Welcome to NLA-International’s Awards page. Part of Living In Leather was to recognize the people in our community making change. Our awards were designed to recognize Writers, Artists, and the People inspiring our culture. For over 30 years, the NLA had helped to recognize people, either activists or contributors to our community across North America as well as overseas.
We initially started with very basic person awards in 1987. We then expanded our awards in 2006 to encompass writers. In 2019, the NLA Board agreed to expand those awards once again to focus on artists as well. The idea was that by doing so, we would complete the recognition across our entire culture. Authors, Artists, and Activist!
Most of our old award winners were already authors, artists, and activists, we now have expanded these awards to dig deeper into the recognition of those people in our community. We invite you to take time and go through our awards.
I A Brief History of LIL Awards
In 1999 there was a tie, and so three won the award. In 2000 it was decided to bring back the Man and Woman awards without the “leather” titles. This was to recognise only one-lifetime winner along with both a man and a woman. In 2000 it was also decided we should focus on awarding our Chapters, so another award was created for them. In 2004 the “outstanding award” was given to an individual member that provided outstanding activity. It was the only year this award was presented by this name. In 2006 it was decided that the “outstanding award” be renamed as the President and Vice President awards to be given for outstanding service. In 2019, it was decided to increase the awards to include artists in the community.
I A Brief History of LIL Author Awards
by Steve S. (2007)
Inaugurated in 2007, the NLA's writing awards were the first awards in the SM/Leather/Fetish community specifically dedicated to writers and writing. Originally limited to non-fiction works that appeared in print, the Awards Committee added novel and short story categories in 2008, an anthology category in 2009, and in 2010 opened nominations to digitally published works. Over the past decade, the awards have honored many of the SM/Leather/Fetish community's best-known authors, including Laura Antoniou, Gloria Brame, Rachel Kramer Bussel, Jack Fritscher, Lee Harrington, Jeff Mann, Jack Rinella, David Stein, Cecilia Tan, Tristan Taormino, Claire Thompson, Alyson Tyler, and many, many others.
Steve Vakesh, who wrote regularly for The Sandmutopian Guardian in the 1990s and later served as the NLA’s historian, first proposed the awards and lobbied NLA leaders to create them for several years. Despite creating more title contests than anyone can keep track of, the SM/Leather/Fetish organisations had done little to acknowledge the central importance of writers and publishers to the SM community's formation and its numerical, intellectual and spiritual growth over the past 50 years. NLA-I President Vince Andrews approved the creation of the NLA’s writing awards in early 2007, and Vakesh, advised by Laura Antoniou and Cecilia Tan, formulated the awards' policies and impanelled its first judges. Vakesh chaired the awards committee for the next five years, after which he was succeeded by pyxy, a long-serving committee member, who was in turn succeeded by CandiAnne, who currently chairs the Awards Committee.
The award in each category is named after an important author or SM activist: Cynthia Slater (non-fiction article), who founded the Society of Janus, the second oldest public SM group in the United States, and launched its Growing Pains newsletter; Geoff Mains (non-fiction book), an active member of San Francisco's leather community, early supporter of the NLA, and author of the groundbreaking book Urban Aboriginals (1984); Pauline Reage (novel), the pseudonymous author of The Story of O (1954); John Preston (short fiction), the author of Mr. Benson (1979) and numerous other short stories and novels; and Samois (anthology), the first women's SM organisation, which formed in 1978 and published two important anthologies: What Color is Your Handkerchief (1979) and Coming to Power (1982).
Impanelled each year, award judges were rotated regularly and generally include both published writers (often past recipients of the awards) and general readers. Judges read in different categories to avoid conflicts of interest and review more than 100 submissions each year. Presenting the awards each year was an important part of the NLA's annual meeting and the awards have helped call attention to the community's best writers, promote their work, and helped them reach new readers.
Geoff Mains - Non-Fiction
Samois - Poetry
John Preston - Short Fiction
Cynthia Slater - Non-Fiction Article
Pauline Reage - Novel
I A Brief History of LIL Activist Awards
In 2010, the President stepped outside tradition and awarded his President’s award to the Misfits of Houston, a non-NLA affiliated organisation. The Vice President also stepped outside tradition awarding a non-NLA member the Vice President’s award. This was the first time outside the lifetime achievement award a non-member or non-affiliated organisation won an award from NLA.
