Procedure + FAQ
Okay! First off, I'd like to thank everyone who has offered their input and advice. This is a new process for me as well as for the fandom, and your comments are much appreciated.
If it feels like we're moving a bit quickly, fear not: there's still plenty of time to entice new members and offer your thoughts/suggestions. My goal, however, is to get this process officially underway before the summer is out and we begin to lose participants to the chaos of work and school - and to end before the winter holiday madness begins.
To that end, I've thought over procedures and deadlines all afternoon and have come up with the official challenge guideline, detailed below. Please feel free to address any additional questions or concerns you may have in the comments.
General Summary: All participating authors must complete a Kuroshitsuji fanfiction at least 20,000 words in length; authors who desire to write longer works are certainly encouraged to do so, though it's not required. The writing stage of the challenge will officially begin on August 2nd and will end on December 2nd. At the moment, we have no one willing to submit artwork; however, fanmixes are encouraged and welcome. Instructions for choosing story plots and singing up for fanmixes are detailed below.
Here's how the challenge process works:
o1. Anyone who would like to may post a prompt suggestion(s) to the Prompt Post for other authors to choose from. Authors do not need to choose a prompt from this list for their story; it is meant to serve as an aid for anyone who would like to use it. If you have an idea of your own, you are welcome to work with it. For this first challenge at least, there will be no general community theme or prompt: any pairing, topic, story arc, and idea is valid. Authors may use the manga and both seasons of the anime as a source of inspiration. AU's and crossovers are also permitted, so long as the main focus of the story remains on the Kuroshitsuji characters involved. Remember: you will be writing a 20,000+ word story from this initial idea, so choose your prompt accordingly!
o2. The Prompt Post will officially close on July 26th, the same date that official author sign-ups will begin. Authors will have until August 2nd to comment to the sign-up post with a brief summary of their intended story. This summary does not need to be detailed, and is of course subject to change; I ask that you post one simply to ensure that everyone has begun the creative thought-process by this stage. Anyone who wishes to sign-up after August 2nd should PM me.
o3. On August 23rd, all authors must submit a more detailed summary of their projected story. Short, general summaries are acceptable. The purpose of this is so that anyone who wishes to create a fanmix can select and claim the story they would like to mix for. NOTE: Members are allowed to participate as authors and mixers for this challenge. Mixers may claim up to two stories to mix; stories can be claimed by commenting to the author's summary in the Summary Post.
o4. I will post a finalized author list on September 6th listing all participants, story summaries, and attached fanmixers (if applicable.) Fanmixers may still volunteer their services after this date by commenting on the Author List post.
o5. On October 2nd, we will conduct a 'halfway check.' Any author who knows that they will not be able to complete their work by the deadline must respond to the Check Post informing me of their intention to drop out. Authors who drop out at this stage must also PM their fanmixers, if applicable.
o6. I will post a beta sign-up sheet to the community on November 2nd. All challenge submissions must have a beta reader. Authors are welcome to use their own beta readers, but anyone still in need of a beta at this point should comment to this entry and request one. Participants willing to volunteer their services as beta readers may respond directly to individual requests for assistance.
o7. If authors are working with a fanmixer, they must submit a rough draft of their story to their mixer no later than November 22nd.
o8. All challenge submissions are due on December 2nd. Participants are required to host their work on their own journal/blog/website or at an archive site such as AO3. Each author will then post a header with a link to their fic (and fanmix, if applicable) to this community on December 2nd. Note: You must be a member of devils_waltz to post, so please don't forget to join the community before then!
I have also created a sister community (devils_minuet) for all challenge participants - this is a resource for you to use or not use as you so desire. Membership is not required, but is certainly encouraged! Your fellow authors are your best support during this process; 'Minuet' is a place for you to post your fandom/historical questions, writing advice, resource links, etc. and is meant to be a source of general encouragement and hand-holding as you embark on this challenge. devils_waltz is still the official challenge community, however - don't forget to watch here for general challenge posts and deadline reminders.
