Calling all artists and writers! Do you enjoy shipping characters who never met in canon? Or side characters with only a few lines? Perhaps your taste runs to zany, off-the-wall crack ships?
If you fit any of those descriptions, then we have just the exchange for you! Black Emporium is a rare pair exchange that encompasses everything Dragon Age -- provided they have less than 300 completed works on Ao3. Whether you’ve been a fan since the beginning or just got started with the series -- whether you write snappy dialogue or draw detailed scenery -- we want YOU to participate!
Important Dates:
Nominations June 30-July 6
Signups July 7-17
Assignments July 18
Due date August 30
Works revealed September 6
Creators revealed September 13
Links:
Main hubs: @black-emporium-exchange | black_emporium @ Dreamwidth | blackemporiumex on Twitter | AO3 Subcollection | Discord | Tagset
Documents: Nominations Spreadsheet | Requests Summary
Signups end: July 17, 2021 @ 8:00PM EDT || Countdown
CHANGES THIS YEAR
- We now have a brand new Request Database this year! Unlike previous years where mods had to hand copy requests into a separate Google Doc, the Database will automatically populate who and what people are requesting. (Should come in handy when writing treats or looking for inspiration.)
A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO SIGN-UPS BELOW THE CUT:
1. Sign in to Ao3
If you don’t have an Ao3 account, contact the mods for help!
2. Go to the Black Emporium signup field (link)
3. Scroll to the “Requests” field
There are several different components of this field:
Relationship:
Enter one, two, or three approved relationships that you would like to see in a fanwork created for you. This field will autosuggest approved pairings. If your pairing does not show up, it may be that you have fallen victim to a known bug of Ao3's that we cannot fix, wherein pairings in a tagset do not autofill. If this happens, simply type it in as it appears in the tagset.
Additional Tags: You can request fanfic, fanart, or both. Selecting "any" is treated the same as selecting both.
Letter: If you have written a letter on an external website (such as Tumblr/Wordpress/Dreamwidth/Google Docs), you may link it here.
Description: Here is where you can provide additional detail about what you would like to see in a fanwork, both in general and for specific pairings. Good things to include (in this box, a letter, or both) are general likes and dislikes, preferred content rating, and Do Not Wants. Please remember to put your DNW's (do not wants) in the Ao3 sign up form - we can only take action if you put your DNW in your Ao3 sign-up form because it is the only thing we can absolutely guarantee that your creator will be able to access.
Remember that anyone who creates fanwork for you must respect your Do Not Wants. If you do not enter anything into this box, and you do not have a link to a letter, we will assume that means you are okay with anything for the specified pairing(s). If you have any preferences or things you do not want, we would encourage you to add them. It makes the process smoother for all involved.
Here are some things commonly put in the description box:
Likes/Wants:
- Frequently it can be considered helpful to your author or artist if they have some idea of what you like to see, and what you don't. For example:
I love F!Adaar/Sera because I think the idea of them merrily pranking their way around Skyhold is so much fun. Please don't write me something sad about them.
Do Not Wants:
- Stuff that makes you uncomfortable, or just plain stuff that is Not Your Thing. While the Black Emporium does not believe in kink shaming or otherwise insulting people for their own personal taste, we do want people to let their artists or authors know what their limits are. You don't have to give any reasons for this; "no x/y/z" gives your creator plenty of info to discern where your limits are.
We can only take action if someone writes you something against your DNWs if it is in your sign-up.
Prompts:
Prompts can be just about anything, but they're meant to be ideas that you'd like to see that can help give your artist or author something to work off of. Sometimes this can be a prompt or a question you'd like explored (for example: What if Solas found himself falling for M!Trevelyan? How would he feel about potentially falling for a human?) or an idea you'd love to see (Josie and M!Cadash snuggled up in front of a fire, please!) or just a few words of inspiration (Leliana/Josephine - secrets, lies, ravens).
Details about your character(s):
It is fairly common for people to give basic descriptions of their characters if it is a character where their appearance or personality may vary (ex: Wardens/Hawkes/Inquisitors), particularly if fanart is requested. These descriptions can be very basic indeed (ex: purple hawke), or extremely detailed (ex: This is Celeste Trevelyan, she loves her squad more than life itself, pink hair, dusky-rose skin, built like she could bench press you six ways from sunday).
