No offense to Gullas, but I needed a thread where I could change the OP.
 
Categories from last year:
 
 

GENRE AWARDS 
 
 
**Best Abstract Comic: 
These comics are just abstract...like that melted clock picture by Dali.
 
Best Adventure Comic:
Quests, missions, explorations, and/or other dangerous or exciting ventures. 
   
Best Adult-oriented Comic:
A-rated comics. XXX No one under 18 admitted! Live nudes! Or excessive violence. Or both!
 
Best All Ages Comic:
Child-friendly comics that the whole family can enjoy.
 
Best Anthropomorphic Comic:
They act like people and think like people, but they look like foxes or dolphins or toasters.
 
Best Autobiographical Comic:
Autobiographical comics that revolve around the struggles and triumphs of everyday life. Exagerations only make you look cooler.
  
Best Community Project:
Comics and projects that bring together a variety of DD members for
massive synergy! (DD Awards are not eligible, for giving ourselves an
award would create a paradox vortex from which there is no escape.)
 
 
Best Fantasy Comic:
Magical, mythical, mystical, marvelous. Comics set in fantastical
settings, involving magic or mythical creatures, abilities, or beings.
 
Best Horror Comic:
The dark, scary, and twisted. Monsters, psychological thrillers, and
 ax-wielding psychos all have their place among these wonderfully
horrific comics.
 
Best Humor Comic:
Gags, jokes, lols, roflmaos, and such. Format and subject matter aren't important. It just has to make you laugh. 
  
Best Mystery/Crime/Noir:
Crime drama, police, mobsters, mysteries, hard-boiled detectives, and/or meddling kids. 
  
Best Parody/Tribute:
Comics that use the characters, worlds, or creations of other creators. It's not copyright infringement! It's an homage! 
  
Best Philosophical/Political Comic:
Make-you-think comics that address deep topics from the spiritual and philosophical to the cultural or political. 
 
Best Romance Comic:
Girl/boy, boy/boy, girl/girl, girl/girl/boy, man/alien, or whatever.
 It's all about LOVE! Love love love love love love love love. Maybe
some hate too, and some other things, but romantic relationship(s) take
center stage.
 
Best Sci-fi Comic:
A form of speculative fiction so named because the fantastical
elements are rooted in or explained by actual or fictional scientific
theory.
 
 
Best Superhero Comic:
Too super for other categories. 
 
 
~~~~~ 
 
 
STYLE AWARDS 
 
3D/Poser: 
Comics that make use of the THIRD DIMENSION (oo, ah) or appear to.
 
*Best Action Within A Comic  :
Chase scenes, fights, big explosions; CRASH POW ZOOM -- you know the stuff
 
Best Manga Style Comic:
Comics inspired by the artistic style and conventions of Japanese cartooning.
   
Best Photo Comic:
Smile! You're on Comic Camera!
 
Best Pixel/Sprite/Stock Image Comic:
These comics take existing (or created) sprites/images and assemble them in different ways to create new strips/pages.
 
 
Best Stick Figure or Simplified Art Comic:
o.o  ^_^
 
Most Deliciously Offensive:
These f&%#@ comics might p^@(# you the f*^^@* off.
 
~~~~~
 
TECHNICAL AWARDS
 
Best Background Art:
The background, setting, environment, and surroundings. Including architecture, scenery, furniture, vehicles, etc.
 
Best Character Design:
The artistic design of the characters. This includes anatomy, facial
 expressions, and clothing (but not speech, mannerisms, or
personality/actions).
 
Best Comic Layouts:
The components of visual storytelling that harmonize the artwork
into a page and direct flow and pacing. Includes panel shape and
position, placement of speech balloons, lettering, and general
readability.
 
Best Dialogue:
It's all about what they say and how they say it.
 
Best Plot Development:
The overall story composition and pacing, and the use of storytelling elements.
 
