I'M GOING FOR A DRAGON AWARD!
Look. I'm just going to say it...
I want a Dragon Award.
I want one bad...
I want one in a way that should probably concern my family.
Let me explain.
What Even Is a Dragon Award?
Every Labor Day weekend, 80,000+ humans dressed as Jedi, witches, Halo Spartans, Sailor Moon, and — I am not making this up — sentient pieces of toast descend on Atlanta for Dragon Con. One of the largest, loudest, most beautifully chaotic celebrations of nerd culture on the planet. The Dragon Awards are the fan-voted science fiction and fantasy awards handed out at the end of it. Eleven categories. No committees. No memberships. No gatekeepers. If you have an email, you have a vote.
That is the most science fiction thing I have ever heard of, and I am here for it.
Why I Want to Support It
Why I Want to Support It
Most major book awards are decided by committees. Small rooms. Curated voices. The kind of people who use the word "oeuvre" in casual conversation.
The Dragons are different. They were built in 2016 to do one thing — let the fans decide. The people who actually read the books, who stay up until 2 a.m. because they have to know what happens next, who recommend a series to every friend they have — those people get to be the deciders.
That matters. Especially right now. Especially in a publishing landscape where indie authors like me are mostly invisible to the institutions that decide what gets called "important."
The Dragons keep that door open. As long as fans keep showing up.
So I'm asking you to show up.
Which Brings Us to ACADIA
A Dragon Award nomination for ACADIA would be — and I'm trying to be measured here — exposure I cannot buy.
Not the trophy. (Although, let's be honest, it's a glass dragon award. It is incredibly cool. I would put it somewhere dramatic and pretend to be modest about it.) The nomination itself is what matters. It puts ACADIA in front of tens of thousands of readers who are actively hunting for their next obsession. That kind of reach doesn't happen often. You can't fake it. You can't buy it.
You can only earn it. One nomination at a time.
Readers have been generous. The reviews have been wild. Multiple people have written, in actual sentences: "I can't believe this book hasn't gone viral yet."
A nomination would help fix that.