hi! as i'm no longer too active in swc, we've decided to introduce a new updated version! this new one is managed by moonlit - check it out here! https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/810076296 _______________________________________________ so first of all, thanks to miri (moonlark-) for making the original faq! i've just updated it to be up to date with the latest stuff :D (she made the thumbnail too!!!!) alright, now to the questions: Q. What's this SWC thing? A. Glad you asked! SWC is a triannual (meaning it happens three times a year) writing camp where you set a word goal, pick a cabin, and write! Along the way, there are activities and a writing contest that you can participate in to get points. Mainly, though, it's for fun, so don't be intimidated! Q. What's the difference between the Main Cabin and the genre cabins? A. Great question! The Main Cabin is the headquarters of the whole thing. You post what points you've earned from activities or word wars here, and the managers (who are hosts or leaders) will add the points! As for the smaller individual cabins, that's where you'll add the words you write (example: +160 words from my novel!), and your leader or co-leaders will add them! (Note: you don't have to write the genre of the cabin you're in, you can write what you want :D) Q. What counts towards words? A. I know I said you could write what you want, but there are actually some limits. Basically, your writing has to be literary - it has to have effort put into it, and it has to make sense. It doesn't matter if you type it or hand-write it - texting doesn't count, incomplete sentences don't count, random letters don't count, note-taking doesn't count, but english homework DOES count. If you're not sure, ask a leader! Q. How can I give proof of/share my writing? A. Good question :D The easiest way to share writing is to post in the SWC megathread, which you can find a link to in the Main Cabin! Please use this thread to prevent flooding the forums with writing threads. If you would rather use your own thread, please only make one for the entire session. If you want a more private way to share writing, you can put it in the description of a project (though there's a limit of 5k characters) or a comment inside a project. Please don't use other websites to share writing. Q. Is there a specific time I have to be on? A. Nope! The nice thing about an online camp is that we're flexible. You can be on every day, or you can be on once a week. After all, this is for your fun - don't stress yourself out! Real life > SWC. Q. What are points, anyways? A. Points are how the results are determined. You can earn points in one of five ways - the daily activies, the weekly activies, word warring, the writing contest, and just writing in general. Each of these have a number of points attached to them (in particular, every word you write counts as a point at the end of SWC!) At the end of the month, all the points are added up, and the cabin with the most wins! Q. Wait, wait - what are all those things? A. Here's an explanation of each one? Daily activities are new activities posted every day at midnight UTC. These are short-to-medium-length things that help enhance your imagination and motivate you to write. Most of the time, they have points attached - usually from 50 to 200! Weekly activities are long activities - but luckily, you have the whole week to complete them! Starting from midnight UTC on the 3rd, a new one's posted every seven days. These are each connected to a writing workshop (more about those later), helping you use what you learned in the workshop. They usually are worth about 800 to a 1000 points! Word wars start about a week into SWC (when a host shares the word war project). Basically it's where you and someone from another cabin agree to write for a set amount of time, and whoever writes more wins! If you win, make sure to comment something like "I won a word war!" in the Main Cabin for 50 points. (You can only get points for winning a word war once a day, though.) Last but not least, the writing contest! One of the hosts will share a project, where you'll post your entries. There are a couple of rules (they're be on that project) but it's worth it - winners can get tens of thousands of points for their cabin, so be sure to enter! Q. So.... what's the deal with the writing workshops? A. Workshops are tutorials written by (co) leaders meant to help you improve your writing and focus on quality over quantity! Each session, two of the weeklies will require you to read a few workshops and then use that knowledge. Q. I hear a lot about cabin wars, what are they? A. CABIN WARS CABIN WARS - they're one of the most famous parts of SWC! Twice a month, cabins can war each other with challenges. Each challenge has a time limit and a penalty if not completed in time. They're very high-energy and a good time to get hyped up!
Q. What are enemies, neutrals, and allies? A. These first originated in Cabin Wars - generally, you would always attack enemies, sometimes attack neutrals, and never attack allies. Nowadays, it's also a sort of role-play thing. There are also siblings and rivals - siblings are like really close allies, and rivals are really close enemies. (Remember, though, that it's all for fun - don't be rude or mean to anyone, even if they're in one of your cabin's enemies.) Q. Also, what's the memory book? A. The memory book is a project that serves to help us remember all the fun times we had. We're always on the lookout for funny quotes - if you see one, let your leaders know! Q. What if there's drama? Who should I talk to? A. Great question! We don't want anyone to feel uncomfortable, and we want it to be fun, so if you're having issues, contact your leader or one of the hosts privately (example: at the bottom comment of one of their projects). We're happy to help :) Q. I have an idea for SWC. Where should I put it? A. Ooh, nice! If you want to get your great idea heard, put it in our suggestions forum (right here: https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/514261/ ). Good luck! Q. How can I apply to be a leader or a co-leader? A. Two months before every session, one of the hosts will release a leader applications project, with a list of questions. Remix that project with your answers, and half a month later, see if you got chosen! Q. How can I apply to be a camper? A. A month before every session, the hosts will release another project - this one for campers. There'll be a form for you to fill out - fill it out in the comments. Everyone who signs up gets in, don't worry :) Q. What timezone is SWC based around? A. Recently, we changed to UTC! Most activities, etc will start / change at midnight UTC :) Q. There's something else I want to know! Where should I ask it? A. Ask in the comments below, and someone will answer + I'll probably add it here :D credits to miri again, as well as to bakie, birdi, scarlett, sea, and serrie for helping me!
