LNH/META: LNH FAQ Update - Initial Proposal
Andrew Perron
pwerdna at gmail.com
Wed May 28 17:19:25 PDT 2014
So like I said, the FAQ needed an update, SO I TOOK IT. Here's my initial idea
for what it should look like. Comments, questions, nitpicks, etc cetera! Be
free with your feedback, for this belongs to us all!
----
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Q1.1 The LNH? What's the LNH?
A1.1 A short definition of the LNH? That would be equivalent to pouring the
sands of the Sahara into a half-filled thimble. It would be comparable to
funneling the waters of the Pacific into a broken wineglass. It would be like
placing the collected works of Dave Van Domelen into the onboard memory of an
Atari 2600... however, this is the task you have set for us, and therefore we
shall endeavor to elucidate.
The LNH, or Legion of Net.Heroes, is a society of those beings who
emulate the spirit of adventure and undying quest for justice while clothed in
spandex and a never-ending stream of bad jokes. In short, we are
super-heroes, or at the very least authors who spend what spare time we have
writing about super-heroes. Our stories are dramatic (Beige Midnight),
comedic (Kung-Fu Holmes), dramatically comedic (Ultimate Mercenary v20),
comedically dramatic (Possum-Man: Relinquished), adventurous (Digital JUMP!),
impressionist (Cover Gallery), satirical (Looniverse Y), freeform (All-New
Legion of Net.Heroes), absurd-coming-of-age-mystery-parodic (The Adventures of
Easily-Discovered Man), or simply strange (Those Darn Vectors!). They all
take place in the same multiverse, and authors and characters often interact
with each other.
Anyone can join! Guidelines for writing can be found later on in this
FAQ and then conveniently ignored. Your best policy is to read some of the
stories before writing your own. If you have any questions, just ask! You can
post in the group for quickest response, or just to start a discussion. Most
authors are willing to respond to e-mail questions about their stories, and
many will even let you use their characters in stories of your own. But you'll
have to bring your own dish to the company potluck.
So welcome to the LNH. I hope this isn't the last we hear from you
Good luck, and get reading.
Q1.2 Why should I care about the LNH?
A1.2 Well, if you don't, there's a good chance that a flock of kiwis will
sit on your house. But seriously...
For readers, the LNH is a superhero universe that *isn't* run by
corporate interests or marketing conglomerates, but by people who just really
like Fun Comics. Also, some of the nicest net.people can be found in the LNH.
Try us, you might just make a friend. (Besides, it's cheaper than therapy.)
For writers, the LNH is a place where you can create great adventures,
without the pressures of being serious, formal, or good. This is not to say
that LNH writers aren't good. They're wonderful, but that is not a
prerequisite. Plus, it's a place where you can do the kinds of stories that
you always wanted to see, and create the kinds of characters that really
should exist.
Q1.3 All right, how do I get started?
A1.3 Goody, another victim... mwahaha. Anyway, the best way to get started is
to read. Poke around rec.arts.comics.creative, our home newsgroup, and get a
feel for what's going on. Those unfamiliar with newsgroups will have all their
questions answered in Q1.4.
If you like what you see, you can check out some older stories! The
Eyrie Archive at http://archives.eyrie.org/racc/lnh/ has all the classics
through 2006. More recent stories are available in the general RACC archives
at http://lists.eyrie.org/pipermail/racc/ organized by month, and can be
searched via Google by starting your search with "site:lists.eyrie.org" (minus
the quotes). To learn more about the LNH, its ridiculous number of
characters, and its world, visit the LNH Wiki at http://lnhq.info/wiki .
Whenever you like, you can join the LNH. All you need to do is write!
Create a single character, a whole team, or just write the characters in the
shared toybox. Put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and show the world
how creative you can be. For advice on who, what, and how to write, see
section 3.0, Netiquette and Writing.
Q1.4 So... what exactly is a "newsgroup"?
