2019-2020 Rules & FAQ
Welcome to the Het Big Bang!!
The HetBB is an opportunity for authors and fanworkers to create stories and fanworks, from any fandom, for any het pairing!
General Information
What is a Big Bang?
A Big Bang is a writing challenge that prompts authors and fanworkers to work together, to create a story and fanwork that go together! The HetBB focuses on any heterosexual (male/female) pairing, from any fandom and original works are also welcome!
We have two word goal options: 20,000 for the Big Bang and 10,000 words for the Little Bang! Big Bang stories are qualified to receive a fanwork through the claiming process on HetBB.
Stories and fanworks must be posted, in their entirety, during the due date period. (Check the Schedule for when this is!) There will be no exceptions made to post before the reveal date. If, for example, your story is 100k with 19 chapters, all 19 chapters and 100k words must be posted during the due date period and ready to be revealed by May 1st.
What is Allowed for the Het Big Bang:
Any het pairing, any fandom! Any genre, any rating!
Crossovers, fusions, and alternate universes are all allowed, so long as the focus is on a het pairing! Want to write a story with Harry Potter in a relationship with Wonder Woman? Excellent, please do! Want to write Harry Potter and Hermione in a relationship and joining the Justice League in a Harry Potter/DC Comics crossover? Great! Want to write Batman and Catwoman in a relationship, in a Harry Potter AU fusion? Feel free to write that story!!!
More than one pairing, het or otherwise, in a fic is also allowed. Slash and femslash pairings can be included, so long as they are secondary and not the focus of the story, such as a story about Tony Stark/Pepper Potts, who happen to hang out with their good friend couple, Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne occasionally. Characters in the het pairing do not have to be strictly heterosexual, either! Mentions of past relationships with the same sex are fine, such as a story about Buffy Summers/Spike, and Buffy mentions a past relationship with Willow, or Buffy having an interest in women is fine, so long as the focus of the story is not Buffy's desire to get with another woman.
Threesomes or moresomes should not be the focus of your story. Gen fic with a hint of ship also doesn't qualify for the Het Big Bang and while we aren't going psychoanalyze how "shippy" your fic is, we ask that you use your best judgement. Remember, we're here to celebrate het pairings!
Original Works, genderbent characters to make a het pairing (such as Tony Stark genderbent to a woman and paired with Bruce Wayne, or Thor genderbent to a woman AND Jane Foster genderbent to a man), and RPF (real person fiction) are all allowed!
Mod Contact Info:
If you have any questions or concerns, here is the Page-A-Mod Post. You can also contact the mods at thehetbigbang@gmail.com or by messaging LuciferxDamien or JesterLady on the HetBigBang Discord Server.
General Guidelines
--Be kind to each other! We all like different things and rudeness for disliking a pairing, characters, any canon, genre, or kink, etc. will not be tolerated! We want everyone to feel welcome and supported here!!!
--Please provide us with an email address that you frequently check. The mods need a good email address in the case that contact is needed, such as during story/fanwork claims, or for clarification purposes. All important announcements are sent out via email, as well. In the event that you change your email during the duration of the Het Big Bang, it is your responsibility to update the mods! Your email address will ONLY ever be used for official Het Big Bang business.
--Please keep in contact with the mods and your author/fanworker partner, if you're working with one! If something comes up and you need to drop out at any stage, that's okay! Just let the mods know! Needing to dropout before the final default date is not a bannable offense, and even if the default date has passed, please let us know, so we can work something out. You can contact the mods at any time via email at thehetbigbang@gmail.com.
Author Info/Story Requirements and Guidelines
--Authors can work with a co-author or a group, just make sure to sign-up all authors on the sign-up sheet and have everyone join the comm if they wish.
--WIPs are allowed, so long as it has never been posted anywhere. If you have never posted the story anywhere, it qualifies for this Bang, even if you started writing it 10 years ago!
--Authors can sign up to do two stories. Both times for the Big Bang, or both times for the Little Bang, or one Little Bang and one Big Bang! To sign up twice, fill out the sign up form twice!
The Big Bang
--The minimum word count for the Big Bang is 20k. There is no maximum word limit, but please be aware of time constraints and obligations, if you’ve chosen to be paired up with a fanworker. IE don’t try to write a 100k story and choose to be paired with a fanworker if you’re not certain you can finish it on time!
