🚀 go-pugleaf

                           Frequently Asked Questions
                         (last revised August 2, 1994)
           PART TWO:  SUBTOPICS, POSTING GUIDELINES, AND GROUND RULES


CONTENTS OF THIS PART:
     1).  What are Subtopics?
     2).  What are the Subtopics currently in use on Superguy?
     3).  In my old edition of the FAQ (pre-may, 1994), I see some other
          subtopics.  Whatever happened to them?  Can I post to them?
     4).  The stuff I'd like to write doesn't fit into any of the above topics.
          Can I create my own?
     5).  I'd like to start writing for Superguy.  What do I have to do?
     6).  I think the hero Ramrod/MeltDown/Spandex Babe/She-Devil/!/whoever is
          a great character -- can I use him/her/it in my storylines?
     7).  I think Flatphoot/the Skeptic/Egoiste/Badsport/whoever is a great
          villain -- can I use him in my stories?
     8).  I saw Galaxy Hunter/Captain Idaho/Walking Disaster Area/Whoever in
          the archives and loved them -- but his/her/their authors are gone
          from Superguy.  Are they forever out-of-bounds.
     9).  I see a lot of real people being used on the list.  What gives with
          them?
     10). I have a great idea that involves blowing up the United States.  Can
          I?

1)   What are Subtopics?

     Subtopics are the different general types of posts that can be found on
Superguy.  As Superguy is no longer a single Shared Universe, we make specific
distinctions between the different universes and storylines to make it easier
to organize, and to allow people interested in one specific subtopic to single
it out quickly.  Subtopics are kept separate by headers in the Subject Lines of
posts to the list.  Therefore, if Chris Meadows ("Robotech_Master") were
sending out Episode #57 of his Superguy series "Team M.E.C.H.A.," his subject
line would look like this:

     Subject:  SG:  Team M.E.C.H.A. #57

     On the other hand, if Gary Olson ("the Swede") were to post Episode #23 of
his Sfstory series "Renegade Anarchists II," his subject like would look like
this:

     Subject:  SF:  Renegade Anarchists II #23

     At a glance, one can tell which is the Sfstory post, and which is the
Superguy post.
     As we have had some crossovers between topics, we have decided that each
Subtopic (with some exceptions) is a separate Alternate Universe (or Altiverse,
see below).

2)   What are the Subtopics currently in use on Superguy?

     The following Subtopics currently appear on Superguy:

SUPERGUY:  This is the primary topic on Superguy.  It is at heart a Super Hero
     list, and primarily it is humorous.  This humor can vary from dark humor
     and black comedy to satire and parody to light humor to out and out
     slapstick.  There has been some completely serious fiction appearing on
     Superguy of late, but it is expected that Superguy plotlines should at
     least begin with humor in mind, and gradually evolve towards seriousness
     (or not).  New series that start off serious belong on the Metaworld
     subtopic.  Superguy's subject header is SG:

SFSTORY:  This is a humorous science fiction storyline in the tradition of "The
     Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."  It is often all but missing from the
     list, with occasional flurries of great activity.  Sfstory is a Gestalt
     Interactive Fiction Story, so new writers should have some idea of the
     past.  Sfstory's subject header is SF:

METAWORLD:  This is a serious paranormal fiction topic.  This is a place where
     people can write stories about their own paranormal type characters, both
     in the house shared universe (The Metaworld Project), or in their own
     universes.  All characters written about in Metaworld are assumed to be
     copyrighted and unavailable for use without express permission of the
     author.  Metaworld's subject header is MW:

AUTHOR'S ALTIVERSE:  The Author's Altiverse is the place where the All-Powerful
     Authors of the various storylines of Superguy live and hang out.  They are
     omnipotent beings who live a hedonistic lifestyle and spend the majority
     of their time drinking and plotting nasty pranks on each other.  Oddly
     enough, Authors Altiverse Posts seem to be quite popular, despite the fact
     that they're really unplanned expressions of narcissistic fantasies and
     cheap, cliche humor.  But hey, what the heck?  The subject header of
     Author's Altiverse is AA: (which itself might be Freudian)

