Class on writing people in for awards

OK, lanome  asked about the awards class at 12th Night.

It's based on an article that I have posted before and expanded a bit.

I planned the class before Justin, Caitlin  and a couple of other folks put together an excellent explanation on The EK Wiki.

The handout for my class will be below the cut, assuming I can make the cut work on this interface. If not, I will fix it when I get home. OK, the cut won't work. I apologize.

Gentle suggestions are appreciated.

How      How to Write Award Recommendations

Presented by Master Liam St. Liam, OP
East Kingdom 12^th Night, Jan. 16, 2010 in the Shire of Panther Vale

 Introduction

So, there’s someone you know in the SCA, and you think they’re really spiffy. Maybe they have been playing for a couple of years, and they don’t have an Award of Arms. Perhaps you’ve seen someone run events, hold and office and constantly do things at events for four or five years, yet they don’t have a Silver Crescent. Maybe there’s someone in your group who has been at it for a long time, is always there, is a great fighter or great artisan and you wonder why they are not a peer yet.

Types of Awards

There are several types of awards in the East. The polling awards are those for the the three peerages -- Chivalry, Laurel and Pelican -- and for the five High Orders of Merit -- Order of the Tygers' Combatant, Maunche, Silver Crescent, Sagittarius and Order of the Golden Rapier. For these awards, the royalty takes the recommendations, sends them out for commentary from all members of those orders, then takes recommendations from the order members and makes a decision. The discussions are confidential among the order members and the Royals. It is not a vote. The king and queen make the final decision, as they do with all other awards.

 The non-polling orders, such as the Award of Arms, the Order of the Tyger’s Cub, the

Remember: You do *not* have to be a member of an order or have a specific award to recommend someone for that award.

 

Where to write

Use the recommendation form on the EK website if at all possible -- http://government.eastkingdom.org/. If you would rather send it directly, use TRM@eastkingdom.org.  That will go to both the king and queen.

 If you are in a situation, as we are now, where the current king and queen are finished with their polls, you will want to write to the prince and princess at TRH@eastkingdom.org. You can write to them any time after Crown tournament but it’s usually best to wait for a couple of months. Royals will often list deadlines for these recommendations.

 Remember: It takes some time to set up for awards, especially peerages. In addition, the royals sometimes only visit specific parts of the kingdom once

For all other awards, feel free to write at any time . . . but, the sooner they get them, the better the chance of the award happening. If you are thinking about Awards of Arms, Gawains, Silver Rapiers or anything else, this would be an excellent time to send them. At this point in the reign, send them to the prince and princess.

A couple of important notes

For all awards, please give as much background as possible. Give the local group and list any events you think the person might be at. If you have contact information for their partner/spouse, or their peer, you might want to include that as an addendum to the recommendation.

Photo link
As the polling orders and the kingdom both grow, it is becoming more and more common to link to a picture of the person you are recommending. It’s best to link to one on someone else’s site, because they might notice the increased traffic. Folks are also doing the same thing for A&S nominations, linking to pictures of the person’s work. Again, same caveat.

Writing the actual recommendation
First of all, quietly ask around, not so much for the AoA, but more for the other awards. Ask people in the order. If the person is proteged, squired or apprenticed, you would want to ask their peer.

Check the East Kingdom Order of Precedence (http://op.eastkingdom.org/)  to make sure they don’t have the award. Really.  Then, read the explanation of all the awards, compiled by Mistress Jessa, at http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/jessa/east.html .

Get lots of information on the person. Yes, you need to do it quietly, but spouses and friends will often help. Get everything you can to build your case that the person deserves the award. When you write the award, be specific, be thorough and do not be flowery. Make your point as succinctly as possibly. Be sure to identify where the person is from and anywhere else they have been. Identify yourself to the Crown has best you can. Include their local group and what events they might be attending in the future.

Also, be accurate! It tends to cast a negative shadow on a candidate if/when the person recommending them includes information intended to be factual and it isn't, because the misinformation will almost certainly be discovered, and it doesn’t help during the discussion.

 Something else to keep in mind is to avoid bringing up negative information on people. Sometimes, folks have been discussed on the polling lists in the past and those concerns are brought up in the recommendation. This is not worth the time or effort. Just focus on the positive.

 One of the other topics that comes up in order discussions is fairly simple. If you write the recommendation for your spouse, that’s going to make it harder for your spouse to get the award. If you really think your spouse is ready for an award, ask a couple of order members, then see if you can get one of them to make the recommendation. You can certainly provide the information, but letting them write it may make the difference.

When you are writing a recommendation, do not use flowery language. Be straight-up and clear, Make your point and thank the Royals. If you are in the order, you should mention that, but – let’s all say it together – “You do not have to have a specific award to write someone in for one.”

 There is an excellent article on this topic in the East Kingdom Wiki:

http://www.eastkingdom.org/mediawiki/index.php/Recommending_Someone_for_an_Award

 

Monday evening: Busy being a Knight of the Keyboard . . .

1. This is one of those days I am glad I am no longer a Patriots' fan, even though Dad has season tickets back in the early 1970s.

2. One of the advertisements that pops up on my facebook is: "A Pell Grant is a loan you don't have to repay."

It's not a loan then, is it?

3. Yo Atlantians! Anyone going to Interbaronial Twelfth Night,  in Tir Y Don. driftingfocus, a veteran re-enactor and amazing photographer, is going to her first SCA event. She will be with someone in the SCA, but it would still be cool if you said hello. She'll be in Mongol.

4. I figure there may such be someone here who either can do this job or knows someone who could.

JoS. A. Bank is seeking a Skilled Tailor for Men's Specialty Clothing Store in Saratoga Springs, NY. Please call the Store Manager at: 518-226-0268 EOE

5. Here’s a fascinating first sentence for a job description:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily.

Makes sense to me. A little simplistic, but makes sense.

6. Remember how earlier I decided not to apply for the Zamboni driver job?

Here’s another one I won’t be applying for, even though the hospital is within walking distance of the house:

Position: Morgue Attendant (Varied-PD)
Shift: Varied
Bi-Weekly Hours: Per Diem

-One year of specialized training in mortuary science preferred.

-Ability to read & understand the SOPS & departmental safety manuals; To understand communications with the attending pathologist in both a written & oral form; To recognize problems regarding the areas of responsibility & solicit feedback from the supervisor or attending pathologist; To withstand the sight of blood & tolerate various smells; To perform under difficult circumstances such as dealing with a disfigured &/or decomposed body; To operate an electrical bone saw & weighing scale; To understand & document weight & volume using the metric system.

-Perform a variety of technical & clerical functions associated with post mortem examinations & other dissections as directed by the attending pathologist.

7. Quote of the day from "Blood of Heroes"

“I’ve broken Juggers in half, Smashed their bones And left the ground behind me wet with brains.
I’ll do anything to win, But I’ve never hurt a soul for any reason But to put a dog skull on the stake.
And I never will.”
- Gonzo the Slash, Red City League

OK, I have some fair use and copyright questions

As you might expect, it's in regards to my SCA Songs classes.

Which lyrics can I reproduce in handouts?

I know I would need to put copyright information and the names of the folks who wrote the music (if ( can reproduce at all).

Do I need express permission?

If it's something like the Calontiri song book, which includes permission, can I use individual songs, or the whole book.

I know some of you folks know a lot more about this than I do.