Creative Writing: Rules and Regulations

As a creative writing wikia, we encourage users and visitors to get creative when posting their own stories here. However, there are some rules and regulations that one must follow. These are the Rules and Regulations of the site on writing acceptable stories set in the Stygian Universe. Please note that these rules and regulations are mandatory to any user posting their own stories on this site. Any story that fails these rules and regulations will be, without prejudice to the author or any other factors, deleted. If you are looking for a more in-depth explanation as to why your story was deleted, you can ask the site's admin.

Rules and Regulations on Quality

 * 1) Before posting a story on the site, you MUST proofread and spellcheck the document. This should include proper capitalizations, spelling, puncuation, spacing, and paragraphs. Most document editors, like Microsoft Word, have a spelling and a grammar check feature built-in. We suggest using that, then copying and pasting into source mode on the site to eliminate any possibility of formatting conflicts.
 * 2) As this is a Horror-based site, ALL stories must be treated as such. Now that is not to say that one cannot add humor into their stories, but they should not be the main factor in the story. Stories that are overtly parodies and comedic will be removed immediately.
 * 3) If you decide to include an image to your story, you must follow the necessary precautions associated with Fair Use Imagery. Images that are not your own are required to be of public domain and not copyrighted as to avoid and ramifications of such usage.

Blacklisted Subjects
The Stygian Universe is a shared universe whose stories and characters are all a part of the same universe. Now that doesn't necessarily mean that a user must include mentionings of other characters and stories in their own stories but should keep the idea of The Stygian Universe in mind while writing their own stories.

There are some topics and subjects that are prohibited and will be removed immediately if they are posted. If a user repeats this they will be banned unless they give a valid reason for their actions. The following is a list of blacklisted topics/subjects that are expressly prohibited and should be avoided at all costs.
 * 1) Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic: For the sake of having a continuing universe set in the present and past, any Apocalyptic and/or Post-Apocalyptic stories are not recommended as they tend to detract from the other more supernatural elements of the Stygian Universe.
 * 2) Zombie Outbreaks: Along the lines of the Apocalyptic/Post Apocalyptic setting, even though zombies, in general, have been a mainstay in horror, they do not fit into the overall structure of the site and should not be added. However, there are some exceptions to this rule, Vodoo/Supernatural zombies are a whole different breed and feel than those of the viral outbreak ones. If you want to post a story on these particular ones then you must first run it through the site's admin before posting it.
 * 3) Vampires- Another mainstay in the genre, vampires are something that should be written with caution. This means that there should be no Twilight-style romantic vampires but rather full-blooded (pun intended) forces that inspire terror. Again when you decide upon this topic please run it through the administrator before posting it.
 * 4) Fan Fiction, Creepypasta, and Parodies: Original content only, there should be no inclusion of Creepypasta characters or stories on this site as well as any fan-fiction or parodies. Those who post them will be banned for a period of 24-48 hours and their story removed.
 * 5) Sexual Content: While Horror stories have their fair share of graphic content, we want to avoid being overtly graphic. Overt displays of sexual content in stories are prohibited and will be removed immediately. The only exception to this rule is that the act is suggested rather than explicitly described.
 * 6) Graphic Violent Content: Violence in Horror is pretty much a given, but extreme violence and gore should be avoided as much as possible. If such content is present in a story, then they should be run through the administrator before the story is posted. If such content is approved then the story MUST have a warning on the top of the page expressing the story's violent content.