Basic Rules and Interaction [REQUIRED]

[Ellis]

1) Do not be a jerk.
Should it need to be said, this is the first and most important rule. Be kind to one another, and show respect for everyone's experiences. Also, don't yuck others' yum. Folks like different things, and shaming or talking down isn't welcome. This also includes things like AI conversations. This topic is incredibly controversial and not permitted outside the AI forum, but if a topic is getting heated or unfriendly, the modmin team will shut a discussion down and reprimand those responsible as swiftly as possible. This rule includes homophobia, sexism, racism, ableism, etc. -- those things are not welcome in NPC territory.

We embrace a zero tolerance policy for bullying or cruelty. Anyone being genuinely unkind to others (cussing them out, directly insulting them, etc.) or acting in a way that we feel damages our community will be removed wholesale without warning.

2) Don't critique grammar of forum messages.
Messages are often rife with typos, typed on phones while half-awake, and other such things. No judgment. The only exception to this rule is if someone is requesting feedback on their punctuation or grammar specifically in the appropriate forum.

3) Please keep discussion of personal political and religious beliefs to a minimum.
This is just general housekeeping. We want to make sure everyone feels safe in the community, and discussion of politics and religion often leads to argument and hurt feelings. If your book includes political or religious facets, these may be discussed with respect. If a conversation gets out of hand, please contact a staff member.

4) No self-promotion outside the promotion forums.
If someone asks about your book or services in the course of conversation, you may provide links and data about it. However, dropping links to your service or book any chat but ⁠self-promotion without it being part of a conversation is not permitted. You are also welcome to include your links in your signature and profile.

5) Please write alt text for your memes, gifs, and images where possible!
We would like to encourage all users to write alt text where possible. We have some folks in here who are visually impaired and use screen readers, so I'd like to make things accessible. It doesn't need to be complex and could be a very simple description of the image. Do your best. Good faith is all we ask!

6) Please keep content most PG-13 outside of the specific forum designed for more adult conversations.
Spicy authors and authors of books where extreme violence needs to be discussed can ask for feedback on those parts of their books in the 18+ segment of the mature discussion forum on the site here. It's not that it's "offensive" but we do want to ensure that people are comfortable when browsing!