Greetings and salutations, Carylers and McReedus fans alike! I am so very late in getting this posted, so my apologies. My feet got tangled up doing the time warp and it took a few days to fix.  Nevertheless, it's time to rejoice and celebrate our November Author and Reviewer of the Month! 

Author of the Month: ramblinrose

What draws you to the good ship Caryl?
I like the connection between the two characters.  They have a similar backgrounds, and they're very much alike, but they're different as well.  They have the potential to be an interesting couple in whatever universe you place them in. 

I honestly don't know how to answer this other than to say I like the ship.  I think the characters go well together and I think there's an interesting story (or stories) there to tell.

Who are your writing influences?
I read a lot, but honestly much of what I read these days has to do with my work and much of what I write is very different from that which I work with.  I can say that there are authors that I admire, but I really can't say that they are necessarily my influences as my style and choice of plots would differ from theirs pretty dramatically.  

How do you handle writers block?
I keep a lot of stories going.  I have to. If something isn't working out for me on a particular day, I write something else.  There's almost always *something* that I'm in the mood for.  If not, I write a one shot or something totally different to kickstart things again.  

Anything you want to say to your readers?
Thank you for reading and for reviewing!  You're great and I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to read!

Reviewer of the Month: liveinadive

What draws you to the Caryl ship?
Pirates. I was kidnapped by a fleet of pirates off the coast of Indonesia and forced upon the good ship Caryl. Five long years ago. If I could afford to pay the ransom I'd be home, safe and dry by now. Without the recurring case of dysentery ;) 

If you had asked me this question a couple of years ago it might have been that Carol needed a protector. She needed someone she could depend upon to keep her safe. I saw an obvious chemistry between Carol and Daryl and figured that while Daryl was 'saving' Carol, perhaps she could help him save himself. Now, my answer to this question is the way in which they compliment each other as equals. The evolution of their friendship has mirrored Carol's journey into a modern day action hero who doesn't need any man to save her; yet she chooses to keep him by her side, anyway. They seek each other out. They genuinely care for each other. Plus, their names rhyme. 

What do you look for in a story to keep reading?
Updates generally help.

I prefer stories that have a heavy focus on emotion and feeling. Stories where I can relate to the characters and be either empathetic or apathetic to their cause (depending on the day) and understand what they're going through. I like stories that make me feel something. A good plot. Decent grammar. Realism. All of these things help. The inclusion of characters like Glenn and Tara just sweetens the deal. 

What are your top five favorite stories?
This is hard (and so is not making an obligatory 'That's what she said' joke right here). The authors included below basically have my stamp of approval across the board, so check them out.

Comiconned by DarylsDiva1 - I make an excellent cameo in this story in which I became friends with Eulyn and design the clothes and aesthetics for a Walking Dead strip show. How could this not be one of my favourites? Contrapposto and Dreams run a very veeeery close race for this coveted position as well. 

At the Mercy of the Muse by ramblinrose - This story is very special to me in that it's one where I actually like this version of Norman. It's brilliant in that it takes place after the show has ended and Norman is trying to atone for his behaviour toward Melissa many years before and she is the one who is resisting. One of my absolute favourite stories. Ever. (Oh! And Steven and Alanna are in it and they're married and have a baby. That could also be another reason...) Our Little Secrets is also most definitely worth your time. Thank me later.

Turnabout by Little Cinch - Cinchy could narrate the back of a cereal box to me and I would give her a glowing review. I love the way she tuns phrase and the tempo of the story is perfect. Lots of fun and Caryl innuendo here. It's simple and sweet and I love it. Hard. 

The Long Road Home by Tinkerbelle99 - I love the slow burn and the quiet, arresting self doubt from both players in this story. Tink's Daryl and Carol reunite and painstakingly grow closer as Tinkerbelle99 reaches inside your chest cavity, rips out your heart and stomps on it a few times before shoving it back into place, beaten and bruised. 

