![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[admin post]](//www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/entry/admin_post.png)
Admin Post: Rules Post: 2024
![[admin post]](http://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/entry/admin_post.png){kind=small}
Signups: May 5 to 11:59PM PDT, May 19 (When is that for me?)
Prompts Distributed: By May 22
Posting Opens: Once all signups are distributed.
Last Day to Post/Notify a Mod: June 23
Masterlist Posted: By Mid July
Late Posting Period Starts: Once masterlist is posted.
FAQ
Even if you have read the rules before, read them again, as alterations have been made.
How does this work?
Here's what you do:
1. Pick a character, any character.
2. Pick one to six fandoms that you feel comfortable writing in. They cannot be the fandom that your character is from, or a fandom related to it. They can be related to one another if you choose, however.
That is all you need to do. What we will do, using highly scientific methods (and by that we mean the internet, our character lists, and a sizable bag of dice), is pick a character from one of those other fandoms to meet your character in a bar. You will then produce a fanwork from your prompt (see below for guidelines).
What?
Okay. Let's say you sign up. You choose Obi-Wan Kenobi as your first character, and feel comfortable writing in the Iron Man movies, Supernatural RPF, Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, the Sweeney Todd musical, Stardew Valley, and the Disney+ Hawkeye series.
I roll the dice, consult my lists, and determine that the other character will be Pepper Potts. So your prompt is "Obi-Wan Kenobi goes into a bar and meets Pepper Potts," and you then produce a fanwork about it.
Signing Up
Choosing Fandoms
After You Get Your Prompt
Technical Details
What's a fanwork?
For this challenge, a fanwork must be one of the following:
- a story of at least 500 words
- a complete piece of art of a reasonable size (manips and graphics yes, banners and icon sets no)
- a vid of at least forty-five seconds
- a podfic, the text/script of which must be written specifically for this challenge, five minutes long OR five hundred words
- a comic that is at least one page and/or six panels
- any combination of these things
- something else you get mod approval for.
It's dangerous to go alone. Can we sign up as a team?
Yes! You may sign up for two-person teams. Be advised that you must have the equivalent of a complete fanwork for both participants. Co-authors must produce stories of at least 1000 words, a fanartist and a writer must produce one complete piece of art and 500 words, a podficcer and an author must produce 500 words and the recording thereof, et cetera.
In the case of comics, all contributors are considered as comic creators; a comic with a writer and an artist only needs to be two pages/twelve panels, not one page and 500 words.
If you have an idea that requires more than two participants (e.g. a theatripod), consult the mods.
Can I pick a character someone else has already picked?
Certainly! But you definitely won't get the same second character as they do, even if you choose the same other fandoms.
I signed up before. Do I have to pick a new character or new fandoms?
No. You can even copy and paste the same signup if it pleases you. If you end up with exactly the same prompt you had last time, well, don't say we didn't warn you. It has happened before. (It's entirely too much work to keep track of what prompts everyone has had before to be able to avoid them.)
I want to write a _____ character! I want to write a ____ pairing!
Unfortunately, we will not fill any requests for specific kinds of characters. Everyone will be assigned randomly from the exact same list. And remember that the prompt you receive is not for a pairing; if they hook up, that's great, but your prompt is just what it says: they go into a bar, they meet someone. What happens after that is up to you.
How do you pick characters, anyway?
For each fandom, we create a list of eligible characters from wikis/iMDB/other sources. Typically, we shoot for main characters, major secondary characters (such as TV characters that recur over a season or more), and main villains and antagonists.
We try to avoid super-minor characters (such as those appearing in only a handful of episodes of a multi-season show) or in-universe fictional characters (such as Inspector Spacetime).
That said, we haven't consumed every canon in the world and we can make mistakes! So if you get a very minor character, we do allow people to dispute their signups in cases where we've made errors.
I have this prompt for this other ficathing! Can I combine it with this and just write one story?
Doesn't bother us. Check with the other challenge, though.
What if I want to create a sequel/companion piece/etc to something I've already done?
If it so happens that the stars and planets align and you can do this, go for it.
Whoops, I didn't turn my story in for the last round!
That's fine. It's not an exchange where not turning in your story causes a domino effect of consequences. Try it again!
How many times can I sign up?
Just once. As fun an exercise as it is, there's a lot of signups to process without adding multiples per person.
Do I have to write in English?
No! You can write in whatever language you like, as long as you give your headers in English and whatever language you write in. Your signup, however, must be in English.
Be advised that your intrepid moderators only read a couple languages, so if you need to ask a question in another language, you may have to wait a bit or send a translator.
I don't have a Dreamwidth! Do I need one?
