The Rules
Okay, it's looking as if we have a decent amount of interest in this ficathon, so the dates I was kicking around can be finalized now.
1. As stated in the definitions post, stories must be about a character who is canonically a woman and is over 40 (or can be reasonably assumed to be) at some point in her canon. Genderswaps are okay if the swapped character is not the main character. For example, if you want to explore what Laura Roslin's relationship might have been with Wilhemina Adama, go ahead. If you're not sure whether a particular character counts as over 40 or not, or counts as a woman or not, post to the definitions post to ask.
(Note that throughout these rules I say "stories", but in fact vids, fanart, poetry and essays are also acceptable contributions.)
2. Prompt collection will run between July 1 - July 15. I will post the master list of prompts after prompt collection closes, probably on July 16.
As stated in the prompt collection post, feel free to contribute prompts even if you don't intend to write stories for this ficathon.
3. From July 16 - July 31, people will sign up for prompts. You can sign up for a prompt even if you did not contribute a prompt. You can sign up for your own prompt or someone else's. At the moment I'm thinking that three prompts is probably a comfortable maximum.
4. As with lgbtfest, we will have dates that people can sign up for. Once you have signed up for prompts, you can sign up for a posting date. Posting dates will run from September 7 - October 5. So you'll have the entire month of August and a bit more to write your stories, at minimum, even if you take the earliest posting date available.
5. Stories can be of any rating and can be gen, het or femslash. Stories may contain m/m slash, but since the stories must be about women, that obviously can't be the focus of any fics. Stories must be at least 500 words. (Other types of contribution, such as art or vids, have no restrictions in size.)
6. Warnings: in light of the recent warnings kerfluffle, I thought I'd best establish a warnings policy. All stories should warn if they contain any of the following:
explicit sex (and if so, the genders of the pairing); explicit kink (such as BDSM or tickling); genderswap; consensual incest; consensual underage (ie, both are underage)
rape or noncon (including incest or underage where one party is above the age of consent and the other is not); child abuse (sexual or otherwise); torture; self-harm; eating disorders
Warnings for the first category are not intended to pass any sort of value judgement on the practices being warned for; they're intended to help people find the stories with stuff they like, and avoid the stories that will squick them. Warnings for the second category are intended to avoid squick and guide people to what they want, but also, more importantly, to help people avoid painful triggers. If anyone thinks I am leaving something out that should be warned for, feel free to post about it, and if I agree I'll add it to the list.
Character death warnings are NOT REQUIRED, though they are certainly not forbidden. If it will ruin your story to warn for character death, you don't need to do it, but I would recommend that you do suggest that your story is dark or contains angst if that's the case, so people who are feeling vulnerable and would be very bothered by character death can avoid stories that might contain it without spoiling the people who'd be okay with it.
It is also best to include spoiler warnings.
7. Post stories with the following header:
Title:
Author's name or penname
Author on LJ, dreamwidth, or other preferred journalling location
Optional: author email
Optional: author web site, if different from her journal
Fandom(s):
Main character or main pairing: If you wish you can have this as two lines, one for the main character and one for the pairing. Romantic pairings should be designated with a slash; friendship or other non-romantic/non-sexual pairings should be designated with an ampersand, like this: &
Rating: You can use the MPAA system, the fanfiction.net system, or something like the LJ system (ie, "no adult content" vs. "mild adult content" vs. "explicit adult content")
Warnings, if any:
Spoilers, if any:
Optional: fannish disclaimer
Summary:
Optional: Author's notes
8. Tag your entry with fandom, character and author. I will be creating tags as the prompts are spoken for, but if there is no tag that already exists for your fandom or character, or you as author, create one.
If your story contains adult content (R or NC-17 rating in MPAA system, M or MA in fanfiction.net system), set the content level on your post appropriately. The journal default is "no adult content".
9. If you know in advance you're going to miss your posting date, let me know as soon as possible, and I'll see if you can be moved or switched. If you can't be moved or switched, or you miss the date because of something last minute you weren't able to warn me about, you'll have to post after the fest is over.
10. Once the fest is over, this community will remain open, and people will be able to freely take the existing prompts and write stories for them. If the fest re-occurs, there will be a new set of prompts, so there's no reason not to write stories for the existing prompts that weren't done. If you missed your posting date, you can post then.