Happy by LiveinaDive - No one ever said I couldn't include something I've written! This little story was inspired by the feeling of euphoria. That wondrous feeling of giddiness that starts low in the pit of your belly and blossoms in to full blown butterflies, that feeling of utter contentment. Melissa finds she's happy and she finds a friend in the process. That's what this one shot is about. 

Anything you want to say to all the Caryl authors out there?
Write for yourself. Write what you enjoy. Write down anything and everything that pops into your head - you don't know where your imagination may take you. Challenge yourself (write some McReedus). Push your own boundaries (write some McReedus). Hire someone else to make the inspirational speech at your college graduation because I am clearly not worthy. 

Oh and if you're ever in Las Vegas, go to Joe's New York Pizza. I mean, you're welcome. 

Greetings Carylers one and all! First, welcome to all of our new members. We are so excited you've found Nine Lives and Peta 2, Susan and I hope you're enjoying all of the great stories from our wonderful authors here.

We are two weeks into the new season and all of the fantastic Caryl moments have our feels flying all over the place! Peta and I decided the time was ripe for a new FANFIC CHALLENGE! In keeping with what appears to be an early theme for our intrepid couple this season, we're giving you two words with which to center your story around: Secrets and Signs.

Here are the challenge details:

• THE PROMPT: Your entry must revolve around one or both of the two themes: Secrets and/or Signs. It must be Caryl and set in the current season. (No McReedus this time. Sorry folks.)


• It must be at least 100 words.


• THE DEADLINE: All entries are due on October 30, 10pm MST. Everything will be posted on October 31.


• THE RULES: Here is how you enter the challenge:




• Send a PM to Fairies Masquerade or Peta2 stating that you’re going to enter the challenge. This is very important! If we don’t get a PM, you won’t be on the list. 


• Write your fic!!


• DO NOT UPLOAD IT YET!! Wait until October 30 to upload your fic – we will be suspending automatic validation for that day for all authors who enter the challenge.


• Submission Day is October 30 post your fic. It will not appear on the website, but will enter our validation queue. Make sure you submit it under the Nine Lives Challenge category!


• Posting Day is October 31 – We will post the Master List and post all of the challenge entries so everything shows up at once. That way, we’re all surprised by what we get to read! Any challenge fics that are posted before  October 30 will be deleted.

That's it, my friends! Drop a comment or PM us if you have any questions. Happy writing!

Hello to our wonderful Nine Lives family! In August, we kicked off our new Members of the Month activity. It's our way of saying thank you to our supporters, to our reviewers, and to help our members know how much we appreciate their support of the site. One author, one reviewer, selected entirely by the members of Nine Lives via anonymous voting.

This month, we decided to start spotlighting our Members of the Month more. The 1st of the month, when the new winners are announced, there will be a spiffy news post announcing the winners and presenting a short interview so that the masses can start getting to know the people behind the usernames. The winners also get an awesome Nine Lives exclusive Member of the Month banner to sport in their profiles, created by the wonderfully talented and just plain wonderful untapdtreasure.

We didn't want to leave out our inaugural September winners, so they will be included with our October winners this month. Give a rousing shout of huzzah to our Members of the Month for September and October: DarylsDiva1, littleshelly0619, The Readers Muse and LAH! Without further adieu, off to the good stuff. 

darylsdiva1 (September Winner: Author)

What draws you to the Caryl ship?
So many things!  I like that they are both “of a certain age” and not romance novel stereotypes, not the jaded rake and the plucky virgin; that their story has been about slowly building trust between two wounded people and that they are good for each other. The chemistry between MMB and NR sells it, but their story arcs were deliberately paralleled starting all the way back in season one: in “Tell it to the frogs” the way they intercut and juxtaposed Shane attacking Ed and Carol weeping over the husband who’d just beat her, with Daryl losing it on the roof in Atlanta when they found Merle’s hand. How they constantly cut from one to the other or had them in the same frame; how initially the only time Daryl softened his voice and demeanor was when he was talking to Carol; how Carol was the one who kept Daryl from leaving the group; how the little beats and moments between them show both their character’s growth; how everyone knows they are each other’s person and uses it to influence them or tip toes around it when something goes wrong. They belong together.

