FAQ
What is “Merlin Horror”?
-- Merlin Horror is a fic/art fest for the BBC show “Merlin” that is dedicated to the creation of works that are of a horror type nature.
What constitutes as “horror”?
-- We understand that many people have different ideas of what horror is, so we are going to be pretty open-minded with the definition. But generally, we’ll accept anything that has elements that are generally classified as horror or suspense. So if you want to have the ever popular masked murderer slashing up yet another teen, the light-hearted zombiedy with bonding while shotgunning rotten flesh, the classic Gothic horror with unknown shadows in the dark and disembodied voices; the possibilities are endless! If you have doubts on whether your idea will count, please feel free to contact us!
Are there any restrictions on settings/pairings/kinks/etc?
-- All settings (canon, historical AU, modern AU, RPF, etc), as well as all pairings are completely welcome! You are free to explore any kink as well, but please be aware to warn for ones that possibly be triggering. (Death, gore, violence, noncon/dubcon, etc)
How do I join?
-- Once you submit your information (either by the LJ or Tumblr sign-on post--coming soon), you’re in! Feel free to start creating something using your own prompt, or maybe you can find inspiration at our prompt donation page.
Do you have to participate in the fest in order to leave a prompt?
-- No. Leave as little or as many prompts as you want, regardless or not if you can fill any yourself.
How many times can a prompt be selected?
-- A prompt can be selected many times; after all, if two people chose a prompt like, “Merlin is a ghost trying to get back into his own body,” they can produce two different and awesome takes on the story. If you’re afraid of sharing a prompt with someone else, you can always choose your own.
Can I submit more than one piece?
-- Of course! Whatever you’re willing to create, as long as they’re finished by the check-in date.
When do I post?
-- At the check-in in October you'll be assigned a posting date. Please do not post any of your work before that date. (Sharing with a beta or posting snippets for followers' thoughts is allowed)
What do you consider fic/art/vid?
-- Fic: We prefer all pieces must be at least 500 words, and while a beta isn’t necessary, it is strongly encouraged. This applies to podfic as well.
-- Art: We prefer all pieces to be a complete piece of work and not just a sketch/preview. We accept art done by traditional as well as digital means, including graphic arts, photomanips, photosets, and icons.
-- Vid: We prefer all videos must be a minimum of 30 seconds in length.
No matter what media your submission is in, it must be a standalone piece! Which means no prequels/sequels, unless the viewer can understand it without knowledge of the previous works. Pieces must be also posted as a whole on their creator's assigned posting date; WIPs will not be accepted.
What is the age limit?
-- We ask that all participants be sixteen and up, and state their age while signing up. The reason we ask this is because we are aware that horror can be written as low as a PG-13 level, but we want to make sure we don’t encourage the participation of younger viewers in something they shouldn’t be involved with.
How are pieces of work submitted?
-- Depending on the format of the submission, they may be posted in one of following ways:
--- AO3: Authors/Artists can post their works directly to the AO3 collection/their personal journals and then cross-post it to the LJ community. The mods will also cross-post your link to the Merlin Horror tumblr (or reblog a post with the link if you provide one)
--- Tumblr: Authors/Artists can upload their works directly to their and then cross-post it to the LJ community. Please tag your post with “merlin horror” so we can also reblog it on the Merlin Horror tumblr.
--- Directly to the community: If you do not wish to post to, you may post your work directly to the community. The mods will also post the link to your work on the Merlin Horror tumblr (or reblog a post with the link if you provide one)
If you don’t have a LJ, after you post your work elsewhere (Tumblr, AO3, etc), email a link to it to merlinhorror@gmail.com and the mods will cross-post it to the LJ community for you.
What’s the schedule for claiming/submitting/posting?
-- This year’s (2015) schedule is as follows:
--- June 9 Donate-a-Prompt post goes up
--- June 15 Signups begin
--- Oct 11 Final Check-In
--- Oct 18-31 Posting! Levels of participation will determine how often pieces of work are posted
If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment here (all comments are screened), send us a PM on the mod account, send us an ask on the tumblr account, or send us an email at merlinhorror@gmail.com!
