This is a a fairly imposing document but we've tried to make it as easy to use and understand as possible. If you have a question, please get in touch with us or check our FAQ's! You can do this via the forums, help center, or our site staff e-mail addresses.

We have taken information from the FAQ's, Terms of Service, Submission Guide, etc... and put it together in relevant groupings but this document is not a substitute for reading the TOS.

Please use the links in the navigation bar to learn a bit about how our site works and what our rules are.

Rules Overview

12+ Rule
Our site prides itself on being safe for users of all ages. While, sometimes, it can be hard for the limited staff to keep track of all Terms of Service violations, we do our best in enforcing our rules and procedures. We also ask that our members help to dig up anything that may have slipped through the cracks. As such, our '12+' rule is one of the most important.

Anything posted in a public area of the site must be rated 12+ or lower. This rule includes the forums, reviews (both reviews and author responses), comment section of the main page, chapter and story titles, summaries, etc...

Users found to be in violation of the 12+ Rule will find a variety of actions taken based on the offense. Strong material must be removed from public areas of the site immediately. That said, one or two "slips of the tongue" in a review thread will only result in removal of those reviews, whereas a review thread that is riddled with violations can result in removal of the entire story. If your story has a title/summary that is in violation of the 12+ Rule, a staff member will edit the title/summary to suit the Terms of Service and send you an e-mail (it is your responsibility to make sure you have a valid email address and can receive our mail) alerting you to the change. Repeated violations and re-inserting removed text can result in story deletion, account removal, and even account suspension/banning.

Spamming Rule
Part of running and maintaining a successful site in this day and age is ensuring that members feel safe when they register and one of the fastest ways to ruin that reputation is spam.

This site considers any unsolicited e-mail/PM as spam. This includes letters asking people to read your story, join your site, etc..... If you are looking for people to read your story, the FictionCentral.net Forums have a section dedicated entirely to wonderful people who offer to review stories. [More about Reviewing] FictionCentral.net also offers an advertising service to it's members. [Advertising Information] This is a fee based service. This is a fee based service. Many sites organize their members and solicit donations to purchase advertisement.

Spam doesn't just happen through the Contact Author/PM features. In fact, it happens in review threads more than anywhere else. Here, the definition of spam is slightly different to suit the venue. Spam reviews are considered anything that does not directly relate to the story, reviews left by the stories author to increase their review count, several reviews from one user on the same chapter that appear to be an attempt to increase an authors review count, etc....

The course of action in dealing with spam varies. For members receiving unsolicited e-mails from our users, please get in touch with a site staff member and send them a copy of the message so that we can stop the spamming. Remember, spam multiplies when left untreated, it doesn't go away. Depending on the severity and amount of spam sent out, users can find themselves receiving harsh warnings, account removal, suspension/banning, and, in some cases, reported to their Internet Service Provider. For an author whose review threads are being spammed, it is best to report the violation to a staff member immediately and not to reply to the 'spammy' messages. Decisions on what constitutes spam and what constitutes a large amount of it, is up to the staff but we try to only remove stories in any instance where the reviews are simply too many to delete by hand or in cases of repeat violations. Serious infractions can result in suspension/ banning via IP.
 

Abuse/Rudeness
We encounter all of the hiccups and bumps of any group of people and so, we must observe the same rules.  Being rude to anyone will not be tolerated.  Rudeness could be considered insulting another member - even if they insulted you first - swearing, or deliberately offending someone.  Intolerance of any kind, be it based on race, creed, sexual orientation, etc... will not be allowed here. This includes reviews, our contact features, the forums, the comment area of the site, trouble tickets, e-mail, and any other means of member interaction.  Users found to be abusing others, depending on the severity, can be given a warning, removed from the site, or permanently banned if the offense is severe enough.

If you feel as though a fellow user (staff or otherwise) has been rude to you, please contact a staff member and the matter will be handled as quickly and amicably as possible.

Rules about Reviews

Reviewing stories is one of the greatest things about fiction websites. It's a great way to get feedback on your skills and strengths in writing as well as some of the shortcomings that you need work on. It's also just a really fun thing to do! However, there are lots of ways that reviews can become inappropriate and, when they do, site staff members need to get involved to keep this site user friendly, tidy, and safe for users of all ages.

Here are some of the big rules about reviewing for both authors and reviewers

- No swearing! Obscenities violate our 12+ Rule.

