I love Dobby time.

All year long, we staffers sit behind our little cubicles, chained to our desks on some days and validate away. We help get all those stories up into the archive so all our wonderful members can have something to read in the wee hours of the morning. Come Dobby time, though, all of that work comes together for the authors. All the sweat, tears, heartache and desperation get to be flaunted as you wait impatiently to see if you are going to earn a little Dobby ribbon that will be yours forever more.

It's more than just a contest. It's more than just a chance to help your favorite authors and stories get recognized. It's a time when all of us get to come together as a family and put each other on parade. We get to thank them for the hard work, thank them for the joy/sadness/laughter that their stories have brought us and lead other people to their works.

Okay, so I'm working on very little sleep and getting misty eyed. I'm a sap, I know. But still, this really is one of my favorite times at the site. And who knows, maybe in reading one of the stories to be nominated you'll find inspiration of your own and next year (fingers crossed) you'll be on the nomination list yourself!

Good luck to all of out authors - each of you, every single one of you, deserve a ribbon for just be willing to open your writing up to the critique of others. Well done and I wish you the absolute best as our award ceremony gets underway.