kerravonsen: Second Doctor about to type in the Land of Fiction: "Fanfic: everyone does it" (Doc2-fanfic)
Kathryn A. ([personal profile] kerravonsen) wrote in [community profile] multific2006-08-14 10:32 pm
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Finish-a-thon Signups

Announcing... finish-a-thon 2006! Yes, we're doing it again.

ETA: Note: sign-ups are now closed!

Remember all those poor, neglected plot bunnies that have been starving from lack of attention, because all those ficathons kept on having higher priority? The stories you wish you could finish, if only you could find the time? Well, fear not, the finish-a-thon is coming to the rescue!

The finish-a-thon is a ficathon, with all the ficathon-like things like deadlines and fellow volunteers to encourage you, but with this ficathon, you write your own ideas. But since part of the encouragement of a ficathon is writing things for other people, what we're going to do, is vote for which story ideas people should write.

The way it works is this:

1) Sign up.
In your sign-up comment, list a short description all the plot bunnies, unfinished stories (apart from other ficathon stories) and vague ideas that you are putting up for voting on. Say what universe(s) it's in, a very brief description, and some idea of what rating and type (gen,het,slash) you think it will be, to give people a good idea of what they'd be voting for.

Also give your voting preference, whether you wish your story to be voted on by participants only, or all interested parties.

2) Join or friend [livejournal.com profile] multific, so that you will recieve assigments, important notices, and reminders. I am NOT going to notify people individually.

3) A poll is made, each "question" consists of the potential stories of one participant.

4) We vote for which story we want each person to finish.
The winning story in each section is the one which that author has to work on.

5) Each writer works on their winning story, and finishes it by the deadline. They then put it up on the web somewhere, either in their journal, or on a website.

6) I will post a master-list of all the stories, so that people can find them.

7) Everyone rejoices!


Dates

Australia and New Zealand:

(Australian Eastern Standard Time)
Sign-ups begin: 14th August 2006
Sign-ups end: 6am, 26th August 2006
Poll is put up: 26th/27th August 2006
Voting ends: 6am, 31st August 2006
Stories finished: 6am, 28th October 2006

The Rest of the World (yes, that includes America):

(Greenwitch Mean Time)
Sign-ups begin: 14th August 2006
Sign-ups end: 10pm, 25th August 2006
Poll is put up: 26th/27th August 2006
Voting ends: 10pm, 30th August 2006
Stories finished: 10pm, 27th October 2006


Sign-up Template

Name:
Livejournal:
Voting preference: participants only/anyone

For each plot-bunny...

Fandom(s):
Description:
Type: het/gen/slash
Rating:

Questions

What do you mean, not other ficathon stories?

Unfinished stories from other ficathons already have a ficathon for them. This is the Home For Lost Plot-Bunnies that don't have a ficathon of their own.

What if I want to use this story for fanfic100?

(or crossovers100 etc)

Well, this is supposed to be for stories not associated with other ficathonish things... but if it so happens that after you've written it, you find that it fits into your Big Table, well, those challenges aren't averse to using stories from other sources, are they?

Are there any restrictions? This isn't an anti-slash thing, is it?

No restrictions. They're your own ideas, hence, your responsibility. Just let people know, in the descriptions, what kind of story you think it will be, so that they can vote wisely.

What about sequels? Can I include bunnies for those?

Sure. Just give a link to where we can find the previous story or stories. To make it easier for me, just give the URL(s) without the HTML markup -- that makes it easier to cut-and-paste the information when I'm making the polls.

What if my story is a huge epic that I'll never be able to finish in 8 weeks?

We want to encourage story writing, so, if a story is an epic, still put it on the list, but commit to writing 10,000 words of it, or finishing it, whichever is shorter.

10,000 words? You gotta be joking!

I did say "epic", didn't I? It's not as hard as NaNoWriMo.

Last year, a participant committed to writing 15,000 words towards her epics. At least two participants wrote stories which were more than 10,000 words long. You can do it.

Is there a minumum number of bunnies required?

Yes. Three. We need something to vote on, after all.

Is there a maximum number of bunnies allowed?

Yes. Ten. Otherwise we'll never be able to decide. Just pick the bunnies you most want to write.

Who gets to vote on what I write?

When you sign up, say what you would prefer:
(a) other participants only
(b) all and sundry (that is, get your friends to vote so you get a better idea of what your peers want)

I will put a note as part of your poll entry as to what your preference is. I won't be able to enforce the preferences, but we can hope that people will be considerate.

What if I don't know what story to vote for?

Try. It is possible to not answer a poll question. But please do try to pick one story from everybody if you possibly can.

What about my own stories? Do I pick one of mine as well?

Nup. The point is to find out what other folks here wish you to write.

What if there's a tie in the votes? Which story would I write?

Toss a coin. If you can't toss a coin, I'll toss one for you -- just ask.

Arrgh! I never thought people would vote for *that* story!

People will surprise you. They'll vote for *anything*, however unlikely you think it. So be prepared to write *any* of the story ideas you put up, don't assume that people won't vote for the wierd one that you put there half-jokingly.

Is there a minimum length requirement?

Unless you committed to writing 10,000 words of an epic, no. However, it seems a bit pointless to waste an 8-week ficathon on a drabble. But I don't want you to be sweating over length requirements. Stories have natural lengths; try to pick story ideas which would naturally fit into more than a drabble.

Is there a maximum length requirement?

No, but do remember you've only got 8 weeks.

I didn't finish! Can I have an extension?

No. If you have a Real Life reason for not being able to finish (like "my computer died" or "my mother broke her hip") then you can have an exemption. After all, it's your story, you will finish it later.