- No reviewing yourself! While the staff accepts that sometimes you just make mistakes (i know I have!) and accidentally leave a new review instead of a response to a review, reviewing your own story isn't permitted.

- Be Polite! While constructive criticism is allowed and appreciated, reviews that are considered "overly rude" can be removed by staff members. Too many of these will result in account deletion, suspension or IP banning. Remember, you are dealing with people of many different ages and skill levels and it takes a lot of guts to put yourself out there for critique by your peers. There is a massive difference between helping someone to improve their writing skills and being mean. Try to consider that many authors have been turned off writing by rude reviews.

- No Spam! [More on Spam]

- Breathe. When reading an unfavorable review, stop and consider what the person is trying to convey. Remember, they took the time to read your story and, not only to read it, but to review it. That says something about what they think of your potential. Always try to take criticism in the most positive of lights and, when responding to reviews, do not do so emotionally. Being mean to people, especially "flamers" will only insight them further. Instead, report abusive reviews to a staff member and we will handle the situation appropriately.

Submitting A Story

Submitting a story can be terrifying, and the first time your story is rejected is twice that.

Staff here will reject stories for a valid reason. At FictionCentral.net, we do not reject based on grammatical errors or quality of content. While we have rules regarding formatting & netspeak, making a few too many typos will not result in rejection here. That said; don't take it personally when a story is rejected. It is not a staff vendetta against you or an insult to your story. In fact, it could be something as simple and basic as an open tag or an incorrect rating/warning combination.

If your story is validated, jump for joy!  When you're done dancing a jig, you may begin to wonder how people will go about finding it.  That is a question easily answered, but be prepared, it's a slightly winding road.

The Recently Added List
Many users use our Recently Added page to find stories that have been updated and it is, by far, the quickest and most effective way. When a story is posted, it appears on the Recently Added list.

Category Listings
Each story has a category and each category has a page.  Your story should appear under the category pages when it is updated.  However, we have recently experienced some issues with this portion of the site.  If your story does not show up, there is no need to panic or to report it to the staff.  We are aware of the issue and are working on correcting it.

Mailing Lists
Our archive supports a feature called "mailing lists."  This can be found on the Add Story (or Add Chapter) page.  Simply enter e-mail addresses, separated by a comma, and when your story is submitted, the system will send out e-mails alerting these people to your update. [Spam]

Search
We have a search feature which, with all of it's inadequacies, can still be very useful.  If you know the title of a story, or some of the parameters around it, you can search for it using the button in the navigation bar at the top of the page. (Note: We are aware that many users and staff are unhappy with some of this search features limitations.  We are constantly working on several modifications to the search portion of the site.)

Rejections
If you would like to or are already submitting a story, registering a free e-mail account with a service like Hotmail or Yahoo! can go a long way toward actually receiving your rejection letters. For those of you who have never submitted to us before, rejection letters are important. They contain specific information on why your story was rejected. If you elect not to change your e-mail address, there is a list of possible rejection reasons that have been compiled by the staff and can be found in the Terms of Service. They also follow below with detailed explanations.

1. It's under 750 words. Song Lyrics, Authors Notes, Quotes, etc... do not count toward this wordcount. Poetry is exempt.
      - Only actual story content will be included in the word count.  This means that stage directions such as, "___Ginny's POV___," song lyrics, poems, quotes, and other non-narrative material does not count toward the word count of your chapter.

2. It contained links.
      - Sometimes users include links deliberately but, in other cases, a user will accidentally download a software program that auto-inserts links into their stories. For removal information, you can contact a staff member.

3. The rating/warning was incorrect
      - A staff member may have considered your base rating to be too low. This can happen in cases when a story is rated 12+ but in the 10th chapter, you include a scene that is 15+. Remember that your story needs to be rated for the most graphic scene in it and it's O.K. to increase a rating mid-story.
      - A staff member may also have noticed that the rating or warnings are inconsistent.  That is to say that a story rated 12+ may not contain the warning Scenes of a Strong Sexual Nature. [More on Ratings & Warnings]

4. It contained illegal/un-cited/copyright material
      - Movie titles, quotes from books, quotes from poems, song lyrics, the names of real and living people and about 100 other things fall into the category of copyright material. Some of these things can be used as long as they are cited properly while others are simply not accepted for legal reasons. [More on Copyright Violations] The staff is always willing to work with members who have queries about the content of their stories. This includes trusted authors. Do not hesitate to contact our resident legal eagles, timeturner and jessi_staff, on the forums. They will get back to you as soon as they can. Also note that no fanfictions will be accepted at this site whatsoever.

