Hello EF,
So, there have been some pretty dramatic changes this month, and all of them unanticipated. This is going to be an epic “all-in-one” post to address the results of these changes and make new announcements.
First and foremost, we are beyond pleased to announce that DarkVoid116 and EllieRose101 have agreed to join the Mod team. Dark’s official position is the Social Community Mod, so he’ll be instrumental in managing the archive’s social extensions, Discord and the Shoutbox. He has also agreed to provide additional support on the tech side of things. In fact, he is the reason Elysian Fields regained chapter/story updates as quickly as it did, so we all owe him a hell of a big thank you for doing so much work even before his position had been officially announced.
Ellie’s official position is Event Management Mod, and as such, she will be the point person on all of EF’s major events following the April Challenge. She brings a ton of excitement and mad organizational skills to the role, which makes her beyond the perfect fit.
Secondly, in response to recent events, the Mod team reviewed the site's existing rules (which can be found here) to add clarity, address how warnings must be used, and most importantly, how the Mod team will approach stories found in violation of the rules. Previously, the wording found in the EF rules stated: “Submissions found to be in violation of these rules may be removed and the author's account suspended at the discretion of the site administrators and/or moderators. The site administrators reserve the right to modify these rules as needed,” which is how the archive has functioned in recent years.
The changes we have made offer an opportunity for communication about the issues that concern the Mod team, but still require the author’s full and respectful participation in the ensuing conversation.
The new procedure for dealing with rule violations is as follows:
- Step 1: The author will receive notice from the Mod team informing them the story is in violation of site rules and may be removed. This notice will be issued both via the site Warning system and privately through EF’s email account. While under review, stories will be subject to manual validation.
- Step 2: After confirming receipt of the message (either through email or EF’s software, which will mark messages as read), the author will have up to three (3) days to address the concerns issued by the Mod team. This can be a discussion, by providing additional materials for the Mods to review, or however the author feels they can best address said concerns.
- Step 3: The Mod team will have 24 hours to consider if the concerns have been satisfactorily addressed. This period may be extended to allow for further communication between the Mods and the author, if necessary.
A story will only be removed if the concerns A) are not satisfactorily addressed, B) the author is incommunicative, or C) the author declines to discuss or otherwise cooperate with the Mod team. In all cases, story removal is considered a last resort.
We’re hopeful that this new procedure will help alleviate concerns that stories might disappear without notice. To be clear, that will not and has never happened, but recent events have demonstrated that additional time to address Mod concerns should be factored into the decision to remove any story from the archive.
Thirdly, the archive functionality is not yet at 100%. The ability to issue a new challenge remains temporarily suspended and site-time is still wonky. We request any bug discoveries be sent to the site email (ssolace@gmail.com) so we have them all in one place.
That’s it for now, EF. Our next post should be all about fun stuff, like April Challenge Month. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Mod team if you have any questions or concerns you would like to share.
--The Mods on March 16, 2022 02:48am 30 Comments
Congrats to DarkVoid116 and EllieRose101! Thank you for the update to the rules, it's very clear and well-articulated! Hoping the server bugs can be ironed out easily enough!
Congrats to the new mods!It sounds like you’re both perfect for your new positions.
I like the changes you’ve made regarding the rules. They seem very fair and easy to understand.
We’re lucky to have such great mods all around
Congratulations to the new mods and thank you very much!
The new rules seem comprehensive and fair-minded.
Thank you mods for all that you do to keep this a friendly, supportive Spuffy centric community. The EF community/page is amazing.
Welcome to the new mods and thank you to all the Mods for all your hard work.
You guys are excellent people and I thank you <3
Thanks for the update, and thanks to the mods who weathered the storm and the people who stepped up to fill vacant positions! And thanks to the mods who have served and moved on to other pursuits. All the work all of you have done is deeply appreciated, and you do it so well...that unfortunately I don't stop to appreciate what running an active site like this actually takes. So roses, Spike snuggles, and affordable yet fashionable boots to all of you.
Welcome, new mods!!!
You guys are excellent people and I thank you <3
Much love and MAD respect for all the mods to to keep this place up and running as well as you do. Glad to see a couple new 'faces' added to the lineup as well.
