Best of the Bay nominations are open Credit: Creative Loafing Tampa

Best of the Bay nominations are open Credit: Creative Loafing Tampa
It's that time again — time to nominate your favorite artsy-and-entertainmenty-things for Creative Loafing Tampa's Best of the Bay, our annual awards that you all love. This is your chance to nominate the artists, exhibits and art institutions you love. It's not voting time yet, so relax, you only need to nominate someone. If you've ever disagreed with our Critic's Picks for Best of the Bay, this is your chance to have your voice heard. So, you know, get to it. 

BEST OF THE BAY 2018 Nominate your favorite artists, museums, galleries, and, well, everything you love for an award we'll argue about in September

Your favorite, 30-year-old alt-weekly culled through suggestions for categories in our Reader's Picks portion, and nominations are now open. Readers can nominate local artists businesses and personalities to win awards in Goods & Services, Food & Drink and People, Places & Politics.

Most importantly (to the music section at least) is the Arts & Entertainment section where you can nominate folks for things like Best Art Party, Best Art Gallery, Best Actor, Best Public Artwork and so much more.

Here are a few bullet points to remember:

  • Nominate local! It's kinda the point. If you nominate Home Goods for "Best Local Home Decor", we will delete it. And grumble about you. Same goes for nominating KFC for "Best Fried Chicken" — in which case, we not only grumble about you, we judge you for some pretty questionable decisions. 
  • If you're nominating an artist, first and last name are required, and please include some identifying information. EXAMPLE: Herb Snitzer's exhibition at the Museum of Fine Art."  Incomplete nominations may be disqualified.
  • If your favorite is already nominated by someone else, there's no need to re-submit. We're not counting nominations as votes.
  • If you exit a section before you submit, your nominations may not be saved. Please complete your nominations and submit before leaving the page.
  • CL reserves the right to disqualify nominations for inaccuracy, lack of clarity, sarcasm, annoying nomination-stuffing, etc. "Best Book by a Local Author in the Past 12 months" does not mean it's your chance to nominate Tim Dorsey's Atomic Lobster again. C'mon, people — man writes a new book every year. 

This article appears in Jun 14-21, 2018.

Cathy's portfolio includes pieces for Visit Florida, USA Today and regional and local press. In 2016, UPF published Backroads of Paradise, her travel narrative about retracing the WPA-era Florida driving...