(Unoffical) Hetalia Tagging Tutorial
Recently, I have seen many of the event blogs and "record" keeping blogs post about how to properly tag your work in the Hetalia fandom. Many of these posts are lost to the never ending content waterfall that is the dashboard. I am going to try and sum up, as best I can, what and the reasons why the tags should be this way. I will update this as need be. The actual tutorial starts under the cut as to save room, it is quite long. Unfortunately, I cannot provide a tl;dr for this post.
Tumblr Tags for Beginners (skip ahead if you know how to use them)
Tumblr has an assortment of different tags that help to organize the posts that flood the site daily. Adding tags such as #my art allow others to know that you made it. Tags like #hetalia show which fandom it belongs to. Tags can include just about anything. Some use it as an organizer (tags like those mentioned above). Some use them to make comments, example: #:o pretty, such as ones rebloged or about a post they made and had extra thought about. Tags are helpful in getting the right crowd to see your posts. If I want to show others my, let's say, "good" art, I would use the tags: #art #my art #markers #tradtional art #(insert fandom)/#OC art #character (if from fandom). Many people use even more tags then that, we call those ones tag blocks, not just tag lists. All of those tags mentioned help your work to get out there. One thing that is very misused is the tags. It really doesn't matter which ones you use, but how they are used. Your audience determines your tags. Make sure you use appropriate tags that describe (organizer tags) and promote (fandom tags and the like) your work. On a side note, if you want proper examples, check out the tags on this post. There are a handful of different ones, and even some that I just made up.
Anyways, the verious tags below are from the Hetalian fandom. Many are misused or not used at all. Below includes some tips on them.
The APH Tag
This tag should be avoid when you tag your works. This is due to the past associations with this tag. To some it just signals a problematic fandom of old on the rise again. The tag is not nessicaraly bad but, as mentioned, some see it as a bad omen. Some of the newer fans will not know about the fandom's past but have heard the awful truth from those veterans and will then avoid the fandom all together. Cutting the APH tag is a sort of rebranding for the fandom.
The HWS Tag
This is the replacement tag for the APH tag. It has less of the past and more of the positive works we have now. Please be sure to tag your works with this one so that our "record" keepers may find and reblog your works easier. Event pages also use this tag to promote upcoming events. Make sure you keep an eye out for those.
Country Tags
Places that are in the real world are the main focus of the Hetalia universe. Due to this it is important to correctly tag your works with the different countries they contain. Using the tag #america is incorrect. This is due to the fact that that tag (and others like it) are for the actual place. These tags contain things like news and local happenings of the country. Not so much Hetalia content. Your work will one (1) be awkward for those catching the latest in that tag and two (2) lost to the rest of the fandom. Please avoid the #(insert country here) tags.
HWS Country Tags
This is the correct way to tag a work that contains the Hetalian version of a country. As an example, #hws america is the right way to put it. Another is with the #hetalia (country name). This helps keep everyone in a space that does understand and appreciate the works that you have created. It also helps those who just wanted their daily news from an accidental find of nsfw Hetalia content. It's just better for us all ;)
NSFW Content Tags
This is for those of you who are brave enough to try your hand at it. Please, please use the nsfw tag. It let's others know that the work is not appropriate for younger fans and/or helps people avoid it if need be. There has been an influx of younger fans I have found lately. It would be best if we all just allow people to avoid it if they need to. For writers, it may be beneficial to place parts of the work under a cut or use a link to your fanfiction account (ao3, fanfiction.net, wattpad, live journal, ect.). The first paragraph to grab people attention and then a cut to allow easy passage for those who avoid it. For artists, I cannot think of a bypass like that of the writers. I believe it is possible to do the same thing but I am not for sure. All in all, tag the works as nsfw that need to be.
Event Tags
Different events will have different tags. Many of the annual events will have tags such as #( insert event here) 2021. Most event pages will have the specific tag listed in the bio or as a post itself. Using event tags makes it easier for the page to find your submissions and reblog them. DTIYS also have tags. Be sure to use it when posting, many creators don't have time to scour the internet for a post. This also helps you get out there as a creator yourself. Most events will reblog your work and promote it with encouraging words.
Shipping Tags
These can be a bit tricky, as there are many different ways to tag a ship. One (1) way is with the ship name. Example: #dennor, #ameleit, ect. But these can be shared with other fandoms (examples: Scandinavia and the World, Country Humans, Country Balls, ect.) Adding the hws in front helps to separate the fandoms. Another way is with the character x character tag (examples: hws denmark x hws norway, hws america x hws lithuania, ect.). The third (3rd) option is with the character / character. This one is less popular but is still used (examples: hws denmark/hws norway, hws america/ hws lithuania, ect.). Most people use the ship name and then the individual character tags, but it all comes down to personal preference.
Group Tags
There are a verity of trios and groups in Hetalia. These will be tagged similar to the ship tags. Option one (1) is to have #hws (insert group). Examples: #hws nordics, #hws baltics, ect. Another way is to go and say the name without the hws. But that also creates problems, the Nordics and the Baltics are places. This is okay when it is something like #tomato gang. But it is safer to just use hws before the name for the group to avoid confusion.
2p Character Tags
There are a lot of different versions of this tag. 2p!----, 2p----, 2p! ----(notice the space), 2p ----(again the space). Sense there are so many it is easy to get lost in the chaos of it all. There is no way around it. You can use whichever you like but it is really hard to have a common denominator throughout all the posts.
Nyotalia Tags
Again one that is very tricky to classify. With so many names and tags (each individual space or letter different is a new tag) it is hard to really give a set one. Some names include: #Nyotalia, #Nyo! (Country name), Nyo (country name), nyo! (Country name), nyo (country name), fem! (Country name), fem (country name), Fem! (Country name), and Fem (country name). There are probably more but, as I said before, it is hard to pin down one as the main tag.
Human Names For Countries Tags
These tags are sometimes used by those with a Human AU. Personally, I think it best to avoid them. Many people have different headcannon names for characters. There is also the issue of how one spells them. It is impossible for everyone to spell a name the exact same. Take the name "Alley" (al-E) some spell it Ally, Alley, Allie, Alli, Alle, Alie, Ali, and on and on the list could go. Names of characters can be stated in the opening or author's notes. Tags are picky about everything. Each version is a new tag. If you chose to use these, that's your choice. But I do not to avoid the mess it creates.
AU Tags
Many creators have different world they immerse characters in. Soul mates, mermaids, assassins, fantasy, Avatar the Last Airbender... you name it, it probably exists. Some tag AUs with the excilmation (this thing, !) some without. It is almost exactly like the Nyotalia tags in this sense. Just remember to tag the au though, some people really like a certain au and will go after it in that one fandom. Examples: #fantasy au, #soul mates au, #mermaid au, ect.
Some AU's have characters that are, say a pirate, while the other is a mermaid. These are tagged as followed: #pirate(with or without the !) ----(character name), mermaid (!) ---- (character name)
If there needs to be any changes, please drop it in my ask box. And if you've made it this far, please reblog this to spread the word. It will make it easier on everyone if we all use similar tags to classify things. Have a nice day!