ROUND ROBIN:  Round Robin refers to the Round Robin Altiverse, which is formed
     of various stories in a shared universe.  Round Robin's plotlines are
     entirely made up of Consecutive Interactive Fiction stories.  The Round
     Robin Altiverse is copyrighted by its initial Authors (in alphabetical
     order: Eric Alfred Burns, John Bankert, Gary Olson, Bill Paul, and Evan
     Pongress), and Authors who have been allowed in, who then share Copyright
     on the stories they contribute to from the point of their contribution
     (including, alphabetically, Ben Brown, William R. Dickson, Rob Furr, and
     Dominic White).  Other authors cannot post stories in the Round Robin
     altiverse without permission, but are encouraged to create their own Round
     Robinesque Altiverses and give it a whirl.  The subject header of the
     initial Round Robin altiverse is RR:, and subsequent Altiverses created
     for Round Robins should have a number added (e.g. RR2:, RR3:, and so on).

LEGION OF NET-HEROES LOONIVERSE:  This isn't really a Superguy subtopic at all.
     There is a Usenet Newsgroup called alt.comics.lnh which has material which
     is similar in many ways to Superguy (both the LNH Looniverse and other
     net.groups), and different in many ways.  Both Superguy and LNH recognize
     that their respective audiences might be interested in each other.  Thus,
     there is some reposting of LNH material here, and some reposting of
     Superguy material there.  However, Superguy isn't the place for new LNH
     stories, and alt.comics.lnh isn't the place for new Superguy posts.  The
     subject header for LNH reposts is LNH:

     Note that the Legion of Net-Heroes Looniverse is not a separate altiverse
     in the Superguy Multiverse as of this writing.

FAQ: The FAQ subtopic is for the series of Frequently Asked Questions lists,
     one of which you are reading now.  These are for information only.  The
     subject header for FAQ posts is FAQ:

ADMINISTRIVIA: General information posts that deal with the Mailing List (that
     aren't Frequently Asked Questions lists) fall under the heading of
     Administrivia.  It's header, of course, is ADMINISTRIVIA:

3)   In my old edition of the FAQ (pre-may, 1994), I see some other subtopics.
     Whatever happened to them?  Can I post to them?

     At various times in Superguy's past, there have been subtopics created to
serve other needs.  They included Star Wrek (a Star Trek Parody subtopic),
Gameworld (a neo-Dream Park type world that allowed people to publish Fluff
(game related fiction) in the context of the ultimate live-action role playing
game), Crossworld (where subtopics merged), and others.  However, due to lack
of interest, they have been discontinued.
     There is nothing stopping a person from posting in one of these subtopics,
but it is not particularly recommended.  There's a reason they were never that
popular.  Authors who are still set on doing so should discuss it on the
Superpen Superguy Authors Mailing List.

4)   The stuff I'd like to write doesn't fit into any of the above topics.  Can
     I create my own?

     If you mean, `are you allowed to,' then the answer, more or less, is yes.
Superguy is not a moderated mailing list.  However, in the interests of
continuity, any new subtopics should be hashed out on the Superpen Superguy
Author's Mailing List.  If you're not subscribed to the list, you haven't been
a Superguy Author for very long, and therefore it is *strongly* recommended
that you hold off on creating your own subtopics.  Get the feel for what's here
before you jump into a completely new direction.

5)   I'd like to start writing for Superguy.  What do I have to do?

     The short answer is, have some ideas.  We love new writers -- the average
Superguy writer writes two or three posts and then disappears forever.  New
authors who stay the course add diversity, creativity, and fun to the list.
     Further, no one except Tad Simmons (the Superguy Listowner) has the power
to prevent you from posting whatever you want.  And Tad has, to date, never
restricted anyone's access.  We are something of an anarchy, and we like it
that way.
     That having been said, here are a few recommendations for new writers:

     A:  Read Superguy for a while before Posting:  We recommend reading
Superguy for one to six months before you actually leap into the fray.  that
should give you some idea about what's going on, who the principal characters
are, what the principal trends are, and so forth.  Alternately, you can read
lots and lots of the past archives (and most of the more successful Authors
have).  We have a huge history and backstory -- and it can be depressing to
trip over it.  But even if you read a lot of the past -- wait a while and read
the current posts as they come out for the future.