A1.4 A newsgroup is a discussion group on Usenet, a giant decentralized
retro-cool network of bulletin boards all over the world. It's independent of
governments, corporations, and The Man.
rec.arts.comics.creative (or "RACC"), the LNH's primary home, is
dedicated to comics-related original creative writing. (See the RACC FAQ for
details!) It's a place without spam or ads, where an assortment of different
fictional universes rub shoulders.
Q1.5 Sounds cool! How do I get on?
A1.5 Probably the easiest way is Google Groups, at http://groups.google.com .
RACC can be read and posted to at
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/rec.arts.comics.creative .
You can also post to RACC by email. Russ Allbery has set up a
mail-to-news gateway for RACC that can be posted through by sending your post
to rec.arts.comics.creative at eyrie.org or racc at eyrie.org. And you can get posts
from the group by mail by signing up at
http://lists.eyrie.org/mailman/listinfo/racc .
But if you want the most flexibility, you're going to want to get a
newsreader program and connect it to a newsserver. There are newsreaders out
there for every OS and platform, and newsreading functionality is built into
Mozilla Thunderbird and Microsoft Outlook Express. Many ISPs have their own
newsservers, though Comcast doesn't. There are lots of good free ones for text
newsgroups, and feel free to ask on the group if you're not sure how to find one.
Oh, and if you just want to read, there's a very handsome interface known
as RACCowrimo, at http://wil.alambre.ca/racc/ . Stop by and check out the
cover gallery!
Q1.7 Where can I find out more about the LNH?
A1.7 Well, fine, be that way. =) A good place to start (after you've read
this FAQ, of course) is the LNH Wiki, located at http://lnhq.info/wiki/Welcome
. This has all the information you could ever need about the LNH, from
character rosters to a history of the LNH to lists of award-winning stories.
If you're looking for more beyond that, or aren't sure where to find
something, ask in the newsgroup! We're friendly and ready to help.
===============================================================================
2.0 WRITING, ETIQUETTE, AND NETIQUETTE
Q2.1 Should I make up my own characters? Can I use other people's
characters? What about Spider-Man or Superman? (Usability)
A2.1 Making up your own characters is one hundred percent encouraged -
that's how the LNH started, after all!
Using other people's characters is completely okay - as long as their
creator has said that it's okay. Some characters have been given up completely
for public use, while others are usable with permission, and yet others are
completely reserved by a single writer. See the LNH Wiki's Character Usability
article at http://lnhq.info/wiki/Character%20Usability for details.
As for Spider-Man, Superman, and other characters trademarked by giant
corporations, the LNH doesn't use 'em. Much as above, we prefer to get
people's permission before using their characters, and that's pretty hard when
you have to navigate a labyrinth of lawyers and license fees. Plus, there's a
lot of really good sites out there for writing and reading fanfic, like
Archive of Our Own and Fanfiction.net, which is why RACC focuses on original
fiction.
Q2.3 Where do I set my story? (Storytelling Universes and Settings)
A2.3 The stories of the LNH have spread across many worlds. For convenience,
these worlds are often categorized as separate "imprints", along the lines of
the different publishing imprints that comic book companies use. There are
three imprints in particular that the new writer will want to focus on:
LNH20: Created in 2012 to combine the best of the original LNH with
everything that we want to see in modern comics - diversity, new ideas,
positivity, and fun! With a wide cast of characters and a wide-open world,
anyone can jump in!
Classic LNH: The original and still champion! An enormous universe! Years
of history! And a character with a silly name for every occasion!
LNHY: Simple, yet powerful, and it's easy for anyone to contribute -
since every writer only gets one member of the LNH! Plus: Social and political
satire!
In all three of these worlds, the LNH is headquartered in the city of
Net.ropolis (though in LNH20 it's more often spelled Netropolis; see Q3.4
below). However, stories can happen all over the world - and beyond!
