2009 EPIC Awards FAQs    

EPIC Awards Frequently Asked Questions

Please, make sure to read the entire FAQ before entering the EPIC Award!

Changes in Awards for 2009:

• Individual Medallions changed to Pins.
• Mini-statues available upon request at cost.

Categories Changes and Updates

• See the Categories page with new categories marked.

When, Where, What, How Much?

Q: What are the eligibility requirements and dates for the 2009 EPIC Awards?

A: EBooks published between October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2008 inclusively are eligible for the 2009 EPIC Awards, which will be awarded at the 2009 EPICon Conference in Las Vegas.

Q: What are the entry fees for this competition?

A: EPIC members pay $20.00 per entry
Non-EPIC Members pay $30.00 per entry

(Non-members may join EPIC at the same time as they enter their book to receive the member discount.)

Q: When will the contests open?

A: The EPIC Award Contest opens for entries on September 1, 2008 and closes for judging October 4, 2008, Midnight EST.

Q: What happens if a category is canceled?

A: If EPIC cancels a category due to too few entries, the EPIC Award Chair will contact the entrants for placement in another category. If that is not acceptable, arrangements will be made for reimbursement of the entry fee and the entry's removal from EPIC's competition.

Q: What are the book file naming requirements all about?

A: Before you send your book into the EPIC Award Contest, please rename your file in the following manner:

Example: Jane Seymour Doe enters her book, Under the Starlit Sky, in the Historical/Western Romance Category of the EPIC Awards (category 17). Her file would look like:

• DO NOT use ANY symbols, other than a dash (-).
• DO NOT use spaces or underscores between any dash.
• Only first and last name initials are acceptable. ALL initials are limited to two (2) characters.
• ALL entry files that are named incorrectly will be returned to ELECTRONIC SENDER for correction.
• After the third return (for any reason regarding file naming or format), your entry will be considered invalid for this contest and your entry fee refunded. If you are not able to name your file correctly, please have someone help you do this. The naming convention is specifically designed so that your entry will be processed accurately and efficiently. With the hundreds of books entered, it is vital that we're able to handle and route them to the proper coordinators and judges.

If you have a question regarding a category's designation number, please check the category list for a more detail explanation.

The only exceptions to this rule are entries in the new Anthology Categories:

• Anthology - Complete Categories, ONLY the editor or publisher initials may be used. ALL initials are limited to two (2) characters.
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella Categories: Only ONE (1) author's initials are to be used. ALL initials are limited to two (2) characters.

Q: Is there a limit to how many books may be entered in the EPIC Award?

A: There are NO limits to the number of individual/single books that may be entered in the current EPIC Award Contest year, within a SINGLE EPIC Award category. However, you may not enter the SAME book in more than one category. If you wish to enter more than one book in a single category, you are simply competing against yourself.

• Novellas, or short stories, that are removed from a published anthology, and entered as a separate cover or single title story outside of the anthology, must be entered in one of the Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella Categories.
• ALL entries must be entered "as the product sells."
• You may NOT enter a book that has previously entered ANY EPIC Award Contest, regardless of change in format or characterization, or re-publication.

Q: Who may enter books?

A: EPIC Award books must be entered by the author OR publisher.

The publisher may enter the single story title ONLY if the author is unable to enter for him/herself OR if the publisher is entering an anthology in one of the Anthology - Complete Categories.

Q: How will I know if everything is received?

A: The simplest method is to check our entry database. The EPIC Award database updates every few days to reflect forms, files, and money received. Once the database shows your entry is in the clear, you can relax.

If your entry form, file, or payment does not show up on EPIC Award Entry Sheet within a week of your submitting your entry, you should contact the EPIC Award committee at epic.EPIC Awards@gmail.com.

All book files AND forms MUST be received by the EPIC Award Committee before October 4, 2008 at midnight.

Please wait a minimum of 5 to 7 working business days for any payment questions. PayPal may seem instantaneous, but it can take up to 7 days for payments to finalize and up to 10 days for e-checks. Please remember that personal and/or business checks may not clear EPIC's bank for up to 7 working business days, depending on local holidays. This timeframe does not include time spent receiving your check through the postal service. If you entered within the last few days of the EPIC Awards entry period, you must allow an extra four-day grace period for payments to be processed.

