Hello everyone! Welcome to the first ever announcement of The Blogger Awards v2.0!

As most of you know, we are reviving this old tradition of the blogging community to award the best blogs of the month in different categories. This first edition covered the months of October and November, although the idea is to make it a monthly competition from now on.

So let's get started!

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Best Blog Title

In this category, @JustGettingThisOffMyChess (aka, JGTOMC) took a solid win for So you're Bad at Chess: A Demotional Guide to Accepting your Place in the World of Chess. This was one of the hardest-fought categories so perhaps it should be no surprise that we had a three-way tie for second. Finding themselves ahead of the rest of the field to share silver were @Renate-Irene, @JugadaBrillante, and @rmontanez.

Some comments from the judges:

Bid:

rmontanez was my pick, the words "Before they shut you down" got me. Renate-Irene also had a good title and JGTOMC's title was pretty funny. Wouldn't be surprised if any of these get first place.

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Best Blog Topic

@VOB96 for VOB Studios Presents: Chess Players Twins In Animated Films won a nail-biter, just displacing JGTOMC for this category. @Duckfest earned third ahead of several others.

Some comments from the judges:

Bid:

Vanessa's was really intriguing, it amazes me how she can compare chess players to anything! Duckfest's topic was my second pick and it was also good, although a substantial feature, not many blogs discuss the Game Review feature.

KevinSmithIdiot:

Extremely tough category. Lots of great ideas and approaches. That is reflected in how the judges’ votes were split across a tremendous number of competitors.

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Best Humorous/Satirical Blog

@JustGettingThisOffMyChess (aka, JGTOMC) galloped away from the contenders with So you're Bad at Chess: A Demotional Guide to Accepting your Place in the World of Chess. @rmontanez placed second, and @VOB96 showed for third. A good day at the races for this category that all too often has limited participation.

Some comments from the judges:

KevinSmithIdiot:

I placed @rmontanez second for excellent visual humor and some good, humorous writing.

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Best Original Game Analysis

@BugMeLater's Hans' Return to Chess lapped the field and easily took the checkered flag on this one. @rmontanez outpaced the remainder of the field to place second. @Afghan-Jalebi, and @Duckfest tussled, then tied third.

Some comments from the judges:

KevinSmithIdiot:

Kudos to the analysts. I spend 20-30 hours a week analyzing games and was quite impressed with the efforts folks put into this.

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Most Engaging Blog

This exciting category had a three-way fight for the gold. The ultimate winner? @JugadaBrillante for Can chess get you out of the haunted house? just snatching the prize from in front of @VOB96. JGTOMC slid into third, barely trailing the front of the pack.

Some comments from the judges:

KevinSmithIdiot:

@JugadaBrillante came in at the top for me because I actually sat and fiddled with it until I got out of the house. Usually, I just cheat and read as the puzzles are too easy or so obscure that I'd rather do an NYT crossword.

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Best Original Writing

@VOB96 for VOB Studios Presents: Chess Players Twins In Animated Films swept this one, sitting at the top of the podium for all the judges. JGTOMC was clear of the rest of the field to claim second. There were any number of good entries, but @BugMeLater and @DuckFest claimed a shared spot on the third tier of the podium.

Some comments from the judges:

KevinSmithIdiot:

@Renate-Irene merits kudos for the sheer originality of her psychological approach to Fischer.

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Best Blog Editing

This category had a unanimous verdict favoring @VOB96 for VOB Studios Presents: Chess Players Twins In Animated Films. @BugMeLater earned silver. And we had another shared bronze medal, this time shared by @JGTOMC and @DuckFest.

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Most Improved Blogger

This will not be awarded until we have a few rounds of competition under our collective belts.

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Best Thumbnail

Who else? Of course, we had a clear winner with @BugMeLater's Hans' Return to Chess crushing almost everyone like, well, bugs. @EthanJojy put in a good run for the money but finished on the second step of the podium. JGTOMC clambered onto another podium for a shared third with @ParthivPotter. Those thumbnails that appeared to have a significant AI influence were removed from consideration.

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Best Blog

Capturing the ultimate recognition was @VOB96 for VOB Studios Presents: Chess Players Twins In Animated Films. Kudos to @JustGettingThisOffMyChess (aka, JGTOMC) for a very strong second-place finish with So you're Bad at Chess: A Demotional Guide to Accepting your Place in the World of Chess. Rounding out the top three in this comprehensive category was @DuckFest for Game Review Common Confusion.

Some comments from the judges:

Bid:

@Duckfest was my pick, his blog was incredible and caught my eye in a lot of aspects

KevinSmithIdiot:

@VOB96 scored great across the board. As did @JGTOMC and @BugMeLater.

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This is it! Congratulations to all the award winners, all the podium finishers, and everyone who took part! Remember: there will always be a next month and you are welcome to submit your best blog and try again!

See you soon with the December winners!

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MONTH SUMMARY