Daiken Valentine’s Exchange - SIGN UP NOW!
After the success of our Secret Santa, we’re putting together a Valentine’s gift exchange as well, with a similar setup.
The challenge runs from NOW to February 14th, when gifts are distributed.
Any participant who requests or offers Mature or Explicit (R-18) content must be 18+ years old.
Participants must complete a story of at least 1,000 words or create a finished art piece using the prompts and details that your recipient requested. Use this information as guidelines, but you absolutely cannot ignore the recipient’s do-not-wants (squicks, triggers, general dislikes, etc.).
Defaulting or dropping out before the sign-up deadline means you will not be penalized. If you do not upload a completed submission by the submission deadline, you are considered to have defaulted. Participants who default repeatedly will be banned from future participation.
Do not contact your recipient directly for information, even anonymously. All contact should go through the moderators as an intermediary.
Do not publicly discuss details of your creative content that would identify what you are creating or for whom you are creating it.
The mods reserve the right to ban any participant who behaves inappropriately during the gift exchange.
While it is not required to comment on your gift, in the spirit of the holiday season and the exchange itself, you are encouraged to thank your author/creator.
What is the Daiken Valentine’s Exchange?
The Daiken Valentine’s Exchange is an annual gift exchange for the Digimon Adventure 02 pairing Ichijouji Ken x Motomiya Daisuke (Davis). Participants sign up to write a story of at least 1,000 words or create a piece of artwork for another participant. In return, they receive a story of at least 1,000 words or a piece of artwork as well.
When does the Daiken Valentine’s Exchange happen?
SIGN-UPS OPEN! till January 6th
Assignments go out: Between January 7th and 10th
Posting deadline: February 10th at 12 midnight UTC
Story/art reveal: February 14th at midnight UTC
How does the exchange work?
During sign-ups, people use a Google form to request and offer to write stories and/or create artwork for the exchange. Participants must fill out all required questions to sign up.
After sign-ups, participants are matched up based on their likes and dislikes, and assignments are sent out. Participants have approximately 5 weeks to write one story of at least 1,000 words or create a finished art piece for their recipient.
Submissions must be completed by February 10th. Fanfiction should be posted to the AO3 collection, where they will wait until the reveal. By this date, artists should email a link to their art piece on an image hosting site to [email protected].
At midnight on February 14th, the stories and art pieces are revealed. For fanfiction, this will happen on AO3, where the works can be gifted directly to the recipients.
What am I committing to if I sign up?
You are committing to write one complete fic of at least 1,000 words or create one finished art piece and submitting it by the deadline.
The link to the sign-up form will be shared on various other social media websites, and participants are encouraged to share the link and invite others to join the exchange.
Can I change my mind about my sign-up after I submit it?
Yes, you can change your mind at any point during the sign-up period by sending an email to [email protected] to inform the mods you can no longer participate. We will send you a follow-up email to confirm your sign-up has been removed from the list, no questions asked.
How are assignments generated?
Once sign-ups are over, participants will be matched manually based on their likes and dislikes to make sure they are a good fit.
Once everyone has a match, the mods will send out official assignments.
Do I have to create content for all of my recipient's likes?
No, you're only required to write one story or create one art piece, and you can choose which of your recipient's requests to respond to.
Can I create more than one piece of content?
Of course! Once you have one completely story of at least 1,000 words or one finished art piece for your recipient, you are more than welcome to create more.
How do I add my story to the AO3 collection?
On AO3, please go to the collection and click on “Post to Collection” under the title. This will take you to a form with the challenge collection name already filled in. You must then add the recipient’s AO3 account name manually, as provided with your assignment, and the rest of the story information.
Can I add my story to the collection before the deadline?
Yes, you are welcome to post it to the collection whenever you want, as long as it is before the deadline.
Can I edit my story after it's posted?
Yes, AO3 allows editing at any time. But it is important to note that your content must be complete when it is uploaded.
What if I can't finish my submission?
If you cannot finish your story or art piece in time, you can default. This lets the mods know they need to find a pinch hitter to create content for your recipient.
Life happens, and it is better to default earlier rather than struggling to meet a deadline you might not be able to meet. This also allows the pinch hitters more time to work. You can always default, have the prompts sent to the pinch hitters, and if you manage to finish, you can still upload and your recipient will receive an extra story.
To default at any time, please contact the mods at [email protected] to let them know you are unable to finish your submission, and we will find a pinch hitter to fulfill the assignment.
Pinch hitters are people who agree to help fulfill assignments where the original author/creator had had to default or drop out. As people default, the mods share the assignments to the pinch hitter group, where they're available for anyone to claim.
Pinch hitters are not required to participate in the challenge, but once you have claimed a pinch hit, you are committing to the same rules and requirements as if you had signed up to participate from the beginning.
At midnight UTC on February 14th, the mods switch all the posted content from hidden to visible on AO3, and participants are notified via email that they have received a gift with a direct link to the content.
Artwork and other submission reveals
At approximately midnight UTC on February 14th, the mods will email out the direct links to the recipients.
