Month of Fevers

This is the official blog for the Month of Fevers writing challenge! FAQ. Tagging Guidelines. Happy writing!

[monthoffevers]

Introduction and Information

Hello wonderful writers and artists! Thank you so much for showing interest in our writing challenge!

Meet Your Hosts

I hope this post finds you well. If not, don't let what happened at the beginning of your day ruin the rest of your day.

I'm Arahbo (@queenarahbo) and I'm one of your hosts for the event! You will see me the most during the event though I'm not alone in running it. We created this event to have fun. There's no such thing as too much fluff or hurt/comfort in my opinion!

Socials and Stuff

Discord AO3 Collection

FAQ

We compiled a list of answers that will hopefully answer your questions. Without further ado, let's jump on in!

What is Month of Fevers?

Month of Fevers is a month-long, prompt based writing challenge in October themed around sickfics. We will provide a list of 31 prompts and 10 alternate prompts for you to work from.

Do I have to write for every prompt?

No! You can write as much or as little as you want. These prompts are here to inspire you. Have fun!

Can I combine prompts?

Absolutely! You are free to use the prompts however you want!

Do I have to write in order?

Not at all. You are free to write and post these in any order.

When you will release the prompts?

The prompts will be ready to go on July 1st.

Who can participate?

This event was created with everyone in mind. You don't have to be a writer to participate. Art is also welcome!

Is this event SFW?

We would like to keep this event as open as possible. NSFW content will be accepted.

Who can use these prompts?

Everyone!

Can I combine these prompts with other challenges?

As long as the other challenges allow it then we don't mind!

Is AI allowed?

No.

How do I get reblogged?

Tagging will be key! Posting your content using #monthoffevers, #promptnumber, #promptname will be important. Those tags will be how we find your post.

Alternatively, you can @monthoffevers!

Please feel free to send an ask if you have any questions! Once more we are super excited to share this event with you!

-Arahbo

[monthoffevers]

As we bring the spooky month to a close I had some thoughts.

First and foremost, thank you so much to everyone who submitted work and to those who enjoyed the prompts but didn’t submit.

Time has been a major hurdle in doing this event. We started this with two hosts and now it’s just me. So that brings me around to the next thought.

For our return next year what would you like to see from this event? My goal is to make it fun for everyone!

[nautilus435]

AoT kids fic

New addition to my series of short stories about AoT children, pre-fall of Shiganshina. Inspired by @monthoffevers prompt #12.

Summary: When Grisha came home with the news that Armin was sick, Eren and Mikasa wanted to go see him, but they were told they couldn't for their own protection. They found a way to see him anyway.

Excerpt: "Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be all right," Grisha said.

Eren found Mikasa's gaze and he preferred the hard look in her eyes over the bland reassurances from his father.

"We want to come with you to Armin's," Eren said.

"No, not now, " Grisha said firmly. This was not the voice he used as Eren's dad, this was his doctor voice, issuing orders that must be followed. Eren argued anyway.

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

[tatteredgod]

[ficlet] Silent Hill 2 Remake

For @monthoffevers 04 - In the head + Whumptober 08 - Oh horror, oh horror, what did you see?

Series: SH2 Remake Characters: James, Maria Rating: PG-13 CW: [edited] implied mind rape Wordcount: 430

Read under the cut!

—

He floats in a blood-red haze.

That red square has drawn him like a moth to its hellish flame once again. James stares into it. There was something beyond its flat 2D surface, of this he was certain. Depths and depths. If he could just look deeper, further…

Invisible hands reach into his skull, searching, prying. There's pain. Vertigo blooms and he sways on his feet. He can't look away. The hands are drawing something out of him against his will, he's not sure what. Memories, maybe. He feels an emptying, a hollowing out—

He feels something staring back at him from the bloody depths. He feels, sees it, a sudden impression in his head like an unwelcome thought. His mind springs back from the vision in sudden terror, closing his psyche off from it, and he's left with the vague confusing impression of…what? Eyes?

(Vast. Distorted. Looking at him. Looking and knowing).

James recoils and the spell breaks. There's a loud metal clang. Someone lays a hand on his arm.

"James?"

Maria. James looks at her in shock. His vision is stained in a red afterglow which is quickly fading. Maybe Maria can see this too, because she steps back, her eyes widening.

"James…?"

"Sorry." He shuts his eyes, opens them. "I…it's nothing."

They're standing in parking lot of Jack's Inn. He looks back at the red square, floating on top of a parked car's trunk. Its flat surface ripples like water, beckoning to him. James moves back.

