Rules & Guidelines for Posting in the Writers Forum
Forum Guide: Where to Post
Original Works
This forum is a place to showcase your original written creations: stories, prose, poetry, lyrics, fanfiction, and any collaborative works are all suitable in the Original Works forum.
Books
This forum is the place to discuss published authors and their works.
Promotions
This forum is for advertising your writing website/blog/account/etc.
Tips for Posting
Be coherent! Keep in mind that you're talking to writers in here, and we tend to take language pretty seriously. Please try to keep the chatspeak/txt tlk to a minimum. The same goes for deliberately poor grammar and spelling: there isn't a fire, so slow down and take the extra couple of seconds needed to type a full word and use a little punctuation. Some web browsers (like Firefox) even have built-in spell checkers.
Check to see if your topic is already in discussion. The Writers forum sees a lot of topics come and go. It's a good idea to check through the first few pages of the forum before making a thread, because there's a good chance a similar topic (or two) is already floating around. If there are already several threads on a topic, yours may be sent to the Recycle Bin or Chatterbox.
Bumping is naughty! The Writers forum a slow forum; topics will often stay on the front page for many hours. There is no need to bump a topic if it's still on the first page. Note that a bump is any post, regardless of content, which serves the purpose of bringing your thread up to the top of the forum. This includes double-posting. If you have something to add, please edit it into your previous post.
Necroing threads is naughty too! (Necromancy: posting in a topic that has been dead for a week or more). "Official" threads linked to from a sticky and threads which have an enduring discussion or purpose can be necro'd, but if you post in an old thread make sure you are bringing something new to the discussion.
Threads That Don't Belong
Redundant Threads
These are threads that we already have official discussion threads or forums for:
Repeat Threads
These are threads that would logically go here (maybe) except that there have already been far too many of them:
Where can I post my writing? (The following sites are popular responses)
Mary Sue threads (except when very unique. The 'Mary Sue Litmus Test' is not unique)
Vampire threads (please use the Supernatural forum in most cases)
"This is my character!"/"Post your characters here!" threads
General "I like writing!" or "who here is a writer?" threads and other topics of little discussion value
Help me research/find something! (Try Google, Google Directory, Wikipedia or a library first)
General writing polls. For example;
Favorite genre/what do you like to read/write
Favorite writing utensil (ex., Pen vs. PC)
Favorite point of view
Polls that don't generate discussion
Repeat and/or redundant threads will only survive if they are extremely unique, we haven't seen that particular repeat in a long time, and/or they have a substantive discussion beyond the normal level for their type.
Homework Help Threads
The Writers forum is not a homework resource. We can help you refine existing ideas or written work by offering critique, but we are not here to supply you with ideas, accumulate research, or write on your behalf. Plagiarism is a serious academic offense, and any threads asking for people to do all or part of your homework for you will be deleted. Attempting to trade gold for papers or other homework is considered to be off-site trading and may result in a temporary or permanent ban. "Homework help" threads will only be allowed on the grounds that they generate interesting discussion. "Research" threads may only be allowed on the grounds they create discussion and are of benefit to other writers. If you are looking for feedback on an essay or creative writing piece, please post them in the Original Works subforum.
Game Threads and Roleplays (RPs)
"Games" are threads which are structured primarily around a "gimmick" or rules. This may include things such as "Answer a question and make a question for the next user", "Round Robin" story creation threads, or threads which are based around a structured cycle of user input. Games can also include "What would your MC/Villian/Etc do/say/think/etc.?" threads. Game threads are not allowed in the Writers forum because they rarely generate discussion or help people developing their writing skills. Games are best suited to the Chatterbox or Word Games and Others forum.
Roleplays belong in Barton Town or the Chatterbox.
"Post your poetry/prose here!" Threads
Topics asking for other people to share or post their work in your thread are considered redundant and are better suited for the Chatterbox. If you want to post a thread about your own work, or read the writing of others, please use the Original Works subforum.
Writing Request Threads
Threads asking for writing requests, either for gold or free, have no discussion value and are not allowed in the forum. Instead, please try looking through the Services subforum of Mini Shops for a writing shop
Quote Compilation Threads
Threads asking for others to post quotes will be moved to the Chatterbox unless they deal specifically with some aspect of writing (i.e. quotes about writing or that are helpful to writers).
Chat Threads/Hang Out Threads (HOTs)
Chat threads and hang out threads are not allowed in this forum. Any attempts to make one will be relocated to either the Chatterbox or Friends Chat, depending on the thread's focus.
Discussion of the WF or its subforums
These threads are off-topic in the Writers Forum. If you wish to discuss the forum itself, please use the Gaia Community Discussion forum. For giving feedback on or making suggestions for/about the Writers Forum, please use the Site Feedback forum.
Misplaced Threads and You: Posting in Misplaced Threads
We've noticed a disturbing trend in the Writers Forum with regard to misplaced threads. Recently, you may have seen some posts like this:
"Wrong forum. This belongs in the [insert forum here]."
"Wrong forum. Read the [insert curse word here] stickies."
Or even as simple (and rude) as:
"Get out of my forum."
With the number of forums on Gaia Online and the number of common repeats in the WF, it's understandable to make a mistake and post a thread in the wrong forum. We just want to remind everyone that
it is not appropriate to post in a misplaced thread to tell the creator that it's misplaced. Such posts are off-topic for both the thread and the forum and are therefore considered
spam. In addition, they serve absolutely no purpose once the thread is moved to the correct forum. It's also hard to feel welcome as a newbie when your first post gets you a swarm of "wrong forum" responses with no discussion content.
If you happen to notice a thread is in the wrong place,
the only thing you need to do is report the thread. Feel free to contribute to the conversation and keep the thread on topic until a moderator can move it to the correct location. The mod will inform the user regarding the correct place to post in the forum.
Any posts which state that a thread is misplaced or otherwise against the rules will be deleted, and appropriate action will be taken against those posts. This also extends to posting in threads that violate the Terms of Service, such as threads that are spamming, flaming, and trolling (AKA "don't feed the trolls" ). If you find such a post in the forum, please report it so that a moderator can handle the situation.
We appreciate that you all want to keep the community organized. Let's work together to not only make it organized but also welcoming to new members and writers.
3nodding Thanks!
button when an individual post in a topic contains inappropriate content.