Other LNH imprints that you might see from time to time include:
NTB: The Net.Trenchcoat Brigade, a Vertigo-inspired take on the Classic
LNH focusing on a loose organization of mystical, cynical, drunken bastards.
LUNA: Lunaverse, a similarly urban fantasy take on LNH20.
LNH2: An alternate-future imprint focusing primarily on the grown-up
children of present-day LNHers.
No-longer-active LNH-associated imprints include OSD (The Order of St.
Doomas), PULP (Prewar Ultrahuman Literary Pantheon), LNHX (Martin Phipps's
rebooted LNH), LF (Ben Rawluk's Net.League of Heroes), and probably some
others, I dunno.
Q2.4 What do I call my story? (Titles and Series)
A2.4 There are two equally good options for the new writer. What you pick
depends on what kind of story you want to write!
First, you can write an issue (or seven) of one of the LNH's
anyone-can-write anthology series. Just choose a universe and pick the one
that's right for your story:
Classic LNH:
* Legion of Net.Heroes vol. 3: The flagship title of the Classic LNH imprint.
* LNH Comics Presents: Stories focusing on individual LNHers.
* Looniverse Chronicles: Stories in the worlds of the Classic LNH that don't
actually involve the LNH itself.
* Another LNH Title? Really?: Self-contained one-shots, featuring anyone and
anything.
LNH20:
* LNH20 Comics Presents: The flagship title of the LNH20 imprint.
* Bite-Size Tales of the LNH v20: Short-short stories!
* Tales of the LNH v20: Stories taking place in the backstory of Earth-20.
LNHY:
* Looniverse Y: The flagship title of the LNHY imprint.
Second, you can create a series of your own! Don't be afraid to make a
new title in any of the imprints and fill it with adventures.
Q2.5 Can I join in on a story that's already happening? (Crossovers and
Cascades)
A2.5 While some stories are single-author works planned out in advance,
others are looking for people to join in!
Crossovers are stories with a larger effect on the shared universe that
other stories can "cross over" into. Often they have some kind of plot hook
that can be used as a springboard into your take on the central concept.
Chaotic Add-On Cascades are stories where one writer posts the first
part, then another picks it up from there and post a second part, and yet
another posts a third part, and so on. They can usually be jumped into at any
time.
If you're not sure whether a certain story is a crossover or a cascade,
just ask!
Q2.6 I'm set to start writing. What are the rules of the LNH?
A2.6 THERE ARE NO RULES. But! Here are some helpful guidelines for how to
have fun and make friends:
a.) Respect others' characters. One of the neat things about a shared
universe is that certain characters can pop up and guest star with almost any
other character. But if you want to use other people's characters, you gotta
make sure you're using 'em right. Some simple ways to do that include:
* Reading their wiki entry.
* Reading other stories they've appeared in, especially recent ones and ones
by their creator and/or primary writer.
* Talk to the character's creator and/or primary writer.
* Treat them with as much respect as you treat your own characters.
b.) Be careful with huge changes. Another neat thing about a shared
universe is that events from one series can affect events in another. However,
when you're playing in a common sandbox, you're going to want to be careful
that you don't knock over somebody else's castle. If you're going to do
something that has a big effect on the LNH, the Looniverse, other people's
characters, or even your own (if they're involved in other people's plots),
talk about it. Give your fellow writers advance warning of what's going to
happen, and be flexible; if your plans are going to disrupt someone else's
plans, be willing to work with them - it's entirely possible that your plans
can work together, creating an even more interesting situation.
If you want to talk to your fellow writers about these things without
spoiling it to the group in general, the LNH Authors' List is a good place for
it. Just ask for your email to be added.
c.) Have fun with it! If you're here, it should be because you *want* to
write with us. If something's causing a problem, say so. The LNH is for good
times, and if it's better for you, it'll be better for us too!
Q2.7 Okay, but what if I *really* want to make friends?
A2.7 Two words: Write reviews. Or at least respond to stories with comments.
Nothing makes a writer happier than feedback!
