If you read the first batch, the preamble is the same, so feel free to skip three paragraphs. My judging team for the fourth annual Self-Published Science Fiction Competition (SPSFC4) has been hard at work reading the 32 books initially assigned to us. By the end of March, we need to pick just two from that 32-book allocation to put forward as semifinalists. But before we cut all the way from 32 to 2, we’re starting with an intermediate stage in which we select a handful of quarterfinalists to be read and evaluated by the entire team.

As volunteer judges with plenty of other responsibilities, we will not all be reading all 32 books in full. Instead, we split them up among the team, assigning each book to a minimum of two judges, with a third judge being assigned in instances where the first two disagree. Those books that come back with strong or majority recommendations will advance to be read by the full team. Those that do not will be eliminated from the competition.

This is the most aggressive series of cuts we will make in the entire competition, as we’re seeking to eliminate 80-85% of our allocation at this first stage in order to give ourselves a manageable group of quarterfinalists. And an elimination at this stage does not mean that a book is bad. Everyone on my team has their own idiosyncratic perspective, with their own preferences and their own pet peeves. I will provide a brief explanation based on the reports given from the judges in question, but remember that one person’s “no room to breathe, not enough character depth” may be another’s gripping thriller, and one person’s “weird structure, feels too much like fantasy” may be another’s daring masterpiece. We’ve put a lot of thought into these decisions, but we will advance books that someone else will hate, and we will cut books that someone else will love. It’s inevitable.

So let’s take a moment to say goodbye to our second round of eliminations. As always, if the blurbs grab you and our critiques don’t bother you, we heartily encourage you to try them yourselves.

Umbra by Amber Toro

Status: CUT.

Consensus: Our readers both complained about a slow start, with one of the three perspective characters significantly better introduced than the others and the main plot not sharpening until well into the story. However, the story did earn praise for its action scenes and the writing of platonic friendships and rivalries.

Navvy Dreams by H.M.H. Murray

Status: CUT.

Consensus: This one earned praise for its character writing, but a wildly chaotic beginning that sent the narrative skipping across time, space, and memory left our readers yearning for some element to truly latch onto to motivate further engagement.

Turn Left at the Mooncrow Skeleton by Linda Raedisch

Status: CUT.

Consensus: This one earned full reads from both judges–far from a guarantee at this stage–with a tremendously well-realized setting and characters that felt truly real. But ultimately, both readers felt the plot was inconsistently paced in a way that robbed the biggest reveals of their emotional impact and kept the excellent setting from fully translating into an excellent story.

Wilderness Five by C.R. Walton

Status: CUT.

Consensus: Readers praised this for the setting and readability, but felt that some plot developments and character attitudes were inadequately foreshadowed, leading to a story that was often confusing and characters that felt inconsistent.

ASH by Grace Walker

Status: CUT.

Consensus: Our readers were wildly impressed with intriguing setup and engaging prose from a teenage author, but they were uncomfortable with the handling of a romance with a significant power imbalance and found that much of the story’s intrigue was postponed until a sequel that is not part of the competition entry.

Spark and Tether by Lilian Zenzi

Status: CUT.

Consensus: While one reader found the main plot truly compelling, both found the worldbuilding confusing in a way that made it difficult to fully engage in that main plot. And neither reader felt enough chemistry between the tale’s romantic leads.

CY-LNK by Kai Surr

Status: CUT.

Consensus: One of our readers found themselves enjoying the spoiled teen perspective character and anticipating the inevitable disaster she’d fall into. But ultimately, both readers wanted another editing pass to clean up some distracting errors and create a more naturally flowing prose.