Rules & Information
NOTE: This is not the sign-up post you are looking for. If you want to participate, please head over to one of these posts:
- writer sign-ups (CLOSED)
- fic claiming for artists/mixers
Another year, another round of polybigbang! Changes, both major and minor, have been made since last year, but here are the most important:
1. Original fiction is now allowed. Go wild, folks.
2. The artist/mixer sign-ups and fic claiming have been collapsed into one process/post to make things a bit more streamlined. In other words, artists and mixers no longer have to sign up before the fic summaries are posted for claiming.
Read on for the rest of the rules!
DATES
July 15: Writer sign-ups open.
September 20: Writer sign-ups close; rough drafts of at least 10,000 words due.
September 22: Fic summaries posted for artist & mixer claiming.
November 3: Final drafts, art, and mixes due.
November 10: PARTY TIME. Stories begin to be posted!
OVERVIEW
Writers must complete a fic of at least 10,000 words that focuses on polyamorous relationships. As a reward, every completed fic will receive an accompanying fanmix/soundtrack and/or piece of art.
All completed fic is guaranteed get at least a mix or at least art, but if you're writing original fiction or for a smaller fandom, it might be difficult to get both. Just keep this mind!
Fic, mixes, and art should be sent to polybbmods@gmail.com.
INFO FOR WRITERS
The only requirements are that the stories be over 10,000 words, feature polyamorous relationships, and have never been posted before, whether wholly or in part (snippets are okay, but not a WIP that you've been posting in chapters). Fanfiction and original fiction, slash and het, RPF and FPF, AUs and crossovers are all totally fair game.
Your kink is okay, but please use discretion with warnings.
Co-writing is fine. Writing more than one story is fine. Co-writing and writing a fic on your own is fine. (Just know that we'll probably think you're crazy. ♥)
The rough draft you send in on September 20 does not have to be complete or polished or beta'd, it just needs to be over 10,000 words and finished enough that your artist/mixer has something to work with.
When you send in your rough draft, please also send in a summary of your fic (with warnings, if any). These don't have to be what you stick in the header once you post your fic, but these are what the mixers/artists will be seeing, and hence what they'll be basing their claims on. Sell your story! To avoid author bias, the summaries will go up on a post anonymously and assigned a number, so mixers/artists won't know whose story they're claiming until they've been sent out.
Once you send in your final draft, you will be given an assigned posting date and your art/mix. You can coordinate with your artist/mixer so that their art/mix is posted on their own journal and you just link to it in your fic post, or you can post the mix/art in your own journal in case your schedules/time zones don't align quite right.
INFO FOR MIXERS
Mixes should have a minimum of 10 songs. We'd prefer if you kept it under 15, but we won't institute a strict maximum. If you've got personal hosting space, you can upload your mix there, but otherwise please upload them onto Megaupload or Mediafire (other links tend to expire too quickly). You can upload them onto other sites as mirrors, but at least one link should be MU or MF. You can upload your mix as a zip or as individual songs.
When you send in your mix, please format the subject line of the e-mail this way: username - fic # - mix. For example: strikesoftly - fic 13 - mix
INFO FOR ARTISTS
Art can be in any medium. You can sketch, you can paint, you can make a manip, you can make a fanvid, you can combine all of these things. No limits on size, just make sure it's postable. Please include a rating with your art, and any warnings if applicable.
When you send in your art, please format the subject line of the e-mail this way: username - fic # - art. For example: strikesoftly - fic 13 - art
FAQ
What is polyamory?
The definition of polyamory this challenge is operating under is "consensual non-monogamy that goes beyond sex" (to borrow wording from woldy). Jack and Jill can be together, and Jill and Jane can be together, but Jack and Jane don't have to be together. Jack and Jane can both have other partners as well, and none of these partners have to be romantically or sexually involved with each other. That's all still polyamory.
If Jack, Jill, Jane, and John are all in a happy quad together, though, that is obviously more than okay, and also polyamory.
Polyamory also doesn't have to include sex. The relationships can be purely romantic in nature, your characters may be asexual but not aromantic, etc.
This FAQ is pretty good if you're approaching the concept of polyamory for the first time.
Can I claim more than one fic for art and/or mixing?
Yes, but you need to finish your first claim before you can claim the second.
Can more than one artist/mixer claim the same fic?
Yes, but only once every fic has already been claimed once.
If I'm already writing a story, can I also create a mix or art? Can I sign up both as a mixer and an artist?
Absolutely, as long as you're not claiming your own story. You are, however, only allowed one claim at a time, so if you claimed fic 21 for a mix, you need to finish that mix before you can claim fic 16 for art.
If, say, you've finished your mix for your claim and you're feeling particularly productive, you may also do a piece of art for the same story.
Do we post our fics/mixes/art directly to this community or do we just link them?
Since there is a very high probability that fics will exceed the LJ character limit and span multiple posts, to avoid spam we'd prefer it if you posted your fic to your own journal and just linked it in one post from here. As for mixes and art, those should also be linked from the fic post to keep everything together.
Can my fic be the sequel to something else I've written?
Yes, as long as it can stand alone (e.g. no cliffhangers or ~to be continued~). Please link to the prequel fic in your header.
If I've made my own art/soundtrack for my story, can I include it?
Sure! The more the merrier.
What if I need to drop out?
We will HUNT YOU DOWN.
No, just kidding. Life happens sometimes. Just shoot us off an e-mail ASAP telling us you won't be able to participate any longer. Should we need to find pinch-hitters (in the case of artists and mixers), we will do so.
