#dbhrbbb2024

[dbh-bb]

Q&A

The mod team have been getting a lot of question, and we thought we'd use this opportunity to share the answers, and allay some fears. Whatever you're concerned about, you are not alone!

1. What if (as an artist) our story idea is terrible and nobody wants it?

A. The mods have a collection of ways to ensure everybody gets a good match. Unless your idea is (a) actually offensive, (b) a bad faith take for a public event (say, a meme done poorly, a crack prompt that's too specific, or a private joke taken too far), or (c) something so extremely detailed and specific that you should consider commissioning rather than participating in a public event, at least one person is going to be interested in creating for you.

Even for ideas that aren't popular / main pairings / concepts, even for ideas that are a bit off the wall -- there are always going to be creators who like a bit of a challenge. Who look at things and go, HUH. NEVER THOUGHT OF THAT ONE. and proceed to YOINK it up.

2. If I have an idea that I've written in part and shared in other discord servers, or have published incomplete somewhere, and find an artwork that fits with that, can I use that pre-existing idea to write for that artwork?

A. We have a rule about anonymity in order to make it as fair as possible when we open claims, so for the writers, it's less important that their ideas be brand new. However, in the spirit of the Bang, we do consider it important that the artist you're working with feels they are getting a fresh piece of work from you, and you do need to produce 10,000 words of new, previously unshared fic. If that happens to fit in with an idea you've already been writing, that's fine, so long as your artist is happy with that.

3. Is it okay if I sign up and then have to drop if, for example, none of the prompts interest me, or as an artist I realise I can't commit the time?

A. We would ask that people signing up do so with full intent to commit and not abandon their entry, whether they are entering as an artist or a writer. We do understand that commitments can be made and then circumstances prevent someone coming through as they intended, but if you're aware now that there is a serious possibility you won't be able to provide what you're signing up for, you may be better positioned to be a back up, a beta, or a cheerleader.

In the case of a Reverse Big Bang, with the art coming first, and the ideas coming from the artists, it is extra important that participants offering art not overcommit themselves, as the artists are the first link in the chain. This said, there is also no rush to sign up right now, as sign ups for artists don't close until the 30th of this month, so you have time to try and review your workload and schedule.

For writers, if the scope of what you are prepared to write is so narrow that you think there is a real risk that you won't find anything you will be able to write for, we would ask you to consider if a public event such as this is for you.

4. How many pieces of art can I do for the idea that I submit? Can I submit more ideas?

A. You can do as many pieces of art for any one idea as you like. Presently, we are keeping the number of ideas we will allow artists to submit to two until we know how the ratios are going to stack up. The mod team will be making regular updates both on the discord and here on tumblr to let participants know how that is faring at the time of posting. If the ratios are in favour, we may allow artists to submit third ideas.

5. Can I sign up as a pinch hitter?

A. At this time, we do not have a sign up process for pinch hitters, whether they be artists or writers. However, you do not need to be a Bang participant in order to pinch hit. Right now, people who join the discord are able to assign themselves roles such as pinch hitter, beta, and cheerleader, and will receive discord pings to that role as and if those become required. This is why we encourage people to join the discord even if they're not participating in the Bang directly, as there are still ways to support and help your fellows in the fandom.

Should the need arise for pinch hitters, the mod team will also be putting the message out on this tumblr, and reaching out to anyone that signed up and said they may be prepared to pinch hit. If you are contacted there is no requirement that you agree, we would just ask you to review the ideas on offer.

6. Do I need to join the discord in order to participate?

A. No. All the information and updates that are on the discord are also shared on tumblr, it's just that on tumblr we schedule posts to hit major time zones, and on discord they're put up immediately.

7. Will you be sharing the information artists put in their applications about what they're thinking of working on, and writers put in about what they would like to see somewhere that we can see it?

A. Yes! There will be weekly updates with this in an anonymous format shared on this tumblr. We also intend to share how many writers and artists have signed up so far so that you can have an idea of how ratios are currently stacking up. Please bear in mind, however, when we share this, that none of those numbers are final, and that we are only displaying the number of confirmed works on offer, and that a number of people are provisionally offering more.

8. Where do I find all the information about the Bang, such as rules and schedules, and an up to date discord link?

A. The pinned post on this tumblr contains all of that information. We also update the discord link on there any time we are made aware that it has expired, again. The mod team have been setting this to never expire, but discord is apparently not our friend, so if you find the link has expired, notify us either via asks, a message on the bottom of the post, or a tumblr IM, and we will update it (again).