• M7Fic FAQ
• M7XF FAQ

1. What is "The Magnificent Seven"?
2. What is the purpose of this archive?
3. How can I submit stories to the archive?
4. How can I find out more about or join the fanfic mailing lists?
5. How do I post stories to the fic lists?
6. How do I use the search engine?
7. What do all these fanfic terms mean?

1. What is "The Magnificent Seven"?

--The Magnificent Seven, in its current incarnation, started as a television series on CBS. It is currently showing in reruns on TNT. Based on the movie by the same name, The Magnificent Seven television series chronicles the adventures of seven men hired to protect a town in the old west. Go to http://www.magnificent7.com/main.html for more information.

2. What is the purpose of this archive?

--The Magnificent Seven Fanfiction Archive was created to serve as a "one-stop shopping" center for Magnificent Seven fanfic. It is also intended to serve the members of the M7fic and M7xf mailing lists in their quests to find stories they missed from the lists or stories they want to reread.

The Archive is NOT intended to replace any of the personal pages that house fanfic. In fact, you'll notice that many of the titles listed here are actually links to other pages. The Archive is merely intended to help people FIND the fiction, wherever it may be located.

The Archive also offers its services as a "home" for wayward fic; if you have an M7 story but no where to put it, we'll gladly welcome it here!

3. How can I submit stories to the archive?

--There are two ways to submit your story to this archive. If you are subscribed to M7Fic or M7XF, you can post your story to that list, making sure to include the proper headers and to double-space between each paragraph. A sample header is included below, as well as in the posting information you receive when you subscribe to the list.

If you prefer not to post to the M7Fic or M7XF lists or are not subscribed, you can send your story privately to the appropriate archivist.

Submission Instructions:
• Before sending your story, make sure that you have double-spaced between all paragraphs and removed any indentions at the beginning of paragraphs.
• If you want any special formatting (italics, bold, etc.), mark the text you want formatted with a text character (like * or //) and let me know what it stands for in your email. You can also mark scene breaks if you want me to put a divider between scenes; just let me know what you're using to mark the breaks.
• If you choose to include a disclaimer, author's notes, or other header information in the body of your story, please place them before the title and author's name.
• Include a header in your story with author's name, title, rating, main characters, category, summary, and author's email. If you don't want your email address attached to your story for feedback purposes, put a note to that effect, but please include your email in the header in case I need to contact you. I've included below a template for a header you can use if you wish; if you decide not to use this header, please be sure to include the information requested in some form.
• Save your story as a text file. To save as a text file, 1) open your story in the program you typed it in. 2)Go to your 'File' menu and choose 'Save As'. 3)In the file name box, type your file name. 4)In the file type box (below the file name box), choose 'text file'. It may be called 'text only,' 'MS-DOS text,' or 'plain text'; whichever it is called, it should end in a '.txt' extension. Do not choose rich text. 5)Click on the 'Save' button or hit 'Enter'.
• Once your file is saved, attach it to an email and put "Archive Submission" in your subject line. Please include your header again in the body of the email. Email your file to the appropriate archivist listed below.
• Alternatively, if you have your story on another site, but would like to include it here as well, simply send me the header with the direct URL (web address) to your story, and I'll link to it.

Send your email to:
Kay at jedikay@snowcrest.net for gen stories
Sandra at cleardigress@yahoo.ca for ATF stories (gen and adult)
Rhosan at rhosan@mindspring.com for adult stories.

One additional note on ATF stories: ATF stories are listed both in the main archive and the ATF archive. Please send ATF stories/links to Sandra, who will forward the information on to whichever of the other archivists needs it.

4. How can I find out more about or join the fanfic mailing lists?

--"Mailing lists" are ways to get stories, discussion, etc. via email. Anyone subscribed to a mailing list can send their story, questions, comments, etc. to a central email address. That email is then distributed to everyone subscribed to the list.

There are two mailing lists connected with this archive. Click on the mailing list name below to read the welcome/information message and to find subscription information. You can also check out the links section for other M7 mailing lists.

M7fic is a gen list open to stories rated G through a "soft" R.

M7xf is an adult list. Both slash and adult m/f stories are welcome, as are stories that are simply too intense for the gen list. This list is only open to people 18 years old or older.

