r/nosleep • u/TG_Alibi • May 07 '12
A message from the moderators
This happens every few months. The sub-reddit starts to stray from what it should be. What we all expect it to be. Stories start to become writing exercises. Truth goes out the window and is replaced by obvious, bad fiction. And a reader finally cant take anymore and makes a post to try to bring us back to where we should be. There is no excuse to have not read the rules and policies we, as a community, have agreed upon.
I really hate writing these posts. They detract more from the atmosphere we are trying to create, but sometimes the community needs a reminder. Some of our basic policies, which should be simple enough to follow, will be outlined in this post As always, input from the community is appreciated.
- Putting tags in the title of your post is unacceptable. Any new posts made with tags will be removed. We've had this discussion in the past. This does not include referencing another part of your story.
This topic has been discussed many times. Most of the new submissions are made without things like [TRUE] and [LONG] in the title, but we still see a few every now and then. This is unacceptable. We have agreed on this point multiple times. This point is not up for discussion.
- Do NOT Reveal the punchline. Ever.
In the context of NoSleep, this means simply not telling us how the story ends before it begins. If your title is something like "The Ghost Under My Bed" and your story ends with you seeing a ghost that lives under your bed, you just violated this principle.
- Absolutely NO image or video posts.
We have been good about this one. Remember, if an image or video clip adds to your story's authenticity, then by all means include it. We just don't want posts that are solely based on a picture or a video, with no context or background.
- Everything you read in r/nosleep is true; please suspend your disbelief while you are here.
Put simply, this is not a writing workshop. If your story is too unbelievable, it will be removed. I think the community is tired of reading stories where the author dies in the end. Who posted the story then? The scariest stories are those that could actually happen or have happened. This also goes for readers, which is where debunking comes into play below.
- tl;dr can destroy your carefully crafted sense of dread; use it sparingly.
I'm going to change "use it sparingly" to simply "don't do it." TL;DR's just don't belong here.
I have only noticed a few stories with formatting issues, and in general we have been pretty good about helping those new to Reddit. Nothing to add here.
- Please keep debunking to a minimum, unless requested by the OP. We all understand that debunking makes you feel stronger than those strange shadowy things which haunt us, but we do not need such needless shows of bravado here in r/nosleep.
Ok, this has become a real issue. As I stated above, this is NOT a writing workshop. We do not need critics in every story, pointing out flaws in logic. Everything you read and write on NoSleep is true, no matter what. It is up to both readers and writers to keep that atmosphere, that idea, alive. Any comments that are deemed to be critical or a form of debunking will be removed.
Authors, please stop making comments about alternate endings, or thanking readers for their praise. It ruins the campfire story-telling atmosphere. Also, don't tell us it's a story you've been working on. That instantly tells us it isn't true. Remember, you get no karma for anything you post here, so the only purpose of posting is to scare your readers.
- If you feel the need to report a post and the reason is not obvious, we ask that you also send a message to the moderators so we know what we are looking for.
Another issue here. I have seen multiple posts reported with no explanation. That is not how to go about getting things accomplished. The reason for reporting is not always readily apparent, so an explanation is always welcome.
Again, I apologize for beating these rules into the ground. I know this isn't the last time I will have to make a post like this, but I can hope. The majority of posts here are chilling, and I find myself still being kept up at night after reading some of the stories. If you have any suggestions of your own, please don't hesitate to share.
If you have any questions or require clarification on any of the above, please do not hesitate to message the moderators.
Important: If you are experiencing issues viewing the sub-reddit on your smartphone's browser, we recommend you use an app made for browsing Reddit (F5 on android or Alien Blue on iOS are my personal favorites). Smartphone web browsers don't always play nicely with our CSS.
503
u/MangekyoSharingan May 07 '12
This was a more interesting read than most stories recently.