Writer’s guidelines
We want Burrst to be a friendly, helpful, and interesting site.
Code of conduct
The Code of Conduct details what's expected of writers. It consists of a set of common sense rules for submissions, feedback (in the form of comments), and general conduct.
Submit your own work
Bursts must be written by you. Crediting the original author is not acceptable, even if you are posting on their behalf or with their permission.
Audio bursts may be narrated by someone other than the author, it doesn't have to be your own voice. However you must get the narrator's permission to use the audio burst before posting it on Burrst.com.
Spoken content must match written content
We encourage members to provide an audio narrative for their bursts. Audio bursts must reflect their written burst.
Using audio bursts for any other purpose than to narrate the original written burst is not acceptable.
Bursts must be in English
We would love to support for bursts in languages other than English, but at the current time we are unable to vet non-English submissions and therefore cannot.
As the community grows we hope to enlist members who can read in other languages to help us resolve this limitation.
Where appropriate mark content as adult
Bursts marked as containing adult content can only be viewed by members (readers or writers) who have registered as 16 or over. Visitors who are not members cannot read bursts marked as containing adult content.
The decision on whether content is adult or not is left to you, the author. If you're unsure then we recommend you err on the side of caution.
If a burst is flagged by other members who feel it should be marked as containing adult content, Burrst staff will review it and may ask you to change the classification.
We understand that such situations will arise from time to time, however should Burrst staff continually need to request that you reclassify your bursts, or should you refuse to, we will take a far dimmer view of the situation.
Don't post pornographic, racist, illegal or otherwise offensive content
Whilst bursts may cover subjects which are one or more of these, they must not be one of them.
Be polite, friendly, and helpful when leaving comments
That goes for when you're replying to comments too.
If you believe that a burst or comment is inappropriate then flag it and let us know why. Please refrain from discussing reported content or breaches of conduct in comments.
Good practices
Introduce yourself
Of course you're welcome to be the aloof type, but life is more fun if you share a little.
As part of your bio you can upload an image, this feature is intended to allow you to upload a portrait photo, like you see in the back of books. Please don't upload logos, emblems, pictures of a cat or anything else irrelevant.
Good spelling and grammar is good manners
Checking your spelling and grammar whilst writing a burst would be counter productive, but if you've written something you'd like to share then we highly recommend you spell and grammar check it before posting.
Spelling mistakes and poor grammar in your burst will make reading it far less enjoyable, and that means folks are far less likely to read it!
Get involved
Reading or listening to other bursts, letting the authors know when you enjoy them (with a like), and leaving meaningful feedback (with a comment) is a great way to support other members.
Showing an interest in the work of others is also a good way to encourage interest in your own bursts.
Giving & Receiving feedback
If you would like feedback on your burst use the initial comment to explain what type of feedback your looking for (e.g. “I'm thinking of using this as the basis for something longer, what do you think?” or “I'm working on my dialogue at the moment, feedback welcome.”). Please don't ask people to proofread your work, you should do that before you post it.
If you spot an issue with the spelling or grammar in a burst it's OK to let the author know in a comment, if you happened to enjoy the burst let them know at the same time. Before you do please check if the burst was posted over a day ago, if so the author won't be able to update their burst so there's little point in highlighting it.
Unless the author has requested feedback in their initial comment then you should refrain from posting comments critiquing their burst. Positive comments are always OK.