robin

- filter your searches like you would on a library website or in an online catalogue

- don’t post placeholders, fic searches, or recommendations as fics. DON’T! It’s against ao3 TOS

- there is no algorithm. ao3 sorts by date posted/updated unless you filter with specific search criteria

- ao3 is a non profit. that means it doesn’t sell ads to make money — it only survives on donations. this is why it can show you so many fics without ever flashing an ad or pop up at you!

- report fics that break TOS when you see them (I.e., placeholder fics, searches) to help other users navigate better

- the tag “dead dove, do not eat” doesn’t equate to gore/awfulness automatically. it is a complementary tag that enhances current tags. E.g., if the fic is tagged “gore” and “dead dove, do not eat” the author really wants you to mind the gore tag

- most fandoms have a variation of “no beta, we die like (x character)” and they all link back to the “No beta” tag

- publishing a new fic sometimes means it won’t show up in the fandom/pairing tag for a few minutes

- subscribers receive update emails at different times, depending on when you update/publish your fic. there’s no good way to predict when an e-mail will be sent — it can be in 30 seconds, or two hours later

- some fics are restricted by authors to those with ao3 accounts only. if you see a blue lock in the upper right corner, that fic is only visible to logged in ao3 users

- you can block commenters now! this didn’t use to be a thing

- if your fic includes original character/s or reader insert or y/n or etc, then TAG THOSE IN THE CHARACTER TAGS. Not just in the relationship tags!! They are characters in the story, so include them in the character tags. Failing to do so means people who want to find fics with those tags won’t be able to, and people who want to exclude fics with those tags won’t be able to.

- NEVER EVER EVER ADD A LINK TO A PATREON OR KO-FEE ACCOUNT OR ETC. Ao3’s entire legal protection hinges on the fact that no one is making money from fics. If you start commissioning fics or linking to a monetary platform, you are in breach of the Ao3 terms, risking legal action, and risking ao3 as a whole. There are loads of authors/companies who WILL sue if they think you’re making money off their intellectual property.

there are no best times to post but generally sunday and monday are a good zone for traffic

you must double check and make sure the publication date matches the day a chapter is posted or it won’t show up on the first page of updates. sometimes you have to physically edit the posting date multiple times for this to be fixed.

on that note: artificially editing your publication date so your fic shows up at the top when you haven’t added a chapter is the dickest of moves and will make you a pariah. do not do this. yes everyone will notice.

editing existing chapters doesn’t count as updating a fic and won’t change the publication date.

ao3 usually adds weird spaces after italics if you copy and paste in your writing pre-formatted. it doesn’t add these until after you’ve saved a draft or posted so you have to re-edit.

check the “add space after paragraph” option in your word precessor of choice to avoid having to delete an extra space between all your paragraphs on ao3.

when you add a second chapter to a one chapter fic, your original start/end authors notes will now be appended onto the notes of every chapter unless you move them to the now extant first chapter notes sections. this is confusing, but you’ll see what i mean.

to post on anon: add your fic to the anonymous (anonymous) collection. it’ll take up to fifteen to minutes to show in the tag once posted. it’ll show up (to you) as AUTHOR NAME: fic title. no one else sees it this way. it will never show up on your own dashboard unless you go to your stats page. if you ever de-anon, all your subs will get an email about it as if it were just posted.

if you update multiple fics at once, ao3 will group the updates into one email.

to transfer a fic to a new ao3 account: make a new account, make the new account a co-author, remove the old account as co-author.

you cannot mention money changing hands for fic on ao3, ever. don’t say commissions. say a fic was requested if you must say anything. your fic can get taken down for this.

reply to comments or never complain about engagement in fandom.

per that: EVERY TIME YOU EDIT A COMMENT, THE AUTHOR GETS A NEW COPY OF YOUR COMMENT IN THEIR EMAIL. we can see all the edits. be aware.

tagging is both a warning and an enticement, do so accordingly. you really don’t need to tag things that fall outside that unless you want to.

on that note: please don’t do the “short fics for 300 different fandoms in one fic” thing. no one wants to scroll past that. i mean you can but it just makes it harder for people to find the thing you’ve written that they want to read.

if you are really bad at summaries just think of it as a movie tag line and don’t say you’re bad at summaries. don’t neg your own fic.

Remember the Block and Mute feature. Block means that someone cannot interact with your works. Mute, however, means you will not see the person’s works in the search. If you don’t want to see fics by a specific author, mute them.

Basic html works in comments. If you want to add an image, use <img src=“URL”> with the image url replacing URL. Keep the quotation marks.