Content and Laws

Q: I notice that you've added some content rules. Can you be specific about them?

A: Absolutely! EPIC is an American Corporation, bound by American laws in several jurisdictions. For that reason the following subjects are not be permitted in any entries: literature containing pedophilia, bestiality, necrophilia, snuff or scat play as acceptable sexual practices.

EPIC has an obligation to protect the corporation, the EPIC Award Contest, and the judges of that contest. The only way to do that is to add these warnings to our contest rules.

Q: I write a fantasy world where some of those things are common. How does this apply to me?

A: Fantasy, paranormal and science fiction have some leeway in regards to bestiality and necrophilia.

For example: sexual interaction with an alien/magical creature that is sentient, but doesn't appear human, would not be considered bestiality. The test would be whether the creature/character was sentient, fairly intelligent and willing. Likewise, an alien/magical race, that doesn't age as humans do, might very well considered an adult at a younger age than "human 18 years". In addition to the listed tests for bestiality, one would expect that the creature/character appear and act as an adult.

Since Vampires are considered by many to be an active part of the walking dead culture, as well as sentient beings, fully aware and seemingly quite capable of choosing to whether or not to have sex, the EPIC Award Committee will assume they do not fall under the category of necrophilia. As there is no logical way to justify necrophilia, snuff, or scat play, there are no exceptions to those rules.

Q: But there is classic literature that contains these things. What about X?

A: A dozen examples may be used here, many written before the current laws were set. We, however, are dealing with books put out during this current time, which means we must adhere to current laws. There is a huge difference between a character mentioning these acts in his/her background, with explanations and/or details, and a glorified expression of these same acts written in a book. If there are questionable scenes and/or events described in an entry, the EPIC Award Committee requires the author pre-notify them so that a more open-minded set of judges might be found.

This is not negotiable:

If any entry graphically depicts acts of pedophilia, bestiality, necrophilia, snuff, or scat as positive, fulfilling, and/or legitimate acts of sexual expression or affection, that book will be considered contraband and immediately removed from any and all EPIC-based (i.e., any used by EPIC Award Committee members, Board members, Judges, Coordinators, etc.) devices used to peruse or scan entries. This includes, but is not limited to, equipment, individual PCs, handhelds, servers, and electronics. Possessing such material is illegal under U.S. laws.

Story length and published works

Q: How long does a story have to be to compete in the EPIC Award? I've heard as high as 40,000 words, and as low as 10,000. Which is right?

A: EPIC Award entries must be at least 10,000 words long for a single title story and MUST be able to stand as a solitary unit. If the entered story depends on any back-story that has been included in other books, the judges will penalize the entry heavily during scoring.

The exceptions are the following categories:

• Childrens/YA
• Poetry
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Ficton)
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Non-Ficton)
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Romance)

Q: What constitutes a published book, or published work, for the purpose of EPIC Award?

A: Whether self-published, subsidy-published or published with a publisher, a 'published work' is considered a piece of writing offered FOR SALE and publically released during the EPIC Award Contest year. Free stories, posted on blogs, web sites, or even given away as a free file during promotions and/or contests, are not considered 'published works' for the purpose of the EPIC Award Contest.

Q: Does the length requirement apply to all categories?

A: The only exceptions to length requirements are Children/YA, Poetry, and the new Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella Categories. These categories are expected to have a much shorter word length (with a minimum of 5000 words) simply due to the nature of their writing standards.

Anthologies

Q: I notice that you've changed the anthology categories. What are the new rules and how do they apply to me?

The EPIC Award Contest previously allowed anthologies to be placed within standard categories (i.e. Erotica, Contemporary Romance, GBLT, Science Fiction, etc.), competing against single title books. Because the entries were substantial in number, the EPIC Award Committee received multiple complaints, many with valid points, regarding the anthology entries being allowed to compete alongside the single title entries. The EPIC Award Contest Committee agreed with the lack of adequate categories for anthologies in the EPIC Award Contest and came up with a solution to accommodate our entrants' need.

Be sure to check the Anthology Categories listed in our Category Guidelines for more details on the six (6) new anthology categories, and their rulings that fall under one of two choices:

• 1) Anthology-Complete entries will compete against complete anthologies entered within each category most prevalent to the work.
• 2) Anthology-Single Title Story/Novella entries will compete against single story title/novella entries entered in the category most prevalent to the work.

