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Forum Guidelines and FAQs
The Teen Ink Forums are meant to be your networking tool. Please use them as a creative outlet, a round-table for open discussion on a variety of topics, and to receive feedback from others students about your work. As you know, your peers can often be the best editors.
We hope these forums will be a fun and open place for all Teen Ink users. In order to contribute to the Teen Ink website and forums, users must be between the ages of 13 and 19.
UserUser Guide for Teen Ink Forums
How the forums work
A Teen Ink staff member will go through all of the posts and manually remove anything inappropriate or offensive. In addition, some posts with questionable language or subject matter will automatically be removed by our content filter. If you are concerned about your thoughts going up immediately and remaining on the forum, it is best to adhere to guidelines laid out below.
Guidelines for posts
1) Absolutely no personal information should be shared. This includes:
- Telephone numbers
- Email Addresses
- Home Addresses
- Links to online journals (Blogs, Livejournal, My Diary, or any other online journals)
- Social networking information (Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, LinkedIn, Bebo etc)
- Instant Messenger Information (AIM, Yahoo Messenger, Pidgin, MSN Messenger, Myspace Messenger, Facebook, etc.)
2) Keep it clean. All inappropriate content or language will be caught in our filters and your post will be removed. If a user continues to use bad language, their account will be deleted.
3) No crude, discriminatory, derogatory, rude, violent, threatening or sexually explicit posts will be tolerated. If asking a question of a sexual nature please do not offer illicit details. If the question is very personal, consider keeping it off the boards completely and instead seek one on one advice elsewhere.
4) Absolutely no insults, put downs, threats or bullying will be tolerated. Leaving feedback and personal opinions is fine, but limit your comment to the topic, not your opinion of others who are using the forums.
5) Keep comments limited to the scope of the topic of the thread. Each thread is started with a topic and a purpose, if you are looking for a place to chat there are already forums open for that purpose. Please keep comments relevant.
6) All comments have a minimum requirement of 10 characters and a maximum limit of 10,000. This is to keep the comments concise and fresh.
7) Questions: Questions asked on the forums will NOT be answered by the Teen Ink staff. If you have a question or suggestions for Teen Ink, please email it directly to editor@teenink.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
The following is a specific FAQ for our Forums. A general Teen Ink FAQ can be found here.
Q: Why won’t my post show up?
A: The most likely reason is that something in your post got caught in the “bad word” filter. These posts may be deleted or reviewed by a moderator. Therefore, be sure to not use any bad words to be sure your post does not get filtered out.
Q: Why are there restrictions on what I can say in my post?
A: Teen Ink is only for teens age 13-19. Our rules are to maintain the integrity and quality of the website and to only have content that is appropriate for teenagers.
Q: Is the work I post on the forums also be eligible for magazine consideration?
A: Forum posts will not be considered for publication in the magazine. Instead, you can submit your work for publication consideration here. However, the forums can be a great tool for fine-tuning your work before you submit it to Teen Ink. We highly recommend that you use the forums to get feedback and opinions before submitting to Teen Ink.
Q: Who do I ask questions about the Forums or about Teen Ink in general?
A: Direct any questions to the moderators via e-mail: editor@teenink.com
Q: Is it okay to talk about sensitive subjects on the forums?
A: Yes, within reason. Our goal is to have the forums be a place where everyone is comfortable and able to share on a variety of fronts. All comments will be reviewed by a moderator and removed or edited if need be. For more specific details, please refer to the user guide (on the other tab of this page).
Q: How can I report a post that is inappropriate or abusive?
A: On the upper right-hand corner of each post there is a warning symbol and a link that says “Report Abuse”. By clicking this, you help us moderate the forums - and we rely on you to help keep this a safe website for teenagers.
Q: Is it okay to change the topic in a forum?
A: We ask that you try to stick with the topic designated in each forum. It makes it a more organized and enjoyable experience for everyone. If you have an account, you are free to start a new thread on whatever new subject you would like.
Writers' Workshop FAQ
Q: What is the Writer’s Workshop used for?
A: The Writer’s Workshop is a forum for discussion of works and ideas with peers.
Q: What is the difference between posting a piece on the Writer’s Workshop Forum and submitting it to the website?