Bucket Requests:
You may also use the description field to note additional pairings that you would be willing to receive. You may find this option helpful if you are willing to consider different Warden or Inquisitor backgrounds for your specified pairing that have been nominated. You are limited to an additional ten pairings specified in this manner. Please fill out the form entirely before filling in pairings manually in the description; those that you fill in in the relationship field (the first 30) will take priority.
Things you should not put in the description field:
“I would like anything but nasty [kink]. I think people who write that are gross and nasty.”
Please do not insult people who like something you dislike. It’s Not For You, and That’s Okay. “No [kink]” expresses this much better than a long explanation of why you don’t like [kink].
“I’m only choosing this to get to three nominations. Please don’t write it.”
While we know someone who signs up for a, b and z may want a and/or b more than z, but please don’t scream to your author or artist that what you may well match on is something you don’t want as much as other pairings. Writing something like this also reduces your chance at treats as well.
“Even though I said I wanted M!Solavellan, I’m fine with F!Solavellan too if you like that better.”
Please don’t tell people that you’d be alright with non-nominated pairings, as fics with only non-nominated pairings cannot be added to the collection.
Minimums and Maximums in Requests:
You are required to fill out a minimum of three request fields (Required: Relationship, Additional Tags; Optional: Letter, Description). Remember that you may put in one OR two relationships per request field, so the maximum number of pairings that you can list in this manner is thirty. Remember also that you must fill out at least 3 request fields, so if you fill 2 out with 3 requests in each "request box", Ao3 will still want you to add one more -- it's a good rule of thumb to fill at least three out with one request, then double up as you wish.
4. Continue to the “Offers” field
There are several different components of this field:
Relationship:
Enter one, two, or three approved relationships that you would like to see in a fanwork created for you. This field will autosuggest approved pairings. If your pairing does not show up, it may be that you have fallen victim to a known bug of Ao3's that we cannot fix, wherein pairings in a tagset do not autofill. If this happens, simply type it in as it appears in the tagset. If it continues to give an error, please drop us a comment with the pairing so we can figure out what's going on. You also have the option to select any relationship.
By selecting “Any Relationship,” that means that you are willing to write or draw fanwork for, literally, ANY of the approved pairings.
The only limitation we will accept will be be a limitation of what category of relationship you want to create for: eg, Any F/F, Any M/M, Any F/M, Any Multi, Any Other, or Any Nonbinary. Anything else WILL BE REJECTED. You may NOT use this option to say, for example, “Any Cullen pairing”. This option is for any and all of the approved pairings in your designated category/categories. Do not use this option unless you are sure that any is truly what you want.
Additional Tags:
You can offer to create fanfic, fanart, or both. Selecting "any" is treated the same as selecting both.
Comments for mods:
Here is where you can provide additional detail about what you will and won’t create. As with your requests, you can provide general likes and dislikes as well as things that you absolutely will not do. If there is someone signed up you absolutely cannot stand, please write "don't match me to x" here; we won't ask details, we just won't match and this will be a fully confidential field. If you hate nugs, put it here, and we'll make sure you get at least one nug-free prompt and, ideally, a nug-free sign-up. We want you to have an assignment you'll be happy about, so if you've got something that would be triggering for you to create for, let us know. We can only take action based on our own knowledge, so the more information we have the better we can try to match you with what you really want. If you do not enter anything into this box, we will assume that means you are okay with anything for the specified pairing(s) selected. If you have any preferences or do not wants, we would encourage you to add them. It makes the process smoother for all involved. None of the mods will blab over whatever you write; we just want you to have the best time possible with your assignment.
Minimums and Maximums in Offers:
You are required to fill out a minimum of three offer fields (Required: Fandom, Relationship, Additional Tags; Optional: Comments to mods). Remember that you may put in one or two relationships per request field, so the maximum number of pairings that you can list in this manner is twenty. Remember also that you must fill out at least 3 offer fields, so if you fill 2 offer fields out with 2 offers in each "box", Ao3 will still want you to add one more offer field even though you have one over the minimum required amount of offers -- it's a good rule of thumb to fill at least three offer fields, each with one offer, then go back and double up or not, as you wish.
