Writing Conventions

(Copied straight from .XML 'backup' file, needs formatting and corrections. ZM User (talk) 20:15, 22 April 2024 (PDT))

This is a "Stub", or a short article with little useful information.  Any editor with more information about this subject is invited to help improve it.

Writing Conventions

    As Swarm writers, we pretty much write for two outlets: ASSTR.org, and Storiesonline.net. Each has its own requirements.  SOL's rules are far more restrictive in most cases, so if a story can be posted there it can also go on ASSTR.

Subject Matter

(Write something about SOL's age limit for sex, etc)

Short version. At age 14 or older, anything goes.

Under age 13 and ANY sexual content violates Canadian law. No sexual situations. No nudity (even the non sex types). Nothing. Why does this matter? Because the SERVER is run by a Canadian. Any new story that has any 13 year olds or younger in a sexual situation can get the entire site shut down and then the Law enforcement can potentially come looking for the writers. OLD stories are grandfathered in, even with new chapters.

Who Said What

   Each writer comes up with his or her own way of encoding different modes of communication.  Some use double quotes for everything.  Others have specific codes depending upon who is speaking and how they are doing it.  Zen Master does the following, and urges other authors to do the same:

   "talking" double quotes for speech from people,
   <talking> brackets for speech from AIs,
   ("talking") double quotes inside parentheses for people doing private communications using their implant, and
   (<talking>) brackets inside parentheses for private communications from an AI.

   There are authors who use double angle brackets << and >> for the AIs.  Note that some languages actually have a single character for these (the European guillemets «...»), but unless the reader happens to have accidentally chosen the exact same character set into his computer that the author used -there are dozens- he won't see the same symbols that the author used.  This issue has led to some authors insisting that only the original 7-bit ASCII symbols (values 0-127) should be used in the final published file.
   While it would be nice if all authors did the same thing, that is nowhere near as important as having each author be consistent throughout a story.  And, maybe, throughout all of his/her stories.  That's about the only thing that the authors really agree on, for this particular subject.  Besides, what if we all agreed on the One True Way, spent the next six months re-issuing all our stories to match, and next year someone new came up with a better idea?  Do we stone him for apostasy, or do it all again?  I vote for being lazy and allowing sleeping dogs to lie.

(This page was originally written as a public service by Zen Master and then added to by others.)

  Some of us find it simpler and easier to remember to use <via implant> and "any out loud communication" no matter who or what is communicating or to whom.  However, ZM's recommendation about consistency is the guiding principal. - Omachuck

(Someday this will be a navigation template.  It will provide a bar across the bottom of each article with useful navigation links.  Until then, this is just a placeholder to get rid of all the red "broken link" indicators. -ZM User (talk) 10:00, 3 May 2024 (PDT))