The Hall Monitor: Ch-ch-changes
An inside look at the Black Library Readers' Hall of Fame
Lots of changes at the Black Library Readers’ Hall of Fame this past week, as we closed out the year 2006 with just a single inductee (Ben Counter’s Galaxy in Flames, book three of the Horus Heresy). That’s a sharp contrast to the first half of 2006, which brought a record six inductees at a stroke. Sometimes it just be like that.
The second change is a rotation of the Committee. We’d intended at the outset to occasionally rotate membership to keep things fresh and give folks a break if they need one. Our alumni are amazing, and we’re delighted to keep them in the Committee Discord to contribute to the discussions as they like.
Chris Farrugia and Liam Brough were both inaugural members, both admins at the Black Library Nutters Warhammer Community on Facebook. and both longtime readers and collectors. They’re taking a step back onto the reserve bench as we welcome two fellas that don’t need much introduction: Arbitor Ian and Jordan Sorcery.
Both are longtime content creators who specialize in YouTube videos about Warhammer lore, history, and the Black Library, and we’re excited to get their perspective on the Committee!
Finally, the last change is a structural one.
Through the Years
When we kicked off the Hall of Fame initiative last November, there were so few books at the time that we had to initially clump years together. The first ballot, for instance, was the baker’s dozen of books that were released between 1989 and 1998. As the Black Library began to grow, we soon had so many books released in a particular year that we had to split the year in half starting in 2003.
This was intended to prevent “poll fatigue,” since public polling is such an integral part of the Hall of Fame process. I was a bit concerned that asking folks to vote twenty-five polls at a go might be just a bit much to ask.
Of course, there was a tradeoff. We kept the polling more manageable, but it also made the articles somewhat clunky. Consider this, an actual article title: Black Library Readers’ Hall of Fame: The Winners of 2005 (Jan-May), and Books of 2005 (Jun-Dec).
Doesn’t quite roll of the tongue, does it.
Ultimately, the powers that be at Goonhammer decided they wanted to go to a one-year-per-article model. Yes, it might be a lot of polling to put on the readers, but it would make the articles a bit more streamlined conceptually- and cut the time it would take to finish the project in half.
Those are both valid points. Under the “six months per article” model, we were looking at finishing covering the books of 2024 on 21 August- of next year. Instead, we’ll now have this thing brought up to that same point before Christmas.
Put a bow on it.
The Top Twenty
Two new titles cracked the Top Twenty this time, with the placing ranked by percentage of positive votes in the public voting (that’s you, the reader!).
Our final 2006 inductee, Galaxy in Flames cracked the top ten, and I expect there to be a fair showing as we continue to work though the Horus Heresy. It won’t last forever- not all Heresy books are as good as others- but the early ones certainly will benefit from their placement as “essential reads.”
Clawing a place by its fingertips is Dan Abnett’s The Armour of Contempt. The degree to which a series book stands on its own versus how much it benefits from the association of a beloved series is a topic that comes up in Committee whenever there’s a story about Gaunt’s Ghosts, Commissar Cain, Gotrek & Felix, or other long-running characters.
Sadly, we must bid farewell to the book knocked off the chart this week, William King’s Space Wolf. Ragnar, we hardly knew ye.
Have any questions or thoughts about the Hall? Drop ‘em in the comments and I’ll be delighted to throw them into the mix!