::Dr. Indy returns, after having made sure that Morgan K was all right::

Dr. Indy: He’s fine, folks. Just needed some coffee and reassurance. All righty, now comes the Best Author award. Like Best Story, this award recognizes part of the lifeblood of the Rangerphile community. Unlike Best Story, Best Author is directed to the talents and perseverance of the writer in bringing the story to us.

 

As a longtime writer, and not just in this community, I can attest to the challenges and the thrills of writing fanfiction. It’s when you have a vision and the need to speak on an emotional level that a writer crosses over that threshold and gives his or her story a life of its own. Tonight, we’ve come to celebrate one or more of those people who have done just that for us.

 

The nominees for Best Author are:

 

AQD Robert

Indy and Chris Silva

Kevin Sharbaugh

Morgan K

The Gnome

Winston

 

::Uncle Bedivere flies out and gives Indy the envelope. Dr. Indy rips it open, looks it over and whistles::

Dr. Indy: Folks, the voting on this one was mighty close. Any of the writers this year could’ve been picked, but your Best Author for 2004 is Kevin Sharbaugh!

 

::KS hops up to the stage and eagerly takes the podium, shaking Dr. Indy’s hand. With a broad smile, only barely visible behind the dark gold mustache, he indulges his pride and drinks in the applause... that is until he spots Philippe, the ego-centric mouse from his fiction who was the writer's less noble extremes made manifest, relentlessly hitting on a young lady in the audience. Bringing himself down to earth, he proceeds with his speech::

KS: This is an incredible honor, especially given the other authors who were also nominated, some of whom have actually had works published... if I recall correct. It's wonderful to have others congratulate you for something you enjoy doing... and would be doing anyway even if there weren't any awards being offered for it. I like sharing my stories with the others at the Cafe, and any others who come upon them for whatever reason and in the future hope to expand a little into the Tale Spin fandom with a Ranger cross-over... after all, I think Gadget and Wildcat would make a cute couple.

 

Dr. Indy: Neat idea, KS. Of course, it would take a while before he’d stop calling her “Maxine”.

::Taking up his Golden Acorn, KS leaves the podium. Meanwhile, Gadget ponders why, exactly, so many authors and artist seem intent on pairing her up with people, or for that matter, why so many insist on subjecting her to angst, unless there is some effort to document her behavioral attributes relative to varying indexes of happiness and sorrow. But if so, why not just ask her if she wishes to take part in such a study, though it would be logical to assume prior knowledge of such a study might taint the results...::