"What are you looking at? You zoned out again." Maria couldn't see these squares, only him. Her eyes are concerned and questioning. James shakes his head slowly. A numbness is creeping over him: his mind trying to separate itself from the mental assault that just happened. Trying to forget. A dull throbbing settles in his temples.

"Nothing. I'm fine. Promise."

His iron pipe is on the ground, lying in a small puddle. James slowly bends down and grabs it, his fingernails scraping the wet asphalt. As he straightens, a few drops fall on his nape.

"Rain," Maria murmurs, looking up at the grey sky. "We might as well go inside. Look around."

"Yeah. Stay close." James moves forward to lead automatically. Abandoned though the motel might be, the inside looks dark and shadowy and he wouldn't be surprised to find more monsters hiding in there, perhaps also seeking shelter from the elements. He feels a little weak and shaky, but tightens his grip on the iron pipe. He has to stand firm, if he's to find Mary.

"Let's go."

—

FIN

[monthoffevers]

Only eight more days before kickoff and I don’t know about you guys but I’m HYPED!

Work has been chaotic lately so I sincerely apologize for the lack of everything.

I cannot wait to see all of the wonderful things that you create!

[monthoffevers]

Hiya! I really really wanted to use your prompts, however before I knew the event was meant to be SFW I was planning to combine it with kinktober..... is it okay if I use just use the prompt list without posting it to the main collection? I will still credit fully!!

Of course! The prompts are for anyone to use as they like! We only ask that any NSFW content not be posted to the main collection 💕

[monthoffevers]

It's time!

[monthoffevers]

Set your watches! Prompts are coming tomorrow!

[monthoffevers]

Only three days left until the prompts are here!

[monthoffevers]

With the completion of the discord server we are one step closer to the starting line!

[monthoffevers]

News and Updates

Good afternoon everyone! I bring news regarding the event. Let's unpack everything one at a time.

If you are in the discord server you might have noticed in the announcements that the server is under maintenance. This is giving me the chance to polish the server and get the bots working the way they should be. I will do everything that I can to get it done today.

Tomorrow I will be making the AO3 collection! This will be under the assumption nothing crazy happens when I go for the other tests at the hospital. I would like to get this finished as soon as possible.

The prompt list is finished! I'm fighting with myself because I cannot wait to share it with all of you!

The last little bit of news is on the sadder end of things. Due to some things happening in their life @millenniumwriter will no longer be able to help with the event. I will do my best to make this event a success!

[hayatheauthor]

How to Write a Character Who Feels Like Throwing Up

When fear, dread, or guilt gets sickening—literally—your character is consumed with a gut-clenching feeling that something is very, very wrong. Here's how to write that emotion using more than the classic "bile rose to the back of their throat".

Start with the Stomach

This isn’t just about discomfort. It’s about a complete rebellion happening inside their body.

Their stomach twists like a knot that keeps pulling tighter

A cold sweat beads on their neck, their palms, their spine

Their insides feel sludgy, like everything they’ve eaten is suddenly unwelcome

They double over, not from pain, but because sitting still feels impossible

Add Sensory Overload

Vomiting isn’t just a stomach reaction—it’s the whole body.

Their mouth goes dry, and then too wet

Their jaw tightens, trying to contain it

A sudden heat blooms in their chest and face, overwhelming

The back of their throat burns—not bile, but the threat of it

Breathing becomes a conscious effort: in, out, shallow, sharp

Emotional Triggers

Nausea doesn’t always need a physical cause. Tie it to emotion for more impact:

Fear: The kind that’s silent and wide-eyed. They’re frozen, too sick to speak.

Guilt: Their hands are cold, but their face is flushed. Every memory plays like a film reel behind their eyes.

Shock: Something just snapped inside. Their body registered it before their brain did.

Ground It in Action

Don’t just describe the nausea—show them reacting to it.

They press a fist to their mouth, pretending it’s a cough

Their knees weaken, and they lean on a wall, pretending it’s just fatigue

They excuse themselves quietly, then collapse in a bathroom stall

They swallow, again and again, like that’ll keep everything down

Let the Consequences Linger

Even if they don’t actually throw up, the aftermath sticks.

A sour taste that won’t leave their mouth.

A pulsing headache

A body that feels hollowed out, shaky, untrustworthy

The shame of nearly losing control in front of someone else

Let Them Be Human

A character feeling like vomiting is vulnerable. It's real. It’s raw. It means they’re overwhelmed in a way they can’t hide. And that makes them relatable. You don’t need melodrama—you need truth. Capture that moment where the world spins, and they don’t know if it’s panic or flu or fear, but all they want is to get out of their own body for a second.

