Before You Apply

   I. Realize we adhere firmly to the rules set by the New York Newsgirls Union. If you are not familiar with these, go read them now. If you've done this kind of thing before, here's a refresher course. We all need them once in a while.

A.  We reserve the right to refuse service.
B.  Respect your leaders and fellow members, and any guests we might have. This is very important and easier to forget the longer you're around. 
C.  Do your best to keep everything under an "R" rating. Realize that any topic can be hurtful to anyone else, so when fictionalizing things in chat or stories with which your average co-member might have dealt (particularly rape, disturbing/abusive relationships, mental illness and suicide), try to do so in a tasteful manner.  If someone asks you to stop, be considerate enough to do so, even if you don't agree. And remember: just because you can handle certain things, it doesn't mean anyone else can. This is why we put a rating on our stories.

   III. Feel free to start interaction with any of the other members regarding storylines, chat times, or any question you might have. It's a writing circle: we're here to encourage and inspire each other.

   IV. Check with the Masterlist and the UWR to make sure your character's nickname and relationships are kosher. We Union members, as persnippity creative souls, have this thing where we hate for our hard-worked for names to be "stolen", even if it is accidental. And some characters, even if they're no longer active, are just plain historical. These characters have their names listed in the "retired names" section of the Masterlist.

   V. The application is done "in character" (IC), as if your character was verbally responding to the questions himself. To show action with words, use asterisks like this: 

*laughs and runs a hand through her hair* San, really, don't make beg...