i also agree with this. it seems like there is a lot of interpersonal drama between members and staff that bleed out onto the site for others to see.
now for my own input.
i will be completely honest here and put myself out there amongst the friends ive made here, but the drama that i saw when i first arrived here immediately made me afraid to interact with staff or to involve myself in a community where those kind of things happen and where people act out. it did feel clique like from that point of view, as ive heard people on several farewell threads speak about. it reminded me a lot of other websites id been on, where things always fall apart socially amongst peers and staff. ive been on the internet and in social circles on forums and chats for well over a decade now, and it's something i can quickly pick up on.
something else i will say, and maybe it's because im just an over thinker or it's my trauma, but the friendliness that i was introduced with in contrast to the social unrest that was happening made me put my guard up even more, because it felt like almost like there was things going on behind closed doors, and that everyone was trying to keep up a guise of a super tight knit community. the drama also makes people hesitant to share their true feelings, because their is a faulty sense of trust.
sorry if any of my words came out cruel. i mean no harm, and hope my perspectives from being a more newer user can help others understand possibly why some other users may seem afraid. im also a Sagittarius so im blunt to a fault : ' )
i love you all, and know us humans can be fickle creatures.
Absolutely. I appreciate it.
The overarching issue was always between members of staff, unfortunately. At no point have we (as a collective group of staff members) had any issues with members in particular. As a means of addressing ongoing issues, the staff member at the source was demoted to member status. This was Allura.
Much of the drama comes from a longstanding issue of communicating concerns and a feeling of entitlement to positions because of intensity of dedication and time invested. Her dedication to the site is indoubtable, but the way she has taken to expressing her concerns and issues was and is not acceptable. Lashing out at someone as a member of staff, isn't okay. Taking steps to share with members factually inaccurate statements about other members in the guise of "venting" and establishing closeness isnt okay.
The tension and drama have come from her failure to take accountability for actions and my own personal issue associated with "cutting the cord" so to speak.
I provided far too many opportunities under the hope she would learn and grow. Instead, the behaviors and malicious conversations continued.
I have now officially taken those steps. To be honest - the team that is here does practice what we preach regarding communication and openness.
I have found Umbra welcoming and friendly since I joined, but I think I am a bit on its periphery. It does feel to me like a safe and sociable space to explore.
The one thing I have found hard - and still do - is to know the rules that apply to role play here. I think there may be conventions as to style and post length, also to how one is allowed to perceive and sometimes participate in the story, with which I am still totally at sea. It sometimes feels like editorial guidelines can be very strict but I don't know them.
I definitely get that!
We have some guides in the Member resources area to help with these! You aren't alone at all in it.
Here is a link to one of our guide pages to support you!
If there weren't announcements about it, I would have never known there was drama and issues going on in the first place.
Discord/Chat rooms are places where drama can happen very quickly and easily. I know a lot of sites have discord specific mods (might not be a bad idea) to nip that kind of stuff before it starts, and if it continues they get suspended or even banned from the discord server. If the drama leaks onto the site, wishenpoof their asses out. I am empathetic towards a lot of issues, but causing drama is a no-go zone for me, also the block button is very useful to keep people who you don't like conversing with silent, you don't have to read their shit, and they don't read yours, it is a beautiful world.
Sorry for all the swearing, but people who cause drama and those who just don't know how to avoid it really grinds my gears.
So the TL/DR version is: more mods for discord, have consequences for the drama instigator and those who fuel it.
Thank you for this input here.
The issue right now with moderation is the number of people we have available. I am happy to reiterate that consequences have been enforced and I will be working on putting together a formal set of procedures to hold everyone accountable for any drama that might begin.
Why is it that I am now locked out of being able to answer Dms? kind of dumb in my opinion to lock people out of the Dms they are answering and have been answering. Been using the site for over a year locking people from answering Dms sounds like a bad thing to be doing, or forcing them to post in public forums to gain access to it sounds like a borderline power trip and controling.
Hi there, glad to have you here. Thank you for your input.
This was put into effect shortly after the site upgrade occurred. We had an increase in the number of spam bots that were joining the site. This has been in effect since earlier this year. I can link the update when I am no longer on mobile to make the process easier for you.
Posting a note/message in any area of the site opens the ability to message other users directly, so you should be able to access it now without issue!
I definitely appreciate that input on it, but I would rather ask active users to make a single post on the forums than to need to go behind and write apologies or have our members harassed by spambots.