Ratings, Category, Genre, & Warning Definitions
Ratings
The ratings at Elysian Fields are as follows. Please do your best to label your story with the appropriate rating and warnings so that readers can make an informed decision about what to read. If you're not sure which rating or warnings to choose, please ask an Administrator. Elysian Fields reserves the right to change a story's rating and add warnings if it is deemed necessary.
- G: Suitable for any audience. Content should be free of coarse language, violence, and adult themes.
- PG: Contains content with minor action violence, or mild coarse language. Should not contain any adult themes.
- PG-13: Contains content with some violence, coarse language, or suggestive adult themes.
- R: Contains non-explicit adult content, themes, and/or language.
- NC-17: Contains explicit adult content, themes, and/or language.
- Adult Only: Contains explicit adult content, themes, and/or language that may be disturbing to some readers (eg, incest, graphic torture, etc)
Categories
- Pre-Series: Stories set pre-Sunnydale, when Buffy still lived in LA
- Season 1: Stories set during Season 1 of BtVS
- Season 2: Stories set during Season 2 of BtVS
- Season 3: Stories set during Season 3 of BtVS
- Season 4: Stories set during Season 4 of BtVS
- Season 5: Stories set during Season 5 of BtVS
- Season 6: Stories set during Season 6 of BtVS
- Season 7: Stories set during Season 7 of BtVS
- Season 8 (Comic): Stories set during Season 8 of the BtVS comics
- Season 9 (Comic): Stories set during Season 9 of the BtVS comics
- Season 10 (Comic): Stories set during Season 10 of the BtVS comics
- Season 11 (Comic): Stories set during Season 11 of the BtVS comics
- Season 12 (Comic): Stories set during Season 12 of the BtVS comics
- Between Seasons (any): Stories set between seasons 1-7 of the TV series (aka, during the “summer”) or between comics seasons.
- Comic (Season Not Specified): Stories based on Buffyverse comics in which the season is not obvious or mentioned.
- Comic (Boom! Studios): Stories set within the Boom!Studios Buffy reboot comics universe
- Post-Series: Stories set after Season 7 of the TV series
- Crossover (AtS): Stories that include characters or significant elements/settings originating from Angel the Series
- Crossover (Books or TV Shows outside of Buffyverse): Stories that include characters or significant elements/settings originating from another fandom universe
- Wishverse: Stories Set in the alternate reality created by the episode "The Wish"
- Alternate Reality: Stories that alter Buffyverse lore, events, or character roles to the point where they significantly differ or diverge from canon. See Fanlore for more on Alternate Reality fics.
- Canon-Compliant: Stories that maintain canon and don't change canon events (i.e., what we saw on-screen and/or read in comics). Canon-Compliant fics can be either TV-compliant or TV & Comic-compliant, but they must be one
- Vignettes: Brief, evocative descriptions, accounts, or episodes
- Episode Rewrite: A rewrite of an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and/or (if applicable) Angel the Series
- Missing Scene: A scene missing from an existing episode or issue that the viewer or comic reader didn’t get to see. Typically Canon-Compliant
- Challenge Response: Stories that are written as responses to Elysian Fields member-issued challenges or official Elysian Fields Challenge Events. May also include challenges issued by members of other Spuffy archives
- Time Travel: Stories where the characters experience a time disruption or time displacement, whether forward, backward, or in a loop
- Historical: Stories in any category or genre that take place (in full or in part) in an era prior to 1990
- All Human: Stories in which there are no supernatural or magical elements (the “real world”)
- High Fantasy: Stories featuring traditional fantasy themes and archetypes, up to and including classic fairytales
- Baby Fic: Stories which prominently feature pregnancy and/or babies
- Holiday Fic: Stories which feature holiday celebrations, themes, or settings
- Claim: Stories that contain a vampire creating a supernatural (often blood-related) bond with their partner, or featuring characters who are already “claimed” partners
- Drabbles: Traditionally 100 words or less, but since we’re not much for tradition, can include stories with fewer than 1,000 words
- Political/Protest: Stories with political or social themes, crafted in part with the intent of making a statement
- Poetry: Content in verse format, whether metered, rhymed, blank, free, etc
- Song Fic: Stories that prominently feature song lyrics and/or stories in which a song plays a key role in a character’s actions, decisions, or motivations
- International Fics: Stories written in languages other than English
- Award Winners: Stories that have been the recipients of fandom awards
- Award Runners-Up: Stories that have been runners-up for fandom awards
- Seasonal Spuffy Entries: Stories that were entries in one of the rounds of Seasonal Spuffy
- Taboo – Adults Only: WARNING: The Taboo category is specifically for Adults Only. It houses fiction not appropriate for the faint of heart. If you are under the age of 17 and/or have serious moral reservations about any aspect of sexuality, TURN AROUND NOW
Genre
- Action/Adventure: a fic involving dangerous and/or exciting (often fast-paced or geographically exploratory) plot elements
- Angst: a fic involving emotional pain, turmoil, or anxiety
- Apocalyptic/Dystopian: a fic set during or after an apocalypse or end-of-the-world scenario.
