How to: AO3 gift exchange nominations
If you are new to gift exchanges on AO3, here is a guide on how to submit character/relationship nominations to the WH40K Summer Fest exchange tag set. 👇
Like most exchanges on AO3, the WH40K Summer Fest begins with a two-step setup period:
During the nomination period (June 2-9), anyone can submit characters and relationships to the tag set created for the exchange.
During the sign-up period (June 9-16), participants submit requests and offers for characters/relationships from the tag set they would like to receive or create fanfic/fanart for. At the end of the sign-up period, the exchange mods will match participants based on their requests and offers.
You can only sign up to request or offer the characters and relationships contained in the tag set, so make sure to submit your nominations before Sunday, June 9, 11:59am CET/5:59am EDT. After this time, the tag set will close and additional nominations can't be added.
How to nominate
You need an AO3 account to participate in the exchange. If you do not have an account, you can request an invitation to join the Archive here.
Find the link to the tag set in the info box at the top of the exchange's profile page (or click here).
On the tag set page, click 'nominate' in the top right corner.
Choose 'Warhammer 40.000' for the fandom.
All nominations go in the 'Warhammer 40,000' fandom category, even if they belong to other media, e.g., the Horus Heresy series, the Rogue Trader computer game, etc. Nominations are only used for matching participants; when you upload your gift to AO3, you can use the fandom tag(s) of your choice.
Both characters and relationships go in the 'relationship' box for matching purposes.
Add characters to the tagset by writing: Character: [Name] and finishing with a comma.
Add pairings by writing Name/Name (for romantic or sexual pairings) or Name & Name (for platonic pairings/friendships/enemyships — any specific characters you want interacting in a non-romantic/non-sexual way). If the tag has been used on AO3 before, you can choose it from the dropdown menu, otherwise finish with a comma.
You can nominate Original Characters as characters or in relationships. HOWEVER, note that it will be the creator's choice which OC to use; e.g., if you request "Saint Celestine/Original Female Character," the creator can use an OC you suggest but can also use their own idea. You may nominate original characters that specify an OC's faction ("Original Ultramarine & Original Tau Fire Warrior") and/or gender ("Original Transfem Sister of Battle/Original Nonbinary Imperial Guard").
You can also nominate 'Any' characters, e.g., "Sanguinius & Any Blood Angel(s)", "Ciaphas Cain/Any Canon Female Character", to give the creator freedom to choose which character(s) to include.
You can nominate up to 20 characters or pairings.
Once you are done, click 'submit' at the bottom of the page.
You can always add more characters and pairings, up to 20, by clicking 'My nominations' on the tag set page, but once your nominations have been approved by the mods they can't be deleted.
If you nominate something that has already been nominated by someone else, or if the mods change the wording/order of names to match archive conventions (e.g., "Ulfar of the Space Wolves" ➡ "Ulfar Redmane"), it may continue to appear on your 'My nominations' page as unapproved. Click 'Expand All' on the tag set page to see a full list of all nominated characters/relationships and check if your nominations are included, possibly under a slightly different name.
It may take up to 24+ hours for a nomination to be approved, so please don't delete your unapproved nominations.
If you have any questions about your nominations, contact the mods at [email protected].