**Best Use of Medium: 
Whether the comic is in black and white or full color, the author does a good job at using it.
 
Most Improved Art:
The comic that shows the most artistic improvement between July 2011 and now.
 
~~~~~
 
CHARACTER AWARDS
 
*Best Protagonist:
Contrary to popular belief, the protagonist is the main character of the story whether they are good or evil.
 
*Best Antagonist:
Opposes the protagonist. Doesn't necesarily have to be evil
incarnate, it could be Superman in a comic about Lex Luthor for example.
 
Best Supporting Character:
A noteworthy secondary character; can be good, bad, or other.

 
~~~~~
 
USER AWARDS
 
**Outstanding Achievement Within the Community:
The
user that will win this award is always there to particpate in the
community no matter what. These people show their support for the site
within the forums and by participating in community projects.
 
 
Most Dedicated Creator:
That creator who seems to be a page-making machine, every day on
time -- or maybe the one who has been at it forever and has a thousand
pages of the most amazing quality -- or the one who is updating five
different regular comics on a schedule. Whatever they are doing, they
sure are DEDICATED.
 
Most Supportive Reader:
Maybe they leave the most comments or the most insightful ones, or
they draw wonderful fanart, or they are always available to discuss your

script ideas or send you cards when you're on hiatus.
 

 
 
~~~~~
 
THE BIG ONES
 
Best Completed Comic:
Comics that were concluded sometime between July 2011 and now. (Indefinite hiatus doesn't count.)
 
Best Overall Comic Strip:
Best webcomic with stand-alone updates or short, unrelated story arcs, usually in a horizontal or vertical strip format.
 
Best Overall Story Comic:
Best webcomic that tells a continuous story, usually in full page format.
 
~~~~~
 
**Create Your Own Award
Didn't see the proper award for the comic/person you were thinking of on this
list? Make one up. Create your own award and give it a winner. Best
awards will be chosen by a dedicated team of judges.

Talking Point of the Week (or however long it takes):
Categories. (What works, what doesn't, what needs to change.

Proposed Schedule of Events
 
Planning ~ Now - July
 
The Drunk Duck Award Design Contest ~
 
     Submissions ~ June 2 - 8
 
     Voting ~ June 9 - 10
 
Drunk Duck Awards Voting Opens ~ July 1 - 20
 
Finalists Announced/Volunteers Assigned ~ July 22 - August 3
 
Judging ~ August 4 - August 24
(All Judging and Presentations is due no later than the 24)
 
Emergency Wrap Up ~ August 25 - September 8
(Hopefully we won't need it)
 
The Ceremony Begins ~ September 9

I am not saying anything good about these categories, but the following categories had a low amount of votes or a low threshold (only a few comics got more than one vote) last year:
 
Best/Pixel/Sprite/Stock Image
Best Photo Comic
Best Stick FIgure or Simplified Art
Best Abstract Comic
Best Autobiographical Comic
Best Romance Comic

Niccea [..] wrote:
I am not saying anything good about these categories, but the following categories had a low amount of votes or a low threshold (only a few comics got more than one vote) last year:
 
Best/Pixel/Sprite/Stock Image
Best Photo Comic
Best Stick FIgure or Simplified Art
Best Abstract Comic
Best Autobiographical Comic
Best Romance Comic

They're unpopular genres.  They don't get the readership others do.  Sprite, stick figure and photo comics are everyone's favorite genre to deride and despise so do you wonder why there are no great flocks of fans to vote?

Few will admit to reading a photo comic, others out and out avoid them like the plague and others just think they're all building toys and Barbies and not worth any time or effort to read let alone vote for. After all these years of trying photocomics aren't going to win any new readers because it's a derided genre.  "I don't do photocomics" says the elitist scribbler.  So there just won't be that many votes.

Or maybe, just maybe there are only so many of each genre that are worth voting for and one runs away with the voting while the others have only their one fan. 

Rant> Look to all your own predjudices before passing judgment on any ridding the DD awards of an award for excellence in a particular genre.  If you don't see the votes it's because you're all probably guilty of not reading those genres or considering them worth reading.  (Universal "you" as in the entire audience not anyone in particular, though you do know who you are)

In addition, Abstract comics are hard to define so readers aren't certain what is or isn't.