--Stories at least 20k in length can choose to be paired with a fanworker during the claiming process on the comm, and have an accompanying fanwork created for that story! Stories that are over 20k in length can opt out of receiving a fanwork, if the author does not want the pressure of working with a fanworker!
--Authors that choose to be paired with a fanworker have an obligation to finish that story, or face consequences for dropping out!
Little Bang
--The minimum word count for the Little Bang is 10k. There is no maximum word limit, but a story that is over 20k is guaranteed an accompanying fanwork, while stories less than 10k can still go through the claiming process, an accompanying fanwork is not guaranteed.
--Stories less than 20k in length are not guaranteed to be paired with a fanworker during the claiming process. Stories less than 20k in finished length can still post a summary during the Little Bang story claims and try to get matched with a fanworker.
--Little Bang summaries will be posted after Big Bang stories have all been claimed.
--Authors that choose to be paired with a fanworker have an obligation to finish that story, or face consequences for dropping out!
What requirements are there for stories?
--All stories must focus on or revolve around a het pairing of your choosing!
--All stories must be complete by the due date period. Please check the schedule for when this will be.
--All stories must be beta read. This is not an option! We suggest finding a beta sooner rather than later, and the HetBang comm and Discord will be great places to start seeking a beta. If you want to have more than one person beta read your story, that's fine, too!
--All stories must be posted to Ao3! Once the collection reveals, stories can be posted anywhere else the author chooses.
--Stories must not be posted before the due date! Posting guidelines will go live in April, before the due date period.
Fanworker and Fanwork Requirements
--The minimum amount of accompanying fanworks per eligible story is 1 piece. If you are a fanworker and choose to claim 3 stories, that means you will need to create 1 fanwork for each story, 3 total. Please do not take on more stories than you can handle!
--Fanworkers can claim as many stories as they are reasonably certain they can handle. Please do not take on 5 stories to create a fanwork for unless you are reasonably certain you can finish all 5 fanworks!
--Fanworkers that sign-up are not required to claim a story. Claims are a few months off from author sign-ups, and we understand that life can happen and you may not be able to claim a story as planned, this is totally fine! Just let us know that you’re dropping out and you’re good to go!
--All fanworks must be complete by the due date period. Please check the schedule for when this will be.
--Fanworks must not be posted before the due date! Posting guidelines will go live in April, before the due date period.
What are the minimum requirements for fanworks?
Each story a fanworker claims is required to have at least one accompanying fanwork of quality for each story they claim. If a fanworker decides to claim 3 stories, they will be required to create one accompanying fanwork for each story, so at minimum, 3 fanworks. You’re creating something for a work that is at least 10k in length, so we want the fanwork to match that effort! Here are the suggested guidelines:
Traditional/Digital art: Cleaned lineart, on unlined paper, that is at least 500x500 pixels is the minimum. Additional sketchier/rougher pieces are welcomed so long as one piece of art is at the cleaned lineart stage!
Manips: Clean renders and non-blurry images that do not contain watermarks should be used for photo manipulation. Examples of the quality expected for this Bang can be found right here on Fanlore.
Banners or Icons or Wallpaper: 5 icons, of at least 100x100 pixels. 3 banners. 1 wallpaper. More is of course always welcomed!
Picspam or Gifsets: At least 6 images, but more images, or multiple sets are welcome!
Vids: At least two minutes long, or a full song!
Fanmixes: At least 10 songs and include cover art (this can be a manip!).
Het Bang FAQs
Do I need a DreamWidth/LiveJournal/Tumblr/Ao3 account?
The only account that is required at this point is Archive of Our Own. The reason for this is that all stories will be posted to the Het Big Bang Ao3 Collection, rather than being posted to the DreamWidth/LiveJournal communities. After the Ao3 collection reveals, you’re free to post your story/fanwork anywhere you wish!
I have my own fanworker I work with, or I found a fanworker to work with, do I still have to go through claims?
First off, that’s great you’ve found a partner to work with! All you need to do is let us mods know that you’re already paired up and have your fanworker sign-up, if they haven’t already! You do not need to go through claims, story claiming is for authors that are still seeking a fanworker to work with.
Can I join this comm?
Absolutely! Feel free to join and watch the comm even if you aren't signing up!