Comments are not for critique. Unless the author specifically asks for critique, you are a jerk if you start pointing out everything you dislike. It doesn’t matter how vile you think the content is. If you don’t like it, just back out without saying anything.

If you do not want a work attached to your account at all, you can Orphan it. When you Orphan a fic, you can no longer edit it or delete it. This cannot be undone. If you just want to be anonymous, use the Anonymous feature described above.

If you wish to make a collection of fic that includes all of the fic you have read, consider making a collection of your bookmarks instead. Not every author wants their work to be in a million collections, but you don’t have to ask permission to make a collection of bookmarks.

The “Inspired By” option is great if you draw inspiration from another author’s fic. And it helps give credit to other amazing fanfic writers.

Fic can be downloaded in many different ways. If you want to download a fic and use it like an ebook, go for the EPUB version. But all versions have their merits.

rowan

tbi from physical abuse. has issues with vision, concentration, mood, and physical tics caused by it.

adhd. hyperactive-impulsive type.

mdd/clinical depression. what it says on the can, hes canonically suicidal.

histrionic pd. tempestuous subtype.

ptsd. only became truly apparent after the palace fell.

maddox

severe hearing loss in their left ear, fully deaf in their right ear due to the explosion(? idk what to call it).

tourettes, moderate. has a lot of facial tics and definitely has whistling tics.

c-ptsd.

antisocial pd. factor two/secondary psychopath, covetous subtype.

osdd-1.

chronic pain and nerve damage. in their arms and hands specifically due to to the amount of burns they experienced.

dyspraxia.

chronic pain and post-traumatic arthritis. specifically in their left leg; it was broken due to them being trapped under rubble and didnt heal correctly

maya

autism. low support needs, low masking.

religious ocd.

jason

false memory and harm ocd.

autism. low support needs, high masking.

louis

harm ocd.

narcissistic pd. vulnerable subtype.

body dysmorphia.

visual impairment. legally blind.

mild hearing loss.

As Pride Month comes to an end, I just want to remind you that July is Disability Pride Month and there's a flag and everything!

Charcoal Grey: Mourning for people who have died due to ableist violence, abuse, suicide, and illness

Red Stripe: Physical disabilities

Gold Stripe: Neurodiversity

Blue Stripe: Emotional and psychiatric disabilities

Green Stripe: Sensory disabilities

ADAMANDI FANDOM PLEASE GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER MY GOD. the show is about queerness, yes BUT ITS MAIN THEME IS RACISM. STOP MAKING VINCENT A STUPID GUY BECAUSE HES SHOWN AS STUPID AND BELIEVES HES STIPID BECAUSE OF RACISM NOT TO MENTION THE FACT HES AUTISTIC CODED. STOP DEFENDING THE FACT AMRBOSE IS FRIENDS WITH LITERAL RACISTS. STOP MAKING QUINCYS ONLY TRAIT THE FACT HES SMART. STOP MAKING PORTIA AN UWU VUTE GIRL THAT IS INNOCENT AND DOESNT SWEAR. STOP IGNORING THE FACT RACISM PUSHED BEATRIX TO MANIPULATE VINCENT SO SHE COULD PROVE HERSELF DUE TO RACISM. STOP MAKIMG AMBROSE NOT HOLD ANY SEXIST/TOXIC TRAD MASC IDEALS AS WELL AS INTERNALISED JOMO/TRANSPHOBIA. STOP THISPLEASE

adamandi is a show about SYSTEMIC RACISM. ABOUT HOW IT PUSHED BEATRIX VINCENT AND QUINCY TO HORRIFIC LENGTHS JUST TO PROVE TJEMSELVES. I AM WHITE SO I DONT UNDERSTAND IT FULLY, BUT STILL. PLEASE.

ROUND 1 — Match 198 of 276

William Yew (En Abime)

Problematic because: "he forgot people feel pain and did a little bit of incredibly unethical human experimentation" Propaganda: "he's so fun he makes a lot of incredibly raunchy jokes and his songs are very good"

vs. Don Simon Ysidro (James Asher)

Problematic because: "As of 1907, when the first novel of the series is set, he has been a vampire for 352 years and to continue his unlife he has to kill every 4 or five nights. At a conservative guess, he has personally murdered around 30 000 people." Propaganda: "While he feels appropriate old and inhuman, he's oddly charming. His manners are always impeccable and he's a good tipper, while mourning the days he could have people thrashed for insolence. He's refreshingly unapologetic about the monstrous things he does. He writes sonnets and reads The Wind in the Willows. Deep in his crystalized heart there is something that remembers what it was to love. He seems to have mellowed on Protestant heretics a bit"