The 2011 awards sparked much debate between NLA and the Trans and non gender confirming community over the gender identifying the use of terms in the “Man and Woman” awards. The gender terms were removed and replaced. It was decided to rename the Man of the year after our Founder Steve Maidhof and the Female of the year after Jan Lyon, two significant members of our Association. They would no longer be focused on gender and would instead be focused on activity. Steve Maidhof award would go to those that perform work on both the national or international level. The Jan Lyon award would go to those that perform work on the local or State/Providence level.
In 2018, NLA began the process of rethinking their structure, along with the awards.
Lifetime Achievement Award - The award is self-explanatory and is provided to those people that have been recognized for their achievements over their lifetime in the community. The award was initially given to one man and one woman each year from 1986-1999. One year we had three individuals presented with the recognition. Officially named “lifetime achievement” to distinguish it from the other new awards created in 2000 but was required to only be given to members of NLA. In 2006, Awarded to ANYONE, regardless of membership, the only requirement is that they be living.
Steve Maidhof Award - This award initially created in 2000 was originally known as the “Man of the Year” award. It was eventually determined after 2011 that the awards would no longer be gender focused. To maintain the spirit of what was once meant to celebrate a male gender accomplishment, the award was renamed for our founder Steve Maidhof. Steve was our first male Co-Chair of NLA and made huge impacts on the NLA and its membership. The award would as of 2012 be focused on those that have made an impact on either a national or international level.
Jan Lyon Award - This award initially created in 2000 was originally known as the “Woman of the Year” award. It was eventually determined after 2011 that the awards would no longer be gender focused. To maintain the spirit of what was once meant to celebrate a female gender accomplishment, the award was renamed for Jan Lyon. Jan was a former Co-Chair of NLA and made huge impacts on the NLA and its membership. The award would as of 2012 be focused on those that have made an impact on either a local, state or regional level.
President’s Award - The President’s award has always been given to individuals or organizations that have inspired and impacted the community that the President of NLA International felt needed the members focus and attention. This has always been decided by each President on their own and is not required to be made each year. In some cases, Presidents have created other odd named recognition awards during their tenure but are not officially tracked. No President has EVER given a title (IE. Master, Grand, Duchess) to any person, only plaques, pins, boot spurs or “outstanding achievement” plaques.
Vice President’s Award -The Vice President’s award has always been given to individuals or organizations that have inspired and impacted the community that the Vice President of NLA International felt needed the members focus and attention. This has always been decided by each Vice President on their own and is not required to be made each year. In some cases, Vice Presidents have created other odd named recognition awards during their tenure but are not officially tracked. No Vice President has EVER given a title (IE. Master, Grand, Duchess) to any person, only plaques, pins, or boot spurs.
Chapter/Club of the Year - Each year since 2000 a chapter is nominated by the board and voted upon for being the most impacting and achieved Chapter for the year. This award has only been given if a Chapter was nominated or eligible at the time of nominations. Look for this award to change in 2020 to include our LIL Clubs as part of the competition.
I A Brief History of LIL Artist Awards
The Erotic Art Awards were established by NLA in 2019 and first presented in 2020. They were proposed by Vince Andrews, former President and artist with the intent to complete the recognition of our culture entirely. The committee that helped to select, and research the award names was the initial LIL Committee made up of Vince as chair, Jubi, girl Alayna, and Lady Jeanna. While other erotic art awards have existed, the NLA hoped that through the Living in Leather they could bring more awareness to those artists that have a BDSM/Leather/Fetish focus within their work. Sex and sexuality have often been expressed in art just as it has in literature as well as activism. We strongly felt that artists contribute a voice to this culture and we hoped to continue to recognize them we moved forward.
Each year at the Living In Leather gathering the awards were given in the following categories;
Chéri Hérouard - Realism
Clovis Trouille - Surrealism
Gene Bilbrew - Animation
Aubrey Beardsley - Abstract
Michael Kirwan - Expressionism
I In closing...
The Awards served a long standing purpose in the Leather community for the nearly 40 years that the National Leather Association existed, and in that time it recognized many individuals for their hard work, talents, and achievements.