Story Commenting Rules - A Pre-FAQ

These are some rules for commenting on stories at BCTS.

First Rule: Be polite. No name-calling, even by implication. No ranting.

Second Rule: Discuss the story, not other comments. If a thread wanders, take it to a blog or forum.

Third Rule: The comments section on a story belongs to the author. An author does not need a reason to ask me to remove a comment. I may discuss reasons privately with the author before taking action but the decision is the author's to make. This is sometimes why threads violating the first two rules are allowed to continue--I don't read everything and if the author does not complain to me, I frequently let things run their course. Not to say that for egregious violations of 1 and 2, I won't make a pre-emptive strike. In the next update of BC software, I hope to be able to actually move comment threads that violate 2 into their own blogs. I may get a little more proactive with that capability.

Fourth Rule: Be positive if you can. This doesn't mean don't make negative comments but be aware of the effect a public negative comment can have. Perhaps what you want to say should better be done with the |Write to author| link than as a comment for everyone to read. If you're posting a negative comment in order for that comment to be seen by other readers, you are doing it wrong.

Fifth Rule: Don't respond publicly to trollish comments. Note that I didn't say trolls, I said trollish comments. There are no trolls here but anyone can make a trollish comment, many times without meaning to.

Sixth Rule: Think about it. I made it so you have to see your own comment before you hit submit. Look at it and think about it. Does this comment accomplish your aim? If your aim is to prove someone else wrong, then does that advance the purpose of the comment section which is to encourage authors and readers to write and read stories?

- Erin