Who are your writing influences?
I’ve read literally thousands of romance novels starting with the old tried and true Harlequins back in Junior High and continuing through today with paranormal romance writers like Sherilynn Kenyon.  I also have my two favorite classics: Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, (two damaged misfits finding soul mate level love, sounds familiar, eh?) and Jane Austen’s Persuasion, where two people who thought they missed their time to be together find that they can have a second chance years later. I love the strong honorable female characters, how the authors show their inner lives and that as important as the men they love are to them they are prepared to survive and get on with their lives without them if they must.

For just general plotting nothing beats Shakespeare, for action and angst Joss Whedon, for sheer output Nora Roberts. I also try to read a lot of Caryl fiction (almost everything that gets posted on Nine Lives) and am fascinated by different author’s takes on the characters. The imagination and creativity that I see there every day is equal to any published novel I’ve read.

How do you handle writers block?
I look for inspiration in everything around me, what I read, the music I listen to, great old films—even a conversation with a friend can trip my trigger and start an idea or solve a plotting or character problem I’ve been stuck on.  I’m always amazed how stories work themselves out in their own time.  I’ve tried to force them and it just all comes out either awkward or ashes, so I set it aside and go work on something else for awhile and then come back to it later.  Sometimes I’ll say, hmmn, this isn’t so bad after all, but other times I’ll just chuck it and start over. I really do think there is some higher power at work—I call her my Muse—because often ideas just pop into my head and force me to write them down and I have no explanation for where they came from. Now whether that’s my subconscious that keeps working on things while I’m off living my non-writing life or we writers are all just a little bit touched, I can’t say.

Anything you want to say to your readers?
Thank you! I am constantly amazed at the insightful and encouraging reviews and PMs that the readers here at Nine Lives leave for all of the authors, so thank you for taking the time to read and let us know what you think of our efforts to capture these characters we all love so much.  Even if we never get to see the canon Caryl we all dream of on screen, we’ll always have these hundreds of stories to read and re-read.  We all owe a debt of gratitude to Megan, Jessa and Susan for creating this amazing community of readers and writers for us all to enjoy!

littleshelly0619 (September Winner: Reviewer)

(image)

What draws you to the good ship Caryl?
I would say to start with it was the way he reached out to help her in S2, but then the great chemistry between MMB/NR sort of took over and, to me, just absolutely jumps off the screen.  So much in common, so much mutual understanding, so much attraction between those two characters.  I always say Caryl is an entity, a sort of being all on it's own--they just are.  I've never ever seen a couple more suited and with as strong a love and respect as what they have.  They're my all-time favorite couple.

What do you look for in a story to keep reading?
First and foremost that it be reasonably well-written.  The author doesn't have to be a scholar or a walking dictionary, lol.  But I appreciate the use of betas even with experienced authors.  As far as I am concerned every Caryl writer could somehow benefit from the use of a good beta.  Secondly, that the story be true to the characters if it's during the ZA, or at least interesting if it's an AU, which right now is my favorite category. 

What are your top five favorite stories?
Only 5??  Wow, so hard to choose!  I am going to name five which I think are extremely good, in no particular order: Mad City, Deep Down in the Hollow Ground, Five Veils, Stray, Pandemonium, Beast, All That And a Bucket of Chicken, Dreams, Reading the Stars, Know You're Enough.......oh wait, that's more than 5.  Sorry I could go on all day.

Anything you want to say to all the Caryl authors out there?
Again, Betas.  Don't be afraid to use 'em, no matter who you are or how long you've been writing.  Also, a big THANK YOU for all the time and effort, not to mention sacrifices you make, writing late into the night, to make all of us so happy.  

