How about some truly northern assessment, never afraid of putting an opinion out there? (i) Total belter (ii) Awrite (iii) Shite (or mince)
Similar to what Hugh Cambridge suggested, I think simply replacing the phrase "above average" with "very good" would be sufficient and wouldn't really mess up Sho's system significantly. I think they do overlap, but the former sounds a bit like damnation with faint praise. And I think, for the most part, people do treat them like a five-star system, but often qualify their four-star rating as not intended to be a "diss." As for the OP's question, I had to go back and review what was released here: The Rings of Time That Which Divides Destiny omnibus Storming Heaven Forgotten History Plagues of Night Raise the Dawn The Assassination Game Fallen Gods The Eternal Tide Brinkmanship In Tempest's Wake The Persistance of Memory Silent Weapons The Body Electric Federation: The First 150 Years 12 IDW Star Trek Ongoing comics (1 per month) I haven't read all of these, but I've read many, and, while there are indeed a couple that fall flat, there are many more that are great and a few that are among my favorite works of TrekLit yet. So I've voted outstanding/five-stars/A/wicked pissah.
I do agree and I think it should have been better thought out. A novel can be better then above average yet not as good as outstanding. That's where the problem lies. Overall, 2012 was very good with some bumps along the way. But overall, better above average and not as good as above average. The following is what I propose we use. 6. Outstanding 5. Very Good 4. Above Average 3. Average 2. Below Average 1. Poor Because (IMHO)... Average = OK Above Average - Good Outstanding = Nearly Perfect There's nothing between Good and Nearly Perfect. It's a big gap.
^The point is, it's not the labels that are important. You're taking them too literally. Ultimately it's a 5-point rating system, regardless of what labels you use. Just think of it as "4 stars" or "B" or whatever you want. The important thing is the position, not the description.
I really want the next novel poll to use this one, just for the fun of all of us from the rest of the world trying to figure out what the hell they mean!! ("Riffy" sounds to my ear like it should be the best of the four, not the worst...)
You know, those all sound like good names for redshirts! "Captain! The aliens . . . they killed Bostin and Natty and Codge!"
Greg, please, be my guest ! They're all in common usage and couldn't possibly be subject to any copyright issues. For reference - Bostin' - short for 'bosting' meaning brilliant, fantastic etc. For example,' 'Ar, t'was a bostin' pint'...yes, that was an excellent beer. Natty - good, nice, stylish. Codge - messed up but functional, such as a slapdash repair that won't last. Bodge is another version, I.e. a real bodge job. Riffy - poor, worn out, dirty, unkempt or unpleasant. As an aside (and from memory), Ian Edgington who lives not far from me, included a couple of nods to The Black Country in his SCE story Caveat Emptor. Edit - just checked ; The character names Ainoc and Aylai are taken (and thinly disguised) from black country folklore/humour, where if ever 'one man said to another' it is Aynuk said to Ayli'. The names are actually Enoch and Eli pronounced in the Black Country dialect. Also there is another character named Brumm, which is a shortened form of Brummagem, the Black Country name/pronunciation of neighbouring city Birmingham. I know, too much information... Anyway, I look forward to seeing Bostin, Natty and Codge at some point in the future
I have read the following novels this year: Plagues the Night Raise the Dawn The Eternal Tide The Persistence of Memory and am working on Silent Weapons I thought all of them were excellent but TOS novels just don't really interest me and Titan managed to lose me somewhere along the way also so I went with Above Average.