Middle-Earth Awards Ratings FAQ
Q: What ratings are eligible for the MEFAs?
A: Stories rated G, PG, PG13, and R are eligible; NC17 stories are ineligible.
Q: I think the rating the author provided is too high or too low. What should I do?
A: As with most things, the author has the final say. However, some authors may rate their stories conservatively for an archive. A story labelled as NC17 may be more of a hard R.
If you disagree with an author's rating, you can nominate it with what you think is the appropriate rating. If the author accepts the nomination, he or she will verify that all the information is correct, including the rating.
Q: What if two people nominate the same story, giving it different ratings?
A:If the story is nominated twice, the first is the "official" nomination, so the rating in the first nomination will be the one used (assuming the author agrees).
Q: The archive I read from doesn't use the G-NC17 rating system. What should I use?
A: You should try to convert your archive's rating to an equivalent rating on the G-NC17 scale. You might try to find the story at an archive that uses the GNC17 scale, such as Stories of Arda. Also, you can use the ratings descriptions at http://www.mpaa.org/movieratings/.
Q: What kind of story should be rated...
A: Stories rated G should be acceptable for all audiences. They should contain no crude language, violence, erotic content, or disturbing themes.
A: These stories may be inappropriate for young children but should be okay for most others. They might contain mild language, nonsexual nudity or very mild romantic content, or might mention violence without going into much detail. They might deal with themes that would disturb a young child but would not upset a normal child of about 10-12.
A: PG13 stories should be appropriate for readers over the age of thirteen. The themes may be more adult than those found in PG stories, and the violence or romance may be described in greater detail.
A. The line between R and NC17 is often a fuzzy one. In the film industry, movies rated "R" often include scenes strongly suggestive of sexual situations (think "Bridget Jones" or "Love, Actually"), and the violence can be quite graphic (as in war movies such as "Pearl Harbor" and "Saving Private Ryan"). NC17 should be reserved for those stories with extremely adult material, especially those stories that do not have a point beyond the objectionable content, such as PWPs or their violent equivalents.
If you are still unsure, please visit the What is an NC17 page.
In addition to the ratings, be sure to give appropriate warnings in the "Reason for Rating: " field of the nomination form.