The challenge runs only on Dreamwidth. It is fairly simple to create an account to use! (If you do not wish to sign up for an account, however, and have access to an OpenID login, you can use that as well.)
What fandoms are allowed?
Pretty much anything!. However, if it's a fandom with a really huge canon, narrow it down some, for everyone's sake (see below for more information on how). How specific fandoms need to be for signups is at the sole discretion of the mods. You will be contacted if there are any problems that render your signup impossible to process.
Signing up with original characters is not allowed. You may add original characters into your work, but the central focus must be your prompt.
Due to time and knowledge constraints, we are not as a rule able to accommodate requests for characters from a particular season of any television show.
I want to write an anthology series! (a TV series or web series with a different cast of characters and plotline every season, such as American Horror Story or Critical Role)
Please specify which season/plotline. It is at the mods' discretion as to whether the series qualifies as such; if we decide it doesn't, you'll be contacted.
I want to write Star Trek/Star Wars/Stargate/X-Men movies/MCU/Dragon Age/Harry Potter/Doctor Who/some other franchise and/or adaptation
Great! Keep in mind, there are specific rules around franchises and adaptations. For more information, consult this post.
It hasn't come out yet, but-
Nope.
Is RPF allowed?
Yes, with caveats. If the character you choose to walk into the bar is a real person, you must pick fictional fandoms only for the other character.
If your chosen character is fictional, you can include RPF fandoms in your six choices, but you must be very specific. If you aren't specific enough, one of the mods will let you know. Here are examples:
Yes: Mythbusters RPF, Lotrips, BTS, Vegas Golden Knights (NHL)
No: Discovery Channel RPF, British Actor RPF, Kpop, Hockey RPF
Please note that the rules for MCU RPF follow the same rules as those for the MCU in general.
Okay, so what if I pick a fandom that's connected to the fandom my first character comes from? Like picking the Tenth Doctor and requesting Torchwood?
Yeah, no. That goes against the spirit of the challenge. If that's the case with all of the fandoms you chose, you'll be contacted to replace your signups. If you have other eligible fandoms in your signup, your second character will not be selected from the related fandom.
For more details on what is considered related, consult this post.
What if I don't like/can't write the character I get assigned?
The dice can be fickle beasts sometimes.
If we have made a legitimate error, such as assigning a character from the wrong fandom or assigning a one-shot character from a large canon, please contact us immediately, and we will fix it.
If it's not an error, though, and you just happened to draw the one character from that canon that you really can't stand to write... well, unfortunately, those are the breaks. Be wary of what fandoms you sign up for.
The character I got assigned is too minor!
As in the question above, contact us and we'll fix it! Just keep in mind that secondary characters are potential options and we won't change those, so you have to explain why the character is too minor, if it is not immediately obvious (appearing in one episode in six seasons is obvious, showing up in arcs in three of those six seasons is not obvious and would need further justification).
But wait! Where is the bar? What if the characters are from completely different worlds? What if they're from different timelines? Oh god!
It's cool! How you choose to get the characters into the same location is totally up to you. AU, fusion, nexus point between universes, whatever- as long as the characters act like themselves, you can change anything else that you want.
Does it have to be a bar?
Not necessarily. Any sort of public or semi-public area where people congregate for leisure activities is pretty much fine. Inns, taverns, onsen, rejuvenation centers, parks, rec rooms, frat parties, accountability circles, what have you.
Do the characters have to, y'know, do it?
No! You can write gen, het, slash, femslash, porn, fist fights, love at first sight, old drama, side pairings, side cars, whatever you like.
Can other characters be involved?
Sure! Just as long as the interaction between the two characters you're assigned is the focal point of the story.
What happens if I can't finish in time?
If you know you can't finish, try to contact one of the mods, either by PM or in the comments to this post. If you don't, it's not the end of the world (defaulting isn't really a thing), but it's fewer loose ends.
I wrote a thing! What do I do with it?
Excellent! You will now need to post your entry to the community. Go directly to this post [coming soon!] and follow the instructions there.
Who's flying this thing?!
That would be me,![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dizmo and masterlist mod ereshai, shouting out to our mods emeritae sabinetzin (Founder, creator, and occasional consultant!), coffeesuperhero and kisahawklin.
Do you have an AO3 collection?
Yep! It's over here. (Collection name is intoabar). Posting your fic to it is optional, but appreciated.
Do you have a Fanlore page?
We do! Please feel free to expand it and add memorable works from previous rounds.
OMG I want to help! Can I help?
Doing all right, actually, but thanks! Best help you can give is to participate and spread the word!
I am totally on board! Sign my ass up!
Hot damn! Go directly to this post and sign your ass up!
Please, pass it around! The more the merrier!
I have another question!