- Dark: a fic that deals with disturbing themes, often featuring elements of hopelessness, despair, and trauma
- Drama: a character-driven story with various possible elements of action/adventure, melodrama, horror, and/or angst
- Dramedy: a fic that combines the elements of drama and comedy
- Erotica: a fic that contains subject matter that is erotically stimulating or sexually arousing
- Established Relationship: a fic in which Spike and Buffy are an established couple from the offset
- Fighting: a fic that significantly features verbal or physical fighting, or in which verbal or physical fighting is graphically portrayed
- Fix-It: a fic that fixes something that went awry in canon
- Fluffy/Comedy: a fic that focuses on happy emotions or situations, and which often does not have substantial plot elements
- HEA/HFN: a fic that will conclude in an HEA (Happily Ever After) or an HFN (Happy For Now) for Spike and Buffy
- Historical: a fic in any category or genre that take place (in full or in part) in an era prior to 1990
- Horror: a fic that plays upon the audience’s primal fears
- Humor: a fic that is comedic in nature
- Hurt/Comfort: a fic involving the physical pain or emotional distress of one character, who is cared for by another
- Kidnapping: a fic in which a character is abducted as a main component of the plot
- Lighthearted: a fic that is lighter in tone and theme
- Mystery: a fic featuring a prominent mystery for the characters to solve
- Parody: a fic created to mock or comment on another work by means of satire or ironic imitation, usually for comedic effect
- Porn w/ Plot: a fic in which sexual encounters and the story’s plot are of equal focus
- Porn w/o Plot: a fic in which sexual encounters are the primary focus
- POV: a fic told exclusively through one character’s perspective, usually in first-person narration
- Prophecy: a fic in which a prophecy of some sort is prominently featured
- Queer Themes: a fic that involves Spike and/or Buffy exploring some aspect of nonstandard gender/sexual representation (i.e. female Spike and Buffy, Spike and male Buffy, either character as trans, non-binary, etc.) As with all Elysian Fields stories, the main pairing must be Spuffy-centric
- Resurrection: a fic in which a character’s resurrection is a prominent theme
- Road Trip: a fic that involves travel and/or takes place at a location other than Sunnydale, California
- Romance: a fic that focuses heavily on a romantic relationship
- Slow-Burn: a fic containing relationships that take time to develop, either romantically or sexually
- Tragedy: a fic that will conclude with tragic events and/or consequences
- Under Magical Influence: a fic in which magical hijinks dramatically alter what a character says or does
Warnings
- Abortion: contains extended discussion of terminating a pregnancy and/or the actual termination of a pregnancy
- Abuse: contains the physical or mental abuse of a character
- Adult Language: includes graphic language generally considered profane or vulgar
- Animal Abuse: contains the abuse or death of an animal
- Attempted Rape: includes the attempted sexual assault of a character(s)
- Attempted Suicide: includes a character attempting or a character who has attempted suicide
- Blood Play: includes deliberate cuts or bites meant to release blood during sexual activity
- Buffy/Other (Temp): a brief pairing of Buffy with someone other than Spike
- Character Death: includes any character death that has an emotional impact on the reader and/or characters. Does not need to include canon villains who are expected to die
- Cheating/Infidelity: includes a character being unfaithful to their partner with another party
- Child Abuse: includes references to or depictions of situations in which a child is physically, sexually, or mentally abused
- Depictions of Bigotry: contains characters making prejudicial statements and/or offensive slurs regarding race, gender, ability, orientation, religion, or class, including incidentally. (Not to be confused with authors making such remarks.) Authors are asked to use their discretion here as to what qualifies as bigotry, as a full explanation on where we're drawing lines could quickly become a six-page essay. If you have any questions on a specific fic, you can contact the mods— we are happy to consult. Please be aware that if you do not use the warning and it comes to Mod attention, we reserve the right to reach out and address the situation.
- Dubious Consent: includes sexual content in which consent is not clearly present or established
- Fetish: includes sexual content in which gratification is linked to an abnormal degree to a particular object, item of clothing, part of the body, etc.
- Gun Violence: contains depictions of firearms being aimed or fired at individuals, often (but not always) resulting in injury or death
- Human!Spike: includes depictions of Spike in a supernatural Buffyverse setting in which Spike is human
- Incest: contains depictions of a romantic and/or sexual relationship between family members, whether related by blood or marriage. If the latter, situations in which the characters in question were raised as and/or regarded each other as family prior to their romantic and/or sexual involvement.
- Infertility Issues/Miscarriage: includes depictions of or references to struggles with conceiving a child and/or the unplanned loss of an unborn child
- Mental Health Issues: focus on a character’s mental health or wellness
- None: no archive warnings apply
- Rape (Actual): includes graphic depictions of rape
- Rape (Implied): alludes or infers to a rape of a character
- Sexual Situations: includes or alludes to sexual activity
- Spike/Other (Temp): includes a brief pairing of Spike with someone other than Buffy
- Substance Use/Abuse: includes the use of illegal substances and/or the abuse of legal or illegal substances
- Suicidal Ideation: includes thoughts and/or consideration of suicide
- Suicide: includes a character taking their life
- Taboo: includes content that is culturally considered repulsive or sacred by mainstream audiences
- Threesome(s): includes sexual encounters with three partners
- Torture (Emotional/Psychological): includes assault on a character’s mind/mental well-being
- Torture (Physical): includes assault on a character’s body
- Underage Sex: includes sexual activity among characters who are under 17 years of age, in some cases 18, at the author’s discretion
- Vampire!Buffy: stories in which Buffy is turned into a vampire or spends a considerable amount of time as a vampire
- Violence: contains graphic depictions of violence