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rthstewart ([personal profile] rthstewart) wrote2021-01-30 02:31 pm

Three Sentence Ficathon 2021

We have now opened a new post, for new prompts! Please leave all new prompts there. You may continue to fill existing prompts here. If you didn't get a prompt filled here, feel free to post it on the new post!





Welcome to the Three Sentence Ficathon!
2 Feb. 2021 See important edit below regarding where to find unfilled prompts.


What is the 3 Sentence Ficathon?
This is an open exchange where you answer a prompt with a fic consisting of only three sentences. It's open to all fandoms and you can post and fill as many prompts as you like, as many times as you want.

What do I do first?
You can start 3SF by posting prompts! When posting a prompt please format it this way:

fandom, character(s), prompt word/sentence.

Only one prompt per comment please. So, for example,

Star Wars, Obi-Wan Kenobi, I don't like sand."

Open ended and anthropomorphic fills are popular too, such as:

Any, Any, "I don't like sand."

or

Earth geography, sand, "I don't like humans very much, either."

What happens after that?
You answer other posters' prompts in three sentences (or more if you can't stop yourself) and fill as many prompts as you want, as many times as you wish. If you see that a prompt you loved has already been filled, go ahead and fill it again! Multiple fills of the same prompt are allowed and even encouraged! (We get really fun stories going this way).

Can I still post if I need more than 3 sentences? Or should I just abuse grammar in ways the English language never contemplated?
Yes. Yes.

But I'm not a member of Dreamwidth
No problem. You can comment anonymously or through open ID

I'm really overwhelmed by all the prompts and how much there is and how fast it goes. I can't read 1,000 prompts and fills. It's too much. 
I hear this a lot and it keeps a lot of people from participating.  The 3SF is big and it moves fast, especially at first. 
I get overwhelmed, too, and I'm hosting the thing. With 2020 and 2021 sucking so badly you don't want something that's supposed to be fun cause you anxiety.  I have a couple of suggestions for managing the 3SF volume. 
  • First, really, you don't have to read every prompt and fill on every page.  You can start at the last page of this and just go forward, or back a page or two.  It's fine.
  • You can come and go as time and energy allow, you don't have to participate the whole time, and it drops off quite a bit by mid-February.
  • Even after the 3SF and new prompting end, people fill prompts all year long.
  • You can fill an already filled prompt and you can can leave a prompt that's already been prompted before.  People do it all the time. 
Always make sure you're looking at top-level comments only, not threaded. That helps a lot. Your screen should look like this.




But shouldn't I read everything to see if someone already prompted the same prompt I want to leave if someone already filled it? 

No.  Prompt as many times as you want, as much as you want.  It doesn't matter if someone prompted the exact same prompt.  Go ahead and prompt again!

I left a prompt and no one filled it.  Can I prompt it again?
Absolutely!

Can I spread the word?
Yes, please. I generally fail at creating banners and embed codes but if you create one and make it really idiot-proof, I might be able to post and share it.  Feel free to cross-post this entry. If you create your own banners or icons, let me know and I'll share!
Please share the 3SF with your followers, friends, and any channels and comms you are active on.  I'll post on fandom calendar, Tumblr, and Twitter, but I don't have many connections in other spaces such as Discord.


How long will it go?

The 3SF closes to new prompts on February 28, 2021. The entry stays open permanently and people post fills all year long.

Are there any rules about cross-posting?
Nope, you can post wherever you want, whenever you want. A lot of folks collected their responses together and posted them on AO3 under the 3 sentence fiction tag. 3SFs are a terrific prompt for remixes and could be helpful for Yuletide bears, too.

What about spoilers, content and archive warnings, triggers, pairings, ratings, tags, and squick?
I thought a lot about this. It boils down to reader beware.  In my experience, this typically gets too big, moves too fast, and the stories are too short for content warnings and ratings to even apply. It is too big for me to moderate in this way. You should assume spoilers are fair game and that the initial poster and the responder have opted to use no content warnings or tags. This means AO3 content warnings for dubcon, violence, canon character death, underage, etc. COULD be present. I've found personally that I can skim and scroll by stuff that, from the prompt, I can tell isn't my favorite flavor of delicious cake. Use your best judgment and be prepared to skip over things that aren't your thing. In this format, the obligation is on you, the reader, to protect yourself from triggering content.
Some posters do include warnings and spoiler tags in subject lines or include spoiler space, but they don't have to do so.

Why is 3SF split among several posts?  That seems confusing.
It is confusing and we always lose momentum once we have to move to a second post. The reason is because at 5,000 comments to a single post, DW installs a human test CAPTCHA, which is a pain for users.  So, once this entry gets to the upper 4,000 comments, I open a new post.  If you've been waiting until things slow down to participate, when we open a second post is often a good place to join.

If I have questions, what do I do?

I'm rthstewart everywhere, here, Twitter, Tumblr, gmail and AO3.

A special thank you to [personal profile] conuly  .
Last year, Conuly started logging all unfilled prompts.
This year's (2021) unfilled prompts are here.
Last year's (2020) unfilled prompts are here.
Conuly asks that you not reply, as they want to be able to edit and add more prompts to the list.
Conuly does this just because they are an awesome person but should you want to write them fic in thanks, you can find a birthday wish list here.

Here is the 3SF 2021 Friending Meme to show of your new DW account.