5. I want to post a story to one of the fic lists. How do I do that?

--First, you must be subscribed to the list you wish to post to. See the faqs listed in question 4 for more information on subscribing. These faqs also give detailed instructions on how to post to the list once you are subscribed.

6. How do I use the search engine?

--The search engine allows you to choose from various options when searching for a story. You can choose as many categories, ratings, and main characters as you wish to search through. For best results, you can keep in mind that:

• All 'ATF' stories have 'ATF' in front of the title; they come under the 'A's' if you're searching alphabetically.
• You can search for a specific title by typing in any word from that title; however, you may end up with a large number of results.
• You can search for a specific author by either first or last name, but the search engine doesn't do as well if you search by both.
• If you choose from two or more categories, main characters, etc., you will get all stories that include that specific category or character, not only the ones that match every criteria you entered. For best results, you may want to select a certain number of result returns from the option at the bottom of the search page.
• If your browser is form-unfriendly, you can use the buttons on the left of the page.
• For more specific help, please email the archivist katilian@cairdean.com.

  7. I'm new to the internet, and all these terms have me lost!!! What the heck does it all mean?????

  --Here's a beginning glossary. If you've run across a term that isn't listed here, email me and I'll add it!!

  (In no particular order):

  Fanfiction: Stories written by fans about the characters and storylines of a television show (can also apply to movies, books, comic strips, etc.)

  M/F:  Indicates a male/female (straight, heterosexual) romantic or sexual relationship.

  M/M: Indicates a male/male (gay, homosexual) romantic or sexual relationship.

  F/F: Indicates a female/female (lesbian, homosexual) romantic or sexual relationship.

  Slash: A term used in fandom to refer to stories written about same-sex pairings of characters. The word "slash" comes from the / between the characters' initials (a convention used to indicate who's involved in the story). For example, a C/V story would be a story about Chris and Vin being involved in a same-sex relationship with each other. Slash stories (also called m/m or f/f stories) can contain graphic sex scenes, although they don't always.

  Smarm: A term used in fandom to refer to stories about the NON-sexual friendship between characters. Smarm can be anything from the thought that "Chris is a good man to ride the river with" to Buck giving JD a hug when JD is grieving over his mother's death (these are spur of the moment examples; try reading some of the stories for better ones!). Smarm can be between, but isn't limited to, characters of the same sex.

  H/C: Hurt/Comfort--very similar to smarm, but directly involving one of the characters being physically or emotionally hurt, and another comforting him/her.

  Angst: No, not the Freudian term <G>.  Indicates a situation where a character will be put through the emotional ringer.

  Beta reader or Beta: A proofreader/editor. Someone who checks stories for plot problems, grammar or spelling mistakes, etc., and generally gives feedback on the story.  (The archivist recommends getting one--or several!)

  LOC/Letter of Comment: A note (in online fandom, usually an email) commenting on your story. Can be complimentary or not (see constructive feedback and flames).

  Constructive feedback: Feedback that may or may not be complimentary, but is polite and is intended to help the author with his/her writing. A good way (in the archivist's experience, anyway) to offer feedback is in the form of a (non-sarcastic) suggestion: "What if you did this?".

  Flame: An attack on a person via email. Any time a person makes negative comments about another person, rather than simply disagreeing with his/her ideas or characterization, it is a flame. Flames are not acceptable on most mailing lists, and are not considered good netiquette even in private email. The archivist's suggestion is that a person can do more good and waste less energy by offering constructive criticism (see above) than by sending flames. Why not try it?

  Mary Sue: A type of character who is usually an original creation of the author and usually a female.  She is (in extreme situations) perfect, self-sacrificing, intelligent, has the skills of MacGyver and the patience of Job, is universally loved by the canon characters, and often (but not always) gives her life as a sacrifice to save one or more of the canon characters.  (In the archivist's opinion, she is also an example of bad writing, as she is usually a flat character who reflects the author's wish to be a part of the story.)

  Canon: Facts, characterization, etc. established in the show.  For example, the fact that Chris was married is canon.  His wife's pregnancy at the time of her death (if you believe she was) is fanon.

  Fanon: Traditions established by the fans (see above example).

  ATF: In Mag7 fandom, an alternate universe series shared among the fans. The series is set in the present, and the seven are agents for the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

  (More terms to be added as people ask.)