Bucket Offers:
You may also use the comments to mod field to note additional pairings that you would be willing to write if you have already filled thirty slots. You may find this option helpful if you are willing to consider different Warden or Inquisitor backgrounds for your specified pairing. You are limited to an additional ten pairings specified in this manner. Once again, those filled in the actual relationship: tags will take priority over those written in, so choose which pairing goes where carefully!
A Note on Matching
Black Emporium runs on OR matching, which means that you will match on one relationship out of the ones that you offer and request. You are guaranteed to match on ONE relationship; you may match on more, you may not. For your assignment, you can write what you matched on OR you can write any other couple on their sign-up form. You will only have to write or draw for ONE request, not all of them. The minimums will be one piece of artwork or one 1,000 word fic.
Nominations for the Black Emporium are now live! Reach out and tell someone (namely: us) about your favorite rare-pairs (namely: any pairing under 300 complete fics on Ao3). You have twenty nominations to use. Pairings can be twosomes/threesomes/moresomes//etc. We believe in sharing the love.
How do you, in fact, become a true Fereldan buckaroo by nominating a rare pair or 20?
Go to the Dragon Age Rare Pair Tag Set and click Nominate (you have to be signed into Ao3 for the button to appear)
Nominate your favorite pairings! Some pairings may autofill, some may not; if your pairing is so rare that it doesn’t exist yet, just type it in anyway and we’ll take care of the rest.
When you’re done, hit Submit at the bottom of the page. Your pairings will be reviewed and accepted/rejected as soon as possible. After you’ve hit Submit you will not be able to go back and edit your nominations after we’ve reviewed them, though you will be able to go back and fill up your form until you’ve hit 20 pairings.
For the purposes of this challenge, the Dragon Age protagonists will be considered different characters based on their gender and surname. This means that there are twenty-one Wardens, three Hawkes and twelve Inquisitors to choose from. Please nominate your protagonist of preference with these two criteria in mind. So: Female Trevelyan/Male Cousland will be accepted as a nomination; Inquisitor/Warden will not. Likewise, Female Trevelyan/Cullen Rutherford would not be accepted, because it has more than 300 complete fics, but both Male Trevelyan/Cullen Rutherford and Nonbinary Trevelyan/Cullen Rutherford would be.
If you have any specific class, appearance or personality preferences you are free to request them in your prompt during sign-ups.
We will also allow original characters, provided they obey the following rules:
a) The OC is listed in the relationship in such a way as to give someone freedom in how to write them (e.g. “Tentacle Monster” or “Original Templar Character” NOT: “my OC Gerald D'Vivir”) - a good rule of thumb here is whether the character can be summed up in 3 or fewer words; if it can, it is probably a good option. If it cannot, the OC is probably is too complex for this kind of exchange.
b) The OC is not listed in such a way that would, essentially, reflect the spirit of a canon character that is otherwise not permitted in a relationship. See again: “Modern Human Female Inquisitor/Cullen” is still ineligible, even if there are only 5 fics with that tag, because it is a variant of Female Trevelyan/Cullen.
We will also allow crossovers with other canons, provided there are less than 300 completed works with the pairing on Ao3.
What are you waiting for? GET YE TO THE NOMINATING!
If you want to see what’s already been nominated, Mods A, K, and S, and our helpers are updating the nominations spreadsheet as fast as we can.
Good morning/afternoon/evening/middle-of-the-night, depending on where you are in the world!
As a reminder, assignments are due on Monday, August 30, 2021, at 8PM EDT. You can find a countdown here.
- To fulfill your assignment, simply go to Post New Work and click the box in the “Does this fulfill a challenge assignment?” section that’s labeled as Black Emporium 2021. It should look something like this:
- To post a treat, go to Post New Work as well. Under “Post to Collections/Challenges”, type in the following: BlackEmporium2021 ; then, under “Gift this work to”, type in your recipient’s name. It should look something like this:
- If you cannot fulfill your assignment, please contact the mods through the Tumblr ask box, comment on this Dreamwidth post (comments are screened), or email us at [email protected]. If you need more time, talk to us. If you were signed up but we do not have a submission from you by the deadline and have not heard from you, we will assume you are no longer interested in completing an assignment and will put it up as a pinch hit.