Don't just write the bile. Write the breakdown.

[sicktember]

We Have the Winner!!!

The prompt that was chosen for one of the main prompts is:

“It’s the middle of the night, why are you awake?”

[monthoffevers]

As we get closer to a completed prompt list we started thinking harder about the prompts.

🪼 What would YOU like to see in our list? All ideas welcomed!

Arahbo, why is there a jellyfish?

This is the motivation jellyfish.

[monthoffevers]

Prompt list is almost done! We are super excited to share it with you! What are you looking forward to most out of our event?

[nomorezerocomments]

ATTENTION EVENT RUNNERS

Do you run a fic writing event? Do your participants like comments? Well I have something for you!

The No More Zero Comments Project is a community effort to reduce the number of fics on ao3 with no comments at all. You can read more about it in our pinned post, but we have a spreadsheet of fics with no comments here, and you can submit your own fics to be added to it here. We've gotten 150+ comments so far using this spreadsheet, so it definitely works!

I find that fics for fandom and prompt events tend to get less comments (from personal experience), so if you run an event, please reblog this post (or our pinned post) so your participants can see it and hopefully get involved. Thank you!!!

[monthoffevers]

We would love to see this happen during our event!

[nomorezerocomments]

Blog Introduction

Hello! Welcome to the No More Zero Comments Project! This is a blog dedicated to reducing the amount of fics on ao3 that have no comments at all.

The goal is simple: find fics with no comments, read them, and leave a comment for the author. However, I (this blogs creator) am not in every fandom to ever exist on ao3 so this is not a task I can do alone. That's where you come in!

There are two ways you can do this. One is to go out and find fics with zero comments in your fandoms, and leave a comment. The other is to take a look at the spreadsheet i made with a list of fics i found with no comments and see if there's any fandoms you know. If I did my job right, you should be able to filter it? Who knows, I suck at technology. This spreadsheet will be updated regularly by adding new fics (and removing ones that have now received comments) so there will always be new stuff to see!

So far, the spreadsheet contains mostly fics from @febuwhump collections, as their commentfest is where i got this idea. If you want to submit one of your own zero comment fics for the spreadsheet, you can do so here.

If you read a fic from the spreadsheet and leave a comment on it (or have received a comment on your own fic that is on the spreadsheet), you can let me know here so I can remove it from the spreadsheet (you do not have to do this, I will try to check regularly to see if fics have received comments, but doing it this way will be a HUGE help to me)!

Some preemptive answers to potential FAQs under the cut!

Who runs this blog?

That'd be me, Izak, also known as @lightningzombie! Hi!

Wait, I see one of your fics on the spreadsheet!

Look. I'm not doing this for no reason. Around 14% of my own fics have no comments. In the interest of fairness, I'll only be adding one of my own fics to the spreadsheet at a time. This limit only applies to me as the owner of this blog. Everyone else can have as many as they like on there lol

Do I have to read fics from the spreadsheet?

Nope! It's just a handy tool for if you're looking for something to read, and want to help out an author in need of their first comment. You can go find zero comment fics wherever you usually get fics from

Is there some sort of prize/competition?

Nope! This is just an effort to increase fandom engagement since it fell off post-COVID. You don't have to report to me about it, you just gotta do it!

Why did you decide to do this?

Frustration with the lack of comments on my fics and the death of comment culture in general. Bewilderment when I saw a fic that had 1200 kudos and no comments. The joy that leaving 100 comments and receiving 20+ during the Febuwhump commentfest brought me. Boredom. Many reasons!

Will you do events?

Maybe! If there's enough interest we could do events similar to justleaveacommentfest.

Can I submit other peoples fics for the spreadsheet?

I mean, yeah, of course. But like, if you're going to the trouble of submitting someone else's fic, why not just leave a comment on it?

I don't know how to comment!

Yes, you do. "I like this" is a comment. "How dare you do that to [insert blorbo here]" is a comment. "<3" is a comment. "KAJSDAKSDHJ WHYYYYY????" is a comment. "I am rapidly approaching your location" is a comment. Just be kind!

Will you be doing this for platforms other than ao3?

For now, no. Ao3 is the platform I've used for a decade and the one I understand. However if you comment on fics that aren't on ao3, that's great! The spirit of the project is so give love to authors so do that on whatever platform you see fit

Happy commenting!