::Kongo, the monkey with attitude, comes on stage wearing a tux and holding a sheathed katana blade. He assumes the podium::

Kongo: In animation, showing a scene is easy for a good artist. They can draw objects larger or smaller than the main characters to show their size. They can use tools such as depth and shadowing to reveal how far away the characters are from something, or to show the darkness of night. In fanfiction, it’s not so easy. A writer must wield the written word like a swordsman wields a fine blade.

::Kongo unsheathes the katana and whiffs in the air for effect::

Kongo: Instead of depth and shadowing, the writer must use verbs and adjectives to express the grandeur of the image to the mind of the reader. This year’s Golden Acorn Award for Best Imagery nominees are:

1)Basil’s Headquarters, by Indy, from The Times of Their Lives

2)Dance of the Dreams, by Jeff Wikstrom

3)Inside the Walls of the Lab, by Matt Plotecher, from Payback

4)Once Upon A Dream, by Loki

5)The Tillamook Escapade, by Dave White

::Kongo throws the envelope up in the air and swishes the blade by it. He reaches out deftly and grabs the letter, showing everyone he’s cut the top off of it. The crowd applauds, and he reaches in and takes out the note inside::

Kongo: And the winner is Loki, for Once Upon a Dream!

::The orchestra plays “Anchors Aweigh” and a seaman in full dress uniform comes out. He takes the award in his white-gloved hands and kisses it, then faces the audience::

Loki: It was with no small amount of apprehension that I decided to share this story. If it had not been for this community, I doubt I would ever have had the courage. “Once Upon A Dream” is both my first finished fanfic and the first one I have shared with an audience larger than two people. It’s also, even now, a work in progress. I don’t anticipate that I will be able to give it a permanent home on the World Wide Web until I return to the United States, sometime in January. In the meantime, I continue to make various small refinements to it.

::The audience claps politely, and he continues::

Loki: I suppose that the imagery in “Once Upon A Dream” owes itself to the manner in which it was inspired, by music. While listening to music, notably the work of Jeff Johnson and Danny Elfman, images came into my head, and eventually the scenes they suggested grew into a story. In telling the story, I endeavored to share those images from my head.

Alas, it is notoriously difficult, as many of you know, to share visual information with the written word. Sight gags, a hallmark of the series, are particularly hard to write. To my way of thinking, “Once Upon A Dream” would have been better suited to a more visual medium, and I can only apologize that my skills as an illustrator are not up to the task. I sometimes worry that my descriptions of the scenes get in the way of telling the story.

Judging from the gracious feedback I received, I must have been successful in communicating my vision of the story to the audience. I can only thank the creator and sustainer of us all for any talent I am given, and the many people in my life who nurtured it. Only the mistakes can truly be considered my own. Most of all, I thank everyone who read “Once Upon A Dream”, particularly those who commented upon my work. I am gratified that so many people enjoyed it, and I promise that you may expect to hear more from me.

::The audience applauds. Loki salutes and turns smartly, exiting the stage. Kongo sheathes his katana and follows::