Romance is hard to do and again is one of those genres some readers love to hate and those who love them hate to admit it.  Also again hard to define.  One person's romance comic is often another's adventure comic so under what category you going to place it?  Many of the comics that got votes for best adventure or manga have romances in them but that is not why the readers read them so they don't get voted for best romance.  So the category may have gotten redundant.

Autobiographical amy also have gotten redundant.  If it's a gag-a-day comic or has a horror or manga or romance feel to it, how will anyone know to put it in autobiographical?  Wouldn't they just put it in gag-a-day and leave it at that?

@Niccea; None taken, I'm just glad to be a part of it :)
Bravo brings up a valid point. The problem with these categories is that although they do not have the attention or the votes for the awards, there is still a fair ammount of these comics out there and it would be bad if they didn't have any representatives at all.

It surprises me that the Best Romance category didn't get more votes, but I was wondering since we don't have any "Drama" category then why would we need a "Romance one"? Sure, portraying drama in comics is allot harder than representing romance.

But given that it is in our interested to trim the awards down I agree with Bravo and I say that Abstract, Autobiographical and Romance should be the first ones to go.

I am not even saying the categories need to leave but I was just showing ones with an unsual votiong trend. For exa,ple Autobioagraphy did actually get a lot of votes, but most of the comics that were voted for werenot autobiographical or had only updated once or twice in the previous year and was disqualified.

I say we introduce a worst comic on Drunk Duck award!
 
 Mostly so I can win something!

Call Me Tom wrote:
I say we introduce a worst comic on Drunk Duck award!
 
 Mostly so I can win something!

NO! To be the worst it has to be stick figure, sprite or photo. No other genres qualify. The comic also has to have less than 10 likes and average two comments a page or less so you're not even in the running.

Personally I think the unusual voter trends reflect the readership of each genre.  Autobiographical comics may not inspire large followings or great reader loyalty so you'll get single votes spread out over many comics. 

Other genres have few examples and even fewer fans and maybe there is even a comic that aggressively lobbys for the nomination trying to make sure no others are voted for.  Never know.  Popular votes are funny that way. 

bravo1102 [..] wrote:
 NO! To be the worst it has to be stick figure, sprite or photo. No other genres qualify. The comic also has to have less than 10 likes and average two comments a page or less so you're not even in the running. 

 
 
 You never read my comic have you.

Niccea [..] wrote:
I am not saying anything good about these categories, but the following categories had a low amount of votes or a low threshold (only a few comics got more than one vote) last year:
 
Best/Pixel/Sprite/Stock Image
Best Photo Comic
Best Stick FIgure or Simplified Art
Best Abstract Comic
Best Autobiographical Comic
Best Romance Comic

Perhaps have a minimum vote level?
"Categories receiving less than X number of votes will not be included in the Awards ceremony."
Just an idea.

Call Me Tom wrote:

bravo1102 [..] wrote:
 NO! To be the worst it has to be stick figure, sprite or photo. No other genres qualify. The comic also has to have less than 10 likes and average two comments a page or less so you're not even in the running. 
  
 
 You never read my comic have you. 

Your comic has too few pages and updates too infrequently to be truly the worst.  To be truly the worst it has to be regular and go on and on and on.  The art work is pretty good.  Sorry not even close.  

There's already have voting cut-offs in the nomination process. And the categories listed are niche categories so there's just not going to be a lot of voters to begin with.  To penalize the fans of those genres by saying X number or no category is to make a derided comic genre feel even worse.  Some of use feel bad enough as it is. 

Heh.

I'm gunning for the Technical Awards. Once you survive my novice qualities of Issues 1 - 3, Issues 4 up til 9 right now I think are some of my best to date.

