Archive of Our Own ^beta

In July 2020, Melissa Lowery (queen of SidCity.net) and Alexander Siddig (buyer of too much Costco candy) opened up script submissions so members of the Sid City Social Club could put forth their ideas, and someday maybe have their work performed live.

Numerous spectacular submissions have flooded into Mel’s heaving inbox, but due to legal issues, actor availability, temporal logistics, and Sid’s inscrutable and mysterious thought processes in deciding which scripts to choose, it simply wasn’t possible to have more than a handful of plays performed. Which sucks! But there’s no reason everyone’s hard work and creativity can’t be enjoyed by the whole community anyway.

And so, in January 2021, this script collection was finally born.

Its purpose is to:
A) gather together everyone’s stories into one easily accessible place, so the SCSC community and other readers can read them, and appreciate all the effort that went into making these works
and B) provide a place for writers to show their work to the Social Club audience, as Sid and Mel are no longer considering scripts for performance.

This collection is moderated by SCSC members Elmie (almaasi), Casey (Still_Not_King), and Amy (inspiredzone).

IMPORTANT:
- This collection is not run by Mel or Sid. This project has Mel’s approval.
- This collection is public, meaning anyone who clicks the link will be able to see the works here.
- You need to be a registered AO3 user to post here.
- Submitting a work to this collection is voluntary.
- Read the FAQ to find out how to add your work to this collection.
- Please read the rules before submitting.
- Contact the moderators at [email protected] if you have questions or comments!

How do I submit a work?
- Click “Post to Collection” at the top of this page. After that the process is the same as posting a new work! Add your script to this collection by typing “SCSC_Script_Collection” into the box that says “Post to Collections / Challenges”.
- There is a tutorial about how to add new works to collections here.
- If your work is already posted on AO3, you can add it to the collection by following this tutorial.
- Your work will only appear in the collection once a moderator has approved it. There are three of us in different timezones, but please be patient!

Is there a deadline?
Nope!

Does my script have to be Star Trek-related? / Does it have to be Garashir?
It does not! We do want these works to be in the spirit of the Sid City Social Club performances, so works relating to Star Trek, and featuring a character to be played by Alexander Siddig, and/or the other actors who have been guests during the live chats (Andy Robinson, Nana Visitor, Cirroc Lofton, Armin Shimerman, Django el Siddig, Terry Farrell) are of course welcome. Principal Snyder from Buffy monologue? Sure! Original fiction with original characters? Yes! If you submitted your script to Mel previously, chances are it’s perfect to submit here. If you have questions about whether your work fits here, contact the mods.

Can I submit something from one of my existing series?
Yes - one of the performed plays was adapted from older fanfiction work! - but please keep your submission within the format of this collection.

Can I write something new?
Yes, you can write something new specifically for this collection, so long as it does not veer too far from Mel’s guidelines (listed in the rules below), and maintains the Social Club play vibe.

Can I submit an unfinished work?
If you are posting for feedback, yes, but we ask that if you decide to finish it in multiple chapters, you remove your work from the collection and add it again when it’s complete.

Can I submit more than once?
Yes. (See the rules for specifics.)

Does it have to be in script format?
No. Ideally, it should be mostly dialogue and not prose, but it does not need to be in a script format if you're not familiar or comfortable with that.

What ratings are allowed?
General or Teen - and depending on the specific content, Mature ratings may be acceptable. Works with explicit content will not be posted in this collection. (See the rules for examples.)

Can I do a prose treatment of the script?
Yes, almaasi did that with Little Achievements if you’re interested in what it could look like!

Are there topics the mods won't include?
No RPS (real person slash) or content about the actors’ personal lives. These are real people who we respect. Beyond that, mods will use our discretion on anything we feel crosses a line.

Can I still submit a script to Mel if it’s posted here?
As of January 14th 2021, Mel and Sid are no longer accepting submissions.

If I submit my script, does it affect my chances of my submitted play being performed during the SCSC?
- Submitted scripts are no longer being considered for performance (and it’s not you; it’s them - they’re battling legal issues, actor availability, and limited time, as they want to have as many regular Sid-chats as possible in early 2021).
- This collection exists solely so writers can share their work and readers can enjoy it.

I have a problem or a question and I can’t find the solution in this FAQ.
Contact the mods at [email protected]

1.
You must be part of the SCSC to submit a work here.
- If you haven’t attended at least one Sid City Social Club meeting since April 2020, you’re in the wrong place.
- If the mods don’t recognise you by your submission or by your username, we might reach out to check who you are. (We will not disclose this information if you don’t want to publicly connect your Zoom or Discord name to your AO3 handle.)
- If you’d like to contact the mods, catch us at [email protected] and let us know who just submitted that funky little number.
- We will include anonymous works at our own discretion.

2.
Your work should adhere approximately to the guidelines Mel gave us.
- Guidelines: Safe For Work, appropriate for a 15- to 20-minute performance live on Zoom, featuring characters played by Alexander Siddig and/or friends.
- Given it’s hard to judge how the length of a script translates into performance time, we’re fuzzy on fic length, and will still include longer/shorter works where appropriate.

3.
Submissions must be Safe For Work, as if they would be (or will be) performed.
- Okay: Mild swears, innuendo, references to violence or trauma, on-screen drama.
- Not okay: F-bombs, graphic violence or gore, descriptive traumatic incidents, overtly sexual content, content designed to upset people.
- If your work hits an Explicit rating, you’ve gone too far.

4.
Tag ALL major archive warnings. (Click here for details.)
- Anything tagged “Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings” will not be accepted.
- If needed: add additional, minor, or more descriptive warnings for upsetting or triggering content in your author’s notes. (If you decide the warnings are a spoiler, add them as end notes so anyone who is concerned can take a peek, then return to the start to read.)
- If your script is full of goodness and sunshine and nothing else, you don’t need to check a warning box, and you don’t need to add anything extra in the author’s notes.
- This rule is for the support and protection of vulnerable readers who are here looking for a continuation of the considerate and safe SCSC vibe. It should be easy for readers to understand what your work is, and either engage or move on at their own discretion.

5.
Tag ALL pairings.
- Major character pairings go in the “Relationships” box when posting a new work (even if it’s a spoiler).
- Minor or background pairings can go in the tags, or in the author’s notes (even if it’s mentioned once in passing).

6.
Don’t flood this collection with new works all at once.
- If you have several works to share to this collection, that’s fine and good! Please add no more than ONE per day.

7.
Your work must be complete when you submit it.
- You may divide your work into chapters, but once your work is approved as part of the collection, you may not add more chapters. (This is so we don’t get people bumping their work to the top. We want everyone to have a chance to shine! The front page displays a random work and not newest-first for this reason.)
- If you wrote part of your script but never finished it, you may submit it here (and please include an author’s note to say that it’s unfinished). But if you decide you want to continue it, please remove it from this collection and re-add it once you’re done.

8.
Please remember that this is not a popularity contest.
- Having fun, and creating something heartfelt on a topic important to you will ultimately be the most valuable to you, and the like-minded audience.
- We’re all just here to have fun and read some cool scripts. Some people are going to read and comment on ALL of them, so you don’t need to worry that nobody will read yours.
- On that note, readers: leaving encouraging, thoughtful, and supportive comments is heartily encouraged! Even a few words of appreciation can go a long way. If an author requests critical feedback, please offer it with kindness.