Strange as it may seem

As for more details:

Why is Forduary ending?

Honestly, for some similar reasons as Stanuary.

It was once something done out of passion and frivolity but, while I still do carry that feeling for the series, characters, fellow fans, and fan creations, running this event is starting to feel more like an obligation and that pokes my demand avoidance in ways that I don't currently have the resources to handle.

Participation has noticeably and understandably declined.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with loving an older series and creating things based on it. In fact, I encourage that. But it's also understandable that the original fan base has at least partly moved on to other things. Time is timey and change is changey like that. And that's okay.

So, this is by no means anything negative nor is it meant to provoke guilt because I, too, am ready to move forward with this as a beloved part of who I am, just not as active as it was.

Stanuary was right. Ten years IS the perfect number to end on.

It really is nice. A decade. A whole decade! We did that together!

There are other personal reasons but I won't bore y'all with the details. Mostly, I need (and want) to direct energy into different things now. (Though to reveal at least something, I've been enjoying crafting physical pieces lately.)

What's going to happen to the blog and AO3 collection?

Same as with Stanuary. They'll stay up as long as either of these websites do and exist as a sort of archive.

Why not let someone else run Forduary?

Honestly, I don't feel confident in my ability to "hire" someone else to do it and would rather know that this slice of Forduary history will simply continue to exist as is as long as tumblr does.

If someone wants to start a new event, though, please do! But, I'd rather leave it up to whoever wants to take that initiative rather than try to pick someone to do so.

What's next?

Who knows? I certainly don't. At least, not yet.

Any secrets to share before the end?

Personal opinion only: shipping Ford with Bill is squick to me but I loathe censorship more and love clear tagging that allows people to curate their online experiences to match their own preferences. However, there was so much drama about the ship for so long that, for the sake of keeping this event as stress-free as possible, the other mods and myself decided not to allow content related to that ship until last year when it felt like the clouds of drama surrounding it dissipated enough to allow it with clear tagging.

Anyway, go forth and create for one last Forduary! And thanks again for all of the memories!

I imagine the first question on your minds is probably:

Why? :'(

Well, there's a few reasons.

It's moved away from the initial goals I had in mind when creating it.

I always wanted Stanuary to be a low-pressure, low-effort kind of event, just something to give a little push to anyone who has trouble creating during the winter season. Less focus on making things perfect, more focus on just making things, period. But over the years I've imposed a lot of unnecessary pressure on myself to set it up and run it as perfectly as possible, and that's really the exact opposite of what I was going for!

Participation is starting to noticeably decline.

In the past, I'm sure I've said something along the lines of "as long as at least one person is interested, I'll keep running Stanuary!" And part of me does still feel that way; if at least one person is moved to create something that they wouldn't have otherwise, then the time and effort I put into organizing is worth it. And I know people are interested—the one thing that almost made me waver in my decision was seeing all the excited reblogs on the themes post this year. :') Your enthusiasm has been such a huge motivator to me over the years!

However, I can't deny that the number of people who make something is dropping every year. I don't say that to make anyone feel guilty for not participating (low-pressure event, remember!), but low turnout combined with the aforementioned self-imposed pressure has me wanting to put my time and effort into something new, more in line with my original goals.

Ten years is the perfect number to end on.

Okay I'd be lying if I said this wasn't a huge factor here. I just really love a nice round number......

There are a couple other scattered reasons but those are the main ones!

What's going to happen to the blog and AO3 collection?

They'll stay up forever! Or as long as either of these websites survive, anyway. I always wanted this blog to serve as a very meticulously tagged and organized archive, where people can drop in anytime to get as much Stan as their hearts desire. :)

Why not let someone else run Stanuary?

Honestly, I'm just too much of a control freak (what a surprise). This event is my baby, and I wouldn't want to pass it off to someone I'm not already good friends with. But unfortunately most of my friends have these horrible things called "jobs" and "personal lives" that take up a lot of their time and energy, and I would feel bad handing them what could be seen as essentially another job.

I would definitely love to see others organize more Gravity Falls events, though! Don't let my reasons for ending Stanuary discourage you; running an event is genuinely such a fun experience and you absolutely don't have to be an obsessive perfectionist like me to do it. If anyone has any future events planned, let me know and I'll boost them!

Is Forduary ending too? Will there be a Forduary this year?

I'm in contact with the Forduary mods and we're working on getting a post out on that blog soon to answer both of those questions, so sit tight!

What's next?

Ideally: I sleep for a very long time and wake up when it's warm outside again. The sun will be shining, birds singing, etc etc.

Real answer: Not sure yet! Thinking about some kind of event with a focus on making bad art on purpose and then refining it over a period of time. Or something that encourages people to step outside of drawing / writing and learn new crafts and skills. Lots of brainstorming to do!

Any secrets to share before the end?

My fave Pines twin is actually Ford. Yes, seriously. I'm sorry for deceiving you all these years......