Otherwise:
(A) post what you've managed to write so far, indicating that it isn't finished. You will then get a week's grace period in which to finish or revise the story. Note that those who do not post anything by the deadline will NOT get a grace period.

OR

(B) Write me a nice note saying, "sorry, I couldn't finish". The flimiser the excuse, the more grovelling required. You get a gold star for participating.

OR

(C) Drop out without a word or excuse. This will get you banned from participating next time.

I finished my story, but it isn't betaed!

As with unfinished stories, if you post something by the deadline, you get a week's grace in which to revise. If you don't post anything, you do not get the grace period. Do not treat the grace period as an extension to the deadline. It is not.

I didn't finish my story last time. Can I still sign up?

If you gave it a go, sure. If you bailed out for no reason and didn't even bother contacting me, no.

Edited To Add:
Please note: this does NOT mean that if you didn't finish last time you can't participate. I wasn't intending on naming names, but I guess I'll have to. The only people who are disqualified from participating this year are [livejournal.com profile] ladyjanelly, [livejournal.com profile] alicamel and [livejournal.com profile] wizefics.
jedibuttercup: Notebook and Pen (criminal mastermind)

Finish-a-thon Choices

[personal profile] jedibuttercup 2006-08-14 07:06 pm (UTC)(link)
Hooray! The finishathon was a great success for me last time; I can't wait to participate again. Only six selections to choose from this time.

Name: Jedi Buttercup
Livejournal: [livejournal.com profile] jedibuttercup
Voting Preference: All interested parties

(1) Book's Legacy
Fandom(s): Firefly, themes from B:tVS
Description: "Mal recieves a mysterious package, leading the crew of Serenity on a voyage of discovery. Into every generation..." Deals with Book's backstory and River's future, among other things.
Status: ~15,000 words already written, will probably be 2x that long when complete. Stalled since October '05. Previous chapters indexed at my journal.
Type: Mostly gen, some het & canon 'ships
Rating: PG-13 to R

(2) Never Look Back
Fandom(s): B:tVS/Angel
Description: Fourth, and last, novel in the Lesser Men series, which diverged from canon in late S6/S3. Wesley attempts to recover Faith from the Council, Lilah Morgan attempts to further meddle in the good guys' affairs, and the Council attempts to regain control over the Slayer line.
Status: Series begun in 2002, last updated April '06, at which time I also reposted the whole series at [livejournal.com profile] lesser_men_saga. The saga is now at 200K+ words, this particular story ~40K. Estimate 20,000-30,000 words for completion.
Type: Mostly gen, some het & canon 'ships
Rating: R

(4) The New Seer
Fandom(s): Angel
Description: An AU Season 4 story, Wes-centric. "In the aftermath of Cordelia's ascension, a new seer has been chosen."
Status: Stalled since April '04. Previous chapters tagged at my journal. Estimate a partial rewrite plus 10,000-15,000 words for completion.
Type: Mostly gen, canon 'ships
Rating: R

(4) Hok Tau'ri
Fandom(s): B:tVS, Stargate SG-1
Description: "Past Slayers have questioned the true source of their power. None of them had the resources available to Samantha Carter, USAF." A Slayer!Sam novella, set after S6. To explore how her empowerment alters events in S7.
Status: Only one chapter so far, linked at my journal. Potential length unknown.
Type: gen
Rating: PG-13

(5)
Fandom(s): Stargate SG-1, The Mummy/TMR
Description: A longer story set in the same universe asWhere It Began. Daniel Jackson discovers that his father and grandfather were associated with the Medjai... and that Anubis left some "presents" on Earth dating back to the time of the Scorpion King.
Status: At the notes stage. Potential length unknown.
Type: gen
Rating: PG-13 to R

(6)
Fandom(s): Angel, Lord of the Rings
Description: A novella of Wes and Illyria in pre-LOTR Middle-earth. "Much that once was, was lost when Sauron acquired the Ring. Illyria intends to correct that mistake." Set in the same universe as the ficlets Look On My Works, Ye Mighty and The Courage of Men, which dropped hints about the Buffyverse being set in an AU in which Frodo's Quest failed.
Status: At the notes stage. Potential length unknown.
Type: gen and het
Rating: R
jedibuttercup: Notebook and Pen (wesley with sword)

Re: Finish-a-thon Choices

[personal profile] jedibuttercup 2006-08-15 04:42 pm (UTC)(link)
Oops! The second link under (6), "Courage of Men", is incorrect. It should be: http://jedibuttercup.livejournal.com/66621.html
jedibuttercup: (reaper)

Is it too late to add a couple more choices?

[personal profile] jedibuttercup 2006-08-25 06:00 am (UTC)(link)
I posted too early, I guess. =) If it's alright, I have a 7 & 8 to add.

(7)
Fandom(s): Firefly/Serenity, DOOM, B:tVS
Description: 500 years after Buffy and John "Reaper" Grimm survived the events of Handle ID Slayer, a group of pirates broadcasts the news that yet another corporation's project to "make people better" has backfired. Determined to prevent the fate of Earth-that-Was from recurring, they team up with Serenity to take down Blue Sun.
Status: At the notes stage. Potential length unknown.
Type: gen and het
Rating: R

(8) Uncle John
Fandom(s): B:tVS, SGA
Description: John Sheppard discovers that his estranged elder sister, Joyce, had two daughters, and begins corresponding with them. Sooner rather than later, too many clues are dropped, and their real lives collide, to conclude with Buffy and Dawn on Atlantis. Previous chapters linked at Wraithbait.
Status: About 8,000 words in. Potential length unknown.
Type: gen?
Rating: PG-13?