The Readers Muse (October Winner: Author)

What draws you to the Caryl ship?
I am afaird my answer might be rather unoriginal, but frankly, it was the idea of two imperfect, damaged souls finding each other and making themselves whole that originally reeled me in. I think what struck me about the Caryl romance was that it is so a-typical in terms of popular culture/hollywood/media. The pairing is unquie, special, and it has been a priveledge to watch it grow and evolve over the seasons.

Who are your writing influences?
I am going to have to twist this one and say: "what are my writing influences" - I pull stuff from the past, present, and future. Nothing is safe from being used as possible writing fodder. If I discuss food in my fics, chances are my boyfriend was talking about some recipe he was going to make. My head space is often a constant stream of ideas and scenes. Some get written down in pieces for later. Some make their way into a current wip - some turn into their own storys. Some of my latest drabbles: "Pale Pink" for example, started with a mere half a sentence that randomly floated through my mind in the middle of work and snowballed from there on in.

How do you handle writers block?
To put it plainly, I take a shower. No, really. Some of my best ideas come in the shower. That or I go for a run. So often with writers block it feels like you are forcing your brain to come up with something amazing at the drop of a hat. When really, your brain works best unstressed, so, when you aren't trying so hard, generally, the thing you need to break you out of the cycle will come. Just don't try and force it. As my readers know, sometimes it takes a few months (*cough* a year) to get back into the groove of something. It sucks the big one, but sometimes you have to take a step back and move onto something else for a while. Writing is rarely a easy, linear stretch to the finish line. It is a road full of pot-holes, u-turns, no-thru roads and forks in the roads. As a writer you need to learn how to navagate through it. And as a reader, I think, you have to learn a hefty dose of patience.

Anything you want to say to your readers?
I would like to pass on a heartfelt and completely awed sense of thankfulness. I might not respond to every review I get, but I read and sometimes re-read every single one. You guys are the bread to my butter and you make writing even more of a joy for me than it already is. I write for my own enjoyment, but as every author knows, that enjoyment increases ten-fold when we look up and find a smattering of excited and enthusistic reviews chilling on our inbox. There is no better feeling.

LAH (October Winner: Reviewer)

What draws you to the good ship Caryl?
I like that they have similar backgrounds and hardships, that they're both soft and hard at the same time and that Daryl (in my mind at least) sees Carol as his woman. She's real, she's not a teenage blond bimbo and he chose her. That gives hope to all women!

What do you look for in a story to keep reading?
It has to make sense and not move so quickly (or slowly) that it doesn't flow. I have to admit that I like angst. I like it when Carol misunderstands or doesn't perceive something that Daryl did or said correctly and she either takes off or closes down. Daryl then has to work at figuring out what he did wrong or what he can do to help her. Sometimes he's just an ass and has to get past that. I don't read a story just for the smut (although....it's not a bad thing!).

What are your top five favorite stories?
Currently, my top five are: Mad City, Five Veils, Embers, Reading The Stars and The Mercy of the Muse. If you want a top 100, I could do that!

Anything you want to say to all the Caryl authors out there?
To the Caryl authors.....THANK YOU!!! You have given me many hours of enjoyment and a serious rollercoaster ride of emotions. And to you gifted smut writers...you have helped my marriage tremendously. My husband and I both thank you! (Edit: Hahaha! That's awesome! - FM)

Congratulations to our Member of the Month winners! Thank you to EVERYONE who voted for being such a huge part of the Nine Lives family.

Hello to our Nine Lives family! First and foremost, I know I've said this a lot lately, but I sincerely love each and every one of you. The outpouring of love and support the last few days has been one of the most uplifting experiences I've ever had in this fandom. Thank you, all of you, for helping to make Nine Lives great!

