fantasy-writers.org

Fantasy-Writers.org is a free website for writers of fantasy stories to meet and interact with other writers in the same genre. The site features story submission for peer review, forums, link directory, and private messages. Even if you are not a writer and like to discuss the fantasy genre this is a good site for you.

2) What are the benefits of being a member of Fantasy-Writers.org?

Members of Fantasy-Writers.org are able to post in the forums were visitors can only observe. Members can submit stories to Fantasy-Writers.org and comment on previously submitted stories. Visitors have no access to the stories. Members can Private Message other members through the website were visitors cannot. Members can participate in the writing contests were visitors cannot. And finally, logged in members do not have to view the link exchange banner were visitors and logged out members do.

3) How do I become a member of Fantasy-Writers.org?

Signing up to be a member of Fantasy-Writers.org is simple, quick, and free. Locate the “Sign Up” option on the menu bar on the top left hand side and click it. On the next page, fill in the four entry blanks with your correct information and hit the “submit” button located just below the entry blanks. Then you are all set. You can log in with the user name and password you selected and start utilizing the website’s facilities right away.

4) What is Fantasy-Writers.org user agreement?

By using Fantasy-Writers.org, members agree to abide by following code of conduct:

I understand that www.Fantasy-Writers.org is a not-for-profit site and its goal is to provide a free community to writers.

I agree not to place personal links or advertisements within my forum posts or story posts or in private messages to members unless asked for by the administrators or other members. I understand that I can place links to websites in the directory and that I can place links in my signature for forum posts.

I understand that the administrators will remove any content from the site that does not adhere to the rules set by www.Fantasy-Writers.org and that they are not required to inform the author of such action.

I understand that all stories submitted to www.Fantasy-Writers.org will be put in queue and reviewed by the administrators before it is posted on www.Fantasy-Writers.org. This process can take anywhere from a few minutes to twenty-four hours. I understand that if the content of a story is inappropriate for www.Fantasy-Writers.org that it will be deleted from queue and it will not be posted on www.Fantasy-Writers.org and that I do not have to be notified of such action.

I agree not to post stories of a pornographic nature or stories glorifying hate crimes.

I understand that everything that I post to www.Fantasy-Writers.org must be original works of my own devising. This means I will not post any material that I do not personally own copyrights to. I understand that I am not allowed to copy or save any other members stories to my hard drive or any other permanent storage device because this would be a violation of www.Fantasy-Writers.org policy and copyright law. If my work is copied with out my consent, it is at my discretion and expense to persecute. www.Fantasy-Writers.org is not responsible for stolen works.

I promise that I will treat my fellow members with dignity and respect. I will not use foul language in any of my PM messages, my forum posts, or my story comments. I will not degrade myself by calling other members names or posting negative comments or content on the site. I will respect their works and will not copy or save their works onto a permanent storage device because that would be a violation of www.Fantasy-Writers.org policy and copyright law. I will not post someone else’s original works as my own either on www.Fantasy-Writers.org or any other website, magazine, or forum.

I understand that if I do not abide by the rules set by www.Fantasy-Writers.org that my membership will be revoked and my posted stories will be deleted.

I understand that www.Fantasy-Writers.org will amend the user agreement at any time.

By using www.Fantasy-Writers.org I agree to these terms.

5) Do I have to pay to be a member?

Membership for Fantasy-Writers.org is completely free and signing up is relatively painless.

6) Will there ever be a “Premium Membership”?

At this point in time, there are absolutely no plans to have a “Premium Membership.” Fantasy-Writers.org wants all its members to have equal access to all the resources available and to have equal exposure opportunities on the site.

7) I see I can donate with PayPal, will that affect my account?

No, making donations will not affect your account in any way. It will continue to be free and will remain free.

8) What will my PayPal donations be used for?

All donations received will be used for the betterment of Fantasy-Writers.org. Funds will be used for site hosting, site modifications and updates, site administrations, promotions, and staffing.

Copyright, Plagiarism, & Publication

1) What is Copyright?

Copyright is a form of protection provided by the laws of the United States and other countries to the authors of original literary works. This protection is available to both published and unpublished works. Copyright does not protect ideas; regardless of the form in which it is described, explained, or illustrated.

2) How do I copyright my work?

Copyright protection exists from the time the work is created in fixed form. The copyright of an original work immediately becomes the property of the author who created the work. The work has copyright whether published or unpublished. If a work is prepared over a period of time, the part of the work that is fixed on a particular date constitutes the created work as of that date. Even though registration of copyright is not a requirement for protection, the copyright law provides several advantages to encourage copyright owners to register. Registration establishes a public record of the copyright claim and before an infringement suit may be filed in court, registration is necessary for works of U. S. origin. Registration may be made at any time within the life of the copyright.

