content guidelines clarification

[CalBishForNow]

1. Sometimes I think the rule about underage content is overly strict, unevenly enforced, or both. Anecdata: late last year, a story of mine got sent back for the line "He lost his virginity near the end of his senior year of high school with his longtime girlfriend." It doesn't say he's underage, in fact I'd argue it implies he's not underage, but it got sent back anyway. I revised it to "He lost his virginity a week after his eighteenth birthday with his longtime high school girlfriend," and it got published without a problem. For what it's worth, it was never important to the story to begin with; maybe it would have needed another pass if it was more graphic.
2. Regardless, somehow people manage to publish lots of stories featuring 18 and 19-year-olds. Search for the tags "18 year old," "18-year-old," "high school," "school," and "teen." I count 37 stories with at least one of those tags in the past week. If you really need to tell a story with those characters in that setting, you could review them to see how they handled it. There's a whole First Time category to check out.
3. Whether or not I like or understand the rule, it is what it is. The site is free for both readers and writers and can be idiosyncratic. I'm just here for fun and some limited personal experience with writing and being published, after all. If I really couldn't handle the rule, I could always go elsewhere.
4. There's a good chance this thread will be locked, because some like it in the past have been.

 

[NotWise]

@CalBishForNow, an earlier version of the age guideline read something like "characters must be over 18 or at least a senior in High School." I have some stories that depended on the "senior in High School" detail. The current guideline eliminates the "senior in High School" clause.

I don't know, but that could account for some apparent inconsistencies.

 

[Texienne]

Thanks for everyone for their answers. I've been considering it and think I will redo the timelines on most of them, because they are various characters in the same series and I can move all their ages together. Events that were in high school can easily be relocated to college. The individual cases feel to me like they could potentially be triggers, and if one of them is a trigger it upends the whole series. In other words, the problem there is that there are multiple cases, and I would hit them while well into the story (8 to 10 episodes in, when it is too late.) Meanwhile, it's just one rewrite.

For items in other stories, I've had some pretty good feedback here on which to make the calls. I used to post my work here and am coming back after several years. I've forgotten how helpful the authors are in this forum, so I will say, it's nice to be back!

 

[EmilyMiller]

Thanks for everyone for their answers. I've been considering it and think I will redo the timelines on most of them, because they are various characters in the same series and I can move all their ages together. Events that were in high school can easily be relocated to college. The individual cases feel to me like they could potentially be triggers, and if one of them is a trigger it upends the whole series. In other words, the problem there is that there are multiple cases, and I would hit them while well into the story (8 to 10 episodes in, when it is too late.) Meanwhile, it's just one rewrite.

For items in other stories, I've had some pretty good feedback here on which to make the calls. I used to post my work here and am coming back after several years. I've forgotten how helpful the authors are in this forum, so I will say, it's nice to be back!

Good luck .

 

[ElectricBlue]

Thanks for everyone for their answers. I've been considering it and think I will redo the timelines on most of them, because they are various characters in the same series and I can move all their ages together. Events that were in high school can easily be relocated to college. The individual cases feel to me like they could potentially be triggers, and if one of them is a trigger it upends the whole series. In other words, the problem there is that there are multiple cases, and I would hit them while well into the story (8 to 10 episodes in, when it is too late.) Meanwhile, it's just one rewrite.

Very wise. That's a safe call, to up-age your characters. Do that, there should be no problems. I suspect most of us knock out a first time story at some point, and we're older in Lit world than we were in the real world. I know I was, if only by six months or so.

For items in other stories, I've had some pretty good feedback here on which to make the calls. I used to post my work here and am coming back after several years. I've forgotten how helpful the authors are in this forum, so I will say, it's nice to be back!

"You're welcome." EB curtsies, on behalf of every other AH participant.

 

[ICantLeafYou]

@CalBishForNow, an earlier version of the age guideline read something like "characters must be over 18 or at least a senior in High School." I have some stories that depended on the "senior in High School" detail. The current guideline eliminates the "senior in High School" clause.

I don't know, but that could account for some apparent inconsistencies.

I will say "senior in high school" is very wishy-washy in regards to age and it's probably good that they reworded that. I had a boyfriend that started high school at 11yo and graduated at 16yo.

 

[SkyBubble]

One of mine got sent back for referencing an underage kiss.

Somebody posted on a previous thread on this issue that he knew of a case where a story was sent back for referencing a fifteen year old.

A fifteen year old bottle of Scotch.

 

[SkyBubble]

I have a story on here about two college-age friends. She's a virgin, not because she wants to be but because she wants it to be with someone who values her, not just her body (which is a hot body.)

The two of them have been friends since first grade, and I mention her having been the prettiest girl in first grade.

When I first submitted it, it was sent back because Laurel thought it was unclear that they were over 18. (They're 21 at the time this happens.) So I added a couple of phrases to clarify that and the resubmitted story sailed through in the usual couple of days.

The Girl Next Door

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Somebody posted on a previous thread on this issue that he knew of a case where a story was sent back for referencing a fifteen year old.

A fifteen year old bottle of Scotch.

Justifiably so. I mean, who drinks anything less that an 18 year old scotch?

 

[AlexBailey]

Somebody posted on a previous thread on this issue that he knew of a case where a story was sent back for referencing a fifteen year old.

A fifteen year old bottle of Scotch.

Should have waited three more years.