5. There was a depiction of rape/incest/child abuse/bestiality/graphic suicide or self mutilation, student-teacher/adult-minor ship
      - While depictions of rape, child abuse, suicide and self-mutilation are permitted, they may not be considered graphic or glorifying by the staff. Please feel free to contact a staff member if you have any concerns regarding the use of this warning. [More on Student/Teacher & Adult/Minor Ships]

6. It's not a story (i.e., blank chapter, chat format, ask/answer, interactive writing, karaoke fic, etc...)
       - Blank chapters can often happen when using the Upload feature. It's best, instead to copy and paste your chapter into the box. Chat format looks like this and is not permitted.

      John: Hi, Jane.
      Jane: Hey, Johnny!
      George: They make me sick!
      Susan: It is rather disgusting.

Ask/Answer and Interviews are also not allowed as are quizzes, lists, etc.... This archive is for stories only. If you are looking for a forum to post those type of articles, many people like to use servers like Blogger. Interactive writing is considered anything that includes reviewers as characters, "pick your own ending" fics (this does not disallow alternate endings), and calling for votes on which way the next chapter should go. You are welcome to ask for "plot bunnies" as getting help with Writer's Block is a big part of this site. We also allow users to "team write" stories but they can only be posted on one account.

7. Open formatting tags
      - An HTML tutorial can be found here

8. Redirecting to other fiction sites. "Please read the rest of my story at www.anysite.com! " where the rest of the fic is posted on another site. The entire fic must be posted here, or at the other site. We obviously cannot check suitability of other sites and, therefore, cannot guarantee that the story is rated appropriately.
     - This does not mean that you cannot "quit" on a story or that you must only post it here - you simply cannot redirect to the rest of it elsewhere.

9. Threatening For Reviews
     -  This site is a community and threatening not to update until you receive X amount of reviews may be effective but it is neither polite or allowed. Instead, check out the Help Offered section of our Forums where you will find a wealth of people offering to give feedback on your piece. You may also find some useful tips in the article on reviewing that can be found in the Writer's Resource section of the forums.

10. Image Violations
     - Images in summaries may be no larger than 600x110 pixels and may only appear in the first chapter of a story.  This means that you must either uncheck "Carry Over Chapter Information" (Your Account --> Edit Personal Information) or manually remove the banner from your summaries when you add chapters.  They must also abide by the 12+ Rule.
     - Only one image may appear per chapter and may be no larger than 380x300 pixels. These images must also not be hotlinked. Images in chapters must be rated consistently with the stories rating.
     - Images may not be links.

11. Contained Living Persons Such As JKR/Emma Watson/Tony Blair as a Character
     - In order to avoid a messy lawsuit, the site does not permit the use or mention of living people in your stories.  Now, this rule can get a little messy, as with all rules that are related to the law.  Historical Figures may be used in your stories.  Christopher Columbus (sailed the ocean blue, not the director) or the Queen of England can be mentioned. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact our resident legal eagles, timeturner and jessi_staff, on the forums. They will get back to you as soon as they can.

12. Your story/chapter title/summary was not rated 12+
- All story and chapter titles, as well as summaries, must be rated consistently with our 12+ Rule.

13. Inconsistent Ratings vs. Warnings
     - This can mean a story that is rated 12+ but includes "strong" warnings or a story rated 15+/Mature with no warnings.  For more information on ratings and warnings please check the guide which can be found here.

14. Authors Note Only Chapter
     - Authors notes are allowed in the beginning or end of a chapter but may not be sent in as a stand alone unit.

15. Abusive to Staff/Other Members Anywhere In The Submission
     - Abuse of staff or members is not permitted as it violates our Abuse/Rudeness Rule. 

16. Your story contains a Formatting Issue
     - Periodically, authors posting stories directly from text editors like Word Pad will find that their chapters appear in solid blocks of text rather than paragraph form or that their stories appear in thin columns. - Due to the smaller text size of this site, please format your story so that there is a space between each paragraph. This will make it easier for both validators and readers to more easily read your story.

17. Your story contains netspeak or too many gramatical/spelling errors.
     - This archive does not reject for one too many typos. However, excessive use of netspeak, not using punctuation marks and capital letters, etc... can result in the rejection of a chapter.