3) Do I keep my copyright if I post my work on Fantasy-Writers.org?

Fantasy-Writers.org does not claim copyrights to any stories posted by members. Stories posted here are the sole property of the member who posted the work. The member is responsible for content, not Fantasy-Writers.org.

Fantasy-Writers.org retains the right to remove content posted by members on the basis of inappropriate content such as plagiarized works, pornography, extreme vulgarity, etc.

Fantasy-Writers.org postings of stories by its members constitutes as Fair Use of the Copyright law by Fantasy-Writers.org for criticism and comment purposes.

The member may remove any story they have posted at anytime but all comments will be lost upon deletion.

4) How do I keep my work from getting plagiarized?

The sad truth is that there is no way to safe guard your works from plagiarism.

You can however take steps to prevent it and steps to defend against it when it happens.

Fantasy-Writers.org provides a barrier from the regular internet community by requiring that only members can have access to stories. This provides some form of protection.

Authors may also place a declaration of copyright on their posted stories to discourage potential content thieves. Authors can do so by placing “Copyright © Year by Your Name. All Rights Reserved.” This will show that you take your work seriously by declaring copyright and make potential content thieves think twice.

The most extreme step to take against plagiarism is to register your work with the local Copyright Office. This will cost money but will be required if you are planning on taking legal action against the plagiarist.

5) Is Fantasy-Writers.org considered Publishing or E-Publishing?

Fantasy-Writers.org does not sell, rent, lease, or lend any story posted here. Fantasy-Writers.org does not distribute copies to groups or persons for the purpose of further distribution, public performance, or public display.

Since only members are able to view stories displayed on Fantasy-Writers.org, this site does not constitute as a public performance or public display of any stories submitted here.

So, according to the definition of “Publication” located on www.copyright.gov, Fantasy-Writers.org is not a Publishing or E-Publishing website.

Member Area Questions

1) What is the “My Account” section?

The “My Account” section is for modifying your account and preferences on Fantasy-Writers.org.

The first section “Modify Your Account” is for adding information not originally asked for when you signed up. You can include information such as your chat program screen names, your personal website URL, a personal quote that will show up below every forum post you make, and you can opt to “Show Profile” or receive the “Newsletter.” You can also change your email address here. Remember, it is important to keep your email address valid. Any member found to have submitted an invalid email address will have their account deleted. If the administrators cannot contact you via email, your account is in jeopardy. Fantasy-Writers.org will not sell your email address to anyone nor will we send you unsolicited mail from the site. Remember to hit “Modify” to save any changes.

The second section, “Avatar” is for selecting or uploading your own personal icon. The avatar will be displayed below your user name on every forum post you make. You can select an avatar that is provided by Fantasy-Writers.org my choosing from the “Available Avatars” on the drop down menu. You can view your selected avatar once you hit submit. Or you can enter the URL of an image that you would like displayed as your personal avatar. Fantasy-Writers.org does not store member avatars on its own server. Images must be on another server and linked to by Fantasy-Writers.org. Remember that not all web hosts allow images to be accessed from other sources. Please keep avatars small and clean. The administrators reserve the right to delete any avatars that are considered inappropriate or that are corrupt images. Remember to hit “Submit” to save any changes.

The next section, “Themes” lets you select which of the several themes you like best for your site viewing pleasure. To view the theme you will need to select one and hit “Modify”. The new theme will then be applied. The “default” theme will rotate through all the themes Fantasy-Writers.org has to offer over time. It will change at least once a month.

The next section “Change Password” allows you to change your password. Fill in the necessary information and remember to hit “Modify.”

The last section, “Blocks Designer”, allows you to move the menu blocks located by default to the left around to the right side and up or down in sequence. To do this, click on the link below the “Blocks Designer” banner. There will be a brief explanation in the center of the next page on how to change the blocks. On the left hand side you will see all the menu blocks in large colored blocks. Select the one that you would like to move. You will see it will show up on the bottom after “Selected Block”. Then click the gray block on the right or left where you would like the block to be located. Once you are done, click the “submit” button.

Please note that settings like the themes and blocks are saved as cookies on your personal computer. If you access the site from another terminal your settings will not be applied. Or if your computer does not allow cookies or deleted cookies regularly, your settings will not be saved.

2) What is the “My Messages” Section?

