FAQs

## General FAQs

1. **Can I sign up to write a fic and also create art?** Yes, you may participate as both an artist and author, however you will not be able to claim your own fic.
2. **Are there any age restrictions for participation in the challenge?** You must be at least 15 years old by the end of the registration period in order to participate. Additionally, we will not accept or promote explicit material (either art or fic) submitted by participants under 18 years of age, so those participants who are 15-17 will not be able to submit or claim fic with an M or E rating.
3. **What information will I need to provide to register for the challenge?** You will be asked to provide your name, pronouns, email address, age bracket, whether you’re signing up as an author/artist/both, your Ao3 URL, and/or the URL of the site where you’ll host art.
4. **What is a Pinch Hitter?** In the event that an artist needs to drop out of the challenge after claims, a Pinch Hitter is an artist who signs up to create art for the claimed fic in a much shorter amount of time.
5. **How can I contact the mods?** If you have questions, concerns, need to withdraw from the challenge, or need to reach us on behalf of a participant, you can email us at deancaspinefest@gmail.com, send us an ask here on Tumblr, or tag @mod on the Pinefest Discord server.

## Author FAQs

1. **Are there any narrative requirements for this challenge?** All fic must have a strong focus on a relationship between Dean and Castiel, and must feature pining as a major trope. Beyond that? The multiverse is your oyster.
2. **Are there any limitations on story content?** Specific story content is at the discretion of the author, however we recommend using discretion when writing fics which use recent or current real-world traumatic or tragic events as the setting. You may certainly draw inspiration from real-world events, but please consider the implications if you do decide to write about sensitive topics, particularly regarding events which have not personally affected you but may have personally affected other people in the fandom. If any further clarification is needed on this point, please ask or email.
3. **Can I include explicit/graphic scenes?** All participants 18 years and older are welcome to go into as much explicit detail as they’d like, so long as they ensure that they give their fic the appropriate rating, and utilise content warnings where applicable.
4. **Can I write established relationship where they are pining because they have been separated, or because of some misunderstanding?** Yes! So long as there is pining, it will be suitable for this challenge.
5. **Can it be unrequited pining / does the story have to have a happy ending?** Yes, you can center your story around unrequited pining, and have an unhappy ending if you wish. That said, please bear in mind that the artists and the audience of the Pinefest are largely looking for fics where Dean and Castiel work *through* their pining and end up together in some way, and are not likely to be as enthused about a fic where these characters end up apart. For this reason, while fics of this nature are allowed, they may see more success in a more general challenge. If you do decide to give your story an unhappy ending, it should be clearly tagged for art claims & when posting on Ao3.
6. **Can I include any underage content?** We do not accept fics which detail explicit sexual activity involving minors. Fics which include 16 or 17 year old characters engaging in any amount of sexual activity must be clearly tagged as underage, and should not go into explicit/graphic detail. If a character in your fic has a history of sexual abuse that occurred while they were a minor, you may not include any graphic description of the event(s), and must include clear content warnings. Please feel free to ask the mods if you’re unsure if your fic will be acceptable for this challenge.
7. **Can I include my other ships?** Of course! You can include as many side pairings and other relationships as you’d like–just be sure to tag them clearly so as not to surprise your artist or readers with an unexpected notp. That said, a fic in which either Dean or Cas ends up in a relationship with someone else would not be suitable for the Pinefest, and may best be saved for another challenge.
8. **Is there an upper limit on the word count?** Once you’ve met the 20k minimum, you can write as much as you’d like!
9. **Can I choose which scenes get illustrated?** Challenges such as the Pinefest are intended as collaborations between authors and artists, not as commissions. While it is of course okay to let your artist know what the world of your story looks like in your mind’s eye, or help them choose a scene if they ask for your input, you should not make demands or pressure them to fill a specific prompt. Just remember to communicate and treat one another with respect, and everyone will have a good time :)
10. **Can I co-write with a friend?** Co-writing is allowed, but neither co-writer may submit another fic as a solo author, or as part of another writing team. Additionally, if either co-writer is also participating as an artist, they may not claim the co-written fic.
11. **Can I make my own banner or commission someone to make extra art for my fic?** This would not be in the spirit of the challenge, and is therefore not allowed. Breaking this rule by seeking out or creating extra art for your fic during the challenge will result in disqualification.
12. **Can I include any non-art images or diagrams in my fic?** The only images you may include beyond your paired artist’s work are things like text message “screenshots”, or simple diagrams like a timeline or a basic family tree. If you want to include an element like this but you’re not quite sure if it will be suitable, please reach out to us via email or Discord.
13. **I already finished my draft! Can I submit it early?** Nice work! The draft submissions page will be open closer to the due date – check back in November.
14. **Can I skip claims and post my fic without art?** Though we have allowed this in past rounds, this will no longer be possible. Moving forward, all participants in the challenge will be part of an author/artist team.
15. **Does my fic have to be set in a particular universe?** Nope! Canon compliant, alternate universe, crossover, French Mistake ‘verse, rule!63, and any other variation you can think of are all acceptable for this challenge.
16. **Can I use a fic idea that I’ve previously spoken about on social media?** Yes, with the caveat that you do not continue to discuss the idea publicly after choosing it as your Pinefest fic, and that your previous discussion of the idea was not detailed enough to upset the anonymous claims process. Basically, if you’ve mentioned a concept once or twice, that’s fine to use in the Pinefest, but if you’ve shared extensive plot details or excerpts, you’ll need to choose a different fic for this challenge :)
17. **Does my beta reader need to be registered for the challenge?** No, your fic can be beta read by anyone at all, so long as they are not registered as an artist for the current round.

## Artist FAQs

1. **What if I can’t get online when claims go live?** If you’re unable to access a computer when claims go live, you may elect a friend to submit your claim on your behalf–just make sure to give them your full shortlist & the link to the form ahead of time. To help facilitate this, the form will be viewable prior to claims opening, so you can get a good idea of what needs to be done.
2. **What information will I need to provide at claims?** You will be asked to provide the name you signed up with, your email address, your age bracket, and – in order of preference – which fic you would like to claim. You will be given the option to sign up as a pinch hitter, and will be asked if you would like the opportunity to claim a second fic should any remain after the first round.
3. **Can I claim multiple fics as an artist?** It all depends on numbers! If any fics remain unclaimed after all registered artists have been paired up with an author (or twelve hours after the first round opened, whichever comes first), a second round of claims will be announced. A third round will open twelve hours after that.
4. **I missed the artist sign up deadline–can I still participate?** If any fics are still available after the second round of claims has closed, you will have the chance to sign up and claim a fic the following day during public/third round claims. We will post a link to do this should we need to. Once all author/artist teams have been finalized, we will also open a sign up form for any artists who wish to register as pinch hitters in the rare event that one of the assigned artists is unable to complete the challenge.
5. **Can I create more than two pieces of art?** Of course! Once you’ve completed your two required pieces of either digital or traditional art, you are more than welcome to let your muse run wild.
6. **Are there any limitations on art content?** What you choose to create is entirely up to you, however please bear in mind that we will not accept or promote explicit or mature material submitted by minors, or accept art which depicts sexual or sexualized acts involving minors.
7. **Is there anything I have to include in my art?** So long as your art is representative of the fic you’re creating it in response to, it’s perfect! That said, given the focus of this challenge, it is expected that your art will feature Dean & Castiel.
8. **Is abstract art acceptable for this challenge?** Generally speaking, no. Though we don’t want to constrict your artistic plans, the art for this challenge should visibly reflect the story you’ve claimed. The only exception to this rule is if you and your author both agree that such a piece makes sense in the context of the story.