Using The Forums

The forums are a great place to get help with your story or chat about writing with your fellow members but, as with all communities, rules prevent an anarchistic demise. The forums are also part of the 12+ Rule and it's important to remember that avoiding the language filter with symbols and other letters is just as big a violation as actually swearing. A great way to get to know the forums is to read all pinned topics. (The pinned topics can be found at the top of any forum - they have a special icon and will not "expire" as other topics do. They contain lots of useful information.)

User Groups
Our forums have groupings for our members. Staff members have a banner beneath their name that reads "Staff.

In addition to the house groupings, each user is assigned a status when they begin posting. Status changes as you use the forums and is based on post counts. It is an automatic system. The breakdown of how many posts you have in each status level is listed in the FAQ's and call also be found below.

Level 1 - 0
Level 2 - 200
Level 3 - 400
Level 4 - 600
Level 5 - 800
Level 6 - 1000
Level 7 - 1500
Level 8 - 2000
Level 9 - 3000
Level 10 - 4500

Warning Levels
Warning level increases happen when a user breaks the Forum Rules (this includes any rules posted in pinned topics of various forums.) If you receive enough warning's, you will receive an automatic temporary suspension. If that happens twice, a lifetime ban is imposed.

In specific instances of severe violations, staff may issue immediate suspensions/account removal and/or IP ban.

Abuse of the Personal Messaging system (PM) will result in revocation of the privilege. [More on Spamming]

My Control Panel/User CP
The User CP, otherwise known as "My Controls" can be found in the upper right-hand corner of your screen.  From this area of the site, you can adjust your signature, avatar, profile, time zone, and other board settings.  It also houses your PM box.

Administrative Section
The administrative section at the top of the forums is where you'll get in touch with staff members and find information on new updates and changes.

There are a few things you should know about. The Ask the Staff section is for posing queries to staff members but please check the FAQ's before doing so. Also, remember that the Ask the Staff section of the forums are visible to all users. Posting your chapter there or the title to a story that is in violation of the Terms of Service isn't the best idea. Posting of unvalidated material is never allowed and handling TOS violations of other users publicly can result in flames on your stories, etc... It's better to handle that via PM, e-mail or trouble tickets.

General Forums
The general forums contain places to ask questions of other users - again, it's important to remember to check the FAQ's before asking a question. You can also report bugs you see in the site coding, make suggestions for future additions to the site, get help with writer's block, character questions, chat about writing, post or accept a challenge from a fellow user or offer your talents to other users. There is a lot of stuff in this section - it's a good idea to take a thorough look around before making any posts to ensure that your question isn't already answered or there isn't a better place for you to put your post. As always, feel free to ask a staff member if you have a question.

Help Needed/Offered
This section is divided into four separate areas. Reviews Offered/Wanted is a section for offering or asking for reviews on your fanfiction. Make sure to check the pinned topics to find lists of reviewers as well as reviewing rules, etc... Beta Reading Offered/Wanted is a section dedicated to offering or requesting a beta reader. There is also a sub-forum that redirects you to The Dark Arts. There, you can request a banner, avatar, or other graphic. You can also offer your services as a designer there. As a separate forum, make sure you read the rules carefully before posting.

The general area of Help Needed/Offered is for general questions and services.

Recommend A Story
Whenever you post a story title/link anywhere on the forums, you must include the stories rating. Before posting in the Recommend a Story section, please check the Thread Masterlists and other pinned topics to ensure that there isn't already a thread for what you're looking for.

Writer's Resources
The Writer's Resources area is split into two sections. The first, general, area is for users to post topics, polls, queries, and opinions regarding anything from grammar to plot development. Exceptional articles will be moved into the second area, the WR Archive, by a staff member.

Challenges
The challenge section of the forums is a place where users can post a story idea for others to write. Please be careful to check the pinned topics before posting to ensure that you're providing all necessary information as well as to make certain someone hasn't already posted a similar/the same challenge.

Ratings & Warnings

The ratings are explained, in depth, below as well as the many warnings Fiction Central uses.  As this is a publicly accessible document, the explanations of these ratings are not as in depth as we might have hoped in an effort to keep everything rated 12+ or lower.  As such, if you have any questions regarding the specifics of the definitions, please feel free to contact a staff member via e-mail or trouble ticket.

