Welcome To Marvel Undercover: Meet Ugly Edition

Marvel Undercover is a prompt based anonymous fest for works inside the Marvel universe. We will have an open call for prompts based on this year’s theme (Meet Ugly). Participants will then choose a prompt and create art or fic based on that prompt. Submissions will be posted anonymously on AO3 until final reveals at the end of the fest.

Schedule

Monday 1 April - Sunday 14 April: Prompting is Open

Monday 15 April - Sunday 26 May: Claims are Open

Sunday 2 June: Works Due

Wednesday 5 June: Posting Begins

How It Works

From Monday 1 April to Sunday 14 April, we will be accepting prompts. Prompts can be a scenario, an AU theme, a quote or song lyric, a link to a photograph, or anything else that could inspire a creation for our Meet Ugly theme.

Submitting a prompt doesn’t obligate you to create anything for the fest (although that is very much encouraged!) and you may submit as many prompts as you like.

How to Submit Your Prompts

You can submit your prompts via this Google Form. You will be asked to submit the following information:

-Name (or you can choose to remain anonymous)

-Characters or Pairing (can also be Any or Gen)

-Prompt

-Squicks, Triggers, or Do Not Wants

-Maximum Rating

-Other Comments/Preferences

All prompts must fit this year’s theme of “Meet Ugly,” which is the opposite of a meet cute! Basically meeting in the worst way possible.

How to Prompt

Feel free to submit multiple prompts! Each prompt will need to be submitted individually in its own Google Form.

This is not an exchange or a gift fest, so please keep in mind that your preferences may or may not be followed exactly by whomever ends up claiming your prompts. Submitting a prompt doesn’t obligate you to crete anything for the fest.

You can view the list of submitted prompts here.

Claiming

Claiming opens on Monday 15 April, and will open until Sunday 26 May. Claims will be first come, first serve through Google Forms.

Each prompt may be claimed once for fic and once for art. You may only claim one prompt at a time, but once you’ve completed a prompt you are welcome to come back and claim another.

Posting

Once you have finished your work, you can add it to our AO3 Collection, which is set to unrevealed and anonymous. Please add the mod account (MarvelUndercover) as a co-creator so that we can correct the date as we post the submissions. You are free to claim an additional prompt once you’ve submitted your first prompt to the AO3 collection.

If you need assistance hosting artwork or posting to AO3, the mods will be happy to assist. All works are due on June 2nd, and posting begins on June 5th. A master list for the fest will be created and posted at the conclusion of the fest, with the creator’s identities revealed.

Rules & Requirements

Minimums

There is a minimum of 1,000 words for fics, and equal effort for art. Art may be traditional, edits, moodboards, etc.

Ratings

Submissions can be of any rating. For this fest, we will not allow any creations featuring underage characters in explicit settings.

Creators must be at least 14 years old and creators under 18 may not claim prompts or read/view submissions that feature explicit content. Also, any creator under 18 must keep their own submission to a rating of T or lower. Creators under 14 are only allowed to select from the non-explicit prompts.

Beta reading

All submissions must be beta-read and legible. If you need help finding a beta, please send an ask or an email. Art does not require a beta.

Anonymity

As this is an undercover fest, please do not post your work or discuss your work’s details publicly until after reveals.

FAQs

What’s a meet ugly?

The opposite of a meet cute! Basically meeting in the worst way possible.

What characters are allowed?

Anyone in the Marvel universe including, but not limited to: comic verse, MCU, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, The Defenders, etc.

What ships are allowed?

Any and all ships are welcome, as well as gen works with no ships. For this fest, we will not allow any creations featuring underage characters in explicit settings.

Who can prompt?

Anyone is free to prompt! You do not need to create something in order to prompt, and you can submit multiple prompts.

Can I claim my own prompt?

Yes, just be sure to note that you intend to do that when submitting the prompt.

What type of works are allowed?

Fic and art.

Do I need to sign up?

Nope! Simply claim a prompt when the time comes.

Why anon?

An anon fest takes away preconceived notions a reader might have when clicking on a link in AO3. It can also level the playing field for creators who might be lesser known. Plus, it’s fun to see whose works are whose during the grand reveal!

Where can I find fest info?

Marvel Undercover will be hosted on Tumblr, Twitter and Dreamwidth with a collection on AO3.

I’ve got more questions, help!

No problem, we’re happy to hear from you! Ping us on one of the social media sites above, or email mcuundercover at gmail dot com.