The deadline is coming up, so we hope everyone is hard at work on finishing their assignments! Or, if you haven’t started yet, that you’re very good at working under pressure.
Everyone, assignments have gone out! As of now, we have no initial pinch hits - everyone was matchable on the first go!
Right now, an email should be winging its way to the inbox you used to sign up for the Black Emporium on Ao3. You should also be able to find your assignment on the "Assignments" tab of your Ao3 portal. We hope you're excited -- we're excited! It’s an exciting time! You’ve just received the email telling you that you’re assigned to create a fanwork for somebody.
But wait -- there’s a lot there! There’s pairings that you didn’t offer! There’s details about plots and ideas that aren’t what you usually work with! What are you going to do?
First, remember the first page of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy:
Don’t Panic.
Your recipient has different tastes and preferences from you, and that’s to be expected. You are not obligated to incorporate everything your recipient asked for -- in fact, given the length of letters out there, it would be impossible to do everything. Your main goal is to write one story or draw one picture,based on one of the rare pairs in the assignment you were given.
Second, remember that you were matched to this person. That means there was at least one pairing they wanted to see that you put in your offers. Maybe it’s not your OTP. Maybe it’s something you’ve never done before. The mods don’t know any of that. The mods were just trying to give everyone a good match.
The pairing is the ninth or tenth instead of the first? Don’t read anything into that. It’s a pairing that they took the time to confirm they wanted to see brought to life. Let’s shorten that: it’s a pairing they wanted.
Third, remember that you are only obligated to respect their DNWs. This is the only thing that the mods will enforce when reviewing assignments. Likes, preferences, story ideas? Well, they’re really more of … guidelines. You are, of course, encouraged to give them consideration, but in the end, this is your story. You might be thinking -- wait, isn’t it the other way around? Isn’t it supposed to be theirs? The answer is no. If they create it, it’s theirs. You are creating it, therefore it is yours. Everyone who signed up for this exchange knew they were going to be getting something different from what they would create themselves. Maybe it’s in style. Maybe it’s in focus, or details, or any number of things.
That’s the point of a fanwork exchange.
Fourth, remember that you only have to create one complete fic of 1,000 words or one complete piece of fanart, featuring one of the pairings requested by your recipient. You have until August 30 to do this. That’s it. Anything more that is a bonus, not a requirement. The rest, as they say, is gravy.
If what we sent you was 100% something you cannot do for whatever reason, please contact the mods either via a private ask on DW or Tumblr or an email and let us know. We will handle it confidentially. If something comes up -- and in this time we know many of us have some uncertainty to our lives -- let us know, so that we can work with you to finish your work or make sure your assignment goes to another writer/artist so that it can be finished. The archive does not open until everyone has a gift.
Take a deep breath. And another. You’ll be fine. You’ve got this. We’re here for you. The mods, and the community as a whole. We’re excited to see what you come up with. We know it will be great. Because you’re great. Good luck, and may the Maker stir your creativity!
Please send a private message to a mod through Discord or send an email to [email protected] to claim. This pinch hit will be due at the same time as the regular assignments, August 30th at 8 PM EST.
Request 1 by little_abyss
Audacity/Merrill, Fanfiction
There is a full-on, no-holds-barred, untapped goldmine of potential here. Give me their history; their first conversation, the first few experiments with the Eluvian, what happened when Merrill maybe started to lose hope. How did Audacity keep her focused? Did it need to promise anything else? How did Merrill keep its seductions at bay? I’d love some rich description of the Fade environment and how Audacity appears to Merrill. And if you want to take this in a sexy direction, how does that play out? Are there mirrors involved??? Does Merrill call the shots in that situation, or is it a power-sharing arrangement?
I’d love:
- A lot of angst. Seriously, don’t worry about my shrivelled old heart, it thrives on hurt/no comfort, heartache and straight up whump. If you wanna write character death or graphic depictions of violence, go right ahead. I do not require a happy ending.
- Some juicy descriptions. Textures! Light! Scent! Scenery! Go as big as you want with the details, I thrive on them.
- An ensemble cast. You want other characters to make a cameo? I’d love that! DA characters all live and work together, why should your fic be any different?
I’d say a polite no thank you to:
- Those other Archive warnings. Please, no non-con, rape, or underage scenarios (not even negotiated consent play or age play).