Either way, I'm stoked to finally know when's happening when. :D May the best man/woman/it win. :3

@KAM: I like your suggestion. It would force the creators of the comics, that consider themselves to be part of these categories, to ask/plead their audience to actually vote in for the awards. That would lead to more votes, more traffic, discussion etc. etc.

Call Me Tom wrote:
I say we introduce a worst comic on Drunk Duck award!
 
 Mostly so I can win something!

Give this man a medal and let's do this! I say do it and make a spectacle of it! Give it a deceptive name and make it seem like a serious award like the Lifetime Achievement Award from the MTV Movie Awards.

Ha! Ha I say! You see Bravo I all ready have people lining up to say that my comic is the worst one around! Is anyone saying your comics are crap?
 
 No!
 
 Your now going to have to except it your good at making comics and I'm Drunk Duck's answer to Uwe Boll!

Best/Pixel/Sprite/Stock Image
Best Photo Comic
Best Stick FIgure or Simplified Art
Best Abstract Comic
Best Autobiographical Comic
Best Romance Comic

 
In the webcomics world at large, there are some good examples of all of these, and they're genres to be respected. Within the limited fish bowl of the Duckosphere, there aren't all that many candidates, and fewer still worth voting for.
 
To an extent there's some personal prejudice involved here, but I'd say we don't need categories for Abstract, Autobiographical, or Romance. What few comics we have that fit into those categories can swim in the general pool and do well enough. Arguably the same can be said for the Stick Figure/Simplified category; where it matters, that can fall under Use of Medium... but generally it doesn't matter. Stick is mostly just Comedy and/or Comic Strip anyway; why give them their own sandbox to play in?
 
Photo and Sprite are still differentiated enough IMO to deserve their own awards, though admittedly it's slim pickings.

Call Me Tom wrote:
Ha! Ha I say! You see Bravo I all ready have people lining up to say that my comic is the worst one around! Is anyone saying your comics are crap?
 
 No!

I just get a face palm "more Barbies and boobs" and no readership. If that isn't calling a webcomic "crap" it's damn close.  You're disqualified due to the number of "likes"  My longest comic at over 200 pages had only as many likes as yours does now.  Pathetic.  People lining up to say you're bad is still people lining up as opposed to "this happy few" who read anything of mine.  Kota is right though, we should give you a huge award party and then a pretty banner to put on your signature.  Something along the lines of "Best Worst Webcomic ever award"

I agree with El Cid.  There just aren't enough comics in certain genres that are worth voting for.  

Abstract does seem like a good one to consider letting go, but it could also be combined with Stick Figure/Simplified (it seems like a possible correlative to combine it to, though they are in different sections of the awards).  Autobiographical should probably be changed to Best Nonfiction Comic or the like, letting in biography comics and the like (not sure how many of them there are, but there likely are some).  If Best Romance Comic goes, we could replace it with Best Romance in a Comic, and have it be about any comic's best romantic pairing.

The problem with switching it to Best Nonfiction Comic is that you're creating a new category that has all the same deficiencies as the category it replaces. Still not enough candidates to merit their own slot, their own presentation, their own judges. Also, changing Best Romance Comic to Best Romance In A Comic pretty much just standardizes what everyone's been doing already. If we were going to axe that category, it could be de facto absorbed into the Drama category (do we have a Drama category?). Okay, ignore that last part. We don't have a Drama category.
 
Heh. The delete button is for suckers.

There was Best Drama which turned into Best Tense Scenes which was slashed out sometime in the last two years. It was a bit too tricky to judge and a bit of an odd name. I think everyone has some good ideas about what stays and goes. I will rewrite the list accordingly to makes sure we have it all correct.

Moving romance from genre into style would be a good idea.  Have it next to: best action in a comic, best romance in a comic.  

I miss best couple but I know how out of control that one got with any two characters in one comic getting nominated.  I think there was even a vote for Bill and Hank the Grey Guys from the Robofemoid comics back in the day.

Regarding the category of "autobiography", perhaps renaming the category "real life" would work.
 