     B:  Talk it over with your favorite author:  Almost without exception, the
Authors on Superguy *love* to hear from fans.  It happens very rarely, you see.
So a fan who says "hey -- I love your stuff, and I'd like to start writing --
here are my ideas" will not usually be turned away with a "go away Kid, you
bother me."  Instead, he'll likely be glad to chat about your ideas over the
net or via e-mail, and he'll have suggestions which you might find useful.
Every author on this list has screwed up royally before, and they all know the
signs of someone about to make the same mistake they did.

     C:  Be both confident and careful, as you begin:  Anyone who is willing to
post a story to a newsgroup which the whole world can see needs a pretty hefty
ego.  This is both natural and healthy.  However, remember that some of the
writers on this list have been writing since 1987 (seven years ago, as of this
writing), and one of the strongest traits of a Superguy author is a strong
sense of loyalty.  Barging onto the list and making widespread changes to the
shared universe in your first three posts is not going to win you much support.
Flouting the history as unimportant is likely to make people see white hot.
Take it slow, and by your tenth post, you'll be able to get away with murder.

6)   I think the hero Ramrod/MeltDown/Spandex Babe/She-Devil/!/whoever is a
     great character -- can I use him/her/it in my storylines?

     Not without permission.  All characters on Superguy (with some exceptions,
see below) are assumed to be protected under Copyright laws.  They are not in
any way part of the Public Domain.  If a character is actively being used by
another Author, you *must* ask that author for permission to use the character.
If not, you are breaking Federal Law (and some Authors might even register a
complaint).
     However, most Authors are willing to loan you the use of a character for
your post, depending on the circumstances of it.  This does not in any way
compromise their rights with the character, of course.  The thing to do is to
send e-mail to the Author who controls the character and request it.
     The Author will most likely say yes, but *might* say no (most often
because of wide-reaching changes the author plans for the character,
continuity, or what have you).
     You may, however, *refer* to other characters within the Subtopic when it
is appropriate to do so.  For example, when Radian nearly destroyed the Earth
in the "Songs of Darkness" storyline, most every author made reference to
Radian and to the catastrophe in their separate plotlines.  This was a wide
reaching event, and therefore it was appropriate for almost everyone --
involved directly with Songs of Darkness or not -- to refer to it.
     This does not mean every Author could have Radian appear in their stories.
Just that references could be made.

7)   I think Flatphoot/the Skeptic/Egoiste/Badsport/whoever is a great villain
     -- can I use him in my stories?

     If another author is not using a given villain, then *yes*, you can.  This
is an exception to the rule stated above.  When you stop using a villain, you
implicitly are stating that it is a character which can be used by other
people.  This is one of the oldest conditions of Superguy.
     However, it is *always* a good idea to check with the last Author to use a
villain and the Author most associated with that Villain, to make certain that
they really are finished with the villain.  They might be working up a pretty
deep plot, for example.  A simple e-mail letter should be enough.  If the reply
comes back "No, I have plans for that character," then you can attempt to
negotiate a loan of the character for your plot, but otherwise the character
should still be considered `in-use' and therefore out of bounds.

8)   I saw Galaxy Hunter/Captain Idaho/Walking Disaster Area/Whoever in the
     archives and loved them -- but his/her/their authors are gone from
     Superguy.  Are they forever out-of-bounds.