Ratings:

12+ -- Directed to Readers Over 12 Years of Age:
This story is designed for children age 12 and above. It may be more appropriate for children who have acquired the developmental skills needed to distinguish between make-believe and reality. Themes and elements in this story may include mild fantasy or comedic violence, or may frighten children under the age of 12. Therefore, parents may wish to consider the suitability of this story for their very young children. It contains little or no violence, no strong language and little or no sexual dialogue or situations.

15+ -- Directed to Readers Over 15 Years of Age:
This story contains some material that many parents would find unsuitable for children under 15 years of age. Parents are strongly urged to exercise greater care in monitoring this story and are cautioned against letting children under the age of 15 read this story unmonitored. This story contains one or more of the following: mild violence, non-graphic sexual situations , occasional strong language, or suggestive dialogue.

Mature -- Mature Audience Only:
This story is specifically designed to be read by a mature audience and therefore may be unsuitable for persons under 17. This story contains one or more of the following: intense non-graphic violence, explicit non-graphic sexual activity, or crude indecent language.

While this has been a longstanding rule on our archive, it bares repeating that we do not accept material that is NC-17 in nature.  Stories deemed to be too graphic or glorifying will not be accepted into our archive.  Trusted Authors found to be posting this type of material will have the graphic content deleted immediately and lose their trusted author status.

Warnings:
Fiction Central also offers warnings to assist both authors and readers in posting and finding material but, as most of the warnings are only a few words long, they aren't always terribly descriptive. One of the most important things to be said about warnings is that they are there to protect readers not to discourage people from reading your story.  That said; please err on the side of caution when assigning warnings to your stories and chapters instead of trying to "cut it close" so that more people will be willing to read it.

Mild Language: (12+, 15+, Mature)
The warning "Mild Language" can apply to all stories posted on our archive.  As a guideline, Mild Language could be considered anything that is playable on a basic FM radio station.  The warning "Mild Language" does not apply to the amount of language in your story.  Severe/strong obscenities must always be given the warning Strong Language, even in instances of only one.

Strong Language: (15+, Mature)
The warning "Strong Language" can only apply to stories rated 15+ and Mature.  The strong language warning applies to all stories containing stories with language more severe in nature. The warning "Strong Language" can also apply to stories with excessive "less severe" obscenities.

Mild Violence: (12+, 15+, Mature)
Stories with the warning "Mild Violence" may contain accidental or deliberate violence that is not so strong as to scare children. The intensity permitted varies relative to the rating applied to your story.

Strong Violence: (15+, Mature)
Stories with the warning "Strong Violence" will contain stronger or more descriptive violent scenes.  Stories containing depictions of abuse, rape, suicide and self-harm must always contain the warning "Strong Violence."

Scenes of a Mild Sexual Nature: (12+, 15+, Mature)
While all stories can contain the warning, scenes of a mild sexual nature, stories rated 12+ may contain no more than non-descript kissing scenes or the non-descirpt reference to more explicit sexual activity. Stories rated 15+ may be slightly more descriptive but not so much as to be considered graphic.

Scenes of a Strong Sexual Nature: (15+, Mature)
Stories with the warning "Scenes of a Sexual Nature" may be more explicit but are still bound by the rating rules in the Terms of Service.  They may not be considered 'too graphic" as to branch into the realm of Disallowed. 

Contains Slash (Same-Sex Pairing): (12+, 15+, Mature)
While all stories may contain same sex themes, this warning has been designed to alert people who may find the material offensive before the venture into a story.  This warning does not imply that there will be scenes of a sexual nature in a given story.

Substance Use or Abuse: (15+, Mature)
Stories that contain mentions of substance abuse/use, whether intentional or accidental, require this warning.  It does not necessarily mean that a character will be conked out of their mind on something, the consumption of a mind-altering potion or magical berry can also result in the need for this warning.

Sensitive Topic/Issue/Theme: (12+, 15+, Mature)
This warning is one of the most commonly misunderstood.  While many sites have "Kleenex" or "Tearjerker" warnings to signify depressing or "mushy" stories, our archive does not use one.  Instead, Sensitive Topic/Issue/Theme refers to material that is delicate in nature.  This could include a characters violent death, suicide, self-harm, rape, child abuse, etc...  If your story contains any of those themes, please include this warning.

Extra Archive Rules

Here, you will find all of the rules that are applied to our archive but just didn't quite fit in anywhere else.