Q2.8 Why do y'all put "LNH:" in front of your titles? (Making Sure You Get
Posted)
A2.8 Why not? You think we'd be *ashamed* of proclaiming our title is
part of the LNH family? Huh? Do you? Do you?
Ahem. Anyway, the convention on rec.arts.comics.creative is to identify
stories by which imprint (see Q2.3) they belong to. That way, you can pick and
choose from your favorites, or seek out new worlds that you haven't
experienced yet.
In addition, RACC is moderated by fantastic human being Russ Allbery.
Moderating manually takes time, but if your story is properly tagged, it'll
zip through automatically and appear on the group immediately.
Thus, Eightfold stories have an 8FOLD: in front of them, Superhuman World
stories have an SW10: in front of them, ASH stories have an ASH: in front of
them, and LNH stories have a tag based on which imprint they're in. Classic
LNH uses the LNH: tag, and the LNH20:, LNHY:, NTB:, LNH2:, and LUNA: tags go
with their respective imprints.
As well, there are several tags for specific types of posts that are used
by everyone on RACC. These include:
ACRA: See Q2.10.
ADMIN: Administrative matters, usually affecting everyone on RACC.
ELSE: Elsewhirls, an out-of-continuity or alternate-universe story.
META: Discussion about the stories themselves, or about the newsgroup.
PRECOG: Promotion for upcoming stories.
REVIEW: Naturally enough, reviews of stories on the newsgroup.
WWW: A web site related to a story/series/imprint, or a webcomic.
Stories that involve more than one imprint use both tags. For example, a
crossover between LNH20 and LNHY would be tagged as "LNH20/LNHY:", and if
someone did a Classic LNH/ASH crossover over Dave Van Domelen's dead body, it
would be tagged "LNH/ASH:".
Tags can also be put in brackets, like [LNH], but Google Groups has
trouble with those, so use of them has dropped off. The RACC FAQ lists every
imprint that's used on RACC along with its tag, including MISC:, which is used
for stories that don't belong in any established imprint.
Q2.9 Hey, somebody else's story messed up the continuity in my story!
A2.9 This is the opposite side of the "be careful with huge changes" advice.
If someone wasn't careful with what they did and it contradicted what you've
already done, you have a lot of options. You can play off the error, making it
into its own plot point; you can introduce a retcon that explains what
*really* happened; and this is the LNH, after all - you can just make a joke
and keep going!
Again, point it out in the group - the writer who made the mistake will
probably want to help fix it.
Q2.10 What do I do if my story might... y'know, be too much for some people?
(Acraphobe)
A2.10 RACC has its own mature audiences label, Acraphobe, for stories
involving strong language, sexual and/or violent situations, disturbing
themes, and adult content. Tag your stories "ACRA:" to put them in this category.
NTB stories are automatically Acraphobe, even if not tagged.
Q2.11 Do I lose the copyright on my stories for posting them to Usenet?
A2.11 Not at all. You retain copyright on anything you write, regardless of
how it may be published. To quote the Copyright Myths FAQ, found at
http://www.clari.net/brad/copymyths.html:
Nothing is in the public domain anymore unless the owner explicitly
puts it in the public domain... Explicitly, as in you have a note
from the author/owner saying, "I grant this to the public domain."
Those exact words or words very much like them.
Some argue that posting to Usenet implicitly grants permission to
everybody to copy the posting within fairly wide bounds, and others
feel that Usenet is an automatic store and forward network where all
the thousands of copies made are done at the command (rather than the
consent) of the poster. This is a matter of some debate, but even if
the former is true... it simply would suggest posters are implicitly
granting permissions "for the sort of copying one might expect when
one posts to Usenet" and in no case is this a placement of material
into the public domain. Furthermore it is very difficult for an
implicit licence to supersede an explicitly stated licence that the
copier was aware of.
And for you weisenheimers playing along at home, no, I didn't violate the
copyright of the Copyright Myths FAQ. =P File it under "fair use."