The Fantasy-Writers.org has a unique feature which is you can send private messages or PMs to other members while logged in. Think of it as intra-site email. The “My Messages” section allows you to read, write, and store PMs as well as keep a list of friends to PM.

When you first log on, if you have new PMs, you will notice a pop up window that will alert you to new PM messages as well as a blinking envelope icon on the top left below that Fantasy-Writers.org banner. You can click on either the pop up window, the envelope, or the “My Messages” link to be taken to your inbox.

New messages will have an unopened envelope icon next to them, read messages have an opened envelope with a note inside next to them, and messages that you have replied to have the same opened envelope with a red arrow pointing back next to them.

The inbox functions much like any other email program. It lists the author of the message, the subject, the date it was sent, and a check box for deletion.

Clicking on the user name of the person who sent you a PM will bring you to a blank PM page to send them a PM. This however does not reply to the message nor does it allow you to read the message before hand.

Clicking on the subject line will take you to the message itself. From here you can skip back to a previous message, delete the current message, or reply to the message. Once a message is deleted the message is irrecoverable.

On the bottom of the inbox you will notice a “Friends List” and an “Ignore List”. Here you can add friends to your “Friends List” to make sending them PM messages faster and easier. Or you can add members to your “Ignore List” to never receive PMs from them.

If you are receiving spam-type messages or harassing messages from any member please send the offensive PM to Elisabeth with a brief explanation of the situation. Spamming or harassing fellow members is strictly prohibited.

3) What is the “My Stories” Section?

The “My Stories” section is for your original written works to be submitted to be displayed on the website and available to other members for peer review and critique.

Here is a quick definition of terms with an example of your “My Stories” page.

My Top 10 StoriesSort by Date (ASC)

Title (A/D) Author (A/D) Date (A/D) Hits Actions

Title of Story Member Name 1/1/2000 15

Add – Story

The “Title” column lists your story submissions.

You can switch how your stories are sorted by clicking on the (A/D) next to the “Title” column header, the “Author” column header, or the “Date” column header. A is for Ascending and D is for Descending. For example, if I click “D” next to the “Date” column header, my stories will be sorted in descending order according to date. If I click “A” next to the “Title” column header, then my stories will be sorted alphabetically in ascending order. You will notice that after the “My Top 10 Stories” header, it will list how the “My Stories” is currently sorted, example “Sort by Date (ASC)”. That means the stories are sorted by ascending date.

The “Author” column lists the name of the author of the corresponding story. Since this is in the “My Stories” section they author listed will be your member name.

The “Date” column lists the post date that the story as added to “My Stories.” This date will not change even if you modify the story or add more chapters.

The “Hits” column lists the number of times that members have accessed your story; since the number in the example is 15 that means that the story in the example has been viewed 15 times.

The “Actions” column lists the actions that you can do to your story. The first icon, the magnifying glass, is for viewing your work and how it will look to other members. The second icon, the notebook and pen, is for editing your work to fix any mistakes you might have come across. The third icon, the trash can, is for deleting your work. It will ask you a second time if you really want to delete your work, as a precaution against accidental deletion. If you delete your work however, there is no way for Fantasy-Writers.org to recover it.

On the bottom of the “My Top 10 Stories” section you will notice an “Add – Story” link. Click the “Add - Story” link to create a new story to be added to the list.

Since the “My Stories” page only lists the latest 10 stories submitted there is a search bar located below the “My Top 10 Stories” section. This allows you to search by the beginning letter of the story of by keywords. Since it is in the “My stories” section, it will only search your works, not other members.

4) How do I submit a story that I have written?

First you must be a logged in member. Locate in the ‘Main Menu’ on the left hand side the ‘My Stories’ link and click on it. On the next page, locate the “Add - Story” link below the “My Top 10 Stories” and click on it. On the following page, fill in the title, the description of the story, and what category it belongs in. And then click on the “submit” button.

You will be taken back to the “My Top 10 Stories” page with the new story listed on top. Follow the table row with your new story all the way to the right and select the “edit” button in the center of the three action buttons.

You will be taken to what looks like the first story submit page but you will notice an “add – page” link on the bottom of the page. Click on “add – page”. On the next page, you have the option to “add – page” or go back. To add the first part/chapter/page of your story, click “add – page”.

Fill in the title of your first part/chapter/page of your story and the content. Please use basic HTML tags to format your story. Once the story is submitted, formatting just as tabs and returns will be lost. It is easiest to use the simple paragraph tag, , at the beginning of each paragraph. Once you are done with your first part/chapter/page, click on the ‘submit’ button at the bottom of the page. Repeat this process to add more parts/chapters/pages.

