Hey, folks! Welcome to the Imaginaria Realm Awards! This contest aims to celebrate the most imaginative of stories in the realms of sci-fi, fantasy, paranormal and horror! The hosts are Aredelle23 and SuVida777.

There are cool prizes for both winners and judges, so check those out in the next chapter! The mini categories will be judged by the hosts.

A colossal amount of work goes into running awards and judging books. But we don't want to be forced to do payments we don't want, yes? So in this contest, you can CHOOSE ONE from the following:

✦ Genuinely follow your hosts/judges (don't unfollow them later). Backup accounts are accepted.

✦ Make a one-time payment: Read one chapter from their books and leave a minimum of 5 comments (emojis and single-word comments don't count—put in a bit more effort!)

Do not make any payments until your form has been accepted!

FORMS ARE NOW CLOSED.

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There are 3 MAIN CATEGORIES you can apply to:

1. Fantasy (30/30)
2. Science Fiction (15/15)
3. Paranormal & Horror (15/15)

Depending on the number of entries received, we would place your books in SUB-CATEGORIES, such as Dark Fantasy, Punk, Dystopia, Superhero and more. Yep, you stand a chance to win in sub-categories when you enter the main ones!

Even if you don't enter the main categories, there are fun mini categories!

1. Best Cover (10) : user votes
2. Best Blurb (8)
3. Best Worldbuilding (7)
4. Best Ship (6)
5. Best Graphics/Artwork (2)
6. Best Hero/Heroine (6)
7. Best Battle (6)

The main categories will be judged in 2 rounds. In the first round, judges will read the first chapter of your book. There will be 2 judges for Fantasy.

4-5 books in each category will make it to the shortlist. There will be one winner per category, as well as an honorable mention. Only one chapter will be read for mini categories, so make sure you put your best chapter forward!

The judging criteria will be up soon, so stay tuned for that.

***Please note that this will not act as a review shop. Judges will only provide a mini review for winners, not all participants. Respect the decision made by the judges!

1. Add this to your library and a public reading list for everyone to see this fabulous contest!

2. Follow the community profile until the contest is over and give this book a shoutout on your message board.

3. Head to the Tag Fest page and tag a minimum of 5 people.

4. All books must be in English.

5. This contest accepts books rated Mature for violence and dark themes, but not smut.

6. Don't bribe the judges or be mean to the hosts, judges or other participants. If so, you will be kicked out and banned from future awards!

7. You can enter 3 books but not in the same category. Books you have entered into the main categories can be entered into the mini categories (again, you cannot enter multiple books into the same mini category). You cannot judge the categories you enter.

8. Books must have at least 3 chapters.  Short stories longer than 5000 words are also accepted. It should be your original work.

9. This is geared towards undiscovered books, so books should have less than 50K reads. The password is a sci-fi/fantasy-related word that starts with the first letter of your username. If your name is Oompaloompa, your password can be "Oort cloud".

10. If you change your username or book title, let us know. If we can't find your book, it will be disqualified.

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That's it! Once you've been accepted, you will be asked to complete the host/judge payments before judging begins (1 week for read payments). If the host/judge has no book, you'd have to give them a follow.

Judges are epic! So judges don't have to do any follows or shoutouts.

JUDGES HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED. APPLICATION FORM CLOSED.

1. You have to be a reader/writer of fantasy, sci-fi, paranormal or horror.

2. You must be 18 years or above, since you might have to judge books rated Mature for violence or dark themes. Please note that stories might have romantic pairings that may not be what you prefer (bxg, gxg, bxb and so on).

3. You get 2 months to finish judging—December and January. Please respond to messages! You will be provided with a Google sheet to enter scores.

4. Round one: Read the 1st chapter of accepted entries in your category (by 31st Dec)
Round two: Read 3 chapters of 4-5 shortlisted entries (by 31st Jan)
Fantasy books will be divided between 2 judges.

5. There will be 2 milestone checks in the middle of December and January, in case judges wait till the last moment and bail. If something happens and you need an extension at the halfway milestone, let us know. If you disappear with no communication, participants will be informed and you will be banned from this profile!

6. You'd have to score the entries based on the rubric provided. You will have to provide a mini review of at least 5 lines for the winner. Appreciate the good points about the story and be polite when you offer suggestions!

E.g. A unique story premise, immediately conveyed in the quirky opening line. The Ellimist is both alien and relatable at the same time. The strange world is complex, so I felt the author could weave in more imagery to help us visualize it better. The story is carefully crafted with a gripping plot and memorable characters. The tension is on point, and the cliffhangers keep the reader asking for more. A fascinating adventure for those who love sci-fi!

7. You're free to vote and comment on chapters you read! The password is any sci-fi/fantasy-related word that starts with the last letter of your username. If your name is Oompaloompa, your password can be "alicorn".

8. Judges can enter as participants as long as it's not the same category they're judging.

9. Judges' books for participants to read and for the character illustration prize should also follow no. 5 under participant rules.

10. The link to the judge's form (Google) >>>

It's also in the External Link below (next to the share options) and under the profile bio.

We'll be selecting qualified judges on a first-come basis. We only need 4 for this contest, but if we need more, we'll contact more later and check if they're still onboard! We will announce the judges when the participant forms go up.

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This contest might just be a lot of fun! Let's do this!