The voting schedule is in 12 hour blocks to accommodate people in all timezones. For Round 1, please observe the following times:

• Round 1, Set 1 of 4: March 18, 2010, 00:00 am to March 18, 2010, 12:00 pm
• Round 1, Set 2 of 4: March 18, 2010, 12:00 pm to March 19, 2010, 00:00 am
• Round 1, Set 3 of 4: March 19, 2010, 00:00 am to March 19, 2010, 12:00 pm
• Round 1, Set 4 of 4: March 19, 2010, 12:00 pm to March 20, 2010, 00:00 am

So heads up: bracket pick time ends tonight at 8pm EST – OR when we hit 999 entries, whichever comes first! As of 12:30 pm EST we had over 780 entries, so, in the words of philosopher and sage Larry the Cable Guy, “Arrange the completion of your tasks post haste!”

If you want to check and see if your entry is showing up, here is the place to do it. (Use Ctrl/Command + F to search and find your name). Remember to only enter once for fairness to everyone. If you have entered more than one time and would be willing to delete an entry, please email me jane at dearauthor dot com.

Voting will begin tonight – YES TONIGHT – at midnight EST at the DABWAHA Blog, and there will be sets of multiple polls running for twelve hours so as to make all the time zones happy. We’re sluts for your time zones like that.

Any questions – let’s hear ‘em.

So I use a software program called Turbo Tourney to run this tournament but in order for it to work, I have to upload a new set of files each time I have new entries so that you can see your entry and the rankings are calculated, etc. For some reason, the site isn’t allowing me a rebuild right now and the ENTER YOUR PICKS link is missing.

I’ve got a customer support request in but in the meantime, the ENTER YOUR PICKS link is working and it’s here but it can’t be accessed via the mainsite. Keep entering your picks in the meantime.

And now… it’s time to pick your brackets! And read a truly informative and utterly important FAQ.

How do I enter my picks?

PLEASE PAY ATTENTION TO THE FOLLOWING WORDS.

To enter your picks, click ENTER YOUR PICKS in the top menu.

Then, at the top right, select “NEW” and enter your name LAST, FIRST. i.e. “Litte, Jane,” or “Sarah, Smart Bitch.”

Enter your email address in the box provided.

Make your picks by clicking on the title you think will win each competition.

Enter the tiebreaker, which is the TOTAL NUMBER OF ENTRIES in the Tournament. We are limited to 999. We know that it says points, but its TOTAL NUMBER OF ENTRIES you think we are going to get.

This is the important part: when you click “SUBMIT PICKS” in the bottom left, your entry will not appear right away.

Let me say that again: Your entry will not appear right away.

But whyyyyyy am I not seeing my entry right away?

Because each entry is stored off line and must be compiled and uploaded into the server in batches. This is done manually. By Jane. So she’ll collect the entries in groups through the selection period and upload them in groups.

What’s the deadline for making my selections?

8 PM, EST, Wednesday, March 17, 2010.

Ready to make your picks? Head on over to check out the 2010 DA BWAHA Tournament Bracket.

Later today we will announce the finalists and allow you to start filling out your brackets. For a look at the tentative finalists head on over to DABWAHA.

• YA
• Paranormal
• Novel with Strong Romantic Elements
• Historical
• Erotic Romance
• GLBT
• Category
• Contemporary

The books nominated must be published in 2008, regardless of epublication or print publication. Reprints, whether it is reprint of a print book or a print release of an ebook, are not eligible. Self published books are not eligible. Please tell us what books should make the slate of 64 by emailing us at dabwaha@gmail.com. We already have some ideas of what books will land a coveted spot, but we want to hear from you.

For Colleen Gleason, who won the tournament for her book The Rest Falls Away, a fancy shnazzy graphic proclaming you teh winnah:

For Laura D, whose pointacular bracket allowed her to gain the people’s ovation and fame forever, we have:

For Joyce D, whose equally pointactular bracket in the 2nd Chance Tourney has allowed her a sizeable portion of that ovation and fame referenced above, we have:

AND!!! I got my own Duchess Title:

I never thought I would ever EVER get a Duchess title because I totally suck at the Friday quizzes. I’m speechless.

DA Results:

SB Results:

The winner is Nora Robert’s High Noon which won by a total of 136 votes. At the SB site, Robert’s book won by 83 votes and here at DA, it won by 53 votes.

The Championship Round is now in progress. We’ll begin the post mortem on Tuesday. I know you guys are so excited you are about to pee your pants.

Click on the links to our sponsors to let them know that you actually are paying attention to the contest. It’s for a good cause (not really, but the words “good cause” usually gets people to do things that they wouldn’t ordinarily do).

Click early, click often, and click in both places, as we’ll be totaling up the votes and announcing the winners come Tuesday morning.

DA Results:

SB Results:

The winner is Colleen Gleason’s The Rest Falls Away which won by a total of 37 votes. At the SB site, Colleen’s book garnered 38 more votes than Elizabeth Hoyt’s The Serpent Prince. At DA, The Serpent Prince received one more vote than The Rest Falls Away. Don’t forget to vote in the second of the Final Four polls: Erotica/Erotic Romance v. Contemporary both here and at Smart Bitches.

Click on the links to our sponsors to let them know that you actually are paying attention to the contest. It’s for a good cause (not really, but the words “good cause” usually gets people to do things that they wouldn’t ordinarily do).

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

The Elite Eight books are:

• Young Adult: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
• Paranormal: The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason
• Novel with Romantic Elements: Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
• Historical: The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
• Erotica/Erotic Romance: Fairyville by Emma Holly
• GLBT: Master of Obsidian by Jamie Craig
• Category: Billionaire Next Door by Jessica Bird
• Contemporary: High Noon by Nora Roberts

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

The Elite Eight books are:

• Young Adult: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
• Paranormal: The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason
• Novel with Romantic Elements: Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
• Historical: The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
• Erotica/Erotic Romance: Fairyville by Emma Holly
• GLBT: Master of Obsidian by Jamie Craig
• Category: Billionaire Next Door by Jessica Bird
• Contemporary: High Noon by Nora Roberts

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Then on Friday 28 March: GLBT and Erotic Romance/Erotica.

There are some big match ups here at Smart Bitches and at here. So vote and reload a few thousand times. I’m right there with you.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

Special thanks to our sponsors:

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

[Poll=34]

[Poll=36]

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

[Poll=33]

[Poll=35]

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.

Poll is closed. Results are as follows. See the updated standings at the Official DA BWAHA site.

[Poll=30]

[Poll=32]

Thanks to our sponsors:

• Paperspine
• Harlequin
• Turn the Page Bookstore who is donating our prize to the second place bracket.