Editing
Chapters must be complete upon submission. While correcting typo's, etc...is permitted after a chapter is posted, addition of new material is not permitted. Authors found to be doing this may find their stories removed after repeat violations.  If you need to make a significant edit to an existing chapter, please delete the existing chapter and resubmit it to the staff. (Trusted Authors are, obviously exempt from this.

Bio's & Personal Information
While HPFF offers a space for you to write a little bit about yourself, the area is something that has to be heavily monitored.

Images:
Images in biographies may not be links,can be no larger than 380x300 or 700x110 and may not contain any language or imagery that conflicts with our Terms of Service.

Links:
You may link to fanfiction archives.
You may not link to other original fiction archives.
You may not direct link to NC-17 material
You may link to your personal website, quizzes, etc... provided the content is not of an NC-17 nature

While the web is a wealth of other archives and we encourage your participation in them (the wider your stories are spread the less likely they are to be plagiarized!) we do not allow people to link to them as it is frequently used to link to material we have rejected as in violation of our Terms of Service.

Personal Information:
This is one of the most delicate aspects of the internet. It provides us a fantastic opportunity to get to know loads people from other cultures and lifestyles and share vast amounts of information and talent.  However, that also lends itself to becoming an unsafe environment.  In an effort to protect the users of our site, we do not permit addresses, phone numbers, personal photos (family, friends, homes, etc...) to be shared anywhere on our archive or forums.  If you have any questions regarding internet safety or what we would consider "too much" information, please feel free to contact a staff member.

As with all violations of this nature, the material will be removed by a staff member on the first offense and a warning e-mail will be sent.  Further violations may result in account removal.

Bumping
"Bumping" is when an author adds a new chapter to their story and then deletes it in an attempt to push their story to the recently added list.  On a first offense, staff members will send a warning e-mail.  Further violations can result in story or account removal. 

Multiple Accounts & Joint Writing
Many of our users tire of their pennames and register new accounts. While the staff does not recommend this as it results in revocation of trusted author status and loss of reviews, as well as confusing your regular readers, it can be done. Simply ask a staff member to delete your existing account (you will need to provide the account name and the e-mail address it is registered to) and they will take care of it as soon as possible.  Once the account has been removed, you are welcome to register a new one. 

Joint writing is done a lot on this site.  Round robins are not permitted but frequently two authors will get together and write a story.  Then comes the big question - where to post it.  Many pairs will simply post it on one of their accounts and link to it from the other while others elect to create a third account for their joint efforts.  Either option is fine but it is important to remember that in joint writing and your own, you may only post a story under one account. This means that when changing a penname you must remember to delete the stories from you old account before submitting them under the new account.

Plagiarism
Stories that have been plagiarized from other authors, on our site or others, will be removed immediately.  The author plagiarizing the material will be removed from our site.  No warnings will be given and reviews cannot be recovered.  If you find your story, or the story of another author, to be plagiarized, please report it to a staff member immediately and the matter will be handled as quickly as possible.

Student/Teacher & Adult/Minor Ships
As students school attendance is compulsory and not optional, relationships between students and teachers of any age is not permitted.  However, Student/Former (or Future) Teacher relationships are not disallowed, provided they do not violate the Adult/Minor rules.  That is to say:

John, a 36 year old Math teacher from Piedmont, North Dakota has recently encountered a new student, Mary. Mary is 16, a capricorn and has a steady boyfriend, Frank, who has recently turned 22 and plays football for the local college team.

Mary (16) takes a time machine back twenty years and dates John (16) = OK
Mary (18) falls in love with John (38) who is no longer her Math teacher = OK
Mary (18) falls in love with John (38) who is her Math teacher = TOS Violation
Mary (16) falls in love with John (36) who is no longer her math teacher = TOS Violation

Mary (16) dates Frank (22) = OK
Mary (16) falls in dates Frank (22) who is working as a PE Coach at her school to make extra cash = TOS Violation

If you have any questions regarding a ship you would like to post, please feel free to contact a staff member.

Trusted Authors

Trusted Authors are authors who are allowed to post their stories directly to the site.  This privilege does not come easily and is only given to authors after they have proven to the staff that their stories are strictly adherent to all of the rules stated in the Terms of Service.  Remember, Trusted Author status is not a reflection on the quality of your writing or the content of your personal character.  We are a busy staff and we handle hundreds of stories each day - as you can imagine, it is difficult to remember each and every story we read by the end of the day.