Your story is now submitted.

5) Why is my story not showing in the stories section of the website?

All stories submitted to Fantasy-Writers.org need to be validated for post by one of the administrators. Since the administrators are volunteers, it can take anywhere from a few minutes to twenty-four hours for all the stories submitted to get validated. If a previously validated story is edited by the author, the story automatically becomes invalid and must be reviewed by an administrator. At this time, the administrators have no way to discern an updated story from a previously validated story so please PM the administrators for a quick response time.

6) When I look in the “My Stories” section, why does it say “invalid” or “False” next to my submitted story?

“Invalid” or “False” means that the section of story in question has not been validated yet. The validation process can take up to 24 hours. If it has been longer then 24 hours, please PM Elisabeth.

7) What are the guidelines for submitting a story?

All written works submitted to Fantasy-Writers.org should be in the fantasy genre and categorized properly upon submission.

All works must be written by the member who submits the story to Fantasy-Writers.org. Any member found to be plagiarizing another author’s work will be expelled from Fantasy-Writers.org and any submission made by that member deleted.

Fantasy-Writers.org does not post stories with pornographic scenes or scenes glorifying hate crimes. A rating system is in development to help categorize the wide spectrum of stories being posted.

All written works submitted must be formatted clearly and easy to read. You must use HTML tags to format your submitted work. If you have not formatted your work, it will still get validated but it will be difficult for members to read.

Please only submit works that are ready for peer edit, meaning spelling is correct and grammar is correct. The Administrators are not here to be your personal editors. They are there to make sure that content fits within the guidelines for Fantasy-Writers.org.

There is currently no word minimum or maximum for a submitted story unless submitted for a contest. Please remember that if your story is lengthy, it will get validated more quickly if broken into shorter pages.

Fan Fictions welcome.

8) Is Fantasy-Writers.org going to proof read my story for me?

No, Fantasy-Writers.org is not a proof reading engine. We are a community of writers willing to do critiques for fellow writers. We are not here to be your personal editors. Please do not submit anything that needs to be proof read. Only submit works with near perfect grammar and formatting.

9) What are the HTML tags I should know to format my story submission?

The most basic HTML tag you can use is the paragraph

tag. You can place this in front of each new paragraph. This tag you do not need to close, unlike other HTML tags.

The next in line for complexity of use are the format tags for Bold , Italics , and Underlined . These can be very useful to express strong points in your story. Please note that each tag was closed at the point that the author wanted the effect to end. If you do not close the tag, then rest of the document will exhibit which ever tag you set.

Lastly, the < CENTER > tag will center your text on the page. Like the above, you need to close the < /CENTER > tag to end its effect.

If you know more HTML tags you may use them at your discretion. The tags listed here are the basics and intended to help those of you who do not know HTML but wish to format your story well.

10) What fantasy categories are there to submit stories under and how are they defined?

Alternate Endings
Similar to a Fan Fiction, an Alternate Ending is a story written by a fan that starts before the ending of an existing story from a movie, novel, or video game, and retells the ending to the fan’s satisfaction.

Contemporary Fantasy
Fantasy stories set in modern times containing fantastical elements such as enchanted items, magical powers, or surreal situations.

Dark Fantasy
A story featuring elements of the supernatural such as ghosts, zombies, vampires, or were creatures. Most often intended to give the reader a sense of fear or dread.

Fairy Tale
Original stories, generally for younger audiences, that contain classic figures such as fairy god mothers, evil step mothers, and charming princes with the intent to teach a lesson or moral.

Fan Fiction
A written contribution that takes place after the conclusion of an existing story such as a movie, novel, or video game written by a fan with intent to extend the original story.

High Fantasy
An epic story where everything is in a grand scale; typically involving complicated worlds, dangerous quests, and a collection of diverse heroes who overcome all odds to obtain a unified goal.

Light Fantasy
Fantasy stories written to entertain through the use of humor and comedy.

Poetry
Any poem that is written with fantastical elements or themes.

Retelling
Generally best done with older stories such as myths and legends, an author retells a story through his/her own words the way they interpreted the original tale.

Science Fantasy
A tactful combination of science technology and fantastical elements with either both components in harmony or at odds with one another causing great unrest.

Sword & Sorcery
A very popular sub-genre of fantasy, these tales contain stories of fighter style characters or societies and magic users or magic user societies either in harmony or conflict fighting to obtain a goal against one another or a common enemy.

11) Why can’t I have links to my personal site in my story section?