What support communities are there for Het Big Bang?
We’ve got a few places to hang out!
het_banghelp is a community set up for members only. Every year, previous members are removed so that only this year’s participants have access. Once you sign-up, you can request to join again! Authors, fanworkers, betas, and cheerleaders are welcome and encouraged to join! This comm is for all your hand-holding, snippet sharing, and flailing. Special writing and enabling events will be hosted on that comm, such as Snippet Days and Block Writing Events.
HetBang Discord Server is another choice if you like chat-style platforms. There are channels for sprinting and word wars, sharing snippets, asking for writing help, beta reader/cheerleader seeking, and offtopic channels for chatting! The Discord server is open to anyone that wants to chat and be supportive, whether you have signed up or not for the Het Big Bang.
What are check-ins?
Check-ins are a way to see how you’re doing on your work! Some of them are mandatory and some of them are not, so it’s important to keep track of which ones are mandatory! They’re also a great way to keep yourself on track and a time to talk about your work and let others know how you’re doing.
What is the amnesty period?
The amnesty period is a chance for participants that couldn't quite finish on time to have one last chance to post for the current Bang! If for any reason you cannot post on your chosen reveal date, please get in contact with the mods ASAP!
I signed up last year, and then dropped out. Can I still sign up again?
Yes!!
Can I drop out?
Yes! Sometimes life gets in the way or a story just doesn’t happen, and we understand that! However, there is a cutoff point, and if you do not let the mods know before this date, you can be banned from the next round. Even if it is after this cutoff date that you need to drop out please let us know so that we can discuss options. We can’t help if we don’t know there is a problem!
Can I sign up as an author AND a fanworker?
Absolutely!
Can I create fanworks for my own story?
Of course! Just let send an email to thehetbigbang@gmail.com to let us know you're making your own fanwork!
What can I do if I have problems with my author/fanworker?
Contact the mods! Let us handle things as we understand that sometimes people just don’t get along. Abuse or rude behaviour toward any participant in the Bang will not be tolerated, especially for story/fanwork content. (It’s important for fanworkers to read all the warnings in a story summary, and for authors to list all warnings in their story summary!) Please just get in contact with us mods to resolve issues between participants, rather than disappearing.
The HetBB is an opportunity for authors and fanworkers to create stories and fanworks, from any fandom, for any het pairing!
General Information
What is a Big Bang?
A Big Bang is a writing challenge that prompts authors and fanworkers to work together, to create a story and fanwork that go together! The HetBB focuses on any heterosexual (male/female) pairing, from any fandom and original works are also welcome!
We have two word goal options: 20,000 for the Big Bang and 10,000 words for the Little Bang! Big Bang stories are qualified to receive a fanwork through the claiming process on HetBB.
Stories and fanworks must be posted, in their entirety, during the due date period. (Check the Schedule for when this is!) There will be no exceptions made to post before the reveal date. If, for example, your story is 100k with 19 chapters, all 19 chapters and 100k words must be posted during the due date period and ready to be revealed by May 1st.
What is Allowed for the Het Big Bang:
Any het pairing, any fandom! Any genre, any rating!
Crossovers, fusions, and alternate universes are all allowed, so long as the focus is on a het pairing! Want to write a story with Harry Potter in a relationship with Wonder Woman? Excellent, please do! Want to write Harry Potter and Hermione in a relationship and joining the Justice League in a Harry Potter/DC Comics crossover? Great! Want to write Batman and Catwoman in a relationship, in a Harry Potter AU fusion? Feel free to write that story!!!
More than one pairing, het or otherwise, in a fic is also allowed. Slash and femslash pairings can be included, so long as they are secondary and not the focus of the story, such as a story about Tony Stark/Pepper Potts, who happen to hang out with their good friend couple, Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne occasionally. Characters in the het pairing do not have to be strictly heterosexual, either! Mentions of past relationships with the same sex are fine, such as a story about Buffy Summers/Spike, and Buffy mentions a past relationship with Willow, or Buffy having an interest in women is fine, so long as the focus of the story is not Buffy's desire to get with another woman.
Threesomes or moresomes should not be the focus of your story. Gen fic with a hint of ship also doesn't qualify for the Het Big Bang and while we aren't going psychoanalyze how "shippy" your fic is, we ask that you use your best judgement. Remember, we're here to celebrate het pairings!