What Goes Into Becoming A Trusted Author?
Attention to the Terms of Service.  While your chapters may be validated, dealing with a subject matter that is "borderline" violation may impair your ability to become a trusted author.  The Terms of Service on our site is a liquid and changing document.  The staff must feel confident that the author in question will adjust to the changing rules - dealing with a borderline subject matter does not always make us feel assured that your chapters will continue to remain TOS compliant. 

Politeness to both other users and the staff.  If you are found being rude to reviewers, leaving impatient authors notes, or behaving in a manner the staff finds belligerent, your likelihood of being posted for Trusted Author status will rapidly decrease.

While good spelling, grammar, and writing skills are not necessary to becoming a trusted author, they do help.  A story with a well developed plotline that is presented in a mature fashion will lend a sense of seriousness to your writing - this comes through to the staff.

How Long Does it Take to Become a Trusted Author?
This varies from person to person.  Violating the Terms of Service in any way sets an author back to square one.  For some people, it only takes a few days - others can take months and may never receive trusted author status. The important thing to remember is that you are not being singled out or ignored. 

Once Given Trusted Author Status, Can It Be Taken Away?
Yes.  Most definitely.  We frequently revoke trusted author status from users who abuse the site.  This can mean rudeness to staff, members, reviewers, etc...abuse of the software, spamming, a violation found in your stories, etc...  Remember, without the staff validating your story, it can be hard to keep yourself apprised of the constantly changing rules.  In that vein, please check the Terms of Service frequently.

Can I Ask Staff Members Questions About My Stories Suitability After I Have Become A Trusted Author?
Of course.  The staff always appreciates a user who asks before posting.  If you think your storyline may be questionable - get in touch with us, we're always happy to help.

What If I Don't Want To Be A Trusted Author?
So you've logged on, posted a chapter and POOF! it's on the front page, just like that!  It's cool at first and then it occurs to you that you are now responsible to the site - you must keep your stories TOS compliant at all times.  Well, perhaps you have enough responsibility in your life.  The queue is slow but steady and you never have to worry about getting in trouble later.  Just e-mail the archive admin or PM any member of the staff and they'll be happy to remove you from the trusted list.

Terms

Our staff and members use a lot of terms that can be confusing to new users. Some of them are already itemized in Fiction A to Z but terms that are more specific to our site and staff are listed below.

Validation: This refers to what happens after a story is submitted.  It goes into The Queue and is reviewed by a staff member for suitability.

The Queue: The Queue is a listing of all of the stories that have been submitted. A staff member will look the stories over and validate or reject them based on their compliance with the Terms of Service.

Limbo: Stories that have been submitted and are waiting in The Queue to be validated are in Limbo.

One-Shot: A One-Shot is a story that is completed it one chapter.

Signature: A signature is the block of text that appears beneath your post on the forums. [How do I Put Things in My Signature?]

Avatar: An avatar is the image that appears below your name but beside your posts on the forums.  Our forums allow avatars as large as 100x100 pixels. [What Is An Avatar And Where Can I Find One?]

PM: PM's or Personal Messages are the users way of communicating privately over the forums. From time to time, staff members will send you a notice via the PM system.  It can be found in the upper right hand corner of your screen on the forums.

Recently Added List: The Recently Added list contains the last 150 posted chapters. All stories appear on this list when they are validated.

Copyright Violations

For authors who have not yet made Trusted Author status, your stories will be checked as they pass through the queue but I would advise that any Trusted Authors with questions contact our legal guru, shade, at shade[at]fictioncentral[dot]net.

Movie Titles/Movie Crossovers
The Rule:
Everyone loves movies, right?  Totally!  Unfortunately, writing a fan fiction based on a movie you just saw or bearing the same title is not allowed as it infringes on the rights of the studio, etc.... Crossovers and fanfiction are not permitted at FictionCentral.net. This is an archive for original fiction.

Song Lyrics
The Rule
We do not allow the use of song lyrics in the context of a song-fic or quoted in a chapter as if a character were listening to the song. However, credit must be given to the artist. Only three lines of lyric are permitted per chapter due to copyright laws.

Poetry & Quoting
The Rule
We have a "Three Line" rule at Fiction Central.  This means that you may use three lines of any poetry, interview quotes, etc... provided you credit the material directly to the author.

Plot, OC and Plagiarism
The Rule
PLAGIARISM RULES

Navigation

Rules Overview
Reviews
Submissions
Forum Rules
Ratings & Warnings
Archive Rules
Site Terms