NLA Writing Awards seeking nominations

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
(Columbus, OH) — NLA-International, a leading organization for activists in the pansexual leather community, is now accepting nominations for its annual writing awards for excellence in SM/leather/fetish writing for books, articles, novels, and short fiction first published between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2010. The deadline for nominations is 31 January 2011. Winners will be announced on April 17 at the National Leather Association’s Annual General Meeting, which will be held during Spring Iniquity XX (April 15-17, 2011) in Houston, TX and mark the National Leather Association’s 25th anniversary. The five award categories are:
Non-Fiction Book (Geoff Mains Award)
Non-Fiction Article (Cynthia Slater Award)
Novel (Pauline Reage Award)
Short Fiction (John Preston Award)
Anthology (Samois Award)
Details:
Nominations for the Cynthia Slater Award (non-fiction article) may have appeared in print or online publications (which should indicate a specific date of publication). Eligibility for all other awards (short fiction, novel, non-fiction book, and anthology) requires print publication. If you or someone you know has published a book, article, or story dealing with any aspect of SM, leather, fetish, or kink sexuality please consider nominating it for one of the above awards. Authors and publishers are encouraged to nominate themselves by submitting copies of their work. Nominated works should foster education and promote awareness and a positive image of the leather/SM/fetish community. They should entertain and educate, while building awareness and tolerance of the community and showcasing the talents of its members. There are no submission fees, but the judges will require either three print copies of the nominated work or a digital copy (PDF). Nominations may be sent to the committee chair, Steve Vakesh, at: stevevakesh@gmail.com.
NLA-I has convened an award jury of nine readers, whose number include noted erotic writers and leading community activists. The judges are rotated regularly and their names withheld until after judging is complete to prevent lobbying by nominees. Last year they reviewed more than 100 submissions.
Now in their fourth year, the NLA-I’s writing awards have received widespread appreciation and support. A “leather first,” they have become the preeminent awards for SM, leather, and fetish writing. Past winners include Gloria Brame, Jack Fritscher, Lee “Bridgett” Harrington, Anneke Jacob, Jeff Mann, Jack Rinella, david stein, Cecilia Tan, Claire Thompson, and Alyson Tyler. NLA-I President Vince Andrews hopes that these awards will “continue to recognize, celebrate, and inspire the best in SM, leather, and fetish writing as the NLA celebrates its 25th anniversary.”