===============================================================================
3.0 COMMON TERMS AND IN-JOKES
Q3.1 What do these words mean? (Looniverse Terms and Abbreviations (or,
everything you need to know in order to understand your garden-variety LNHer))
* Dvandom -- Dave Van Domelen, a prolific mostly-former LNH writer. Many of
his creations have "Dvandom" in their names, such as the Dvandom Stranger,
Dvandom Force, etc.
* Gamer Boy -- A character who was planned but never actually written into a
story; he exists perpetually offscreen. A running gag is to ask "What would
Gamer Boy think?"
* Mr. Paprika -- The LNH's favorite soft drink. Its slogan is "That's a
MAN's pop!"
* RACCies -- The annual rec.arts.comics.creative awards, given to the best
stories, writers, and posts of the year.
* Retcon -- In the Real World, a storytelling tool in which
previously-unrevealed past events are revealed. In the Looniverse, the ability
to make retroactive changes to reality itself.
* Retcoetheric energy -- The energy of retcons. Also known as magic!
* LNHQ -- Legion of Net.Heroes Headquarters. Also called LNHHQ.
* Net.hero -- LNH's equivalent of "superhero".
* Net.villain -- LNH's equivalent of "supervillain".
* Subgroup -- A part of the LNH that acts as its own mini-team. Often, stars
in its own series and/or belongs to a single writer.
* TEB -- Trade EtherBack. An LNH story in collected format.
* Tsk Force -- A group of LNHers brought together temporarily to accomplish
a specific goal.
* wReam -- A very prolific former LNH writer. Many of his creations have
"wReam" in the name, such as wReamhack, wReamicus Maximus, etc.
Q3.2 Okay, but what do these other words mean? (Internet Terms and
Abbreviations (or, sig.nificant meanings))
LNH stories play a lot with Internet terminology, including some stuff
that's kind of technical or obsolete. Here's a list of some that new readers
may be unfamiliar with:
* Crosspost -- In the Real World, a message that is posted to more than one
newsgroup. In the Looniverse, a method of traveling between separate
newsgroup-worlds.
* Flame -- A heated insult.
* IRC -- Internet Relay Chat. A form of text-based chatroom run on
independent IRC servers.
* Killfile -- A newsreader's ignore function. To "killfile" someone is to
block their posts.
* Lurking -- In the Real World, to read a newsgroup without posting to it.
In the Looniverse, the ability to fade into the background, often including
invisibility and intangibility.
* Netiquette -- Internet etiquette. How not to be a jerk online.
* .sig -- Signature file. A file containing a Usenet poster's "signature",
which gets added to the end of each post they make.
Q3.3 What's with all the Lads and Lasses?
A3.3 Many of the LNH's names were inspired by DC's Legion of Super-Heroes,
and specifically, the Silver Age incarnation of that franchise. The Silver Age
LSH had a lot of names that were <adjective> <noun>, where the noun was
something like Boy, Girl, Lad, Lass, or Kid - a word for a young person, as
the LSH was the equivalent of a futuristic afterschool club.
The LNH, naturally, took this to an absurd level. Even adult members may
be referred to as Lass or Lad. LNHers use other nouns, including Man and
Woman, but also including Dude, Chick, Guy, Miss, Lady, Granny, and Person.
The LSH had a Matter-Eater Lad, so the LNH has characters with ridiculously
long, often hypenated names, including Cheesecake-Eater Lad, Sister
State-the-Obvious, Pulls-Paper-Out-of-Hats Lad,
You're-Not-Hitting-Me-Hard-Enough Lad, All-Knowing Last-Chance Whiner Destiny
Woman, and Kid Not Appearing In Any Retcon Hour Story (which throws in a
reference to Monty Python for good measure).
