What Types Of Scenes Should Have A Skip Option

Creator's Corner Directing Help & Tips
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What types of scenes should be skippable?

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Topics that would be triggering for readers

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Like? I’ve never been triggered so I don’t know.

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Like violent scenes, scenes with fragile topics with suicide or discussions that could contain some unsettling scenes.

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Like all references to abuse, assault, suicide

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Topics that should have trigger warnings (not limited to):

Topics
  • Sexual abuse/assault (this includes any unwanted touching, it’s not limited to rape nor sexual violence) - I highly recommend a skip option for this.
  • Loss of a child - I also highly recommend a skip option for this.
  • Abortion - Recommend a skip option.
  • Suicide/suicidal thoughts - Recommend a skip option.
  • Self harm - Recommend a skip option.
  • Intense bullying
  • Strong violence
  • Torture - Recommend a skip option.
  • Drug and alcohol abuse and/or drug and alcohol fueled violence - Recommend a skip option if scenes with this theme are intense.
  • Animal abuse

Note: You should also include little warnings if there are references to such topics too.
E.g The following contains references to sexual abuse.

As someone who’s experienced sexual abuse, I genuinely appreciate trigger warnings for such content and those warnings give me a chance to try and mentally prepare for it simply because as a reader, I prefer to read all scenes irrespective of what they may contain because I want the whole story and I’m afraid that I won’t fully understand references later on if I skip, but there would be other readers who would much prefer to skip. Reading such scenes makes me uncomfortable but when they come out of nowhere without warning, it hits hard.

Of course, everyone is completely different and they’ve had different experiences – but nonetheless having a warning for any triggering topics at the beginning and before the scenes take place, as well as having a skip option is best for your effected readers (with regards to all triggering topics).

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simply imagine if the scene you write can be too heavy for some type of people.

  1. violence - some people have a big problem with it - you anyway cant be too explicit but in case you feel you are on the border its good to offer to skip

  2. scenes of a traumatizing situation like the attempt of rape or abusive parents atc - a reader who went through such experience himself might be reminded of his trauma by this so such scene are good to offer to be skipped

  3. people bullied especially bases on some specific - like being mistreated because they are gay or disabled - again some people might face such things in their life and might feel triggered by such a scene

  4. self harm , suicide - this is sensitive too

and well I think in post above its practicl all listed. :slight_smile:

On the other hand, you anyway have to be “in” the episode guidelines to make the story +13 so none of above mentioned you cant anyway write in a hardcore version. But if you make the extra effort and add the skip option some readers might appreciate it.

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