A comic search for "real life" on this site came up with 1,111 candidates.  Who's to say how many are viable, but since I followed three comics that described themselves as autobiographical, or real life, specifically
http://www.drunkduck.com/BLANK_LIFE_insert_player_rokulily/ [..]
http://www.drunkduck.com/Christopher/ [..]
[..]http://www.drunkduck.com/Tera_101/ [..]
[..],
I'd hate to see the category eliminated.  If anything, I'd like to see it promoted.
 
But if there's no one updating, then it's unlikely that there will be nominations.  Which brings up a question:  are there clear rules about eligibility for nomination?
 
For example, unless a comic is nominated for best finished, should there be a specific requirement for minimal updating?  If yes, what would be a fair definition of minimal?
 
I like the idea of some definition just so there's a level playing field.  On the other hand, I can totally accept not narrowing the field when there are so few active players.
 
Last, I think a category should be eliminated if there aren't at least two nominated candidates.  Which could eliminate "real life" and, if so, so be it.

The rules for noms are pretty lax. They just need to have updated a reasonable within the past year and have at least one updata month before the voting period.

Niccea [..] wrote:
The rules for noms are pretty lax. They just need to have updated a reasonable within the past year and have at least one updata month before the voting period.

Except for the "best completed comic" which has to have ended since the last awards. (That category is judged on the total work, not the past year's updates.)

GENRE AWARDS 
 
 
Best Adventure Comic:
Quests, missions, explorations, and/or other dangerous or exciting ventures. 
   
Best Adult-oriented Comic:
A-rated comics. XXX No one under 18 admitted! Live nudes! Or excessive violence. Or both!
 
Best All Ages Comic:
Child-friendly comics that the whole family can enjoy.
 
Best Anthropomorphic Comic:
They act like people and think like people, but they look like foxes or dolphins or toasters.
 
Best Community Project:
Comics and projects that bring together a variety of DD members for
massive synergy! (DD Awards are not eligible, for giving ourselves an
award would create a paradox vortex from which there is no escape.)
 
 
Best Fantasy Comic:
Magical, mythical, mystical, marvelous. Comics set in fantastical
settings, involving magic or mythical creatures, abilities, or beings.
 
Best Horror Comic:
The dark, scary, and twisted. Monsters, psychological thrillers, and
 ax-wielding psychos all have their place among these wonderfully
horrific comics.
 
Best Humor Comic:
Gags, jokes, lols, roflmaos, and such. Format and subject matter aren't important. It just has to make you laugh. 
  
Best Mystery/Crime/Noir:
Crime drama, police, mobsters, mysteries, hard-boiled detectives, and/or meddling kids. 
  
Best Parody/Tribute:
Comics that use the characters, worlds, or creations of other creators. It's not copyright infringement! It's an homage! 
  
Best Philosophical/Political Comic:
Make-you-think comics that address deep topics from the spiritual and philosophical to the cultural or political. 
 
Best Sci-fi Comic:
A form of speculative fiction so named because the fantastical
elements are rooted in or explained by actual or fictional scientific
theory.
 
 
Best Superhero Comic:
Too super for other categories. 
 
 
~~~~~ 
 
 
STYLE AWARDS 
 
3D/Poser: 
Comics that make use of the THIRD DIMENSION (oo, ah) or appear to.
 
*Best Action Within A Comic  :
Chase scenes, fights, big explosions; CRASH POW ZOOM -- you know the stuff
 
Best Manga Style Comic:
Comics inspired by the artistic style and conventions of Japanese cartooning.
   
Best Photo Comic:
Smile! You're on Comic Camera!
 
Best Pixel/Sprite/Stock Image Comic:
These comics take existing (or created) sprites/images and assemble them in different ways to create new strips/pages.
 
Best Romance in a Comic:
Girl/boy, boy/boy, girl/girl, girl/girl/boy, man/alien, or whatever.
 It's all about LOVE! Love love love love love love love love. Maybe
some hate too, and some other things, but romantic relationship(s) take
center stage.
 
Most Deliciously Offensive:
These f&%#@ comics might p^@(# you the f*^^@* off.
 
