The pluralstories catalog is up!

[lb_lee]

Sneak: Hello, everybody! I have created pluralstories , started populating it, made a submissions form for people to rec more, and built a tag system that I hope will be very filterable. Now I think I am ready to take it live! :D My hope is that this comm will become a useful catalog and bring more fans and money to plural creators. Please help me user-test the catalog to make it as usable as possible! And also, please submit your recommended plural stories! (Right now, I am the only one who can post to pluralstories, but anyone can comment or join.)

People with a Dreamwidth account can search pluralstories; those who don't have to use tags. If you want to filter down to more than one tag at a time, you can use URLs like these:

• https://pluralstories.dreamwidth.org/tag/kittens,puppies?mode=or will show all entries tagged either "kittens" OR "puppies." (Obviously, you replace kittens and puppies with whatever the tag is.)
• https://pluralstories.dreamwidth.org/tag/kittens,puppies?mode=and will show all entries that are tagged with BOTH "kittens" and "puppies."

You can filter by more than two tags at a time. (So, for instance, if I want to find something that is free with in-head romance by a publicly plural creator, that URL is, https://pluralstories.dreamwidth.org/tag/price:free,plural:in-head%20romance,plural:plural%20creator?mode=and)

So far, there are tags for plural stuff, decade made, format (digital or analog), medium, whether it is free/pay-what-you-want, accessibility tools (like alt-text), and audience (so far just for kids or teens, and I'm dubious about it because we are VERY bad at judging what is child- or teen-friendly). Do you think there should be genre tags? Something else? Please let me know! I am also working on a tags explanation page because it is impossible to make succinct plural tags using language everyone knows and agrees on.

Content warnings, if they contain spoilers, are put in the comments to catalog posts. Therefore, people who don't want spoilers can still read through fine.

Right now, I have five rules for what gets submitted to pluralstories:

1. It must be a STORY. (Exceptions may be made for plurals making work about their personal experiences, or doing experimental work that pushes the boundaries of what makes a story, but no self-help or philosophy or such.)
2. You must have read/played/watched the whole story (or, if ongoing/unfinished, all that is available)
3. Plurality must be core to story or main character/s.
4. That said, what counts as plurality is extremely broad. (Any type of body or mind-sharing, imaginary friends, median/midcontinuum stuff, otherworld stuff, spirit possession, sci-fi or fantasy plurality like alien parasites or magic multiplicity.)
5. You must say why it's worth plural time. At least one plural must have liked this story enough to recommend it. (Sorry, singlets.) This is to avoid the completionist urge to catalog EVERYTHING, even the stuff that nobody actually likes.

I really hope this is helpful to people!

Comments

[skinstealer]

what's the stance on a plural author suggesting their own work? we're a system that makes a LOT of comics/writing work and a couple of our characters featured are plural as well- though they're also ongoing

[lb_lee]

That is okay! As long as it fulfills the five rules, please, go ahead and submit it!

Sneak

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Do you think there should be genre tags? <<

I recommend genre tags.

Length tags would also be helpful, as many people have preferences for short stories, novels, series, etc.
https://blog.reedsy.com/word-count-novella-short-story-length/

You might consider tags for the most commonly required warnings (major character death, rape/dubious consent, etc.).

Re: Thoughts

[lb_lee]

I have added genre tags!

Length tags are a good idea, but they're also tricky, since we have many mediums, and general length descriptors like "short" or "long" can be very subjective. I will have to think about it! I definitely don't want to have to make completely different length tags for books, games, and movies... (Ugh, that causes trouble too, since a three hour movie is considered long, while a three hour video game is considered short...) Do you have any advice on that?

Do people search BY CWs? I would think people would only want to EXCLUDE those tags, which Dreamwidth can't do. It also runs the challenge of spoilers, which some people really hate and want to avoid. Digging around, though, it looks like only people with paid accounts can search comments (and thus search for ws specifically).

Sneak

EDIT: Okay, I figured out length tags, and added them for long, medium, and short, and defined those lengths in a metadata post. Thanks!

I am still pondering the CW tags. At best, I can think of giving UNwarnings, with tags for happy endings, low/no abuse content, no oppression, etc. I still don't relish the prospect, because it feels like it could very easily get out of control and become the largest section, and involve a lot of constant editing. I will have to keep thinking about this.

Re: Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Length tags are a good idea, but they're also tricky, since we have many mediums, and general length descriptors like "short" or "long" can be very subjective. I will have to think about it! I definitely don't want to have to make completely different length tags for books, games, and movies... (Ugh, that causes trouble too, since a three hour movie is considered long, while a three hour video game is considered short...) Do you have any advice on that? <<

I made the recommendation based on fiction, where there is a small set of widely recognized lengths: short story, novelette, novella, novel. Some lists break it down a lot more, but I don't think that's necessary here.

There's not such a consistent set for film. However, most short films (like cartoons) are 30 minutes or less, most television shows (series episodes, documentaries, etc.) are 30-60 minutes, and most movies are 1-2 hours.

For games, check the box; nowadays they usually include a play time as well as an age range. Short, medium, long is probably enough of a breakdown. But what that means will vary by type of game. Think about how and when people play games, though. A game you can play on the bus or in a waiting room is probably 15 minutes or less. An average sit-down game probably takes 30-60 minutes. Anything more than an hour is likely a game night game that you plan ahead for.

>>Do people search BY CWs? I would think people would only want to EXCLUDE those tags, which Dreamwidth can't do. It also runs the challenge of spoilers, which some people really hate and want to avoid. Digging around, though, it looks like only people with paid accounts can search comments (and thus search for ws specifically).<<

The one I know some people search for is dubious consent; as much as some folks hate that one, others find it interesting. But your point about spoilers is valid, so you may have to leave out this aspect.

>> EDIT: Okay, I figured out length tags, and added them for long, medium, and short, and defined those lengths in a metadata post. Thanks! <<

Yay! I'm happy I could help.

>> I am still pondering the CW tags. At best, I can think of giving UNwarnings, with tags for happy endings, low/no abuse content, no oppression, etc. I still don't relish the prospect, because it feels like it could very easily get out of control and become the largest section, and involve a lot of constant editing. I will have to keep thinking about this. <<

Okay, we don't want to run up your workload or make a mess of tags. Let's take a different approach.

"Gentle fiction" is a pretty well-known category that includes no sex, violence, or foul language and has a generally positive mood. Think comfort reading. In television and movies, it's a "family film" and in games it's "E for Everyone." But if you say gentle fiction most folks will understand that to be entertainment that is generally fun and free of upsetting stuff.

Anyhow, I don't know how much of this you'll find in plural stories, but I bet your audience would love slice-of-life stuff about multiples, especially characters who are doing okay in life. The beginning of Damask's storyline is violent, but after the first view episodes, it calms down a lot. I haven't seen much of that elsewhere, but I'd like to think someone is writing plural fluff.

*ponder* Some of your graphic-novel entries were like that, I think. If you could find a second editor, then they could review your stuff and add it to the archive. (I sympathize with the dilemma of listing your own stuff; I try not to manage Rose & Bay categories where my work is eligible, but sometimes there's nobody else.)

Re: Thoughts

[thnidu]

Hm, are you typing or dictating? "but after the first view episodes" sure looks like a speako for "first few" to me.

(I worked for 12 years at the late, much lamented Dragon Systems, the best workplace I ever had.)

Re: Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

Typing; it's a plain typo.

No speech software works for me. My diction is fine, but my general tendency to wreck technology is more potent the more interactive it gets and the less shielding there is between me and it.