Of course, not all LNHers are named like this. In the LNH, you'll find
everything that's found in comic books and more, from pithy one-word names
like Pantra to Internet references like Captain Coredump to pithy one-word
Internet references like Kindle and Twitter. You'll find people who just go by
their own name, like January Frost and Pister Y. Maprika III; you'll find
gratuitous punctuation, like Exclamation!Master! and the Crimson @venger;
you'll find straightforward stuff like Fearless Leader and obscure formations
like Shining Tungsten Magister. It's fun!
Q3.4 Why is it called "Ame.rec.a"? (Net.Names)
A3.4 The first LNH story parodied Superman's home city of Metropolis by
setting the action in the city of Net.ropolis. This inspired writers to base
all kinds of place names off of Internet terminology; Net.York City,
Ca.net.da, Scot.LAN.d, Af.rec.a, the Loonited States of Ame.rec.a, etc. In
particular, rec. and alt. are often used, because they appear in newsgroup names.
In LNH20, there's an in-character explanation. The Village was a lost
city discovered and linked to the world by '60s hero team the Network, and in
gratitude, renamed themselves Net.ropolis; it became a fad, and cities around
the world followed suit. After net.heroes became less popular, many of them
changed their names back, and Net.ropolis became Netropolis. Whether this
makes the idea more or less silly is up to the reader.
NTB stories, despite taking place in the Classic Looniverse, generally
don't use net.names. Because they're hardcore like that, man.
Q3.5 What's this "alt.comics.lnh"?
A3.5 The LNH didn't originally have its own newsgroup - the early stories
were posted to rec.arts.comics, then rec.arts.comics.misc (RACM). This annoyed
some people on those groups, though. Plans began to give the LNH its own
newsgroup, but some unknown person took it upon themselves to create
alt.comics.lnh without going through the formal newsgroup creation process,
thus ensuring that the group wouldn't be available in all places, and that LNH
stories would continue to be posted to RACM.
Still, alt.comics.lnh was the LNH's home until a couple years later, when
rec.arts.comics.creative was formally created. While there were some diehards
who prefered a.c.lnh, and most LNH stories were posted to both groups, over
time more and more of the traffic went to RACC.
Nowadays, the only posts on alt.comics.lnh are crossposts from RACC and
automated posts by the Looniversal Answering Machine, whose sole function is
to direct people to RACC. (The spammers seem to have mostly given up on it.)
In-story, it's referred to a desolate, empty landscape, containing only ruins
of its former glory.
Q3.6 Aaarrrgh! All these worlds and characters and STUFF - how can I find
out more info about them?
A3.6 Luckily for you, there is the LNH Wiki, at
http://www.lnhq.info/wiki/Welcome. It's the most thorough and up-to-date
reference on all things LNH, including characters, storylines, setting
information, and who's dating who.
The wiki is pretty much never complete. If you want to join in the
effort, email Lalo Martins (lalo.martins at gmail.com) or Andrew Perron
(pwerdna at gmail.com) and they'll get you set up with an account.
Q3.7 What twisted mind came up with this "LNH" thing, anyway? (An
Entirely-Too-Long Short History of the LNH)
A3.7 It was a dark and stormy night... no, wait, sorry, wrong intro.
The LNH got started as, basically, a running joke. On April 27, 1992, in
the now-defunct rec.arts.comics newsgroup, at the end of a post correcting the
spelling of Winsor McCay's name, Bill Sherman identified himself as Spelling
Boy of the Legion of Super-Heroes. Dan'l Danehy-Oakes proposed that everyone
give themselves Legion of Super-Heroes-style names, declaring himself
California Kid of the Legion of Net.Heroes. This opened the floodgates, with
dozens of posters creating heroic-yet-ridiculous identities.
Eventually, some people got annoyed with this. Rather than write a
humorless complaint, Steven Librande jumped in as "Dr. Killfile", threatening
to "release the awesome force of my patented Kill-O-Ray, destroying all posts
about you blithering Net.Heroes!!" Ben Pierce, in-character as Marvel Zombie
Lad, posted a call to arms, and this resulted in a flood of story posts about
the net.heroes fighting Dr. Killfile and half a dozen other net.villains,
which eventually became what is now known as the Cosmic Plot Device Caper.
