rthstewart: (Default)
rthstewart ([personal profile] rthstewart) wrote2022-01-20 09:54 pm

Three Sentence Ficathon 2022 Part 2

UPDATE 14 FEBRUARY 2022 -- 3SF 2022 IS NOW CLOSED TO NEW PROMPTS!  Do continue to fill prompts already posted but the 3SF 2022 is now closed.  We'll be back next year in a new comm (If I can get my act together).  Thank you again!

THIS IS THE NEW POST FOR PART 2 OF THE 3 SENTENCE FICATHON -- ALL NEW PROMPTS SHOULD BE POSTED HERE
You may continue to fill prompts (but not leave new ones) at the original Post 1 here but please post new prompts here, not there.  And if you're asking, hey is just me, or did this get enormous really fast? Why yes, yes it did.  Last year, it took us ten days before I opened a new post.  This year, it took us about 5.5 days to get there.  So, by all means, go back and fill in Post 1 and post new prompts here!

Also woops, in an indication of how busy I've been with other things, I neglected to post that for a third year in a row the awesome [personal profile] conuly  started a master list of unclaimed prompts and has been updating it as time permits.  Obviously a huge task! Thank you!







 
Welcome to the Three Sentence Ficathon!

Here's a Friending meme!

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 at bit after about 2 weeks and especially once we open a new post because this one is approaching 4,500 comments.
  • 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.

Here's my attempt at a text box that might go horribly awry.






How long will it go?

The 3SF closes to new prompts on February 13, 2022. The entry stays open permanently and people post fills all year long. (There were a bunch of new posts to the 2021 3SF this week!)

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 (and much more). 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, protect yourself, 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 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.
 

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























elementalraven: (Default)

[personal profile] elementalraven 2022-01-31 07:07 pm (UTC)(link)
any, any, different time period au
arveldis: Éowyn at Théodred's funeral (Default)

Narnia, Pevensies

[personal profile] arveldis 2022-02-03 01:23 am (UTC)(link)
“Has anyone got a signal?” Susan asked, holding her phone above her head as she crunched to and fro through the snow; her fingers were going numb, and the coats (what era were they from, anyways? The 1940s?) in the wardrobe really were not meant to be worn in the snow.

Peter shook his head and shoved his phone into the pocket of his pants—the denim was quickly becoming sodden from the snow drifts—and caught Lucy’s hand as she began to tromp off into the trees on her own; and he looked up at the snow-laden trees that crowded around them as far as the eye could see and asked, “Where do you think we are?”

“Nowhere good,” grumbled Edmund. “What kind of place doesn’t have mobile service?”
elementalraven: (Default)

Re: Narnia, Pevensies

[personal profile] elementalraven 2022-02-04 03:54 pm (UTC)(link)
haha yes! Love this!
arveldis: Éowyn at Théodred's funeral (Default)

Re: Narnia, Pevensies

[personal profile] arveldis 2022-02-05 01:26 am (UTC)(link)
Thanks! :D
vialethe: (Narnia - Beach)

Re: Narnia, Pevensies

[personal profile] vialethe 2022-02-06 01:15 am (UTC)(link)
An excellent question, Ed! Of course that's the first thing they'd check on.
arveldis: Éowyn at Théodred's funeral (Default)

Re: Narnia, Pevensies

[personal profile] arveldis 2022-02-06 01:43 am (UTC)(link)
Naturally! :D
raisedbymoogles: (Zidane - flight)

Legend of Zelda compilation, Zelda & Link

[personal profile] raisedbymoogles 2022-02-10 12:19 am (UTC)(link)
The sword that sealed the darkness looked incongruous next to the blue-glowing technology of the Sheikah, but it also didn't look like a weapon that had been forged uncountable eons ago - not a flake of rust, and the edge was as keen as if it'd just come from the forge. Zelda supposed that was to be expected, but it was still a bit eerie.

The boy holding the sword didn't seem to mind. Link leaped and spun, shadow-sparring with invisible foes that only existed inside his VR headset, all while Sheikah monitored his vitals and studied his movements. "He's very skilled," Zelda murmured to the Sheikah in charge of the project. "And the way the sword glows as he spins..."

"Yes, it's fascinating," the researcher answered. "Amazing that our forebears were able to forge a weapon that channels the primordial energies, without the benefit of modern technology." She lowered her tablet, gave the Princess a smile. "And yet, I think, not impossible to duplicate. You will have an army of such wielders at your back, Princess."

"Excellent." Zelda smiled back at her. "When Ganon dares to show his face, we will be ready."
elementalraven: (Default)

Re: Legend of Zelda compilation, Zelda & Link

[personal profile] elementalraven 2022-02-10 03:01 pm (UTC)(link)
this is really cool!

Obsidian & Blood, Acatl

[personal profile] notapaladin 2022-04-14 05:19 am (UTC)(link)

Outside there was the low hum of passersby and the snort and stamp of horses. The saloon had just opened for business, adding its own din of shouting cowboys and the calls of working girls. The windows had been flung open in a desperate bid for any sort of breeze, but it wasn’t working very well.

Acatl grimaced and straightened up from the corpse he was laying out. As much as he hated to admit it, maybe it was time for a break. A short one. Miss Alvarez (age 21, stab wound, perpetrator yet unknown) would understand if he at least paused for a drink of water. But the pump was outside, and outside was loud.

Nothing for it. He washed his hands quickly, rolled his sleeves down, and stepped out into the sunset night. The saloon directly across from his funeral parlor was already bustling, gamblers and tradesmen alike spilling in and out of its swinging doors. They looked as though they were having fun. As he watched, a young man on a black gelding trotted up to the hitching post and dismounted in a smooth motion that set his bright orange poncho swirling. Acatl couldn’t help but stare a moment. There was something terribly familiar about that aquiline nose...

“Hey, our little prince is here! Teomitl, what’ve you been doing with yourself?”

Teomitl was huffing at the gambler who’d waved to him—something about needing a drink before work—but Acatl wasn’t listening. Teomitl. Their town wasn’t large, and their mayor made frequent rounds with his wife and children. And his younger brother, who was glancing back over his shoulder in Acatl’s direction with something like surprise on his face.

The gambler smirked as he saw where he was looking. “That’s our coroner. Don’t bother inviting him in; man’s never darkened this doorway in his life. Heard he usedta be a priest—he sure does act like it!”

Acatl flinched. It was true, but that didn’t mean he wanted it bandied about. But Teomitl didn’t look judgemental; instead he turned to Acatl and nodded politely, visibly dismissing the gambler with a sort of inborn arrogance that wasn’t surprising at all. Annoying, but not surprising. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve been looking for you.”

A cold chill ran down his back. Suddenly and irrationally, he wished he was wearing his gun. It was a cheap six-shooter, but it would do for self-defense. “...Why?”

Teomitl’s gaze flicked from side to side before returning to Acatl’s face. His spurs jingled as he stepped forward, the sound almost covering his low voice. “I might have some information for you regarding Miss Alvarez. And the other women.”

Acatl sucked in a sharp breath. Because Miss Alvarez wasn’t the only woman who’d been killed recently, but Teomitl had been in the city for the past month so there was no way he’d have known that, unless... “Did Ceyaxochitl send you?” At Teomitl’s sharp nod, he grimaced. The old woman had gotten him away from the church in El Paso, saying that he could do more good out here. Ever since then, she’d made a habit out of offering her “help” just when he didn’t want it.

Well, there was no stopping it now. He nodded politely and motioned to the pump in the street. “I’ll draw us some water. We can talk inside.”