Please use the comments of this post to ask! You can also PM me for help. Please make sure your journal is set to accept private messages from outside your circles, or I may be unable to respond.
Prompts Distributed: By May 22
Posting Opens: Once all signups are distributed.
Last Day to Post/Notify a Mod: June 23
Masterlist Posted: By Mid July
Late Posting Period Starts: Once masterlist is posted.
FAQ
Even if you have read the rules before, read them again, as alterations have been made.
How does this work?
Here's what you do:
1. Pick a character, any character.
2. Pick one to six fandoms that you feel comfortable writing in. They cannot be the fandom that your character is from, or a fandom related to it. They can be related to one another if you choose, however.
That is all you need to do. What we will do, using highly scientific methods (and by that we mean the internet, our character lists, and a sizable bag of dice), is pick a character from one of those other fandoms to meet your character in a bar. You will then produce a fanwork from your prompt (see below for guidelines).
What?
Okay. Let's say you sign up. You choose Obi-Wan Kenobi as your first character, and feel comfortable writing in the Iron Man movies, Supernatural RPF, Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, the Sweeney Todd musical, Stardew Valley, and the Disney+ Hawkeye series.
I roll the dice, consult my lists, and determine that the other character will be Pepper Potts. So your prompt is "Obi-Wan Kenobi goes into a bar and meets Pepper Potts," and you then produce a fanwork about it.
Signing Up
Choosing Fandoms
After You Get Your Prompt
Technical Details
Signing Up
What's a fanwork?
For this challenge, a fanwork must be one of the following:
- a story of at least 500 words
- a complete piece of art of a reasonable size (manips and graphics yes, banners and icon sets no)
- a vid of at least forty-five seconds
- a podfic, the text/script of which must be written specifically for this challenge, five minutes long OR five hundred words
- a comic that is at least one page and/or six panels
- any combination of these things
- something else you get mod approval for.
It's dangerous to go alone. Can we sign up as a team?
Yes! You may sign up for two-person teams. Be advised that you must have the equivalent of a complete fanwork for both participants. Co-authors must produce stories of at least 1000 words, a fanartist and a writer must produce one complete piece of art and 500 words, a podficcer and an author must produce 500 words and the recording thereof, et cetera.
In the case of comics, all contributors are considered as comic creators; a comic with a writer and an artist only needs to be two pages/twelve panels, not one page and 500 words.
If you have an idea that requires more than two participants (e.g. a theatripod), consult the mods.
Can I pick a character someone else has already picked?
Certainly! But you definitely won't get the same second character as they do, even if you choose the same other fandoms.
I signed up before. Do I have to pick a new character or new fandoms?
No. You can even copy and paste the same signup if it pleases you. If you end up with exactly the same prompt you had last time, well, don't say we didn't warn you. It has happened before. (It's entirely too much work to keep track of what prompts everyone has had before to be able to avoid them.)
I want to write a _____ character! I want to write a ____ pairing!
Unfortunately, we will not fill any requests for specific kinds of characters. Everyone will be assigned randomly from the exact same list. And remember that the prompt you receive is not for a pairing; if they hook up, that's great, but your prompt is just what it says: they go into a bar, they meet someone. What happens after that is up to you.
How do you pick characters, anyway?
For each fandom, we create a list of eligible characters from wikis/iMDB/other sources. Typically, we shoot for main characters, major secondary characters (such as TV characters that recur over a season or more), and main villains and antagonists.
We try to avoid super-minor characters (such as those appearing in only a handful of episodes of a multi-season show) or in-universe fictional characters (such as Inspector Spacetime).
That said, we haven't consumed every canon in the world and we can make mistakes! So if you get a very minor character, we do allow people to dispute their signups in cases where we've made errors.
I have this prompt for this other ficathing! Can I combine it with this and just write one story?
Doesn't bother us. Check with the other challenge, though.
What if I want to create a sequel/companion piece/etc to something I've already done?
If it so happens that the stars and planets align and you can do this, go for it.
Whoops, I didn't turn my story in for the last round!
That's fine. It's not an exchange where not turning in your story causes a domino effect of consequences. Try it again!
How many times can I sign up?
Just once. As fun an exercise as it is, there's a lot of signups to process without adding multiples per person.
Do I have to write in English?
No! You can write in whatever language you like, as long as you give your headers in English and whatever language you write in. Your signup, however, must be in English.
Be advised that your intrepid moderators only read a couple languages, so if you need to ask a question in another language, you may have to wait a bit or send a translator.
I don't have a Dreamwidth! Do I need one?
The challenge runs only on Dreamwidth. It is fairly simple to create an account to use! (If you do not wish to sign up for an account, however, and have access to an OpenID login, you can use that as well.)
Choosing Fandoms
What fandoms are allowed?
