Shared universe

A Shared universe is a literary technique in which several different authors share settings and characters which appear in their respective works of fiction, often referring to events taking place in the other writers' stories. It can also be called a "shared setting." It can be a metafictional device. Shared fictional universes tend to appear more frequently in fantasy and science fiction than in other genres.

Shared-universe etiquette

Originally, shared universe stories were typically written by a small group of authors (most commonly, only two) who were already on friendly terms. With online stories, material may be written by a large number of authors who are strangers to one another.

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This state of affairs often gives rise to friction between authors with conflicting visions; one of the most common points of disagreement is when authors seek to promote their favorite characters over those of other authors.

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To avoid these conflicts, online forums frequently develop codes of etiquette that govern interaction. These codes vary according to the forum, but often include variants on these elements:

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• Restrictions on story scope, e.g. "No technology beyond that available on present-day Earth", or "No explicit sexual material".
• Statements of aim, e.g. "This setting exists to explore the interactions between characters who wouldn't usually be able to talk to one another. Please don't change it in ways that would detract from that goal."
• Each character is the property of a specific author; do not write speech, thoughts, or actions for another author's character except with their permission.
• Do not involve another author's character in certain types of subplot (often, any subplot) without that author's consent.
• Certain settings are 'common ground' and may not be significantly altered without agreement by other authors.