[size:18]Basic rules and guidelines:[/size]

1) Be polite and constructive;

Well-motivated, countering opinions expressed in a mature and conversational way are okay. Bashing and flaming are not.

Remember, that if you're debating, you're debating about things, not the persons behind the things. So don't get personal!


2) Stick to the topic;

and when creating new threads, remember to give the post a clear subject! This will make the board easier to navigate for everyone. In the long run, we are (hopefully) going to have lots of posts here, and it's just so much easier to find the right post of you have subject lines like:

"Writing Alternative Universes" or
"Common Problems with Crossovers" or even
"A Question about Using Punctuation"

instead of "Have you ever..." or "A Question".


3) Post in the correct forum;

"Announcements" are for clear announcements only, questions and help requests for writing are stuff for the "For Fanfic Writers" section etc. And if you're looking for a good read, why don't you try the "We love Readers, too" forum?

Ask yourself whether you're asking/telling/posting as a reader or a writer. Then take a look at the different forums, and think if you were an archivist, 1) how would you label your question (topic) and 2) where would you stick it (choice of forum).

For example, if you want to write an extensive review on something, you're writing as a reader, not a writer... you're telling about someone else's story, and what you thought about it, and who might wanna read it etc. So you post the review in "We love Readers, too" with the subject: "Review: 'Kennedy's Adventure' by Author".

This way, people will immediately know what it's all about, and if they wanna reread that review a year later, when there are a gazillion new posts, they won't have such a hard time finding the thread. Following these rules and guidelines should not be too hard, and doing so will make this place run smoothly, without moderators having to "clean up" the place every now and then.

8) Thank you for your attention and understanding! Happy posting! 8)