Date Everything Comment Exchange

💗 Welcome to the Date Everything Comment Exchange! 💗

This is an event to celebrate all of the incredible fics that have been written over the past year, timed (vaguely) around the anniversary of the game's release! The ask box is open for any questions/comments/concerns and all answered questions will be tagged #asks. Please check these and the FAQ before sending in an ask!

run by @bayta-darell

Sign-up link: https://forms.gle/i71K9ukByNQSiU6k8

Timeline:

Sign-ups close 6/15

Assignments sent out 6/17

Comments due 6/24

All comments posted by 6/30

How it works:

Participants can sign up to give and/or receive comments.

To receive comments, you will submit your AO3 profile in the sign-up form. One or more anonymous participants will be assigned to you. At the end of the event, their comments will be anonymously posted on your fics by the LoveTinfoilhat AO3 account.

To give comments, you will specify how many authors you are willing to give comments to and which fic ratings you are comfortable reading. After sign-ups close, you will be sent your assigned author(s) and a comment submission google form. You will have approximately one week to submit at least one comment for each assigned writer using the provided google form. I will anonymously post the comments that you submit at the end of the event.

If you sign up to give comments, you can also sign up to be a pinch-hitter. This means that if a comment giver drops out of the event, I will contact everyone who signed up as a pinch-hitter to see if any of them are available to take that person's place and leave comments for their assigned author(s). There is no requirement to accept any pinch-hits if you sign up: it just means that you're on my list of people to reach out to in this scenario.

Rules:

Writers must have at least one Date Everything fic posted on AO3 with commenting enabled. It's okay if you have comment moderation or guest comments disabled, as long as I'm able to comment as a signed-in user.

All comments must be positive. Comments containing character/ship bashing, backhanded compliments, criticism (even constructive criticism), or other forms of hatred or bigotry will not be posted. The goal of this event is to celebrate authors, so please make sure that your comment upholds the spirit of the event.

There is no minimum length for comments, but they should be more substantial than keysmashes, emojis, or simple "well done!" messages.

sign-up | announcement post

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if the person assigned to me doesn't submit their comments?

The team of pinch-hitters will be contacted first, and if none of them are able to submit comments, I'll write at least one comment myself to ensure that everyone who signs up receives something.

What if I can't/don't want to comment on the person that I was assigned?

Contact me through this blog or email dateeverythingcommentexchange(at)gmail(dot)com as soon as possible with your username and let me know that you're dropping out. If you still want to participate and it's before 6/20, I can assign you another author. If it's after 6/20, I won't have time to match you with anyone else. There are no penalties for dropping out for any reason. Things come up, no judgment here! Just please let me know ASAP so that I have as much time as possible to ensure that your assigned author(s) still receive comments.

Can I specify which character(s) I want to read and comment on?

No, unfortunately. There are too many characters for me to reliably be able to match people with their preferred character(s). Take this as an opportunity to try reading something new, or contact me ASAP if you really can't find anything from your assigned author(s) to comment on and I will do my best to reassign you as long as you let me know prior to 6/20; afterwards I will not have time to sort out reassignments.

If my assigned author(s) have fics in other fandoms that I'm familiar with, can I leave comments for those?

When authors sign up, they have the option to opt in to accepting comments on non-Date Everything fics. If your assigned author(s) opted in to this, there will be a note letting you know when I send out assignments. Even if your author(s) opted in, there is no expectation for you to read anything other than their Date Everything fics.

Can I request comments on only specific fics?

No, sorry! This is to ensure the greatest chance that your assigned commenter(s) find something that they want to read and comment on.

Can I opt out of being assigned NSFW fics?

Yes! On the sign-up sheet, writers specify which ratings they've written fics for. Comment givers specify which ratings they are comfortable reading. Their assigned author(s) are guaranteed to have at least one fic with a rating that they chose here. Even if you only select G and T ratings, you may be assigned an author with some M or E ratings in addition to their G/T rated fics. You are under no obligation to read or comment on anything that you are uncomfortable with.

How many comments do I have to submit?

You must submit at least one comment for each author that you are assigned. However, you're more than welcome to submit multiple comments if you want to!

I have another question that isn't answered here.

Commenting Suggestions

You can also check out blogs like @\ao3commentoftheday, @\comment-challenge-of-the-week, and @\fanficowrimo as well as #fanficetiquette and #ao3etiquette for other perspectives on the types of comments that writers like to receive, but I've compiled some common suggestions here! Writers, feel free to add on to this post with your favorite types of comments to receive :)

Did a specific moment make you laugh/cry/swoon/etc?

What was your favorite line(s)?

Was there a plot twist that surprised you?

Was there a unique aspect to the format or writing style that you enjoyed?

What was your favorite aspect: plot, setting, characterization, prose, etc?

Did any characterization stand out to you?

What was the most impactful moment?

Which moment or line will you be thinking about even after you close the tab?

If this is a re-read, are there any aspects that stand out to you even more on the second (third, fourth...) time around?