Here, have some icons and banners and let me know if you've created your own!

 






text box you can try to cut and paste

















snacky: (3 sentence ficathon)

[personal profile] snacky 2021-02-05 01:25 am (UTC)(link)
"Edmund, there's a bluebird outside and he's demanding a duel for his daughter's honor!" Lucy cried, bursting through the library doors to find her siblings staring out the window.

Peter grinned at bird pecking at the glass, chirping with great menace, as Edmund buried his face in his hands, groaning.

Susan gave Edmund a Look. "I would really like to know how this keeps happening to you," she said, before putting on her best smile and opening the window to address Father Bird.
snacky: (Default)

Re: Do I look like the bluebird of happiness?

[personal profile] snacky 2021-02-05 01:26 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, as usual, dear. :D :D :D
snacky: (Default)

[personal profile] snacky 2021-02-05 01:26 am (UTC)(link)
Crossover of my dreams!
sincereously: night sky above mountains (Default)

[personal profile] sincereously 2021-02-05 01:49 am (UTC)(link)
At first she thinks that Han's just trying to find another way under her skin, that "as you wish" is only a variation of his more typical yes ma'am, absolutely, if it please Your Worshipfulness whenever she asks him to do something.

She keeps finding ways to make him say it, for reasons she can't explain even to herself, even as the requests turn from I need you to set up the corral for the tauntauns to I need you to fly this mission, you're the only one who knows the sector to, finally, Han, don't leave yet, I need you to stay.

"As you wish," he says, and for the first time she thinks it might mean something different to them both.
ranalore: (the untamed wwx mounds eat)

Re: Unbroken Record

[personal profile] ranalore 2021-02-05 01:52 am (UTC)(link)
It's not off-prompt, and sad is to be expected in this fandom! Especially when it comes to the Nie brothers. Saber practice is a great way to show the difference between before and after, and touch on the scope of what NHS lost.
ranalore: lwj grabbing wwx in ep. 2 (the untamed wangxian stay)

[personal profile] ranalore 2021-02-05 01:59 am (UTC)(link)
Poor Wei Wuxian. Coming back to life was just one more trauma, there for a long while, and there was really nothing Lan Wangji could say to soothe that.
alexseanchai: Katsuki Yuuri wearing a blue jacket and his glasses and holding a poodle, in front of the asexual pride flag with a rainbow heart inset. (Default)

[3SF RPF] clouded

[personal profile] alexseanchai 2021-02-05 02:15 am (UTC)(link)
"It's like playing Where's Waldo."

"Nah, more like Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego. She wouldn't stick to that bright red trenchcoat if she didn't want to draw attention."
edenfalling: stylized black-and-white line art of a sunset over water (Default)

Re: Growing panes

[personal profile] edenfalling 2021-02-05 02:20 am (UTC)(link)
Ahaha, beautiful! :D
siver: (Default)

[personal profile] siver 2021-02-05 02:25 am (UTC)(link)
Dragon Quest XI, Sylvando & any party member, bringing out a smile with a hug
siver: (Default)

[personal profile] siver 2021-02-05 02:25 am (UTC)(link)
Dragon Quest XI, Sylvando & Dave, unexpected need for comfort
siver: (Default)

[personal profile] siver 2021-02-05 02:30 am (UTC)(link)
Ghost Trick, Cabanela & Pigeon Man, can't escape rest forever
pilfered_words: Escher bird tessellation, colored with watercolor pencil (Default)

[personal profile] pilfered_words 2021-02-05 02:34 am (UTC)(link)
OW. Jiang Cheng, honey...
cofax7: climbing on an abbey wall  (Default)

[personal profile] cofax7 2021-02-05 02:37 am (UTC)(link)
Perfect!
pilfered_words: Escher bird tessellation, colored with watercolor pencil (Default)

Re: Growing panes

[personal profile] pilfered_words 2021-02-05 02:38 am (UTC)(link)
the defenestration/destination dichotomy
last_haven: (Default)

Re: One day I'll write a whole story of Edmund and his painter boyfriend; until then, have this.

[personal profile] last_haven 2021-02-05 03:07 am (UTC)(link)
Thank you!
last_haven: (Default)

Re: As much as I hope someone does a literal take on this prompt soon, here's a metaphorical one for

[personal profile] last_haven 2021-02-05 03:08 am (UTC)(link)
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
last_haven: (Default)

[personal profile] last_haven 2021-02-05 03:10 am (UTC)(link)
Thank you! I'm glad she's in character; I feel like I need more practice writing Mad Max fanfic, but this is heartening.
last_haven: (Default)

[personal profile] last_haven 2021-02-05 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
Glad to do it justice!
archersangel: (cheering)

Re: strange brew (Monica, Friends)

[personal profile] archersangel 2021-02-05 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
It's so like Monica to think she could make the best coffee.
sincereously: night sky above mountains (Default)

Re: Obsidian & Blood, Teomitl & Chalchiuhnenetl

[personal profile] sincereously 2021-02-05 03:28 am (UTC)(link)
Intriguing! I especially liked the part about taking the throne because at least then his loved ones will be alive, even if they hate him.
sincereously: night sky above mountains (Default)

[personal profile] sincereously 2021-02-05 03:29 am (UTC)(link)
Great job! I like the calculations going through his head as he's fighting.