- I'm really not a fan of content related to pregnancy, childbirth, or childrearing. It's okay to mention in passing, but please don't make it your focus. This includes mpreg and lactation.
Picture this, my friend: a clear, cold night atop Skyhold’s battlements, thousands of stars visible above you in the pristine sky. You’re a long way from home; everything around you feels alien, and there’s little you can do to change that, because you have a cause that you must follow to its conclusion, a cause you’ve stepped willingly up to. But it’s lonely… until…
Hahah, seriously, I don’t mind which way you take this, but I’d really love to see some loving yet stoic mutual respect (or at least, that's how it starts...*eyebrow waggle*). If you do want to take it in a shippy direction, that’s great, but I’m happy with some warrior-code bro-ing up. Talking about mabari! Comparing fur garments! Fighting bears for fun! Getting mystical about the night sky! Gimme all of that and anything else strikes your fancy for either of these two ships.
I’d love:
- Angst. Seriously, don’t worry about my shrivelled old heart, it thrives on hurt/no comfort, heartache and straight up whump. If you wanna write character death or graphic depictions of violence, go right ahead. I do not require a happy ending.
- Some juicy descriptions. Textures! Light! Scent! Scenery! Go as big as you want with the details, I thrive on them.
I’d say a polite no thank you to:
- Those other Archive warnings. Please, no non-con, rape, or underage scenarios (not even negotiated consent play or age play).
- I'm really not a fan of content related to pregnancy, childbirth, or childrearing. It's okay to mention in passing, but please don't make it your focus. This includes mpreg and lactation.
Request 3 by little_abyss
Orsino/Raleigh Samson, Fanfiction
Three words: all the pining. Break my bleak little heart with this, okay? Just go to town - all the UST, all the unrequited (but not really) love, all the heartache. I have this headcanon, right, that if Samson returns to the Order, he finds out that Orsino is a blood mage way before the big reveal. Take that as your prompt and run with it - how does he find out? Does he find out without Orsino knowing? Suspect for a long time and then get the bravery to confront him? Does it change his feelings; how does he reconcile this feeling of admiration-slash-longing with his disgust or terror?
However you slice it, I basically want these two lonely nerds to want each other super-hard and never get to have each other.
I’d love:
- A lot of angst. Seriously, don’t worry about my shrivelled old heart, it thrives on hurt/no comfort, heartache and straight up whump. If you wanna write character death or graphic depictions of violence, go right ahead. I do not require a happy ending.
- Some juicy descriptions. Textures! Light! Scent! Scenery! Go as big as you want with the details, I thrive on them.
I’d say a polite no thank you to:
- Those other Archive warnings. Please, no non-con, rape, or underage scenarios (not even negotiated consent play or age play).
- I'm really not a fan of content related to pregnancy, childbirth, or childrearing. It's okay to mention in passing, but please don't make it your focus. This includes mpreg and lactation.
Request 4 by little_abyss
Carver Hawke/Raleigh Samson, Fanfiction
Oh boy, the good ship Grouchy Chantry Lads, ahoy. I’m seriously happy with anything here - Carver-the-Templar encountering Samson-the-Guttersnipe, Carver-the-Other-Hawke meets Samson-the-Templar, Carver-the-Warden (or Templar!) and Samson-the-General, or any combination of the above. I’d love a lot of big dick energy here. Depending on the balance of power you go with, how does the other try to get the upper hand? And when/if they achieve that, what happens? Does the other try to undermine them or become their best ally? What causes would they fight for together? They both come to a strange state of detente with the whole mage rights thing - what if they’re both working for the underground in Kirkwall and come across each other that way? *brain explosions* Okay, okay, you get the drift, but whatever you decide, I’m into it.
Also *cough* if you want to figure out some quick and dirty Chantry sex, I’m not gonna stand in your way.
I’d love:
- A lot of angst. Seriously, don’t worry about my shrivelled old heart, it thrives on hurt/no comfort, heartache and straight up whump. If you wanna write character death or graphic depictions of violence, go right ahead. I do not require a happy ending.
- Some juicy descriptions. Textures! Light! Scent! Scenery! Go as big as you want with the details, I thrive on them.
- An ensemble cast. You want other characters to make a cameo? I’d love that! DA characters all live and work together, why should your fic be any different?
