Definitions

Howdy reader,

So the first thing that I felt was paramount to posting were a bunch of definitions. It sounds silly at first, I bet, but read into it. One of the fallacies of text actually boils down to the meaning of the language being used. White text on gray screens lack the depths of tone, inflection, and body language. While we, as awesome writer people who have butt-kickin' descriptive skillz, could just be emoting all of our posts in prose, it can be time consuming and generally inefficient communication. This is the real world, so let's take it seriously, right? What's proposed instead, for all players and staff of this website (forum, wikia, other media) is something I call "getting on the same page." Really original, right? That doesn't matter so much as what this is getting at though. So, how do we do it, how do we get on the same page?

Language. Language is the forefront of this site, and the community it seeks to nurture. Language is your face, language is your action, language is the reality here. Now, being as we cannot take language as objectively as we might like to, messages in text do get skewed. We, on our past experiences across culture, encounter people or types of people that we symbolically attach a style to. Think about it, how many times have you read something on the internet and thought "There's a mom"? The same rule applies for various ethnic groups, cultures, levels of education, and so on. When you go to talk about who you are as a person, you are doing so as you tell it. Realize the text is what you are and have to work with.

We live in a relatively high-tech world, or at least its a commonality I'd assume among online writers with techy accesses, so there might be the counter argument as to why we don't just, well, you know, go around these text barriers? We have microphones, headsets, webcams, etc., so why not use technology? Another stupid rhetorical question on my part, but keep in mind the importance of anonymity on a site like this. This is a website, we are looking for your web-face. Secondly, and probably the more convincing, this is a writing community, role play, game, science fiction environment. Who the heck would want to bring the ordinary here? Not I!

So that's that, reader. It probably sounds elementary, and I don't mean to belittle you by putting this up. I think it's just silly how often these things are overlooked though. With all of that said, we now move to the core function of this thread to establish the definition bases of our OOC functions, namely policies and procedures, as players, moderators, and community members.

Respect:

"...
4. deference to a right, privilege, privileged position, or someone or something considered to have certain rights or privileges; proper acceptance or courtesy; acknowledgment

5.
the condition of being esteemed or honored"
- Dictionary.com "respect"

Of the many definitions for respect on this web-site I feel need to draw attention to these two in particular. Respect is an easy word to toss around. I respect you, you ought to respect her, I have respect for so and so... The meanings seem to get shuffled too.

When we use generic "respect" in the policies and procedures, please understand - and I mean read, learn, know, and UNDERSTAND as in application - that the definition "4" is the definition of respect in use. It's recognition of humanity, very plainly. We all are, philosophically speaking, entitled to our basic human rights. This is not to be confused with the respect of authority - more later.

To underline this point, it would probably help to use examples. I could sit here and enter all the things to NOT do, but quite honestly that would be a while to write, and all the more to read. Instead, here's an informal list of DOs on respect.

1. Acknowledge individual worth.

Think back to the archetype of internet moms - when we read, our brain does this funny thing where if there are blanks, we put in information to make sense. We have a severe problem in making up a lot of shit in our heads because our brains are too smart for their own good. Unfortunately, by side effect, you suffer for it too.

We come here as individuals, and we play here as individuals. No matter what group(s) you are in, what position(s) you hold, or how ever long you have been around, you're an individual. Acknowledge this, take it, and use it. It's easy to get caught up in a group, but remember to exercise your individuality.

The problem comes with these two cases: one where we assume too much, and the other were we block out the world and assume nothing, we're just awesome. The proposed solution is at the top at #1, acknowledgement of the individual worth. This means to respect that people are individuals, very plainly, in realization of this fact and in practice. I, our of respect, do not have a right to belittle anyone, yet simultaneously I have a right to say something if I wish to. it is ultimately a paradox that we cannot expect anyone to physically overcome. How the hell do we do this then?

It's simple, actually, just realize that others are individuals too. I misquote my professor, but "people don't go out into the world to do evil" there's always this catch that the ends justify the means. The individual's job is to not accept this at all; if we are to boast the pride of our community as something great and noble, then it must be obtains in great and noble ways. There must be foundation; that foundation is respect; so, respect people for being people.