Welcome new team! I think these rules sound very fair, and I appreciate the time and effort you've all put into getting the site back up and running. That had to be a nightmare on the heels of an exhausting week for everyone. I do have a question in case this should ever arise: let's say you're like me and you tend to post chapters after you finish them instead of having a completed story. We all know how plots can twist and turn as you're writing, so what if you get to something that would warrant a warning that you hadn't initially planned? Will it be okay to mark the story with a warning at that time, or is that still a no-go? Things happen, your story changes, your ideas and inspiration take you down rabbit holes sometimes, so I just want to be sure that I'm following these guidelines, or will there be an exception for those of us updating WIPs? Thank you in advance!
Hi, Grief Counseling! Thanks for checking :)
The updated rules page actually covers this exact scenario:
"Regardless of story rating, all applicable story warnings must be included at the time of first posting, excepting for those warnings that are the result of organic storytelling that the author did not foresee at the time of first posting. In these situations, warnings must be added as soon as the author is aware of the story's progression, and a note must be included at the head of the next chapter alerting readers to the new warning."
So fear not, we got you covered! :)
This was some good news.
See, I knew I should have more coffee before reading large amounts of text, haha! Thank you, EllieRose101!
Welcome new mods and thank you for all the work you’re already doing for this wonderful community!
Modest reader here but, warm welcome to the new mods, and many thanks to the whole team! This place has been a haven for a while now, thank you so much for keeping it running and safe.
Very much looking forward to the April challenge!
Welcome dark and Ellie rose as new mods! You guys are a fantastic addition to the already stellar Mod team! Thank you all for everything you do to keep our Spuffy needs filled!
So on the new warnings clarification - if I have a WIP now and I was saving a warning to add later, but I know it's going to happen just not yet, should I go in and add it now? Just checking if I should review my current settings on my large number of WIPs. I usually try to disguise sneaky twisty plot developments like a surprise character death by posting the warning at the start and then having it fulfilled by something of lesser importance (like Parker dying, for example) but I want to be fair and I may have missed one.
Yes. If you know it's coming, the warning should be there.
I did the same thing in Almost Paradise with two warnings, so I very much sympathize. But we decided that the point of warnings was to be kind to the reader and not drop an unpleasant surprise in a fic they were enjoying. Particularly as readers might not check the warnings on a story they were already following.
Cool, thank you!
Congratulations to the new mods!
And thank you team for the clarification on the rules and getting the site back up and running! A big shout to Dark for making that happen. You da best! *in my DJ Khalid voice*
Thank you past, present and future caretakers of this Spuffy-shaped community. Thank you also for the warmth and respect in the communication and new guidelines going forward. With the timely addition of the new mods, may the difficulties be divided, and the joy be doubled.
Welcome to the new Mods! And, much love to all the Mods, past and present. Thank you all for your had work updating the rules and keeping this site running. You are so very much appreciated!!!
Thank you to DarkVoid and EllieRose for joining the mod team! I appreciate all the mods and their hard work!
Welcome DarkVoid and EllieRose🎉🎉It’s so nice to have you as new mods! You’re joining an excellent gang of lovely people 💕💕And thank you Dark for all the hard work you did to get the site back up to speed 🥰
Hello new Mods!! Thank you so much for coming on board, and for all you've already done for this site!
Yay new mods! Welcome and thank you so much, to new mods, existing mods, and prior mods. This site is such a wonderful home to have, thank you again!
Welcome new mods! Thanks for stepping up to help keep things running smoothly round here and thanks to all the mods for sorting out the big ticket items that were impacted after the update with such speed!
Great to see the process for possible rule violations spelled out so clearly and with a focus on collaboration with the author to make the most informed decision possible.
Excited that it's almost time for April Challenge responses to start popping up. Always a great way to welcome spring with tons of fantastic new stories to read
Another avid reader here just to say thank you to all the mods past and present for all you do/have done for this site! 🥰🥰
A big welcome to the new Mods! Also, the new rule additions are worded with a pleasing clarity. Love y'all.![hearts](https://dark-solace.org/elysian/tinymce/js/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/hearts.gif)