-- Merlin Horror is a fic/art fest for the BBC show “Merlin” that is dedicated to the creation of works that are of a horror type nature.
What constitutes as “horror”?
-- We understand that many people have different ideas of what horror is, so we are going to be pretty open-minded with the definition. But generally, we’ll accept anything that has elements that are generally classified as horror or suspense. So if you want to have the ever popular masked murderer slashing up yet another teen, the light-hearted zombiedy with bonding while shotgunning rotten flesh, the classic Gothic horror with unknown shadows in the dark and disembodied voices; the possibilities are endless! If you have doubts on whether your idea will count, please feel free to contact us!
Are there any restrictions on settings/pairings/kinks/etc?
-- All settings (canon, historical AU, modern AU, RPF, etc), as well as all pairings are completely welcome! You are free to explore any kink as well, but please be aware to warn for ones that possibly be triggering. (Death, gore, violence, noncon/dubcon, etc)
How do I join?
-- Once you submit your information (either by the LJ or Tumblr sign-on post--coming soon), you’re in! Feel free to start creating something using your own prompt, or maybe you can find inspiration at our prompt donation page.
Do you have to participate in the fest in order to leave a prompt?
-- No. Leave as little or as many prompts as you want, regardless or not if you can fill any yourself.
How many times can a prompt be selected?
-- A prompt can be selected many times; after all, if two people chose a prompt like, “Merlin is a ghost trying to get back into his own body,” they can produce two different and awesome takes on the story. If you’re afraid of sharing a prompt with someone else, you can always choose your own.
Can I submit more than one piece?
-- Of course! Whatever you’re willing to create, as long as they’re finished by the check-in date.
When do I post?
-- At the check-in in October you'll be assigned a posting date. Please do not post any of your work before that date. (Sharing with a beta or posting snippets for followers' thoughts is allowed)
What do you consider fic/art/vid?
-- Fic: We prefer all pieces must be at least 500 words, and while a beta isn’t necessary, it is strongly encouraged. This applies to podfic as well.
-- Art: We prefer all pieces to be a complete piece of work and not just a sketch/preview. We accept art done by traditional as well as digital means, including graphic arts, photomanips, photosets, and icons.
-- Vid: We prefer all videos must be a minimum of 30 seconds in length.
No matter what media your submission is in, it must be a standalone piece! Which means no prequels/sequels, unless the viewer can understand it without knowledge of the previous works. Pieces must be also posted as a whole on their creator's assigned posting date; WIPs will not be accepted.
What is the age limit?
-- We ask that all participants be sixteen and up, and state their age while signing up. The reason we ask this is because we are aware that horror can be written as low as a PG-13 level, but we want to make sure we don’t encourage the participation of younger viewers in something they shouldn’t be involved with.
How are pieces of work submitted?
-- Depending on the format of the submission, they may be posted in one of following ways:
--- AO3: Authors/Artists can post their works directly to the AO3 collection/their personal journals and then cross-post it to the LJ community. The mods will also cross-post your link to the Merlin Horror tumblr (or reblog a post with the link if you provide one)
--- Tumblr: Authors/Artists can upload their works directly to their and then cross-post it to the LJ community. Please tag your post with “merlin horror” so we can also reblog it on the Merlin Horror tumblr.
--- Directly to the community: If you do not wish to post to, you may post your work directly to the community. The mods will also post the link to your work on the Merlin Horror tumblr (or reblog a post with the link if you provide one)
If you don’t have a LJ, after you post your work elsewhere (Tumblr, AO3, etc), email a link to it to merlinhorror@gmail.com and the mods will cross-post it to the LJ community for you.
What’s the schedule for claiming/submitting/posting?
-- This year’s (2015) schedule is as follows:
--- June 9 Donate-a-Prompt post goes up
--- June 15 Signups begin
--- Oct 11 Final Check-In
--- Oct 18-31 Posting! Levels of participation will determine how often pieces of work are posted
If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment here (all comments are screened), send us a PM on the mod account, send us an ask on the tumblr account, or send us an email at merlinhorror@gmail.com!