--
If you have any more questions about the challenge, leave a comment and we'll get back to you ASAP!
- writer sign-ups (CLOSED)
- fic claiming for artists/mixers
Another year, another round of polybigbang! Changes, both major and minor, have been made since last year, but here are the most important:
1. Original fiction is now allowed. Go wild, folks.
2. The artist/mixer sign-ups and fic claiming have been collapsed into one process/post to make things a bit more streamlined. In other words, artists and mixers no longer have to sign up before the fic summaries are posted for claiming.
Read on for the rest of the rules!
DATES
July 15: Writer sign-ups open.
September 20: Writer sign-ups close; rough drafts of at least 10,000 words due.
September 22: Fic summaries posted for artist & mixer claiming.
November 3: Final drafts, art, and mixes due.
November 10: PARTY TIME. Stories begin to be posted!
OVERVIEW
Writers must complete a fic of at least 10,000 words that focuses on polyamorous relationships. As a reward, every completed fic will receive an accompanying fanmix/soundtrack and/or piece of art.
All completed fic is guaranteed get at least a mix or at least art, but if you're writing original fiction or for a smaller fandom, it might be difficult to get both. Just keep this mind!
Fic, mixes, and art should be sent to polybbmods@gmail.com.
INFO FOR WRITERS
The only requirements are that the stories be over 10,000 words, feature polyamorous relationships, and have never been posted before, whether wholly or in part (snippets are okay, but not a WIP that you've been posting in chapters). Fanfiction and original fiction, slash and het, RPF and FPF, AUs and crossovers are all totally fair game.
Your kink is okay, but please use discretion with warnings.
Co-writing is fine. Writing more than one story is fine. Co-writing and writing a fic on your own is fine. (Just know that we'll probably think you're crazy. ♥)
The rough draft you send in on September 20 does not have to be complete or polished or beta'd, it just needs to be over 10,000 words and finished enough that your artist/mixer has something to work with.
When you send in your rough draft, please also send in a summary of your fic (with warnings, if any). These don't have to be what you stick in the header once you post your fic, but these are what the mixers/artists will be seeing, and hence what they'll be basing their claims on. Sell your story! To avoid author bias, the summaries will go up on a post anonymously and assigned a number, so mixers/artists won't know whose story they're claiming until they've been sent out.
Once you send in your final draft, you will be given an assigned posting date and your art/mix. You can coordinate with your artist/mixer so that their art/mix is posted on their own journal and you just link to it in your fic post, or you can post the mix/art in your own journal in case your schedules/time zones don't align quite right.
INFO FOR MIXERS
Mixes should have a minimum of 10 songs. We'd prefer if you kept it under 15, but we won't institute a strict maximum. If you've got personal hosting space, you can upload your mix there, but otherwise please upload them onto Megaupload or Mediafire (other links tend to expire too quickly). You can upload them onto other sites as mirrors, but at least one link should be MU or MF. You can upload your mix as a zip or as individual songs.
When you send in your mix, please format the subject line of the e-mail this way: username - fic # - mix. For example: strikesoftly - fic 13 - mix
INFO FOR ARTISTS
Art can be in any medium. You can sketch, you can paint, you can make a manip, you can make a fanvid, you can combine all of these things. No limits on size, just make sure it's postable. Please include a rating with your art, and any warnings if applicable.
When you send in your art, please format the subject line of the e-mail this way: username - fic # - art. For example: strikesoftly - fic 13 - art
FAQ
What is polyamory?
The definition of polyamory this challenge is operating under is "consensual non-monogamy that goes beyond sex" (to borrow wording from woldy). Jack and Jill can be together, and Jill and Jane can be together, but Jack and Jane don't have to be together. Jack and Jane can both have other partners as well, and none of these partners have to be romantically or sexually involved with each other. That's all still polyamory.
If Jack, Jill, Jane, and John are all in a happy quad together, though, that is obviously more than okay, and also polyamory.
Polyamory also doesn't have to include sex. The relationships can be purely romantic in nature, your characters may be asexual but not aromantic, etc.
This FAQ is pretty good if you're approaching the concept of polyamory for the first time.
Can I claim more than one fic for art and/or mixing?
Yes, but you need to finish your first claim before you can claim the second.
Can more than one artist/mixer claim the same fic?
Yes, but only once every fic has already been claimed once.
If I'm already writing a story, can I also create a mix or art? Can I sign up both as a mixer and an artist?
Absolutely, as long as you're not claiming your own story. You are, however, only allowed one claim at a time, so if you claimed fic 21 for a mix, you need to finish that mix before you can claim fic 16 for art.
If, say, you've finished your mix for your claim and you're feeling particularly productive, you may also do a piece of art for the same story.
Do we post our fics/mixes/art directly to this community or do we just link them?
Since there is a very high probability that fics will exceed the LJ character limit and span multiple posts, to avoid spam we'd prefer it if you posted your fic to your own journal and just linked it in one post from here. As for mixes and art, those should also be linked from the fic post to keep everything together.
Can my fic be the sequel to something else I've written?
Yes, as long as it can stand alone (e.g. no cliffhangers or ~to be continued~). Please link to the prequel fic in your header.
If I've made my own art/soundtrack for my story, can I include it?
Sure! The more the merrier.
What if I need to drop out?
We will HUNT YOU DOWN.
No, just kidding. Life happens sometimes. Just shoot us off an e-mail ASAP telling us you won't be able to participate any longer. Should we need to find pinch-hitters (in the case of artists and mixers), we will do so.
--
If you have any more questions about the challenge, leave a comment and we'll get back to you ASAP!