Fantasy-Writers.org does not allow personal advertising within the story sections or within the forums. This is a writing community, not a means of advertising. If you see someone using Fantasy-Writers.org in a way that is not beneficial to the community, please notify an Administrator.

12) How can I find stories written by Fantasy-Writers.org members?

The stories that are submitted by members are only available to other members who are logged in. If you are member and wish to read stories, simply log in and you will see the “Stories” option in the menu bar. If you are not a member and would like to read the stories, simply sign up for free.

Forum and Chat Room Questions

1) What are the Fantasy-Writers.org guidelines for posting in the forum?

No images. There are not images allowed in either signature or forum post. Avatars are obviously an exception.
No swearing. This includes vulgar slang terms.
No plagiarized content. This means no material that was not written by the author regardless if the copyright of the material has lapsed. This includes but is not limited to: Quotes, lyrics, etc. Quotes with proper credit are allowed in signatures only.
No links. There are absolutely no links allowed in forum posts. Signatures are fine and links in the advertisement section. The directory will be back online soon. Add your links there.
Stay on topic. Posts that are off topic/irrelevant will be deleted.
Post threads in proper category. Threads found in the wrong category will be moved with out notifying the author.
No flaming. Flaming is defined as “to send an angry, hostile, or abusive electronic message to or about.” But this also includes badgering someone about a difference of opinion.
No run away threads. Basically, if a certain few are posting so frequently that no one else can get an opinion posted before their response is outdated; this is a run away thread. A short period of time is defined here as under half an hour.
No Stories in the Forum. Unless in the Writers's Clinic.

2) What will happen if I do not follow the guidelines for Forum posts?

The Forum Moderators will delete the inappropriate post and you will receive a PM from the Administrators. Fantasy-Writers.org only allows for three infractions of the rules before disciplinary action. Disciplinary action is account deletion.

3) How do I make a post in the forum?

To create a new topic thread in the forum, simple go to topic area that applies to your intended post. Scroll to the bottom of the forum area and click “New Topic.”

To respond to an already created thread, select the thread you would like to reply to. Scroll to the bottom of the forum area and click on “Answer.” You can also create a New Topic in this area.

The forum post window is pretty self explanatory. If you are creating a new topic, you will have to enter a title. Otherwise, with a response to a thread, the title is already in place. Next, select a humor icon. This will be displayed next to the title and be an indicator of what kind of post you have made. Use the Edit Menu to do any formatting that you need in the message box. Select any smileys you would like while typing your message and then hit “Post.” If you want to see what your post will look like first, hit “Preview.”

4) What is an Avatar?

An avatar is an image that is displayed beneath a member’s user name in the forum section. A member can select an avatar from the list of avatars available through the site or personalize an avatar.

5) How can I select an Avatar?

To select an avatar, you must be a logged in member. Click on the “My Account” link in the left main menu bar. The avatar section is the second section from the top. Here you can select an avatar from the “Available Avatars” drop down menu bar. Once you find an avatar you like, hit “Submit”.

6) How can I personalize my Avatar?

To select an avatar, you must be a logged in member. Click on the “My Account” link in the left main menu bar. Below the “Available Avatar” selection area is the “Private Avatar” area with a text box. The text box is not for uploading images. The image that you want to have as a private avatar needs to be uploaded to another server or website that allows for outsourcing or loading the image from another location. Simply type the URL or address of the image that is already online into the text box and hit submit.

7) My private Avatar isn’t showing up, what’s wrong?

The problem could be one of many things.

Your URL might not be typed in correctly. Make sure that you have the correct URL typed into the text box and hit submit.

The website your image is hosted on might not allow outsourcing of images. If this is the case, you will need to find another site to host your image on. Remember to change the URL of your avatar when you change the location.

The location of the avatar you want displayed might not be uploaded to a server. If you type the location of an image on your home computer the website will not be able to find it. All images used for avatars must be hosted on other internet servers. Fantasy-Writers.org is not able to host images for members.

8) What are the Fantasy-Writers.org guidelines for using the chat room?

Respect your fellow members by not using foul language in the chat room.
Do not use the chat room for personal advertising.
Do not make negative comments or be disruptive to the chatting group.
If you are participating in a scheduled topic chat, please stay on topic.
Notify an administrator if you feel that a member is in violation of the guidelines.

Fantasy-Writers.org is a privately owned online writing community.
We do not claim ownership of member posted content nor do we claim
responsibility for said content.

© 2003 - 2012 by Elisabeth Clouse. All Rights Reserved.