How this comes into play is referenced back to language. Understand individuals are smart, their brains are ticking away at something with a reason, and we in our own perceptions may not see it. This means so presuming or assuming of a person or his/her intentions, especially in text. If you are ever offended by someone else, is it your responsibility as another individual to identify that someone else might not have meant something the way you read it. Inquire for more information, ask the question, "How do you mean?" Intentional disrespect, while frowned upon, is forgivable, and of course unintentionally disrespect is a misunderstanding. Do not be afraid of knowledge and the unknown, seek it out and welcome it. it will make your time here, and elsewhere, more pleasurable.

This concept truly applies globally. With it come the many factors of upbringing, culture, religion, and politics, even if they are not explicitly stated! The things people will type in here are done with a firm belief and intention, rational intentions at that, and should not be read as someone preaching or critiquing. Be the individual who takes command of himself and look outward and inward for better understanding. Language is, in the end, merely a medium for sensations and perceptions. Don't misinterpret!


2. Take a critique seriously.

I learned a funny thing about critiques not too long ago. Apparently it's against art etiquette to judge or comment on a visual piece aloud without first asking permission. I, having been trained to shred literature to pieces for nearly a decade now, didn't know this, and went at a visual piece like a lion to dinner. The artist was not amused... In the end, offense for was taken for something never having meant to be offensive. Again, there are the fallacies of text killing me. imagine all the dead guys and gals whose literary works I've read, re-read, and analyzed to every dab of ink on a page? Oh lordy!!!

Rather than having a debate of it, this is how it's going to be. When I say this is how it's going to be,t hat means this is how it's going to be, so please read closely.

We're on a writing site. We must communicate via text. To understand some things we will need to be analyzing and judging. If you are the subject of said analysis, do not take offense, see respect policy number 1. If you are the critic of an analysis, see respect policy number 1!!!

We're here as artists, and to improve our art (maybe for a hobby, maybe in hopes of one day winning a great literary prize) we must be subject to criticism. Realize though that there are different takes and ways to do something. I could give you two words, noun and verb, and you can string them together into a simple sentence or full blown novel. Criticism is not something to be offended by, and if you ever feel offended then you're perceiving a reality of the situation that is uncomfortable. This is usually a good time to confront the discomfort and understand the root of it. If after investigating on a personal level what exactly is offensive about someone's words or actions a resolution still can't be found, then all those involved will be expected to take a break from Axiom. This gives them a chance to reassess whether their values really align with that of the community. The communication of ideas might have not quite been what you would have put, but it's what someone else in their rational mind deliberately put with some reasonable intention. Ask, do not assume.

Dominatron and I were talking about something not too long ago about how people can just misread things and it sets them off. It all goes back to past experience, and that's not something we can pull out of a hat; you need to get to know people. How do you handle this if you feel someone is invading on your personal space? For one, don't assume that's a known thing. Even if you told someone something, it's silly to assume the individual told realizes the effect to a point of empathy. We all have our own filters. If you ever feel you are being disrespected in a critique, ask. Trust me...if someone is out to get you, they will openly say so. A deliberate act of disrespect just compounds itself beyond the act. Don't assume that though. Understand what was being said, and take away a lesson from it, even a small one. Your critic ought to be open minded to receive feedback as well of hos he or she does share criticism. Ultimately, if you're uncomfortable still, be clear with what it not to be discussed of your individual person. You may need to remind some people, but of course any persistent acts can be reviewed by moderators. Please have textual evidence in screen shots, posts, or private messages to forward (on any chat media). This is NOT for personal vendettas or personal problems, merely writing ones. Without these things we cannot help you.

As you expand your writing and writing knowledge your own criticisms become greater in weight and value. We have senior writers in the fiction genre, just for funzies, so read in. It reflects on your character with how you receive and share criticism. Similarly, realize individuals have a right to be critics and absorb their world as they do, as you do. You can always pick and choose as an individual. It's merely a question of how many lenses you want settled over your work and how much of these perspective you can draw from. As a last word, keep in mind you're developing and individual style, and you don't need to be a T.S. Eliot (trust me, it's freaking hard, there's a lot to know if you want to, haha!).

3. Be open-minded to what others hold as "respect."

Even if I come on here and give you a definition, fifty-billion examples or anecdotes of respect, it don't matter! Respect is a belief, I feel, and I don't have the right to change that for any individual. But so help me, while you're on this site, this is the universal definition of respect. Be open minded to it.

