Sib Houses

The system of sib houses was devised by various Board members, in an attempt to bring about some organization to the Big Sib/Little Sib construct. As of the creation of this page (06/15/2012), the idea is still in construction.

In a nutshell, a house is a loosely bound group of older PPCers who are Big Sibs, each of whom has one or more newbie Little Sibs. The newbies, upon their introduction to the Great Wide World of Everything PPC, are given a choice of houses to join, and select the house that most closely resembles what they are looking for in the PPC community. When they make this decision, they are assigned a Big Sib from their house of choice, and that person takes responsibility for helping them with their questions about the PPC, how things work, behavior guidelines, and so on.

Sib Houses Charter
The charter (still in progress) was written by Neshomeh to clarify the ideas coming out of the Board discussion on the topic and to condense the discussion into something useful for future reference. The first section outlines the goals of the PPC at large, upon which the rest of the charter is predicated; the second section outlines why houses exist; the third explains how they work; and the fourth consists of a list of houses and their descriptions.

Note: the terms "oldbie" and "newbie" are here used in a slightly different sense than usual. "Oldbie" essentially refers to anyone whose breadth and depth of knowledge qualifies them to be a Big Sib, regardless of any time frame. "Newbie" refers to anyone who needs or wants a Big Sib, usually because they just got here, but not necessarily. Folk who neither need a Big Sib nor feel qualified to be one are not discussed.

PPC Goals
These are the primary goals of any PPCer or group of PPCers.


 * 1) To encourage and celebrate good writing, be it by reading and/or writing good stories, by giving concrit, by beta-reading, etc.
 * 2) To have fun with bad writing, be it in the form of missions, MSTs, just talking about it, etc.
 * 3) To celebrate fandom in its many forms, whether in writing, in art, in role-play, in nerdy holidays, etc.
 * 4) To have fun, fulfilling, and safe community interactions with other PPCers, wheresoever you prefer to do so.
 * 5) To do the above with respect for each other, for badfic authors and others, and for our community spaces, so we can all have a good time and not give anyone a justification for calling us big fat annoying stupid meanie-heads.

House Goals
Secondary to the above PPC Goals, these are the specific aims of the system of houses for sibs.


 * 1) To make it easier/less scary for newbies to approach and get to know older PPCers.
 * 2) To give newbies a mentor/teacher they can always ask questions and advice.
 * 3) To provide a systematic selection process for Big Sibs and Little Sibs, preventing much flailing and confusion over who should step up.
 * 4) To provide a network of support for Big Sibs in particular, but all members in general, so no one person gets overwhelmed trying to mentor/advise/guide/correct/befriend/whatever all the new people, and so there are clear channels of support open for advice on given topics.
 * 5) To get older PPCers more involved and more personally invested in the PPC Goals by giving them a specific obligation toward other PPCers. In other words, you're responsible for teaching your Little Sibs and correcting them if they make mistakes, so if they're consistently driving us up the wall we're going to come to you to find out why.
 * 6) Not to become cliques whose members never talk to anyone outside their sibs/house.
 * 7) Not to devalue the importance of other houses' interests. For instance, just because your group isn't big on giving concrit doesn't mean people in it should believe concrit is stupid, since that would contradict the PPC Goals.

House Structure
This is how houses work.


 * 1) Houses shall be made up of oldbies willing to be Big Sibs to newbies, with the responsibilities that role entails. Oldbies can become Big Sibs and join a house by announcing that they are doing so and updating the relevant lists.
 * 2) Each Big Sib may be in a maximum of two (2) houses, if they feel up to keeping track of two sets of fellow Big Sibs and two sets of potential Little Sibs. No more are allowed in order to prevent overzealous oldbies from overreaching themselves, and also to keep things relatively uncomplicated in line with House Goal 3.
 * 3) All Big Sibs shall have a working knowledge of PPC in-universe canon and PPC rules, policies, social mores and folkways, etc., and be willing and able to teach their Little Sibs about the same.
 * 4) Each house shall have a stated area of expertise that sets it apart from other houses, to provide newbies with something to identify as a particular (but not exclusive) personal interest and thus efficiently narrow the field of potential Big Sibs—House Goal 3 again. However, this area of expertise should not be too specific (i.e. Lord of the Rings humorfic concrit in the IRC), because that would just get really silly really fast and leave us open for too many Clue jokes. But seriously, basing a house on a specific fandom or PPC hangout is right out.
 * 5) Each house shall have a silly name that doesn't necessarily bear any relation to its area of expertise.
 * 6) Upon introducing themselves to the PPC, newbies shall be given a list of houses and their descriptions, and asked to select one (1) and only one. In order to prevent popularity/intimidation from becoming a factor, this list shall not include names of Big Sibs. Anybody should feel free to do this for newbies, so if you want to help out but don't feel up to being a Big Sib yourself, go for it!
 * 7) A Big Sib from the newbie's chosen house will then elect to adopt that newbie as their Little Sib, according to availability and/or compatibility; considerations may include fandoms in common, interest in the IRC or wiki, and other matters too specific to be covered in house descriptions.
 * 8) Each Big Sib may adopt as many Little Sibs as they are comfortable with.
 * 9) Little Sibs may "graduate" without ceremony when both the Little Sib and Big Sib agree that they are functional members of the community without needing frequent help from their Big Sib. At this point, Little Sibs may become Big Sibs to the next generation of newbies if they so desire, and join any house (or two) that they feel confident about.

Existing Houses
Listed in alphabetical order. This list is subject to change as the houses construct continues to develop.


 * House Darjeeling
 * This house is steeped in the history, lore, and traditions of the PPC. Also delicious with scones.
 * Current Big Sibs: 3.


 * House Fruitbat
 * (Official description pending approval.)
 * Current Big Sibs: 1.


 * House Grave Energy Initiative
 * This house has an emphasis on original writing, working on not just PPCing but the mechanics of fiction in general. Worldbuilding, proper description, character building and motivation, the whole nine yards. Grave Energy Initiative's ultimate goal is to produce more authors of original universes, thus ensuring that the PPC has a steady supply of authors revolving in graves for eons to come.
 * Current Big Sibs: 1.


 * House Kind Words and a Two-by-Four
 * This house is big on giving constructive criticism. This house is made up of Boarders who are interested in improving their writing skills, in general, and helping other people improve as well.
 * Current Big Sibs: 3.


 * House Parmandili (Quenya Book-friends)
 * This house is for those utterly obsessed with their fandom (to the point where they, say, learn the languages). Of course that doesn't mean all of us can answer every question about every canon ever—but we can help you find someone who can, and discuss how much enthusing is appropriate in the community.
 * Current Big Sibs: 3.


 * House Skull Goblet
 * This house is for those who are mainly interested in the PPC's community aspect. Goals include teaching newbies how to hang out and have fun in various ways without leaving others so frustrated they want to turn the newbies' skulls into goblets.
 * Current Big Sibs: 1.


 * House Tryforce Area
 * (Official description pending approval.)
 * Current Big Sibs: 1.