OK, onto the good stuff: on the heels of our super successful Remorse challenge, we decided to raise the bar and give our talented group of authors the task of writing about Joy. I am thrilled to say the NL crew rose to the challenge, giving us the our best challenge results yet! Way to go, Team Nine Lives! Here is the Master List for all of our wonderful Joy Challenge entries:

CARYL

• This Once by lovesdaryl


• Falling For You by untapdtreasure


• The Cat Came Back by darylsdiva1


• We're In This Together by jen131


• Fools In The Rain: A Salt & Stone Epilogue by Fairies Masquerade


• Aint Yer Got Nothin' To Say Back? by notjaneausten


• All She Said Was "Joy" by notjaneausten


• Tickled Pink by sweettooth7


• The Inside Cat by Peta 2


• Answered Prayers by Blue Moons and Pink Suns


• Haven by Liddym2113 & meeshie


• Tears Of Joy by thepaymegirl

MCREEDUS

• These Two Left Feet by applexofmyeye

Consider my mind blown by all the awesomeness! This fandom is amazing. Thank you to all of our talented writers for participating! Happy reading everyone!

"But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Caryl is the sun."

Greetings, lovelies. Our last challenge gave us the biggest response we've had to date! We were so blown away we decided to jump right into the fourth challenge. For what other great thing can follow Remorse, but Joy?

Here are the details:

• THE PROMPT: Your entry must revolve around the theme Joy. It can be either Caryl OR McReedus (or both, if you decide to submit more than one entry). That's right. We went there. Again. 


• It must be at least 100 words.


• THE DEADLINE: All entries are due on September 12, 10pm MST. Everything will be posted on September 13.


• THE RULES: Here is how you enter the challenge:




• Send a PM to Fairies Masquerade or Peta stating that you’re going to enter the challenge. This is very important! If we don’t get a PM, you won’t be on the list. Let us know if you're doing to submit a Caryl entry, a McReedus entry, or one of each.


• Write your fic!!


• DO NOT UPLOAD IT YET!! Wait until September 12 to upload your fic – we will be suspending automatic validation for that day for all authors who enter the challenge.


• Submission Day is September 12, post your fic. It will not appear on the website, but will enter our validation queue. Make sure you submit it under the Nine Lives Challenge category!


• Posting Day is September 13 – We will post the Master List and post all of the challenge entries so everything shows up at once. That way, we’re all surprised by what we get to read! Any challenge fics that are posted before September 13 will be deleted.

That's it! Now, after the great response last time we opened this challenge once again to both Caryl and McReedus. Get to it, writers! If you have any questions, holler at me or Peta. Let's have some fun!

P.S. The first person who can tell me what Shakespearean play, including the act and scene number, I paraphrased at the beginning of this post without Goggle's help gets a prize. Leave your answer in the comments! ;) --EDIT: And Equuleus86 takes the prize! Stand by for a PM headed your way.

Hey, hey, hey! Does everybody know what time it is?! It's CHALLENGE TIME! Carylers and McReedus writers... ASSEMBLE!

OK, that doesn't work half as well if I'm not calling The Avengers. Moving on, here are the details for our third challenge! We're going with a particular emotion this time as our challenge theme: Remorse. 

Here are the details:

• THE PROMPT: Your entry must revolve around the theme Remorse. It can be either Caryl OR McReedus (or both, if you decide to submit more than one entry). That's right. We went there. 


• It must be at least 100 words.


• THE DEADLINE: All entries are due on August 26, 10pm MST. Everything will be posted on August 27.


• THE RULES: Here is how you enter the challenge:




• Send a PM to Fairies Masquerade or Peta stating that you’re going to enter the challenge. This is very important! If we don’t get a PM, you won’t be on the list. Let us know if you're doing to submit a Caryl entry, a McReedus entry, or one of each.


• Write your fic!!


• DO NOT UPLOAD IT YET!! Wait until August 26 to upload your fic – we will be suspending automatic validation for that day for all authors who enter the challenge.


• Submission Day is August 26, post your fic. It will not appear on the website, but will enter our validation queue. Make sure you submit it under the Nine Lives Challenge category!


