Spec the Halls - FAQs and NSFAQs

Spec the Halls: A Winter Celebration of the Weird and the Fantastic

FAQs and NSFAQs (Not So Frequently Asked Questions)

What's Spec the Halls, anyway? Does New Year's count as a winter holiday? What if I don't have a website to post my submission on?
Can we submit once in each category?
What about places where Christmas isn't a winter holiday, like Australia and Africa?
Is fan-fiction ok?
How about content that might be offensive to some people, like erotica or extreme violence?
Can I help support this contest?

Got a question not answered here? Email specthehalls@gmail.com with a subject line that starts with "Question." Please include a brief 1-4 word description of the question topic in the subject line.

What's Spec the Halls, anyway?
Spec the Halls is a contest for speculative winter holiday-themed fiction, artwork, and poetry. The holiday may be fictional or real; it may be Christmas or Yuletide as we know and love it, or it may be something much stranger. Links to the submissions can be found at Recommended Submissions and All Submissions. Every week until Christmas, I will post featured selections on this main page. You may sign up to receive the Spec the Halls weekly email, containing contest news and weekly featured selections, at any time by sending an email to specthehalls@gmail.com with "Subscribe" in the subject line.

Does New Year's count as a winter holiday?
If it takes place during winter, yes.

What if I don't have a website to post my submission on?
If you do not have a suitable website or blog currently, I would recommend either Blogger or Livejournal. Both of them allow you to create a free blog, and both of them are good services. As always, you should carefully read the terms and conditions before agreeing to anything.

Can we submit once in each category?
Yes, you may submit once in each category.

What about places where Christmas isn't a winter holiday, like Australia and Africa?
It can be a traditional "winter" holiday in a non-wintery setting or a non-traditional winter holiday in a wintery setting. It's pretty much common sense.

Is fan-fiction ok?
Maybe. Please do not use characters, settings, etc. that anybody else owns the rights to. Things that have passed into the public domain are fair game.

How about content that might be offensive to some people, like erotica or extreme violence?
Don't break any laws, put a warning in your submission email, and if this is something that people under 18 shouldn't see, make sure that they can't stumble across it by accident. Be responsible, in other words!

Can I help support this contest?
Yes!