A: Everything submitted to the website should be your best work. The Writer’s Workshop is a way to get feedback and polish your work before you submit it.
Q: Is work posted on the Writer’s Workshop considered for the magazine?
A: No, work posted on the forums is not considered for the magazine.
Q: Who will review my work on the Writer’s Workshop?
A: The works posted on the Writer’s Workshop are reviewed by your peers—other TeenInk Users.
Q: Do I need to have a TeenInk Account to post on the Writer’s Workshop forums?
A: Yes. You can create a free TeenInk Account here.
Q: Are the pieces I submit to the Writer’s Workshop subject to approval from a moderator?
A: Yes. In an order to maintain the integrity of the TeenInk website a moderator reviews all forum posts for content. All Writer’s Workshop posts must align with the requirements for the TeenInk forums found here.
Q: I tried to post something to the Writer’s Workshop and it isn’t showing up. Why?
A: Your post is probably caught in our filtration system. A moderator will review it shortly.
Q: How should I comment on work posted on the Writer’s Workshop?
A: All comments and criticism should be constructive and presented in a positive way. Any comments that do not follow these guidelines will be removed.
Here are some FAQ for the Regular Forums.
Q: How do I submit work to the magazine and website?
A: The easiest way is to submit online and follow our simple instructions.
Q: How long will it take for my work to be approved?
A: All work is read by our editorial staff to be certain it is up to our standards. This could take a few days to a month depending upon the volume we receive in that category. Thank you for your patience. We guarantee that we spend the time to read every submission and then give each and every piece the attention it deserves.
Q: How will I know if my work is approved for the website or magazine?
A: If you are approved for the website you will receive an e-mail from our staff. If you are approved for our magazine you will receive a free copy in the mail along with a congratulatory letter and other small prizes.
Q: Can I post something my friend wrote?
A: Absolutely NOT. You may only submit original pieces written entirely yourself. You can also only submit original artwork done by yourself and photos taken by yourself. You may not submit photos of yourself if they were taken by someone else.
Q: If I submit a piece anonymously can I still receive comments and ratings on it?
A: Yes, however we still need your information for our confidential records before we can approve it.
Q: I did not choose to be anonymous, but my piece was approved as anonymous—Why?
A: After reading the work if we feel it is of a sensitive nature the editor may decide to make it anonymous. If you would like to discuss this decision please feel free to call us or e-mail the editor.
Q: How can I delete a piece that is on the website?
A: Just email editor@teenink.com with a link to your piece and we’ll remove it. Please tell us why you want it removes.
Q: How can I delete a forum post or thread?
A: If you would like to delete a whole thread, email editor@teenink with a link to the thread and your reason for wanting it removed. If you would like to delete a particular post, click the “Report abuse” link on that post and include your reason for wanting it removed.
Q: When you click on my name, it does not link to my profile. How can I fix this?
A: If you have any punctuation in your username, try removing those as they may interfere with accessing your profile. Otherwise, email editor@teenink.com with any problems. Please be specific and detailed with the errors you are encountering
Q: When someone clicks “View All Works By User” in my profile, it isn’t showing all the work.
A: Only the twenty most recent pieces are shown in your profile.
Q: How can I change my avatar?
A: Log into your account. Under the “About Me” tab, click on the “Upload Avatar” link. Hit the yellow “Save my Changes” button at the bottom of the page.
Q: I have tried to upload a picture as an avatar several times and it says it saves it, but the picture never shows up.
A: It can take a while for a new avatar to show up on your profile. If you don’t see it after 24 hours, email editor@teenink.com.
Q: I would like to edit my work that has already been posted on TeenInk, how can I do this?
A: There is no live-edit option since every submission needs to be reviewed by an editor. You can submit a reconstructed piece to the website again. When your revised version is approved, e-mail editor@teenink.com with the link to your old version and we’ll remove it.
Q: Will my forum thread get deleted if it isn’t very popular?
A: No, but if the thread is of improper content or contains an improper line of conversation it will be removed.
Q: How will I know if my piece is NOT approved for the website or magazine?
A: If your piece has been deemed inappropriate, it will simply disappear from the submissions pending list in your account.
Q: What is the character minimum and maximum for forum posts and submitted work?
A: There is a 10 character minimum required, and up to 10,000 characters maximum.