(AKA: Even Santa Secretly Enjoys Katawa Shoujo(2024), ESSEKS6, SX-6, Doublesex, S15, Sfünfzehn)
(Silentcook's gonna hate me for that title...)
DO NOT REPLY TO THIS THREAD - this thread is for notice purposes only. Due to the nature of this idea, it falls dangerously close to requesting, which, as we all know, is strictly forbidden. If you have a reasonable question to something I missed, a reply may be merited, but otherwise, read what's being said, and keep it to PMs. I'm asking Silentcook to sticky this, so there won't be any reason/need to bump this for visibility.
With that notice out of the way, here's the basic rundown:
Yeah, I'm late. Rumors of my death are almost as exaggerated as rumors that I'll post another chapter soon (and I'm the one spreading those rumors!). At eight years old, this is now older than some of the folks who read KS.
What - You're probably all familiar with the concept of a Secret Santa. Participants volunteer to give a gift, and names are drawn randomly such that every participant receives a gift from another participant. In this case, the "gifts" will be short stories (500-1000 words minimum; no upper limit).
Who - The goal is for all participants to have their submissions in by the 25th. Or by the end of the 12 days of Christmas. Or February Second. Or in time for next Christmas. We've had some schedule slippages and emergency subs over time. And I'm still topping my own "Naughty List" from last year. But the goal is that you should only sign up if you believe you can deliver. And 500 words is short. One third of "Rap God" by Eminem. So two minutes. Easy.
How - Anyone who can commit to participation will send me a private message with a simple short story prompt - a sentence or a set of keywords of something you'd like to see written. Rules are: It MUST be KS-related; Crossovers and dependence on other works is discouraged; so as to not discomfort whoever has to write your prompt, fetish/lewdness/dark&edgy is strongly discouraged (people are free to write lewd, but it's something else to expect a volunteer to write your fic about Scooby Doo/Twilight: Crippled Fizz in Idaho); Christmas/Holiday/Winter theming is encouraged but not required.
Come November 28 (Thanksgiving Day), I'll take the submitted names/prompts, shuffle them, and give each participant someone else's name and prompt (via PM). (Give or take, heavily so with it being so late to announce. I can usually handle late submissions, but try not to make a habit of it)
When - The ideal posting time would be December 25 (Christmas), but, accounting for schedules, it's reasonable to allow a week's leeway in either direction (December 18-January 1), with the expectation that participants try to get as close to the 25th as reasonable/possible. It's been suggested that we try doing an "advent calendar" approach of posting 1 submission each day in the lead-up to Christmas, but that needs a level of coordination that hasn't turned up in previous years. Y'all're welcome to try if you like the idea, though.
Where - Here in the Fan Fic section. Label it as an S15 submission, and include in the post who it's for, and what their prompt was. We'll try to set up a consolidated place for them, but some authors may prefer to use their own existing threads or something.
Why - At this point? It reassures people that I'm still alive, still writing, and haven't washed my hands of KS. And all that Christmas Cheer stuff too, I guess.