Cheating tropes are fine! if you check the prompt archive there’s plenty of fics that have themes of infidelity - if you choose a prompt in the archive instead of self prompting, all you have to do is respect the prompters dislikes which are a featured section in the archive. we’re not trying to limit any writers in terms of exploring morally grey themes. however, as stated in the rules under our masterthread, our hard no’s include NO sexualization of minors, beastiality or fics featuring incest. all we ask is that you properly tag your fics for anything potentially triggering. We do not want to limit you too much as per the fest theme but if you need any help tagging, please contact us. You can also refer to some potential character tropes/themes we listed under our potion shop thread for more ideas!

yes, so basically the fest is about characters and stories that can’t be defined in simple black or white terms. just like how humans in real life usually aren’t only good or bad and have a mix of good traits and flaws. so, for this fest, writers would write and share stories that explore these characters' complexities, their decisions, and the consequences of their actions (or whether not they even have any consequences for their actions because… well the real world doesn’t work in black or white terms does it?). it’s like a celebration of the shades of grey in characters' personalities, rather than just seeing them as either heroes or villains, without being overly preachy.

an example would be an anime like durarara that has the character Izaya Orihara, if a fic were to be written about him writers could dive deep into the minds of characters like Izaya Orihara, who thrive on manipulation and ambiguity. or they could explore scenarios where izaya’s cunning intellect leads to unexpected outcomes or delve into his complex relationships with other characters.

so the fest basically allows you to creatively explore the darker, more enigmatic aspects of these characters' personalities, imagining scenarios that push the boundaries of conventional morality. it’s all about celebrating the intrigue and complexity of characters who exist in the grey areas between good and evil.

just to give you some examples of characters or stories that could be defined as fitting the fest theme

Death Note: The main characters, Light Yagami and L, are both morally complex individuals with conflicting ideologies about justice and the use of power.

Code Geass: Lelouch Lamperouge, the protagonist, employs morally questionable tactics in his quest for revenge and revolution against a tyrannical empire.

Psycho-Pass: Set in a dystopian future, this series explores themes of morality and justice through characters who work for a law enforcement agency that uses advanced technology to assess people's mental states and potential for criminal behavior

Tokyo Ghoul: Kaneki Ken, the main character, undergoes a transformation into a half-ghoul after a chance encounter with one of these creatures, forcing him to grapple with his own morality as he navigates the conflicts between humans and ghouls.

Nana: This series follows two young women named Nana who become roommates and develop complex romantic relationships, exploring themes of love, friendship, and personal growth

You: Joe's actions blur the lines between love and obsession, and the series explores themes of morality and identity.

Gossip Girl: Everyone engages in morally questionable behaviour throughout the series but it doesn’t get overly preachy about it.

there’s stuff like euphoria, mean girls, easy a, pretty little liars, heathers, scream queens, the perks of being a wallflower, 90210, skins, skam, 13 reasons why, elite, etc.

how you choose to go about the fest theme is up to you! you can choose to write a character on the path to redemption who struggles with their morality or you could write a character who enjoys causing mischief and doesn’t believe in morals anyways and is unapologetic about it. there’s a lot of ways to go about this fest theme (as you can see from the examples listed above since all these pieces of media are different from each other.. you could go the historical route and talk about a tyrant king.. anything really! or delve intro crime stories, romance stories, delve into enemies to lovers stories, etc. the characters just have to be 3D and not explicitly bad, good or preachy.)

i’ll also link a tweet below that has a lot of different examples of characters you could write that you could get ideas from!