1. As stated in the definitions post, stories must be about a character who is canonically a woman and is over 40 (or can be reasonably assumed to be) at some point in her canon. Genderswaps are okay if the swapped character is not the main character. For example, if you want to explore what Laura Roslin's relationship might have been with Wilhemina Adama, go ahead. If you're not sure whether a particular character counts as over 40 or not, or counts as a woman or not, post to the definitions post to ask.
(Note that throughout these rules I say "stories", but in fact vids, fanart, poetry and essays are also acceptable contributions.)
2. Prompt collection will run between July 1 - July 15. I will post the master list of prompts after prompt collection closes, probably on July 16.
As stated in the prompt collection post, feel free to contribute prompts even if you don't intend to write stories for this ficathon.
3. From July 16 - July 31, people will sign up for prompts. You can sign up for a prompt even if you did not contribute a prompt. You can sign up for your own prompt or someone else's. At the moment I'm thinking that three prompts is probably a comfortable maximum.
4. As with lgbtfest, we will have dates that people can sign up for. Once you have signed up for prompts, you can sign up for a posting date. Posting dates will run from September 7 - October 5. So you'll have the entire month of August and a bit more to write your stories, at minimum, even if you take the earliest posting date available.
5. Stories can be of any rating and can be gen, het or femslash. Stories may contain m/m slash, but since the stories must be about women, that obviously can't be the focus of any fics. Stories must be at least 500 words. (Other types of contribution, such as art or vids, have no restrictions in size.)
6. Warnings: in light of the recent warnings kerfluffle, I thought I'd best establish a warnings policy. All stories should warn if they contain any of the following:
explicit sex (and if so, the genders of the pairing); explicit kink (such as BDSM or tickling); genderswap; consensual incest; consensual underage (ie, both are underage)
rape or noncon (including incest or underage where one party is above the age of consent and the other is not); child abuse (sexual or otherwise); torture; self-harm; eating disorders
Warnings for the first category are not intended to pass any sort of value judgement on the practices being warned for; they're intended to help people find the stories with stuff they like, and avoid the stories that will squick them. Warnings for the second category are intended to avoid squick and guide people to what they want, but also, more importantly, to help people avoid painful triggers. If anyone thinks I am leaving something out that should be warned for, feel free to post about it, and if I agree I'll add it to the list.
Character death warnings are NOT REQUIRED, though they are certainly not forbidden. If it will ruin your story to warn for character death, you don't need to do it, but I would recommend that you do suggest that your story is dark or contains angst if that's the case, so people who are feeling vulnerable and would be very bothered by character death can avoid stories that might contain it without spoiling the people who'd be okay with it.
It is also best to include spoiler warnings.
7. Post stories with the following header:
Title:
Author's name or penname
Author on LJ, dreamwidth, or other preferred journalling location
Optional: author email
Optional: author web site, if different from her journal
Fandom(s):
Main character or main pairing: If you wish you can have this as two lines, one for the main character and one for the pairing. Romantic pairings should be designated with a slash; friendship or other non-romantic/non-sexual pairings should be designated with an ampersand, like this: &
Rating: You can use the MPAA system, the fanfiction.net system, or something like the LJ system (ie, "no adult content" vs. "mild adult content" vs. "explicit adult content")
Warnings, if any:
Spoilers, if any:
Optional: fannish disclaimer
Summary:
Optional: Author's notes
8. Tag your entry with fandom, character and author. I will be creating tags as the prompts are spoken for, but if there is no tag that already exists for your fandom or character, or you as author, create one.
If your story contains adult content (R or NC-17 rating in MPAA system, M or MA in fanfiction.net system), set the content level on your post appropriately. The journal default is "no adult content".
9. If you know in advance you're going to miss your posting date, let me know as soon as possible, and I'll see if you can be moved or switched. If you can't be moved or switched, or you miss the date because of something last minute you weren't able to warn me about, you'll have to post after the fest is over.
10. Once the fest is over, this community will remain open, and people will be able to freely take the existing prompts and write stories for them. If the fest re-occurs, there will be a new set of prompts, so there's no reason not to write stories for the existing prompts that weren't done. If you missed your posting date, you can post then.