     No.  If an author is truly gone from Superguy, it is permissible for
another author to pick their characters up, so long as that Author did not
specifically refuse to release the character.  However, the original author
retains all rights to that character -- should you wish to publish your story
later in another format, you *cannot* use the character without the original
author's express permission.  If the original author actually publishes that
character in another format, and it comes to your attention, you must cease use
of the character immediately -- it has been taken out of Superguy.
     For example, Ken Cooney ("Duke da Duck") is part of a new project to
publish some alternative comics.  One of the strips he's publishing in this
project is Stan the Toilet Man -- which was a Superguy character before.  As a
result, no one can pick up Stan.
     Further, if an Author returns to Superguy and wants his character back, he
can have it back.  Period.  Any other plan is illegal.
     Finally, if a writer picks up an Orphaned Character, it is customary to
lend the same courtesies to the new Author that the old Author enjoyed, in the
old Author's absence.  Thus, when Gary Olson ("the Swede") picked up Galaxy
Hunter and Max Vax as two of his supporting characters, the other authors did
not use those characters without his permission as a courtesy to Gary.  Gary's
legal rights to the characters are nebulous, and their original authors could
take them back, but as far as the rest of us are concerned, by tradition and
etiquette, they're Gary's.
     When a subsequent author re-orphan's a character, it again can be
collected by someone else.  For example. Ken Kadet (no nickname) was the
creator and original writer of Ignorantman.  He graduated during a crossover,
and gave Bill Dickson ("Pickle") permission to use the character to finish the
crossover.  Bill did, and then let the character lapse.  Some time later, Bill
Paul ("The Man with Two First Names") used the character as a guest star for a
couple of Awesome Force posts when he was writing the Awesome Force, and then
made him a member of the Defense Squad.  By convention, Bill Paul had `control'
of the character.  After a while, Ignorantman left the Defense Squad, and the
character again became an Orphan.  Eric Alfred Burns ("Lord Sabre") then began
using Ignorantman, eventually making him a co-star of a third series.  By
convention, Eric Alfred Burns has `control' of Ignorantman, and can't lose that
control unless Ken Kadet returns and reclaims the character.
     In a related topic, an Author can willingly give up one of his characters
-- either giving the character to another author or just letting them go for
anyone else to pick up.  For example, Eric Alfred Burns gave the character of
Mighty Guy (which he created) to Gary Olson.  In this circumstance, control is
assumed to be vested in the new author, and tradition does not support the old
author reclaiming it (although the original author retains the legal right to
do so).  For example, Dominic White ("the Artiste") gave Bill Dickson the
character of High Jinx.  Dominic could, if he wanted, take the character back
-- but it is assumed he would not do so over the objections of Bill.

9)   I see a lot of real people being used on the list.  What gives with them?

     Real people can and are used on Superguy as parodies or satire.  There is
a legal right to do this -- assuming that the author does not cross the line
into actual libel.  As long as you are not claiming a given character actually
is what you portray, you should be all right.  However, it is important to note
that the Superguy Mailing List as a whole, Tad Simmons, and the University of
Central Florida do not take any responsibility for what is posted on the list.
If Tonya Harding sued over the character of Badsport (though she would likely
lose), the legal culpability would be vested only in the Author who used
Harding, and not any other Superguy Author.
     If you want examples of this legal principle in action, watch any given
episode of Saturday Night Live.  Or listen to the Rush Limbaugh Program.
     For the most part, real people are fair game.  The only time a real person
could be said to be `controlled' as a character is if the character undergoes a
transformation that separates the character from the real person.  For example,
the character of Smartman (who was based on J. Danforth Quayle) is now
separated from the real-life Vice President enough so that Bill Paul could be
said to control him.

10)  I have a great idea that involves blowing up the United States.  Can I?

     Only so long as you can put it back, afterwards.  No author can
intentionally screw up the plotline of another author, or do something that
affects that other plotline directly.  Period.
     Unintentional screwups are usually okay.  For example, if Bill Clinton
appears in CalForce when Dominic White ("the Artiste") planned to use him in
Andy Awesome and the Awesome Force, Dominic is out of luck.  Gary Olson ("the
Swede") would have no way of knowing Dominic was planning to use Clinton.