Open mindedness is almost one worthy of its own definition, and this blurb may very well turn into a definition of it. Being open minded is not a change of individuality or your own perception. It's not a refusal, you physically cannot do it. If you experience something like it, you might get a finer idea of what someone else references, but it's not something to assume. Being open minded, very briefly, is being able to acknowledge and understand that. People may be totally aware of something you hold in respect - the esteem aspect - and willingly contradict or seek to deface it. With what intentions is what makes this a circumstantial "thing" to be aware of so important though. The open minded person will acknowledge with respect and post two equal views, a universality if you will. The disrespectful will form two sides, but put one above the other in a status; it's not a fair or unbiased depiction. It's freaking hard to be objective. We are subjective creatures, prone to habit. It's going to take a lot to recognize in yourself "by saying this, I might disrespect someone" and look further to accurately display your perspective and case. If someone defends himself and his ideas to the death, then he isn't being open minded either. It is being able to intellectually acknowledge differences in the world and the vibrant variety they bring to it.

This post may be refined later on if it's worth it, but for the moment I find a motivation to speak about vocabulary, its reflection on Axiom's universe, writers, and characters...

So the first thing is relative to the game itself. It might just be something that I picked up on, but I feel others will too, and it's a sort of barrier between the world we know and the science fiction we aim to create. What we see a lot of in sci-fi, anywhere really, is some sort of advancement in technology, and then there's this estrangement from what we know because it supposedly acts and works a little different, something even such as radio designs...this proves especially true in Axiom as our closest relatives genetically are, in theory, not of Earthly origins (or so we're told!). This of course means that we don't share so much as a bit of related history in our known universe besides the idea of say a big bang, if that's even present within Axiom. There is, therefore, no such word or utterance of sound of the word or substance "Oxygen" though the element itself does exist in this game. So what does this mean for language? Possibly one axiom for the game itself may be the assumption that Axiom's universe contains the very same elements of our world in a similar history of discovery or rediscovery depending on the species in question. The Roshoqans and Inadri, sharing a solar system, very much have different terms for something such as "oxygen" and their own histories of discovery (of the element, it's various functions, and so on). What we'd assume then is that even in referencing it as "oxygen" in game play, such as in a combustion reaction that oxygen must be present, we should read it as a translation of our English. This is probably all very obvious, but you'll find most axioms are. In any case! - this means that we could possibly be making use of words relevant to our own space-time on Earth. Every phone doesn't need to be renamed a communicator, though something such as a music player "iPod" would need a custom name of an existing industry within Axiom's playing field. Though scientists protest, in this case it's easier to say what Axiom is NOT rather than what it is...that is to say Axiom doesn't have a Coke or Pepsi, though it may have soda/pop/soft-drinks/cola, among other items. This of course then translates into the writing of individuals!

This is actually a much shorter thought than before, as this axiom of language is rather self sufficient...as it should be. Anyway, I mean to address the sci-fi barrier of writing language, or at least this assumption I sort of have that every word suddenly needs to be plated in chrome and be evident of being out worldly. This I think can be both good and bad. It is good as it creates the new image of something born of imagination, again that chrome we think of, space ships, lasers, and so on. The draw back, however, is that we're constantly reminded that this doesn't exist, and may never exist. I forget what it's called, but it's much like a novel that's constantly reminding you you're reading a book, not an account, and the immersion fails. What I mean to address then, I suppose is a challenge to writers to be comfortable in their language such as to make Axiom real for them. How I mean is...when you first read the lore, and you felt a hook, an image began to form in your mind, and it's rich, something got a hold of you and inspired - that inspiration needs to needs to be wholly present in your writing. The difficulty becoming is that familiarity changes that sense of awe and you can lose that sparkle a bit...and you need to revisit after some time. The active responsibility ultimately comes out the most in character.

Ever notice how every rogue seems to talk like a well taught university student? I mean, one of the biggest killers of writing, I think, is this misrepresentation of character (NPCs included!). I wonder, in part, if it does have to do with the given role models, such that veterans or moderators are breaking character and that therefore sets the new normal for language. Or maybe it's the lack of examples simply, such as dialect (seeing as that is one thing that does not transfer over in this axiom of vocabulary, all being a translation). At the same time, it's difficult to not use things such as dialects (a Southern stereotype for example) to convey things like origin, education, region, class, etc. It is what we know and identify. Thankfully, this does not translate into things of third person, such as the third person past tense narrative voice that we will likely be using often, and it permits the writer to still be as elegant or ruthless with word choice as preferred.