~~~~~
 
TECHNICAL AWARDS
 
Best Background Art:
The background, setting, environment, and surroundings. Including architecture, scenery, furniture, vehicles, etc.
 
Best Character Design:
The artistic design of the characters. This includes anatomy, facial
 expressions, and clothing (but not speech, mannerisms, or
personality/actions).
 
Best Comic Layouts:
The components of visual storytelling that harmonize the artwork
into a page and direct flow and pacing. Includes panel shape and
position, placement of speech balloons, lettering, and general
readability.
 
Best Dialogue:
It's all about what they say and how they say it.
 
Best Plot Development:
The overall story composition and pacing, and the use of storytelling elements.
 
**Best Use of Medium: 
Whether the comic is in black and white or full color, the author does a good job at using it.
 
Most Improved Art:
The comic that shows the most artistic improvement between July 2011 and now.
 
~~~~~
 
CHARACTER AWARDS
 
*Best Protagonist:
Contrary to popular belief, the protagonist is the main character of the story whether they are good or evil.
 
*Best Antagonist:
Opposes the protagonist. Doesn't necesarily have to be evil
incarnate, it could be Superman in a comic about Lex Luthor for example.
 
Best Supporting Character:
A noteworthy secondary character; can be good, bad, or other.

 
~~~~~
 
USER AWARDS
 
**Outstanding Achievement Within the Community:
The
 user that will win this award is always there to particpate in the
community no matter what. These people show their support for the site
within the forums and by participating in community projects.
 
 
Most Dedicated Creator:
That creator who seems to be a page-making machine, every day on
time -- or maybe the one who has been at it forever and has a thousand
pages of the most amazing quality -- or the one who is updating five
different regular comics on a schedule. Whatever they are doing, they
sure are DEDICATED.
 
Most Supportive Reader:
Maybe they leave the most comments or the most insightful ones, or
they draw wonderful fanart, or they are always available to discuss your

script ideas or send you cards when you're on hiatus.
 

 
 
~~~~~
 
THE BIG ONES
 
Best Completed Comic:
Comics that were concluded sometime between July 2011 and now. (Indefinite hiatus doesn't count.)
 
Best Overall Comic Strip:
Best webcomic with stand-alone updates or short, unrelated story arcs, usually in a horizontal or vertical strip format.
 
Best Overall Story Comic:
Best webcomic that tells a continuous story, usually in full page format.
 
~~~~~
 
**Create Your Own Award
Didn't see the proper award for the comic/person you were thinking of on this
list? Make one up. Create your own award and give it a winner. Best
awards will be chosen by a dedicated team of judges. 

I removed a couple of categories for now. Autobiography may or may not come back up. It may have to be reworked. It had way to many comics that had quite a few votes but were not autobiographical.
 
Slice of Life did not work very well in place of that category either. It usually ended up with one slice of life comic (simply sarah) and 4 autobios. Simply Sarah, tending to be a cut above the rest of the comics, usually took home the award.
 
I recognize the value of the genre but has been a hard one to figure out to give it a fair chance.

Also, I would like it very much if one of you bright eyed and bushy tail'd ducks would take on the project of doing the comic design of the awards. What is required for this is a background, comic header, and a temporary thumbnail (while be replaced with the trophy contest winner). I think I will use the runner up trophies as the buttons again this year. That worked out pretty well.

Design nitpick on the banner but good idea to put a drop shadow and/or stroke around the letters rather than just an outer glow.  The letters especially "2013" are not distinct against the backdrop.

Meh...it is just a temp. i didnt even save an editable document for it.

To change the topic a little bit (we can still revisit categories later on) is there any thing you liked or did not like about previous awards that you would either like to keep change or eliminate.
 
We had a lot of discussion about the For Your Consideration and I promise that will be reworked based on suggestions. Is there anything else that you would like to see?

I liked the trophy design contest last year, maybe something similar with the winning/nominee banners? Just a quick thought...