Original Works, genderbent characters to make a het pairing (such as Tony Stark genderbent to a woman and paired with Bruce Wayne, or Thor genderbent to a woman AND Jane Foster genderbent to a man), and RPF (real person fiction) are all allowed!
Mod Contact Info:
If you have any questions or concerns, here is the Page-A-Mod Post. You can also contact the mods at thehetbigbang@gmail.com or by messaging LuciferxDamien or JesterLady on the HetBigBang Discord Server.
General Guidelines
--Be kind to each other! We all like different things and rudeness for disliking a pairing, characters, any canon, genre, or kink, etc. will not be tolerated! We want everyone to feel welcome and supported here!!!
--Please provide us with an email address that you frequently check. The mods need a good email address in the case that contact is needed, such as during story/fanwork claims, or for clarification purposes. All important announcements are sent out via email, as well. In the event that you change your email during the duration of the Het Big Bang, it is your responsibility to update the mods! Your email address will ONLY ever be used for official Het Big Bang business.
--Please keep in contact with the mods and your author/fanworker partner, if you're working with one! If something comes up and you need to drop out at any stage, that's okay! Just let the mods know! Needing to dropout before the final default date is not a bannable offense, and even if the default date has passed, please let us know, so we can work something out. You can contact the mods at any time via email at thehetbigbang@gmail.com.
Author Info/Story Requirements and Guidelines
--Authors can work with a co-author or a group, just make sure to sign-up all authors on the sign-up sheet and have everyone join the comm if they wish.
--WIPs are allowed, so long as it has never been posted anywhere. If you have never posted the story anywhere, it qualifies for this Bang, even if you started writing it 10 years ago!
--Authors can sign up to do two stories. Both times for the Big Bang, or both times for the Little Bang, or one Little Bang and one Big Bang! To sign up twice, fill out the sign up form twice!
The Big Bang
--The minimum word count for the Big Bang is 20k. There is no maximum word limit, but please be aware of time constraints and obligations, if you’ve chosen to be paired up with a fanworker. IE don’t try to write a 100k story and choose to be paired with a fanworker if you’re not certain you can finish it on time!
--Stories at least 20k in length can choose to be paired with a fanworker during the claiming process on the comm, and have an accompanying fanwork created for that story! Stories that are over 20k in length can opt out of receiving a fanwork, if the author does not want the pressure of working with a fanworker!
--Authors that choose to be paired with a fanworker have an obligation to finish that story, or face consequences for dropping out!
Little Bang
--The minimum word count for the Little Bang is 10k. There is no maximum word limit, but a story that is over 20k is guaranteed an accompanying fanwork, while stories less than 10k can still go through the claiming process, an accompanying fanwork is not guaranteed.
--Stories less than 20k in length are not guaranteed to be paired with a fanworker during the claiming process. Stories less than 20k in finished length can still post a summary during the Little Bang story claims and try to get matched with a fanworker.
--Little Bang summaries will be posted after Big Bang stories have all been claimed.
--Authors that choose to be paired with a fanworker have an obligation to finish that story, or face consequences for dropping out!
What requirements are there for stories?
--All stories must focus on or revolve around a het pairing of your choosing!
--All stories must be complete by the due date period. Please check the schedule for when this will be.
--All stories must be beta read. This is not an option! We suggest finding a beta sooner rather than later, and the HetBang comm and Discord will be great places to start seeking a beta. If you want to have more than one person beta read your story, that's fine, too!
--All stories must be posted to Ao3! Once the collection reveals, stories can be posted anywhere else the author chooses.
--Stories must not be posted before the due date! Posting guidelines will go live in April, before the due date period.
Fanworker and Fanwork Requirements
--The minimum amount of accompanying fanworks per eligible story is 1 piece. If you are a fanworker and choose to claim 3 stories, that means you will need to create 1 fanwork for each story, 3 total. Please do not take on more stories than you can handle!
--Fanworkers can claim as many stories as they are reasonably certain they can handle. Please do not take on 5 stories to create a fanwork for unless you are reasonably certain you can finish all 5 fanworks!
--Fanworkers that sign-up are not required to claim a story. Claims are a few months off from author sign-ups, and we understand that life can happen and you may not be able to claim a story as planned, this is totally fine! Just let us know that you’re dropping out and you’re good to go!
