FicWad

Archive
Name:	FicWad
Date(s):	March 2005 - present
Archivist:	Kemayo and SunTyger, then just Kemyo
Founder:
Type:	fanfiction & original fiction archive
Fandom:	multifandom
URL:	http://www.ficwad.com/
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FicWad is a multifandom fanfiction and original fiction archive that opened in 2005.

It has the slogan: "fresh-picked original and fan fiction."

The terms of service is here.

Description: "FicWad is an archive for original and fan fiction. We provide storage for member's stories, in addition to a system for reviewing, rating, and searching for stories, and contacting other members. In order to use this service, you must have access to the world wide web, and a compatible web browser."

Philosophy

We feel that two things are very important in fiction: the freedom of an author to write what they want, and the freedom of a reader to read what they want.

The purpose of this archive is not to police stories. Fiction can take any form, so we don't want to put limitations on authors' creativity. We won't stand for plagiarism or harrassment, but beyond that, just about anything goes! Nobody enjoys having their stories deleted.

At the same time, readers should be able to find what they're looking for. The reader should have the tools available to filter out what they don't want to see.

Above all, we feel that fiction should be fun, and that an archive is nothing without its users.

Forum

The site has a forum, which is located here.

As of about 2010, its content is mostly spam.

Topics:

• Announcements
• Site Issues
• Writing Tips
• Fic Recs
• Introductions
• Melting Pot

Ratings

How does rating work?

After you read a story, you'll see a link at the bottom of the page that will let you rate the story. That link will take you to a page with several different adjectives to choose from, some good and some bad. You can then choose an adjective that you think describes that story. Each good adjective will add one point to the story's score, and each bad adjective will subtract one. You can only rate each story once, and it costs one rating point to rate each story. You cannot rate if you have no rating points remaining.

How can I get more rating points?

Rating points are refilled every week. Every user starts off receiving 5 points each week, but the number you receive is affected by your karma--a hidden number that reflects how fair and helpful you have been in your ratings and reviews. When other users meta-rate your ratings as Fair, you'll gain a tiny amount of karma, and likewise, if they meta-rate your ratings as Unfair, you'll lose a tiny amount. If your ratings are consistently fair or unfair, you'll start to see a difference in the number of points you receive. Your karma will also increase when an author rates one of your reviews as Helpful. However, there's no karma loss for an Unhelpful review, so if you don't have any advice to offer and just want to say you liked the story, you won't be penalized.

What's meta-rating all about?

If other users have rated a story, then after you read it, you will be able to see anonymously what another user had to say about that story. You can decide whether you think the rating was fair or unfair by clicking on the respective link. Users who are consistently rated as fair will get more rating points, and those rated as unfair will get fewer. You cannot meta-rate ratings on your own stories, or ratings that you yourself have left.

Didn't you steal all this from Slashdot?

Yep.

Warnings and Ratings

What do all these warnings mean?

Warnings are an easy way to let your reader know there might be something in your story they don't want to see. Please be courteous and use them when appropriate!

! Mild Spoilers This story reveals something you might not have known about the plot or characters of the original source. Nothing of earth-shattering importance, but it could spoil a surprise for someone who hasn't finished the plot of the source.

!! Medium Spoilers Something is revealed about the original source that significantly affects the plot or perception of the characters.

!!! Severe (or Extra-Spicy) Spoilers Something monumentally huge is revealed about the source. If you've revealed that any main characters have died, or that the hero's best friend actually turned out to be the villian, or the answer to that 27-episode-long murder mystery...this would be the warning for your story.

? Alternate Universe What if all the characters were ordinary high school students? What if X actually hooked up with Y instead of Z? This story does not adhere to canon--but that's okay, we love it anyway.

X Sex The story contains graphic sexual content.

V Violence This covers excessive violence and gore--anything involving blood, guts, and bones breaking should probably have this warning.

R Rape/Sexual Violence Not just a mix of "X" and "V", this warning covers non-consensual sex, extreme bondage or powerplays, and any other sexual abuse or violence.

Y Child/Underage Sex This warning means that the story contains sexual acts in which at least one character is not of legal/consenting age in their particular universe.

2010 Issues

In May 2010, the site's owner reported tech problems with the site:

So As you may, possibly, have noticed, I've been completely ignoring FicWad for a while now, and some things have gone unfixed.

The biggest problem is that email-sending died a while ago, so no-one was getting signup emails or new passwords or whatnot. Turns out that this was because FicWad's hosting provider accidentally disabled the email account in question during some sort of maintenance. I've fixed that, and the backed up email queue is getting processed.

The problem with "everything is getting sent back out" is that there's a big backlog. If you signed up and then asked for a new password because you never got your password email... you'll get the signup email, and then (later) the actual working password.

I'm sorry about that. It may take a few days, but eventually everything will show up, and you'll be in possession of the correct account details.