best Overall) rather than ballot slots so that FoLCs will feel their nominations were heard, and the authors/creators get their due accolades of the nomination—anything more than three will be converted to a tie with the runner up. We’re still updating the logistics of how this will work, but we didn’t want to delay posting the nominations. So for now, we’ll leave you with this quote stolen from the old Kerth FAQ:
We're involved in this because we love fanfic and we appreciate the endless creativity of our authors. We want to give something back in exchange for all the enjoyment we've gotten. It's a balancing act between keeping competition strong enough to make winning meaningful, and "sharing the wealth.” *If there is potential for a story/stories to dominate or sweep the awards, more of the K-Com will be privy to the final ballot results so that fair decisions can be made. As mentioned, we’re hard at work on developing the logistics for that and will let you know when we get there! All winners will be announced at the Kerth Ceremony.
And speaking of the ceremony! Just like last year, we’ll post a poll for you to vote on the most convenient time frame in and around Saturday, April 20th for the ceremony. Stay tuned!
Keep your eyes on this forum for more information about ceremony information (when, where, and how you can join in!) and an official announcement post when the voting officially starts.
And, lastly, upholding tradition, we also humbly offer you a box of pins, a la LabRat.
![[Linked Image]](https://i.postimg.cc/PNGwYNMc/Labrat-s-pins.png)
Congrats, again to the nominees!
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Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com
In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the
🏆2024 Kerth Award Posts🏆The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Darth Michael, lovetvfan, and JadedEvie)
Michael