I think that about covers it for now! Again, feel free to comment here with any questions/concerns you may have, now or at any point in the future.
If it feels like we're moving a bit quickly, fear not: there's still plenty of time to entice new members and offer your thoughts/suggestions. My goal, however, is to get this process officially underway before the summer is out and we begin to lose participants to the chaos of work and school - and to end before the winter holiday madness begins.
To that end, I've thought over procedures and deadlines all afternoon and have come up with the official challenge guideline, detailed below. Please feel free to address any additional questions or concerns you may have in the comments.
General Summary: All participating authors must complete a Kuroshitsuji fanfiction at least 20,000 words in length; authors who desire to write longer works are certainly encouraged to do so, though it's not required. The writing stage of the challenge will officially begin on August 2nd and will end on December 2nd. At the moment, we have no one willing to submit artwork; however, fanmixes are encouraged and welcome. Instructions for choosing story plots and singing up for fanmixes are detailed below.
Here's how the challenge process works:
o1. Anyone who would like to may post a prompt suggestion(s) to the Prompt Post for other authors to choose from. Authors do not need to choose a prompt from this list for their story; it is meant to serve as an aid for anyone who would like to use it. If you have an idea of your own, you are welcome to work with it. For this first challenge at least, there will be no general community theme or prompt: any pairing, topic, story arc, and idea is valid. Authors may use the manga and both seasons of the anime as a source of inspiration. AU's and crossovers are also permitted, so long as the main focus of the story remains on the Kuroshitsuji characters involved. Remember: you will be writing a 20,000+ word story from this initial idea, so choose your prompt accordingly!
o2. The Prompt Post will officially close on July 26th, the same date that official author sign-ups will begin. Authors will have until August 2nd to comment to the sign-up post with a brief summary of their intended story. This summary does not need to be detailed, and is of course subject to change; I ask that you post one simply to ensure that everyone has begun the creative thought-process by this stage. Anyone who wishes to sign-up after August 2nd should PM me.
o3. On August 23rd, all authors must submit a more detailed summary of their projected story. Short, general summaries are acceptable. The purpose of this is so that anyone who wishes to create a fanmix can select and claim the story they would like to mix for. NOTE: Members are allowed to participate as authors and mixers for this challenge. Mixers may claim up to two stories to mix; stories can be claimed by commenting to the author's summary in the Summary Post.
o4. I will post a finalized author list on September 6th listing all participants, story summaries, and attached fanmixers (if applicable.) Fanmixers may still volunteer their services after this date by commenting on the Author List post.
o5. On October 2nd, we will conduct a 'halfway check.' Any author who knows that they will not be able to complete their work by the deadline must respond to the Check Post informing me of their intention to drop out. Authors who drop out at this stage must also PM their fanmixers, if applicable.
o6. I will post a beta sign-up sheet to the community on November 2nd. All challenge submissions must have a beta reader. Authors are welcome to use their own beta readers, but anyone still in need of a beta at this point should comment to this entry and request one. Participants willing to volunteer their services as beta readers may respond directly to individual requests for assistance.
o7. If authors are working with a fanmixer, they must submit a rough draft of their story to their mixer no later than November 22nd.
o8. All challenge submissions are due on December 2nd. Participants are required to host their work on their own journal/blog/website or at an archive site such as AO3. Each author will then post a header with a link to their fic (and fanmix, if applicable) to this community on December 2nd. Note: You must be a member of devils_waltz to post, so please don't forget to join the community before then!
I have also created a sister community (devils_minuet) for all challenge participants - this is a resource for you to use or not use as you so desire. Membership is not required, but is certainly encouraged! Your fellow authors are your best support during this process; 'Minuet' is a place for you to post your fandom/historical questions, writing advice, resource links, etc. and is meant to be a source of general encouragement and hand-holding as you embark on this challenge. devils_waltz is still the official challenge community, however - don't forget to watch here for general challenge posts and deadline reminders.
I think that about covers it for now! Again, feel free to comment here with any questions/concerns you may have, now or at any point in the future.