• Posting Day is August 27 – We will post the Master List and post all of the challenge entries so everything shows up at once. That way, we’re all surprised by what we get to read! Any challenge fics that are posted before August 27 will be deleted.

That's it! Now, we opened it to both Caryl and McReedus, so we're expecting a veritable avalanche of amazing entries this time. Get to it, writers! If you have any questions, holler at me or Peta. Let's have some fun!

Hi everybody! We had some seriously wonderful submissions for the Nine Lives Summer Survival Series Challenge #2: "What If?" You had two options available to you:

• What if the group never found the prison?


• What if Carol & Daryl went on a run & somehow got lost?

Here is the master list of the submissions we received:

• Right Where It Belongs by jen131


• The Vacation by sweettooth7


• Somewhere In Between by untapdtreasure


• All That I Need by Noxid Anamchara


• Always by Fairies Masquerade

Thank you to everyone who participated! Everyone read and enjoy. We'll see you at the next challenge. Caryl on!

Greetings and salutations, O lovely Carylers! The first of our Summer Survival Challenges is complete. Here is the master list of all the entries:

• Just One More Photo by LadySheRa


• Bokeh by Argent Gale


• It Started With A Kiss by Three Little Kittens


• All About Us by applexofmyeye

Thank you to all of our participants! Readers, enjoy and spread the love to these awesome authors. 

Stay tuned! The Summer Survival Challenge Series is just getting started. ;)

Have you been hoping to kick off your first fanfic venture but not sure you're getting things quite how you wanted?  Do you need the enthusiasm of others to help you take the first step and give you that extra push to put your work out there?  Do you need feedback or advice on what you are/want to write?  Well, this is for you.

A Caryl Fanfic supporter chat group is a great base to help you with these issues and any more you might think up.  To kick off this venture, a little input is required in selecting the best time available to everyone.  If you're interested, reply to the indicate when might work best for you.  Majority will rule.

Your options are sometime Thursday - Sunday this week. The link to give your available times is located at:

https://doodle.com/rs7r68hksht8bkf3        (Meeshie will close the scheduler on Wednesday night.)

 All Caryl fic writers are welcome! Chat will take place in the Nine Lives chat room and we will post the date/time decided on Thursday.

(Admin Note: I originally posted this on April 21, but I think it is relevant to share again. -- FM)

Hey everyone,  

It is great to see so many new members joining our madhouse! To all of our amazing authors, thank you so much for choosing Nine Lives to share your work. I have discovered so many wonderful new stories in the last couple of weeks alone! I can't wait to see what new adventures show up in the archive every day. There are crazy levels of talent happening here. It is so awesome!

I just wanted to point out a couple of helpful hints to our authors, and to any of our members who haven't posted their fics yet:

• Chapter Notes: I notice a lot of people using this section to place their authors notes. This actually is the summary post for each chapter that ends up in the index page of each story. I'd suggest placing any author's notes in the actual story text, or at the 'End Notes' section.


• Copy/Pasting: If you're copy/pasting your story text from a program like Word or even Google Docs, click the button on the Story Text box that looks like a clipboard with a W on it. It will keep any special formatting (paragraph spacing, bold, italics, etc) that you have already done. It's a bit faster than copying and then reformatting within the system.


• Series: You do have the option of posting not just stories, but a whole series! A series can be a series of several stories, submitted by different authors, all within the same "universe". I'll give an example (and it's a cracktastic one, too): So let's say Peta2 decided to start a non-zombie AU that takes place in a circus, with Daryl and Carol as circus performers. She posts the first fic, but then invites me to post another story, separate from hers but set within the same universe. I can post my story to her series, so the separate stories link together. 
  

There are lots more, but those are the three big ones I wanted to point out.   