--All fanworks must be complete by the due date period. Please check the schedule for when this will be.
--Fanworks must not be posted before the due date! Posting guidelines will go live in April, before the due date period.
What are the minimum requirements for fanworks?
Each story a fanworker claims is required to have at least one accompanying fanwork of quality for each story they claim. If a fanworker decides to claim 3 stories, they will be required to create one accompanying fanwork for each story, so at minimum, 3 fanworks. You’re creating something for a work that is at least 10k in length, so we want the fanwork to match that effort! Here are the suggested guidelines:
Traditional/Digital art: Cleaned lineart, on unlined paper, that is at least 500x500 pixels is the minimum. Additional sketchier/rougher pieces are welcomed so long as one piece of art is at the cleaned lineart stage!
Manips: Clean renders and non-blurry images that do not contain watermarks should be used for photo manipulation. Examples of the quality expected for this Bang can be found right here on Fanlore.
Banners or Icons or Wallpaper: 5 icons, of at least 100x100 pixels. 3 banners. 1 wallpaper. More is of course always welcomed!
Picspam or Gifsets: At least 6 images, but more images, or multiple sets are welcome!
Vids: At least two minutes long, or a full song!
Fanmixes: At least 10 songs and include cover art (this can be a manip!).
Het Bang FAQs
Do I need a DreamWidth/LiveJournal/Tumblr/Ao3 account?
The only account that is required at this point is Archive of Our Own. The reason for this is that all stories will be posted to the Het Big Bang Ao3 Collection, rather than being posted to the DreamWidth/LiveJournal communities. After the Ao3 collection reveals, you’re free to post your story/fanwork anywhere you wish!
I have my own fanworker I work with, or I found a fanworker to work with, do I still have to go through claims?
First off, that’s great you’ve found a partner to work with! All you need to do is let us mods know that you’re already paired up and have your fanworker sign-up, if they haven’t already! You do not need to go through claims, story claiming is for authors that are still seeking a fanworker to work with.
Can I join this comm?
Absolutely! Feel free to join and watch the comm even if you aren't signing up!
What support communities are there for Het Big Bang?
We’ve got a few places to hang out!
het_banghelp is a community set up for members only. Every year, previous members are removed so that only this year’s participants have access. Once you sign-up, you can request to join again! Authors, fanworkers, betas, and cheerleaders are welcome and encouraged to join! This comm is for all your hand-holding, snippet sharing, and flailing. Special writing and enabling events will be hosted on that comm, such as Snippet Days and Block Writing Events.
HetBang Discord Server is another choice if you like chat-style platforms. There are channels for sprinting and word wars, sharing snippets, asking for writing help, beta reader/cheerleader seeking, and offtopic channels for chatting! The Discord server is open to anyone that wants to chat and be supportive, whether you have signed up or not for the Het Big Bang.
What are check-ins?
Check-ins are a way to see how you’re doing on your work! Some of them are mandatory and some of them are not, so it’s important to keep track of which ones are mandatory! They’re also a great way to keep yourself on track and a time to talk about your work and let others know how you’re doing.
What is the amnesty period?
The amnesty period is a chance for participants that couldn't quite finish on time to have one last chance to post for the current Bang! If for any reason you cannot post on your chosen reveal date, please get in contact with the mods ASAP!
I signed up last year, and then dropped out. Can I still sign up again?
Yes!!
Can I drop out?
Yes! Sometimes life gets in the way or a story just doesn’t happen, and we understand that! However, there is a cutoff point, and if you do not let the mods know before this date, you can be banned from the next round. Even if it is after this cutoff date that you need to drop out please let us know so that we can discuss options. We can’t help if we don’t know there is a problem!
Can I sign up as an author AND a fanworker?
Absolutely!
Can I create fanworks for my own story?
Of course! Just let send an email to thehetbigbang@gmail.com to let us know you're making your own fanwork!
What can I do if I have problems with my author/fanworker?
Contact the mods! Let us handle things as we understand that sometimes people just don’t get along. Abuse or rude behaviour toward any participant in the Bang will not be tolerated, especially for story/fanwork content. (It’s important for fanworkers to read all the warnings in a story summary, and for authors to list all warnings in their story summary!) Please just get in contact with us mods to resolve issues between participants, rather than disappearing.