Pretty much anything!. However, if it's a fandom with a really huge canon, narrow it down some, for everyone's sake (see below for more information on how). How specific fandoms need to be for signups is at the sole discretion of the mods. You will be contacted if there are any problems that render your signup impossible to process.
Signing up with original characters is not allowed. You may add original characters into your work, but the central focus must be your prompt.
Due to time and knowledge constraints, we are not as a rule able to accommodate requests for characters from a particular season of any television show.
I want to write an anthology series! (a TV series or web series with a different cast of characters and plotline every season, such as American Horror Story or Critical Role)
Please specify which season/plotline. It is at the mods' discretion as to whether the series qualifies as such; if we decide it doesn't, you'll be contacted.
I want to write Star Trek/Star Wars/Stargate/X-Men movies/MCU/Dragon Age/Harry Potter/Doctor Who/some other franchise and/or adaptation
Great! Keep in mind, there are specific rules around franchises and adaptations. For more information, consult this post.
It hasn't come out yet, but-
Nope.
Is RPF allowed?
Yes, with caveats. If the character you choose to walk into the bar is a real person, you must pick fictional fandoms only for the other character.
If your chosen character is fictional, you can include RPF fandoms in your six choices, but you must be very specific. If you aren't specific enough, one of the mods will let you know. Here are examples:
Yes: Mythbusters RPF, Lotrips, BTS, Vegas Golden Knights (NHL)
No: Discovery Channel RPF, British Actor RPF, Kpop, Hockey RPF
Please note that the rules for MCU RPF follow the same rules as those for the MCU in general.
Okay, so what if I pick a fandom that's connected to the fandom my first character comes from? Like picking the Tenth Doctor and requesting Torchwood?
Yeah, no. That goes against the spirit of the challenge. If that's the case with all of the fandoms you chose, you'll be contacted to replace your signups. If you have other eligible fandoms in your signup, your second character will not be selected from the related fandom.
For more details on what is considered related, consult this post.
After You Get Your Prompt
What if I don't like/can't write the character I get assigned?
The dice can be fickle beasts sometimes.
If we have made a legitimate error, such as assigning a character from the wrong fandom or assigning a one-shot character from a large canon, please contact us immediately, and we will fix it.
If it's not an error, though, and you just happened to draw the one character from that canon that you really can't stand to write... well, unfortunately, those are the breaks. Be wary of what fandoms you sign up for.
The character I got assigned is too minor!
As in the question above, contact us and we'll fix it! Just keep in mind that secondary characters are potential options and we won't change those, so you have to explain why the character is too minor, if it is not immediately obvious (appearing in one episode in six seasons is obvious, showing up in arcs in three of those six seasons is not obvious and would need further justification).
But wait! Where is the bar? What if the characters are from completely different worlds? What if they're from different timelines? Oh god!
It's cool! How you choose to get the characters into the same location is totally up to you. AU, fusion, nexus point between universes, whatever- as long as the characters act like themselves, you can change anything else that you want.
Does it have to be a bar?
Not necessarily. Any sort of public or semi-public area where people congregate for leisure activities is pretty much fine. Inns, taverns, onsen, rejuvenation centers, parks, rec rooms, frat parties, accountability circles, what have you.
Do the characters have to, y'know, do it?
No! You can write gen, het, slash, femslash, porn, fist fights, love at first sight, old drama, side pairings, side cars, whatever you like.
Can other characters be involved?
Sure! Just as long as the interaction between the two characters you're assigned is the focal point of the story.
What happens if I can't finish in time?
If you know you can't finish, try to contact one of the mods, either by PM or in the comments to this post. If you don't, it's not the end of the world (defaulting isn't really a thing), but it's fewer loose ends.
I wrote a thing! What do I do with it?
Excellent! You will now need to post your entry to the community. Go directly to this post [coming soon!] and follow the instructions there.
Technical Details
Who's flying this thing?!
That would be me,
dizmo and masterlist mod ereshai, shouting out to our mods emeritae sabinetzin (Founder, creator, and occasional consultant!), coffeesuperhero and kisahawklin.Do you have an AO3 collection?
Yep! It's over here. (Collection name is intoabar). Posting your fic to it is optional, but appreciated.
Do you have a Fanlore page?
We do! Please feel free to expand it and add memorable works from previous rounds.
OMG I want to help! Can I help?
Doing all right, actually, but thanks! Best help you can give is to participate and spread the word!
I am totally on board! Sign my ass up!
Hot damn! Go directly to this post and sign your ass up!
Please, pass it around! The more the merrier!
I have another question!
Please use the comments of this post to ask! You can also PM me for help. Please make sure your journal is set to accept private messages from outside your circles, or I may be unable to respond.
no subject