EAD Birthday Bash

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Gift Exchange
Name: EAD Birthday Bash
Abbreviation: BB
Date(s): 2019 - present
Runs: Annually at the beginning of January
Moderator(s): shadowsapiens
Type: flash exchange
Fandom: multifandom
Associated Community: Exchanges After Dark
URL: AO3 parent collection
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The EAD Birthday Bash (or sometimes just Birthday Bash) is an annual multifandom exchange celebrating the creation of the Discord server Exchanges After Dark. Its first round in 2019 could be considered the first flash exchange, although the term "flash exchanges" hadn't been coined yet. Like EAD, Birthday Bash is an 18+ event and most of its participants are exchanges regulars, although anyone who's a member of the server can participate. All announcements and other administrative business takes place in EAD's #birthday-bash channel.

According to AO3's count, participants have made 1440 works across 336 fandoms. The fandom count is likely somewhat inaccurate, however: some works have their actual fandoms obscured because a high percentage of BB works are deliberate badfic (or art) or otherwise extremely cracky, leading the creators to use the "Unspecified Fandom" and "Undisclosed Fandom" tags in order to keep their fic from being displayed to AO3 users who are looking for good fic to read in their fandoms. Many participants also sign up with or post their works from obvious sock accounts in order not to send their weird or low quality work to their subscribers.

Participants in Birthday Bash match on fandom, character or relationship (in the "Characters" slot), and a freeform theme. Shadow picks 8 themes based on her personal interests and server in-jokes. Participants do not match on medium and there are no medium restrictions. The minimums are "69 words or sharpie sketch on a napkin"[1]

During sign ups, participants with serious DNWs list them as "serious DNWs", to differentiate them from the humorous, mocking, or deliberately badly phrased DNWs. The exchange doesn't allow for letter links (that is, the AO3 letter linking isn't enabled) but some participants make reference to letters that don't exist or post deliberately bad letters/letters in unusual formats. Optional details are encouraged and like DNWs and letters are frequently written as jokes. The exchange does have pinch hits and everyone is guaranteed a main gift.

Mediums

The lack of medium restrictions, low minimums, and a willingness to embrace both deliberate badfic and earnest but terrible attempts has lead to a wide range of mediums in the first two rounds, including:

EAD Birthday Bash (2019)

21 participants signed up. 166 works were produced across 59 fandoms.

Themes:

  • Bartending in the Dark
  • Birthday Party
  • Bread Vore
  • Catperson AU
  • Resurrecting Genitalia
  • sand
  • Shadows
  • Other

EAD Birthday Bash 2: Good Writers Only (2020)

49 participants signed up. 410 works were produced across 104 fandoms.

Themes:

EAD Birthday Bash 3: One Exchange to Rule Them All (2021)

61 participants signed up. 310 works were produced across 106 fandoms.

The themes for this round were other exchanges, real and imagined. A full list can be found in the tagset.

EAD Birthday Bash 4: Sharing Is Caring (2022)

87 participants signed up. 339 works were produced across 149 fandoms.

Themes:

  • Birthday Party
  • Character Signs Up for EAD Birthday Bash
  • defeating evil
  • Food Crimes
  • Other (BB Theme)
  • Sexy Times
  • Sharing
  • Zhongli/Xiao (BB Theme)

The Fifth Annual Themed EAD Birthday Bash (2023)

55 participants signed up. 215 works were produced across 93 fandoms.

For this round, the theme was "theme"

References

  1. ^ shadowsapiens, Round 1 profile.
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