#be_questions

[black-emporium-exchange]

When does the Archive go live on the 7th? Is it at midnight or at 20:00/22:00 pm like some of the deadlines?

Hello anon! The collection will be revealed at 8 PM EDT on the 7th. Here’s a countdown to keep track :) 

If for some reason we need to delay the collection opening, we will announce that as soon as we have made that decision.

[black-emporium-exchange]

A Flood of Nominations!

Nuglets, we are truly impressed. In just over 24 hours your mods have approved 481 glorious rare pairs/relationships. Keep ‘em coming!

We regretfully must remind the community that Cassandra Pentaghast/Varric Tethras is no longer eligible for Black Emporium, as it has too many completed works on Ao3. Any relationship with over 300 completed works on Ao3 is no longer rare and thus ineligible.

We also have a list of nominations that need more detail before they can be approved and added to the list. If you see one of yours, send us an ask on Tumblr, a message on Dreamwidth, or an email to [email protected] and let us know your preferences.

For purposes of this exchange, we factor in background/gender in terms of determining for a pairing to be eligible as this is how Ao3 divides up pairings as tags. For example, Solas/Male Trevelyan is evaluated differently than Solas/Male Lavellan; and Solas/Male Trevelyan is evaluated differently than Solas/Female Trevelyan.

Gender Needed

Athenril/Cadash

Bianca Davri/Inquisitor Cadash

Cadash/Jarvia

Hawke/Jean-Marc Stroud

Isabela/Adaar

Leliana/Hawke

Mage Trevelyan/Dagna

Warden Brosca/Branka

Background Needed

Male Inquisitor/Dagna

Male Inquisitor/Leliana

Background & Gender Needed

Loghain Mac Tir/Warden

Shayle Cadash/Warden

Varel/Orlesian Warden

Additional Details Needed

Arishok/Male Hawke/Qunari

Arishok/Merrill/Qunari

Please indicate what gender/rank of Qunari you are thinking of. Example: Arishok/Male Hawke/Original Male Ashaad

Anders/Templar(s)

Please specify gender and additional details if desired. Examples: Anders/Original Male Templar(s) or Anders/Original Male Gallows Templar(s)

[black-emporium-exchange]

Question: I did a nom for Charade Amell/Sera, but it seems like it linked to Female Amell/Sera, which is a totally different ship. Is that an A03 thing or something I did wrong with the nom?

I noticed that -- it looks like it was Ao3 not being clear that Charade Amell is a separate character from Female Amell. I edited it when doing approvals. Charade Amell/Sera should be in the tagset; if it’s still an issue during signups, we’ll do more troubleshooting as needed.

-Mod K

[black-emporium-exchange]

I know that "Multi-Recip Fic Treats" was an option when signing up, but can you explain how they work for the creator doing the treating?

Treats for multiple recipients should be treated with extreme caution, even for those who have opted into receiving them. It is allowed, but please keep all of the following in mind as a creator:

Does the treat hit anything on any recipients' DNW list?

Are all recipients open to receiving multi-recipient treats?

Does the treat fit requests for all recipients? It's better to create a treat for fewer people that closely fits all recipients' requests and preferences than to create a treat for many people that only fits one person's requests.

When you create a new work on Ao3, in the field to gift to an individual, just add all the recipients you wish to gift to.

Otherwise, multi-recipient treats are like any other treat in the exchange! Have fun!

[black-emporium-exchange]

Hello ! I have a kinda stupid question, so I'm doing an artwork to gift and I was wondering whether to put my watermark/signature on it, cause everyone's identity is supposed to be a secret and such

Hi! We recognize that the norms are somewhat different for artists due to concern of art theft, so we will say that you are allowed to put a watermark/signature on it, even during the anonymous period.

[black-emporium-exchange]

Will there be a treat/treatless list at any point?

Yes! We are working on getting it together to make sure that everyone’s treat preferences are accurately reflected.

[black-emporium-exchange]

Can I sign up solely as a pinch hitter?

Anyone who signs up will be matched with someone and required to fulfill one of their prompts. However, anyone, including those not signed up, can watch and volunteer to pinch hit when one comes up.

Also, treats are always welcome and you don't have to have signed up to create treats for those who want them, either!

[black-emporium-exchange]

Hi, I had a couple of quick questions. First, in the FAQ, you mention that "you must have your DNW on your sign-up form for us to be able to take action on it" - does this include having it in the letter referenced by the sign-up, or does it have to be in actual prompt box? Second, do our creations have to be new for the exchange, or could we adapt / gift an unpublished work that we've been working on for a while if it hits the pairings / DNW requirements for someone?

Hi, Anon!

From a practical standpoint, we can only enforce DNWs that are in your signup. You can always list out a summary of your DNWs in the AO3 prompt box and then provide additional details in your letter.

As for gifting an existing WIP as part of the exchange, the answer is “yes but.” If the WIP truly fits the recipient’s DNWs and requests, and it’s not part of an existing series, and you haven’t been posting snippets of it publicly, then yes, you absolutely can finish it and gift it to someone as part of the exchange. When we say “posted publicly,” we don’t mean showing the story to one or two people for help or beta reading; we mean posting snippets or extensive plot discussions on (for example) Tumblr.

Let us know if you’ve still got questions!