I’d say a polite no thank you to:
- Those other Archive warnings. Please, no non-con, rape, or underage scenarios (not even negotiated consent play or age play).
- I'm really not a fan of content related to pregnancy, childbirth, or childrearing. It's okay to mention in passing, but please don't make it your focus. This includes mpreg and lactation.
2021 Pinch Hit #2: WickedWitchoftheWilds — CLAIMED
Please send a private message to a mod through Discord or send an email to [email protected] to claim. This pinch hit will be due at the same time as the regular assignments, August 30th at 8 PM EST.
Relationships: Abelas/Female Lavellan/Solas (Dragon Age), Abelas/Female Lavellan (Dragon Age), The Iron Bull/Female Lavellan/Solas (Dragon Age), The Iron Bull/Female Lavellan (Dragon Age), Female Cadash/Tentacles, The Iron Bull/Solas/Female Trevelyan (Dragon Age), Renn/Valta (Dragon Age) (Fanart, Fanfiction)
Request 1 by WickedWitchoftheWilds
Abelas/Female Lavellan/Solas (Dragon Age), Abelas/Female Lavellan (Dragon Age), The Iron Bull/Female Lavellan/Solas (Dragon Age), Fanart, Fanfiction
Likes: Angst, hurt/comfort, whump, fluff, smut, modern AUs, almost any kind of AU really. There are no rating restrictions, I am fine with any rating. Fat protags. Dub-con is okay, spanking, hair-pulling, ropeplay, dom/sub, sensory deprivation, teasing, orgasm denial/torture, double penetration, pegging, and roleplaying, rough sex, hate sex, public/semi-public sex, choking, praise, oral sex, anal sex, vaginal sex, double penetration, impact play
DNW: highschool AUs, graphic rape (it can happen, just not too in detail, and implied is fine as well), scat, watersports, fisting, ageplay, master/slave, pet play, all other kinds of humiliation beyond verbal sexual humiliation, A/B/O, 1st/2nd person, pregnancy, kidfic (unless specifically requested), beastiality (monsters and tentacles are fine), foot fetish, necrophilia, queerphobia, fatphobia
Request 2 by WickedWitchoftheWilds
The Iron Bull/Female Lavellan (Dragon Age), Female Cadash/Tentacles, The Iron Bull/Solas/Female Trevelyan (Dragon Age), Fanart, Fanfiction
Likes: Angst, hurt/comfort, whump, fluff, smut, modern AUs, almost any kind of AU really. There are no rating restrictions, I am fine with any rating. Fat protags. Dub-con is okay, spanking, hair-pulling, ropeplay, dom/sub, sensory deprivation, teasing, orgasm denial/torture, double penetration, pegging, and roleplaying, rough sex, hate sex, public/semi-public sex, choking, praise, oral sex, anal sex, vaginal sex, double penetration, impact play
DNW: highschool AUs, graphic rape (it can happen, just not too in detail, and implied is fine as well), scat, watersports, fisting, ageplay, master/slave, pet play, all other kinds of humiliation beyond verbal sexual humiliation, A/B/O, 1st/2nd person, pregnancy, kidfic (unless specifically requested), beastiality (monsters and tentacles are fine), foot fetish, necrophilia, queerphobia, fatphobia
Request 3 by WickedWitchoftheWilds
Renn/Valta (Dragon Age), Fanart, Fanfiction
Likes: Angst, hurt/comfort, whump, fluff, smut, modern AUs, almost any kind of AU really. There are no rating restrictions, I am fine with any rating. Fat protags. Dub-con is okay, spanking, hair-pulling, ropeplay, dom/sub, sensory deprivation, teasing, orgasm denial/torture, double penetration, pegging, and roleplaying, rough sex, hate sex, public/semi-public sex, choking, praise, oral sex, anal sex, vaginal sex, double penetration, impact play
DNW: highschool AUs, graphic rape (it can happen, just not too in detail, and implied is fine as well), scat, watersports, fisting, ageplay, master/slave, pet play, all other kinds of humiliation beyond verbal sexual humiliation, A/B/O, 1st/2nd person, pregnancy, kidfic (unless specifically requested), beastiality (monsters and tentacles are fine), foot fetish, necrophilia, queerphobia, fatphobia
