trigger_fence

Examples of triggers: (a work in progress)

common plot points that could be triggering for abuse/assault/trama survivors. These things probably merit a warning, with case-specific exceptions:

• Rape
  
• Non-con
  
• Dubcon (sex for which consent is dubious to the reader)
  
• Sexual assault
  
• Incest*
  
• Suicide
  
• Murder/Violent Death
  
• Domestic abuse
  
• Child abuse/molestation
  
• Character death
  
• Torture/Starvation
  
• Captivity/Kidnapping/Prisoner situations
  
• Violence above the norm for your fandom's canon**

*romanticized consensual adult incest may be covered just by your pairing label, but a warning might not hurt if you're writing a crossover. This is a subjective situation.

**obviously subjective

Please note: Every piece of fiction is different, so the writer looking here for guidance should know that there is room for judgment calls on the above points. The passing mention that Ensign Ricky bought it on Planet of the Symbolic Monster is different than a fic about the death of Captain Kirk. A reader in the Bones or CSI fandoms expects murder as a potential central topic. A reader in the How I Met Your Mother fandom does not. Nobody would ask for a vampire warning on a Buffy fic.

common plot points that could be triggering for those recovering from exactly what the term implies. Whether a writer chooses to warn or label is subjective:

• Self-harm
  
• Eating disorders
  
• Alcoholism or alcohol use
  
• Addiction or drug use

These kinds of triggers involve fictional content weakens the individual's resolve to refrain from the harmful behaviors. It is an act of kindness to help people avoid that kind of content.

Labeling for these things is not always necessary. If you mention a character having a beer, the likelihood of triggering anyone is statistically zero, and not to be dismissive of the alcoholic, but if they'd be triggered by the phrase "let's have a beer," then first seeing "warning for alcohol use" wouldn't be much better.

If, on the other hand, a character lovingly describes his beer for several paragraphs, because you want to convey just how much he needs this beer for whatever reason, you might make someone want a beer. Sometimes that might be a problem.

You know the way Chandler Bing talks about cigarettes in certain episodes of Friends? Imagine seeing that three days into your second attempt to quit smoking. (I'm not advocating warning for smoking, that is just an example that I think a large number of people can relate to.)

Other types of writing that could be triggering. Again, these ones are more subjective when it comes to labeling:

• potentially triggering power dynamics (sexual or otherwise)
  
• writing that does a particularly good job of conveying a sense of helplessness
  
• a tone of writing that indicates something awful is coming
  

Labeling for things like this is difficult. Perfection isn't possible, but if you are not adverse to labeling, you could indicate these things in a reader-optional warning, not so much to warn away people with triggers, but rather to offer a little reassurance. It's good salesmanship. And it's polite.


potential triggers that have no business in a Warning Tag. These are the things that should be labeled in a space away from the warning tag, which has a negative connotation, because these are fun things like consensual sex:

• consensual kinks (please help build this list)
  
• bondage
  
• knifeplay
  
• breathplay
  
• D/s
  
• sexual power exchange
  

other things you might like to label even if they are not common triggers. Labeling for these in some manner is just good for those of us who google for fic, or for people who don't want to have to backbutton because they're not finding what they want:

• mpreg
  
• hurt/comfort
  
• cliche!fic
  
• babyfic
  
  

items currently being discussed regarding where they belong or if they belong on these lists:

•  
  

Is there a particular fic that interests you, but you're leery of its content due to unclear labels? Here is the place to ask if anyone has read it, or if someone would be willing to read it for you.

Please use caution when filling requests. It's easy to forget details of a fic after some time has passed, and people have a wide variety of triggers. Take a second look at the fic with the requestor's specific question(s) in mind.

(This is not the place to discuss the merits of the fic, artistically or otherwise. The only thing that matters is that it is safe for the person asking.)

Breaking news: A new community has been created for exactly this purpose. You can find it here:

ficsafezone

Rec, and browse recs for, fic that is labeled well. For simplicity's sake, rec the author, and not individual fics in this round.

In the future, Rec Rounds will be sorted by fandom.

Drop links to your personal labeling policies here.

Please refrain from triggering language and off topic discussion in this thread. It is intended as a positive reference to aid readers in finding specific warning policies and making informed reading choices. Unless you never warn for anything, never plan to warn for anything, and plan to write fic that you know is triggering, please actually provide a link to your warning policy, and not a statement about your unwillingness to comply. That was taking us in the wrong direction.

The information gathered here will be gathered into a more easily navigated index in the near future.

Note: Please only link to your own policies here. This is not a post for reporting non-compliance. If you've screencapped a since-deleted statement made in anger, it does not belong here. People have the right to change their minds, to be forgiven for statements made out of emotion, and to not feel accused in a space that is designed to promote safety.

(If anyone has a better title for this post, I'd love to hear it.)

This post is for discussion of consensual kinks in fiction, for education regarding the terminology, the standard safety practices, your individual experiences, and anything else that's relevant to an open dialog.

Its purpose is to find ways to avoid hurtful misunderstandings that create roadblocks to discussion and continue a pattern of hostility in fandom.

It is possible that triggering topics could be discussed in this thread, so proceed with caution.

This is a post where authors can discuss individual fics, or types of situations, and how to most effectively label for safety without spoiling their plot.