The CPDC was notable for, um... never really coming to an end. It was
instead interrupted by summer vacation - at the time, the vast majority of
people on the Internet got their access through colleges or universities. That
might well have been the end of the LNH, except for one person.
The following fall, Todd "Scavenger" Kogutt was responsible for stirring
up interest in a revived LNH. Threads from the original story were picked up,
new writers came in to contribute, old writers returned. The LNH blossomed
from one story into an entire universe.
By this time, rec.arts.comics had been split into multiple groups, and
LNH stories were being posted on rec.arts.comics.misc (or RACM). And again,
some people got annoyed. As a result, plans began to give the LNH its own
newsgroup, but some unknown person took it upon themselves to create
alt.comics.lnh without going through the formal newsgroup creation process,
thus ensuring that the group wouldn't be available in all places - and
ensuring that the stories would continue to be posted to RACM until they could
find a new home...
The LNH spread out. At first, everyone's characters overlapped with
everyone else's. Gradually, writers started their own series, creating
characters beyond the one that served as their avatar. Sometimes there was
friction - for instance, the infamously ridiculous "Woody Incident" - but the
LNH kept picking up steam.
Some LNH writers decided to create new shared universes, still
comics-inspired, but different from the LNH. There were those on RACM who
liked this even less, but this time, people were more patient. In 1994, a new
home for all these worlds was formally created - rec.arts.comics.creative. And
around this occasion, the biggest LNH event ever - Retcon Hour, a sprawling
mass of a crossover involving over a dozen writers. While many complained
about how messy and complicated it was, others were inspired.
RACC and the LNH kept growing, especially after RACC was converted to a
moderated group in 1996. New writers jumped in, new universes were created,
new series were launched. Older writers sharpened their skills, some becoming
more dramatic, some launching into epic storylines, some figuring out how the
Looniverse they'd created worked. '96 and '97 were the LNH's busiest years.
But some people wanted to move on. Others got tired of the number of
newbies, as their posts outweighed those of experienced writers. And as the
Internet changed, Usenet was getting less popular. In 1999, several well-known
and well-regarded series ended. Some of their writers moved on to other
universes, while others left RACC entirely.
Between 2000 and 2003, the LNH contracted. There was still a trickle of
new writers, but not enough to counteract the ones who were slowly
disappearing. There were still events going on, like Birth of a Villain and
the formation of the alternate-future LNH2 universe, but less and less stories
were being posted.
But in 2004, this turned around. Saxon Brenton started a monthly review
series of RACC titles. Arthur Spitzer launched LNHY, a new LNH universe
created to solve some of the classic LNH's persistent problems. Jamie Rosen
created a new "LNH Volume 2" series that anyone could contribute to. People
started to get inspired again.
2006 was the beginning of a minor renaissance. 450 stories were posted
that year, and while many of these were Haiku Gorilla-style short-short
stories, it was still a significant amount of storytelling. The posting level
would drop again after this, but never to the level of 2003.
April of 2007 saw one of the most ambitious projects in the LNH's
history, the Infinite Leadership Crisis. Eight writers collectively produced
one story for each day of that month. This spun off big events and new series,
but also lead to a mild drop in posting as people burned out from the effort.
Over the next few years, the LNH built itself up, posting level slowly
increasing, old writers returning once more. Another great burst of energy
began at the end of 2011. 2012 would be the LNH's 20th anniversary, and a new
universe was built from the ground up - LNH20, inspired and informed by all 20
years of the classic LNH. This lead to new series, new characters, and new ideas.
And that's where we are now. The LNH has a big, open toybox of ideas to
play with, ready and waiting for new writers. Come and be a part of it!
Q3.8 Who's the most powerful LNHer?
A3.8 *holds up mirror*
Get it?
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