We're looking for original gay adult fairytales. Let's take a look at each of those words:

• Original - You've written it and own the copyright to it.

• Gay - There are gay characters and/or gay themes, with a positive portrayal of queer folks.

• Adult - These are fairytales meant for adults, but we're looking for G or PG-rated stuff. No bedroom scenes, but feel free to show folks having attractions, liking, lusting, and falling in and out of love. A story does not have to have a romantic element.

• Fairytales - Ah. Here's the hard one. What is a fairytale? Think fantasy of all types, worlds of myth, magic, men (and women and others) and monsters...whether adjacent to our own world, or unrecognizable to us. Fairytales usually have a message; not necessarily a moral, but something that speaks to us about the human condition. For some examples, take a look at the stories in Season One.

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What else?

• Diversity - Yes, please. Characters come in all shapes, sizes, tints, ages, economic backgrounds, genders, and sexualities. Any world is richer when it's populated by a wide variety of beings.

• Humanity - Your story does not need any humans in it, but it should have humanity: a respectful, egalitarian, optimistic viewpoint. This doesn't mean endings are always happy, but that - as per the world and themes described in the story - the endings are reasonable, and most of all, FAIR to the reader and fair to the characters.

• Originality - Please don't use currently-existing fantasy worlds or characters (for example, from Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones) as the basis for your stories. Fanfic is great, but we're looking for original settings and characters in the Lavender Tavern, though. And no rewritten traditional fairytales, please. We want something listeners have not heard before.

• Worldbuilding - Whatever world you choose, it should hang together logically. For example, if our modern world had magic, would people continue to use electricity and vehicles? If so, why? How you build your world is up to you.

• The Gay Life - In your world, gay folk may be considered unremarkable, may be somewhat or completely accepted, or may be shunned or ostracized. If you're going to put your gay characters through hell for being gay, make sure there's a story reason for doing so! We get enough hassles in everyday life that it would be nice to think fantasy worlds were mostly gay-friendly (again, unless your story has a very specific reason that this is not so).

• The "Campfire Rule" - The group of folks who put together the Lavender Tavern came up with the Campfire Rule: Does your story sound like something you might have heard told around a campfire once, that you still remember to this day? That's what we're looking for.

• The "Breaking the Rules" Rule - Great writers break rules. Your story may break some of these rules. That's fine! We're open to new ideas and new approaches. We are giving you these guidelines for a reason, because of how we envision the Lavender Tavern. But you may very well convince us otherwise.

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Word Count Guide

•  Full episodes - 4,250-4,750 words

• Two-part full episodes - 8,500-9,500 words

• Minisodes - 1,000-2,000 words

 

 

Follow these guidelines when making your story, and then submit it to us in the form below! Best of luck! 

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