Authors, if you link to your fic in this thread but have not yet sorted out your labels, please indicate so with a phrase like "currently unlabeled and potentially triggering fic" in the immediate vicinity of your link. Once someone replies to your comment, you won't be able to edit it, so feel free to link it a second time in the discussion, once the labels are in place.

(This is likely to get repetitive, so you might want to scroll through before asking your question, but I will not be admonishing people for that kind of error. Labeling is not always as easy for an author as it might seem, and it's easy to miss similarities in type when you're bogged down in details.)

Words have power, and often carry an emotional weight behind them which is not intended, but can still cause harm. This is the post for discussing how to effectively label all kinds of fanfiction for safety without unintentionally singling anyone out with language that carries blame or negative connotations.

Warning is an often used word for grabbing the attention of the reader, and cautioning them about content. It makes sense to use that word for rape, character death, graphic violence, and other negative things which serve as a source of drama in a piece of fiction.

However, because the word warning is commonly used for those negative things, it carries a certain weight behind it. Many things belong under a more neutral label like "content disclosure" or the like.

This thread is for a positive discussion on how to choose words that are not hurtful or judgmental, so that in protecting some, the author doesn't hurt others, including themselves.

This is a post for discussing html code, javascript, bulletin board code, spoiler blackout code, and anything else that is a tool for creating labels, particularly labels that inform without spoiling.

Here is a fantastic tutorial for using a blackout warning in a fic header on your journal, which allows spoilers to be hidden and is also compatible with accessibility software:

Warnings & How To Do 'Em



Note: This is not a post for discussing word choices for those labels, or how to decide when to label. That goes elsewhere.

If you want to debate this topic, this is the place to do it.

Please keep a civil tone, regardless of your position, and keep in mind that you are debating in a pro-label space. Many other posts here try to present solutions to the potentially negative consequences of labeling. You will likely be pointed at these solutions, but your concerns are welcome here.

The seriousness of triggering outweighs many labeling concerns in the hearts and minds of those who need this resource for their own health and safety, and their supporters. However, that does not invalidate the feelings of others, so please keep that in mind.

An individual is always entitled to their feelings, and feelings are different from actions. If you've been asked to warn or label, and your initial reaction was emotional or selfish, that is okay. If you lashed out from a place of hurt feelings, you deserve forgiveness. If you refused to label, and then changed your mind, that is not hypocritical. Understanding goes both ways.

Discuss, debate, ask questions, find solutions.

This is the place to discuss and ask questions about triggers and triggering. With it, we can help each other learn more about triggering, as well as build a list of triggers and sort them into more useful categories.

This portion of the discussion is open to all kinds of triggers, regardless of the type of trauma, or whether its a common trigger. Please feel free to jump right in with questions and suggestions.

This portion of the discussion is not about warnings or labels on fanfiction. That belongs in another post.

If you have links to content which can help educate people about the nature of triggering, please share them in this post. Please label if they are themselves triggering.

Example:

impertinence's personal account, that she was brave enough to share:

Warning: Very explicit discussion of sexual assault and the nature, anatomy, cause & effect of triggers. Is itself triggery.

PTSD Gateway

(This is not a discussion post. There are other discussion posts.)

This resource is currently reorganizing. If you have any comment or concern that doesn't fit anywhere else, it goes here. This is also the place to request new areas of discussion.

Big Giant Note: new topic-specific discussion posts have been added

Temporarily, this is a post where authors can leave a comment to state that they do not warn for triggers in fanfiction headings, nor do they intend to. whether or not they use warnings and content labels for common triggers, and any relevant details about their policies.

Note: There is also discussion going on in this thread at the moment, which will continue as long as it remains respectful on all sides. That is the case right now.

Please leave a comment if you are a fandom writer and you do not warn or otherwise indicate in the header want to share your labeling policy. [This is particularly relevant] if your fic includes:

Non-con (rape)
Dubcon (sex for which consent is dubious to the reader)
Sexual assault
Incest
Suicide
Murder/Violent Death
Domestic abuse
Child abuse/molestation
Character death
Torture/Starvation
Captivity/Kidnapping/Prisoner situations
Violence above the norm for your fandom's canon

Self-harm
Eating disorders
Alcoholism
Addiction

potentially triggering power dynamics (sexual or otherwise)

consensual kinks which could be triggering such as bondage, knifeplay, breathplay, D/s, sexual power exchange, etc. (this site recommends labeling these things, not warning for them)

If you are not a writer, but know of a writer who has publicly stated they do not indicate if their fic contains triggers and do not intend to, please drop a comment with a link to that.

Note 27/6: Hold those links for a bit. There will be a new post for them, and a more positive way of dealing with them, shortly. Many people are in the process of putting further thought into their policies right now.

Note 26/6: After discussion, which remains ongoing, with some members of the BDSM community and their allies, I have modified "do not warn for triggers and do not intend to warn" to "do not indicate if their fic contains triggers and do not intend to".

I do not intend to imply that there is anything 'wrong' with BDSM, or pass judgment on it in any way. This is a list of triggers, not of squicks as fandom defines that word. If there is any way I can notate it more neutrally to avoid hurting those in the BDSM community, please let me know in the comments.