Also, for any authors who are nervous about their work and want a second opinion, feel free to take advantage of our BETA page! Any Nine Lives member can sign up to be a beta reader. Just log onto your account page and update your beta profile information. If you need help, just ask. You can ask in the Shoutbox so anyone can reply, or you can sent a private mesasage to any member directly by clicking on their name, then selecting the envelope to the right of their name.

I hope all of this helps! You guys are amazing! Thank you for making Nine Lives a wonderful home for all Caryl fans!  

Fairies Masquerade  

(P.S. I have no intention of starting a circus AU series. I just needed an example and for some reason, that's what came to me.)

Hi everyone!

I wanted to share a seriously cool event that is being hosted by our friends at TheCarylDaily on tumblr. They are hosting the first round ever of the Carol & Daryl (Caryl) Fanfiction Awards! The cool part here is, you don't have to be on tumblr to participate. Here's the scoop, taken directly from the Fanfic Awards page:

Nomination Rules: 
1). You may nominate two (2) authors/stories/series/etc per category.
2). You may nominate your own work.
3). You do not have to make a nomination in every category.
4). Nominations are not anonymous.
5). When nominating a story/series/etc, you must provide the correct penname and correct title. A link to the nominated author/story/series/etc would be most helpful.
6). Copy & paste the following form into an email and send it to the following email address - thecaryldaily@outlook.com 

Nomination Form:

• Best Author


• Best Angst


• Best AU (Alternate Universe)


• Best Characterization


• Best Comedy


• Best Drama


• Best Episode Re-write


• Best Fluff


• Best Multi-Chaptered


• Best NC-17


• Best Oneshot


• Best Plot


• Best Quickie Fic


• Best Romance


• Best Series


• Best Song Fic 


• Best Unfinished

NOMINATIONS ARE OPEN UNTIL MAY 16! EDIT: TheCarylDaily has announced nominations are open until May 31!!

So get those nominations in fast and let's get ready for the first Caryl Fanfiction Awards from TheCarylDaily! 

Hey everyone,  

It is great to see so many new members joining our madhouse! To all of our amazing authors, thank you so much for choosing Nine Lives to share your work. I have discovered so many wonderful new stories in the last couple of weeks alone! I can't wait to see what new adventures show up in the archive every day. There are crazy levels of talent happening here. It is so awesome!

I just wanted to point out a couple of helpful hints to our authors, and to any of our members who haven't posted their fics yet:

• Chapter Notes: I notice a lot of people using this section to place their authors notes. This actually is the summary post for each chapter that ends up in the index page of each story. I'd suggest placing any author's notes in the actual story text, or at the 'End Notes' section.


• Copy/Pasting: If you're copy/pasting your story text from a program like Word or even Google Docs, click the button on the Story Text box that looks like a clipboard with a W on it. It will keep any special formatting (paragraph spacing, bold, italics, etc) that you have already done. It's a bit faster than copying and then reformatting within the system.


• Series: You do have the option of posting not just stories, but a whole series! A series can be a series of several stories, submitted by different authors, all within the same "universe". I'll give an example (and it's a cracktastic one, too): So let's say Peta2 decided to start a non-zombie AU that takes place in a circus, with Daryl and Carol as circus performers. She posts the first fic, but then invites me to post another story, separate from hers but set within the same universe. I can post my story to her series, so the separate stories link together.
  

There are lots more, but those are the three big ones I wanted to point out.   

Also, for any authors who are nervous about their work and want a second opinion, feel free to take advantage of our BETA page! Any Nine Lives member can sign up to be a beta reader. Just log onto your account page and update your beta profile information. If you need help, just ask. You can ask in the Shoutbox so anyone can reply, or you can sent a private mesasage to any member directly by clicking on their name, then selecting the envelope to the right of their name.

I hope all of this helps! You guys are amazing! Thank you for making Nine Lives a wonderful home for all Caryl fans!  

Fairies Masquerade  

(P.S. I have no intention of starting a circus AU series. I just needed an example and for some reason, that's what came to me.)