Q: What about the novellas? We used to be able to take novellas out of the whole and enter them in the genre without the rest of the anthology.

A: With that very question in mind, we have set up three new categories to allow authors the opportunity to enter their singular work, to have it recognized separate from a complete anthology.

These new categories are:

• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Fiction)
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Non-Fiction)
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Romance/Erotica)

While these categories cover specific genres, entrants need to be aware there may be a diverse selection of entries.

Q: Who may enter the anthology categories?

A: In previous years, any author or editor/publisher could enter an anthology.

This has changed!!

The Anthology - Complete Categories allow ONLY a publisher OR an editor to enter the complete anthology:

• Anthology - Complete (Fiction)
• Anthology - Complete (Non-Fiction)
• Anthology - Complete (Romance/Erotica)

The Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella Categories must be entered by the author. This category was specifically designed to allow authors the opportunity to enter their single piece, removed and separate from an anthology:

• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Fiction)
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Non-Fiction)
• Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella (Romance/Erotica)

Q. My book has more than one story, but I am the sole author? Where would it fit? In which category?

A. We have had this question come up more than once. EPIC's current definition of entries, novels vs. Anthologies:

• A NOVEL is ANY entry containing one story. This entry will be considered a single title entry, regardless of how many authors wrote the single story.
  
  
• AN ANTHOLOGY is ANY entry containing two or more individual stories published together to form one book. This entry will be considered an anthology regardless of how many authors contributed to the anthology.

Please be aware that authors may NOT enter anthologies. Complete anthologies may only be entered by the publisher or editor of that work.

Statues, medallions and certificates

Q: Someone told me that you've done away with multiple statues. I've co-authored a book and want to know that we'll both get statues if we win. Is there's precedent for that?

A: Yes, there certainly is precedent for it! Your friend has given you half-information so let me break down the particulars for you:

For General Entries and Anthology - Single Title Story/Novella Category

Entries awards are determined by one of two factors:

• A book or single title story/novella, written by ONE author, receives a single statue for the author.
• A book that is co-authored, written by two authors, will receive two trophies, one for each author.

Please note that a co-authored book is one that contains a single, cohesive storyline with no visible breaks to separate the two authors' writing styles/portions. The entry CANNOT be a two-person anthology, containing individual stories.

For any Anthology - Complete Category Entry:

An anthology, a collection of stories published as one volume of work, will receive a special plaque commemorating the event, presented to the entering publisher or editor.

• The winning Anthology - Complete entry winner(s), if comprised of one or two authors, will receive an individualized trophy(ies) commemorating the/their award.
• The winning Anthology - Complete entry winners, if comprised of three or more authors, will receive commemorative pins instead of the medallions as were given in the past as well as certificates of recognition.
• Winning anthologies will be announced at EPIC's conference in Las Vegas, March 2009.
• The EPIC Award Committee offers authors of any Anthology - Complete Category winners the opportunity to purchase a mini-EPIC Award trophy at EPIC's cost. We realize that some prefer looking at their award rather than wearing it and the EPIC Award Committee are happy to assist in coordinating the purchase of any mini-EPIC Awards, requested by winning authors, after EPICon in March 2009.

Thriller

Q: I notice that thriller is also a deleted category. Where would my thriller go now?

A: Thriller is, by definition, a book that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Is the storyline based on horror, mystery, or suspense? Is it portrayed by action and adventure? Or does it cross genres and find its way to the Single Story - Mainstream Category? Only the author can decide.

Re-released books, books with a new publisher

Q: My book was originally published by XXX Publishing prior to Oct 1, 200X. I pulled my book from the publisher and contracted it to a new publisher where it was just released last month. Would it be eligible for this contest?

A: If your book was released during the eligibility period, it is eligible, BUT ONLY if it has NOT been entered in the EPIC Award Contest in a previous year.

Q: A book I wish to enter was once published by XXX within the proper time frame for the contest, however, I am no longer with XXX and the book will be released by another publisher, but probably not before the specified time period. Is it eligible for entry?

A: Yes. However, if your book is entered in the current EPIC Award Contest it may NOT be entered in subsequent years (meaning a later published year, based solely on the new publisher's release date). If there will be major changes to your 'soon-to-be-released' work you may want to reconsider entering it this year, opting to enter it in next year's contest instead.

