Announcement: Activity check, and asks are back! Read for details
Alright everyone, announcement time! The highlight to everyone's day (no, not really). We've got a few things to cover in this announcement, so I'm going to split them up into individual sections. You need to read the entire announcement, or else.... Yeah, we'll just leave it at that. Or else. SECT I. - ACTIVITY CHECK Now I know school has started again for many of us, myself included. If school hasn't started for you yet... well, you lucky bastards, I hate you. Anywho, school has started for most of us, and this dictates a change in availability. Some people might disappear altogether, so I'm doing another activity sweep like the one I did before. Here's how it's going to go... I need you to private message me (turchan) ASAP. I don't care what you title the private message, as long as you make it something funny (I like funny stuff). In the private message, tell me you're still interested! Additionally, inform me of any comittments you may have that will keep you from the roleplay... such as classes/general idea of your work schedule. Such as "I have classes Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evening and I work three days a week. I will be on for at least 2 hours nightly." Something like that. If you have any upcoming long term absences planned, please let me know of those as well (IE: vacations, trips, periods without internet, etc). This private message needs to be sent to me by Sunday, August 31st, at noon/12PM EST. If I don't respond back to the pm, it means I didn't get it (my phone probably ate it), so send it again. If I don't receive a private message from you, you will be removed from the thread. NO EXCEPTIONS!!!
SUBSECTION A. - RANDOM DISAPPEARANCES I love those of you reading this announcement, because it means that you're the ones who have been in this for the long haul. You've stuck with us through the good and the bad, the thick and the thin, and I trust that you're going to be sticking with us into the future. However, I would like to caution you against random disappearances. I understand life sometimes may get the best of us and Gaia may sometimes become the last priority, especially where college is concerned. However, if you're going to be gone for an extended period of time... please, please let me know. It only takes a minute, maybe less, to hop onto gaia and let me know "hey, busy with school, may not be around for a few days." Even if you have a problem like... say, your wifi goes down, there are so many places that offer free wifi these days that you can easily use some to send me a quick private message. Because we've already had some random disappearances that have ended badly, I'm going to implement a new rule. IF YOU HAVE NOT BEEN ACTIVE ON TUMBLR/IN THE OOC FOR A PERIOD OF 3 DAYS, AND YOU HAVE NOT NOTIFIED ME OF A NEED FOR EXTENDED ABSENCE, YOU WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE ROLEPLAY. NO EXCEPTIONS.
SECTION II. - TIME SKIP I will be performing a time skip following the activity check on Sunday. The new setting will go up on Sunday August 31st at 1PM, and we will transition into the new setting from there. I would like to remind you of the necessity for you to post. If you're active on tumblr, there's no excuse for you to not be posting in the ic. Posts are only 500 word minimum word requirement, even with a heavy school workload... that doesn't take all too long to accomplish. I'm not asking you to write a novel here. I've been pretty lenient on the "post once a week" deadline so far, but if I notice that nobody is posting... I will start enforcing that deadline and will start kicking people out who have been inactive in the IC. You've been thoroughly warned. SECTION III. - TUMBLR ASKS The grounding period is now over. Yes, you heard me. You may now turn the anonymous ask function back on! In fact, I encourage you to go do so right now. You went a full three days without the asks, and I applaud you, it must have been hard. I took them away for a good reason, and I do believe we need to cover some ground rules on the asks so you don't get them taken away again.
SUBSECTION A. - MEAN ANONS I am not going to forbid the mean anons, because every roleplay needs some drama... and the mean anons provide some drama. However, we need to set some ground rules for it. Here goes. If the user playing the character specifies they do not want their character bullied, do not bully their character via mean anons. That's unfair to the user, and eventually they're going to start viewing the attacks on their character as a personal attack on them... and that's not bueno. Next, do not bully just one character. If you're feeling particularly mean, be sure to send some mean anon loving to an array of characters, instead of just one. We have more than just one character who deserves some hate. And lastly, don't bully them over non-canon details. Read the characters profile! Don't bully them for being a slut if they're not specified for being a slut (the exception being if Miss Itk says something, you can bully them over those details). Because there are some people more sensitive to the mean anons, we're going to try this out.... the following are the list of characters willing to be bullied via mean anon (pm me if you want your character added to this list): Becca, Isla, Parker Try and bully mostly people on that list, but if someone specifies via tumblr they're open to mean anons, then feel free to hit them with it... I guess. Now, if you say you're open to mean anons.... trust me, you're going to get mean anons. So if you say you're open to mean anons, don't complain to me when you start getting them. I'm just putting that out there. SUBSECTION B. - "ASK ME ANYTHING" I have received many, many complaints on the topic of the ask me anythings... so we're going to set some ground rules for this. When somebody says "ask me questions/like this status and I'll return the favor" .... send the questions BEFORE liking the status. Do not like the status if you're going to be leaving and won't have time to send questions. That's unfair to the person waiting on asks. If you are leaving your computer and would like people to send you asks while you're gone, get off your lazy touchas and post your own status, and make sure you specify you'll be leaving in a bit. When you post "ask me questions/like this status and I'll return the favor" RETURN THE FAVOR BEFORE ANSWERING ANY ASKS SENT TO YOU. It's only fair/proper etiquette to do it that way. And when sending questions to characters.... don't send 99 and 1/2 of the same question, only worded differently. Asking a character who they're crushing on three times in a row is enough... you don't need to do it six times in a row. Additionally, we have some new characters, and these anon asks is how the users get to know their new characters. Send asks in bulk to new characters. New characters should take presidence over characters have been around for awhile.
SECTION IV. - PLOTTING I've been receiving complaints lately that the new characters have been trying to plot and nobody has been responding back to them. I know I'm guilty of not showing my face in the plotting thread, and that is really due to laziness more than anything else. We need to make a change to this! We have new characters, you need to plot with them. Let's make it a rule of thumb (for myself included) to check the plotting thread/post in the plotting thread to reply at least once every 24 hours.... I think you can do that, right? SECTION V. - I LOVE YOU GUYS I just thought I would remind you guys how much I love you for making this roleplay such a pleasure to run, and even though it may not always be the smoothest... it's been a great go owning this roleplay! And I hope we can keep it going just like this. Ya'll are a wonderful bunch. Now to prove you read this announcement, I want you to like this post, and go read the ending segment of this same announcement in the ooc for the "post this to prove you read it" reuqirement. Oh... and go turn the anon asks back on, go, run! Vamoose.