Hello members of the best bar on earth!

Generally speaking, this bar encourages personal freedom whenever possible (of creativity, of expression, of squee), and so we try not to over regulate if we can avoid it. However, sometimes it’s a good idea to examine our policies and see if we can improve them. Discussions on some of these policies have led us to do a comprehensive rules post and so here we are.

These rules apply to all members—writers and readers and artists and enablers and cheerleaders and lurkers alike—so please spend a few minutes reviewing them.

We appreciate your time and look forward to a great new year. Thank you!

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Our history with warnings for this comm has been such—our current policy encourages using them when appropriate. But over time, that has led to an inconsistency in practice. Some authors use warnings, some don’t, some readers expect more detailed warnings, some don't. As for our stake in the conversation, it goes something like this:

A.   Authors should have the freedom to write the fic they want to write, in the way in which they want to write (and present) it.
B.   Readers should have sufficient information to assess whether or not they want to read a fic.
C.   There should be a way to strike a balance between Points A and B.

NEW WARNINGS/RATING POLICY:
With this in mind, these are the new rules we have adopted. They are pretty simple. There are two of them. One rule is for authors and one is for readers.

RULE #1: AUTHORS
Authors MUST attach a rating to every fic they post. They MUST also include a warnings label in the header. You have two options with the warnings header:

a. List the appropriate warnings in good faith and as thoroughly as you can.

b. Choose not to use warnings at all, in which case you will say: This author has chosen not to use warnings. This sends a clear and unambiguous message to the reader that he or she is reading at his or her own risk.

The rating label is mandatory; especially if the author chooses not to use warnings. The MPAA rating definitions are very helpful, or you can also use the fiction ratings system that is used by ff.net and AO3. We don’t care which one you use, so long as you use it; this at least will give the reader a ballpark idea of what they’re getting into without going into the specifics of warnings.

Here are examples of the two different ways this could play out:

WARNINGS USED
Title: That Fic Where Clint and Natasha Go on a Mission (and End up Kissing)
Author: [[your name here]]
Pairing/Characters: Clint/Natasha
Word Count: 1200
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Mild language, sexual situations, past references to child abuse.
Author’s Notes: [[…]]
Summary: [[…]]

NO WARNINGS USED
Title: That Fic Where Clint and Natasha Go on a Mission (and End up Kissing)
Author: [[your name here]]
Pairing/Characters: Clint/Natasha
Word Count: 1200
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: This author has chosen not to use warnings.
Author’s Notes: [[…]]
Summary: [[…]]

RULE #2: READERS
Readers, if you have a problem with the way a fic is posted or labeled, your options are to either (i) PM the author or (ii) PM a mod to discuss your concerns. This goes to protecting the integrity of the author’s work, avoiding what could be considered a spoiler disclosure, and allowing the author some measure of control in how the ratings/warnings are presented. Public comments on these issues will be deleted. You have four mods plus one author to choose from; that, we believe, is more than enough people with the ability to respond to your concern within a reasonable time.

And of course, if you have a question about the fic such as “is this babyfic?” or “is there kissing?” or maybe to ask about a trigger that is very specific to you personally, please feel free to PM the author. I am sure he/she would be flattered to hear from you and would be glad to answer the question. And, as always, the mods are available for PM questions of any kind; that is what we are here for, and we will do our best to get back to you as soon as possible.

What constitutes appropriate warnings?
Well, there are always the usual suspects:

Graphic violence
Rape/non-con
Dub con
Underage
Graphic injury/illness/medical trauma/reproductive trauma
Character death

We would simply encourage our authors to add more specific warnings as they deem appropriate for their particular fic.

Concerns about spoilers:
Authors, if you choose to use warnings and worry that information in the warning might also give away a vital plot point or surprise, you can hide the warning under an LJ-spoiler cut.

A word on using warnings…
Even with warnings authors might not pick up on everything, and we understand that. And we ask our readers to be aware of this. For authors, it is perfectly fine to say 'these are the warnings to the best of my knowledge' or 'may contain other triggers.' What we don’t want to do is make using warnings such a daunting task that authors get scared off using them for fear of doing them ‘wrong’ or thinking that they might make a mistake and get in trouble. We want to encourage the use of warnings whenever we can, although this is not a requirement. In this case, it is much more of a 'thanks for the effort' kind of thing instead of a 'oh, you missed something, you fail' kind of thing.





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PLAGIARISM POLICY:
It’s very simple. If someone should post a story or other fanwork which has been plagiarized (meaning, the use of another person’s work in any way without their permission and without credit to the original source), then that person will be banned from this community. No warnings, no slap on the wrist, no second chances—one time and you’re done. That’s how seriously we take this.

If anyone has plagiarism concerns over something that has been posted, please PM a mod right away and we will sort it out.





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THE REST OF THE RULES:

1. Please place anything Not Safe For Work behind a cut or a link.

2. Character bashing and ship wars are assassinable offences, so please don't. Feel free to speak your mind, but always keep it respectful and polite.

3. We love pictures, graphics, interviews, and all the fun things with Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson, but ask that you not post (i) any RPF (Real Person Fanfiction), or (ii) any gossip/speculation about their off-screen non-work lives, as the primary focus of this comm are the fictional characters of Clint Barton/Hawkeye and Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow as portrayed in the Marvel films.

4. Have a question? PM a mod. It’s what we’re here for.

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Overall, we are so grateful for and pleased with the members of this bar and how you conduct yourselves, and we expect no less in 2013. This is a great damn bar. It is our hope that by clarifying these rules that we can continue to have a great bar, to balance the interests of our members, and to provide a welcoming space for all your squee.

If you have questions about any of these policies, please don't hesitate to PM a mod.

We thank you so much for your time and wish you a wonderful new year!

Sincerely,
Your faithful Mod Team