Q: My book was released this year and is really quite different from when XXX published it in 200X. Do your rules mean I can't enter my book in the EPIC Award Contest, even though it is actually a different book?

A: A book may be entered only ONCE in the EPIC Awards, regardless of change in format or characterization. If it has been entered before, even though it has been extensively edited since, it may NOT be entered again. If it has NEVER been entered before, it may be entered based on the release date from the new publisher.

Books in Several Volumes

Q: I have a single book that was split into two volumes, strictly for length considerations. Can I enter it as a single book or do I have to enter both pieces separately, though they cannot stand alone?

A: If each volume of the book was released as a separate unit, with individual ISBNs, they must be entered as a separate unit. You can request, in the comment section, that the two books be given to the same judge for continuity.

EPIC Award Judging

Q: How are the contests judged?

A: EPIC Award entries are judged by volunteers, with the largest percentage of EPIC Award Judges being active EPIC Members. Guest judges, all of whom are either published authors or publishing professionals, are used ONLY as deemed necessary by the EPIC Award Committee/Chair.

• Entries are evaluated based on the judging criteria established by the EPIC Award Committee.
• Judging assignments are scheduled on the basis of judges' preferences and experience (as writers or readers of a particular category).
• Contest Coordinators compile the judges' scores, with entries earning the highest scores named finalists.
• The Finalist entries are rescored by alternate judges.
• The EPIC Award Chairman recieves data and determines the work earning the highest score as winner.
• In case of a tie duplicate trophies are awarded.

The EPIC Award Committee endeavors to have a minimum of 10% of all entered books final in each category, except where the scores would indicate otherwise.

Categories

SEE CATEGORIES LIST FOR REFERENCE.

Q: May a book be entered in more than one category?

A: No. The entrant must choose the stronger/strongest category for their work/the work. In the case of a cross-genre book, judges typically give the entrant the benefit of the doubt and do not mark the entry down in points for placement in an incorrect category. Please note that erotica, erotic romance, and romance cross-genres should be placed in their correct category, as per Category Guidelines.

The ONLY exceptions to this ruling are when an anthology, entered by a publisher or editor, is placed in one of the Anthology - Complete Categories, and when an author enters their work in one of the Anthology - Single Story/Novella Categories.

Q: What about the EPIC Award Contest? Does the EPIC Award Contest have a limit on entries in any category?

A: The EPIC Award Contest is an established competition and (with the exception of poetry, which tends to be a small e-book market), all EPIC Award categories have a minimum entry requirement of eight (8) entries.

If any category does not reach eight entries, entrants will be given the choice of either withdrawing their entries or competing in a neighboring category, one as close in scope and content to the one that didn't make the limit, at the Committee's discretion.

Q: My book crosses categories. How should I enter it?

A: It is entirely up to you to find the best fit for your work. If you have a mystery involving a ghost, you will have to decide if the ghost is window-dressing for the mystery or if the mystery comes in second to the ghost.

Please read ALL category descriptions before choosing the correct one for your book. Ask the Category Coordinator for clarification about your entry if any wording and/or descriptions are confusing. Choose carefully, especially when placing a book in a straight genre vs. romance or placing it in romance vs. erotic romance.

The alternative, for books that cross genre lines, is to place your work in Single Story - Mainstream. This is a decision, however, should be used as a last resort. If this is your choice please understand your work will be judged against books of many genres, whose authors could not decide where they should be placed.

Q: I see from the categories that you don't accept screenplays or plays. Why not?

A: The EPIC Award Contest is an e-book contest. With few exceptions, screenplays and plays are shared in a 'live' venue setting, not a solitary, and sometimes printed, one. Add to that the judging issue.

Since plays and screenplays are judged differently than books, it simply isn't feasible for the EPIC Award Contest to include these in any current categories. Plus, there are far more appropriate contests for those types of works than EPIC's Contest.

Q: I'm having a hard time figuring out what category to place my book in. Can you describe the categories for me?

A. Sure. Your best bet is to check our Category Guidelines, or ask the EPIC Award Committee (epic.EPIC Awards@gmail.com). The EPIC Award Chair, Debi Sullivan (epic.chair@gmail.com), can always help if you need a more detailed explanation.