Is this sharky?

[Kaitlynne]

A few days ago I replied to someone about a story asking if they were going to make a sequel to it but I asked the mods to delete it because it seemed a bit sharky. Is it sharky to ask someone if they’re considering writing a sequel to something?

[webmeistro]

No.

[Kaitlynne]

6 minutes ago, webmeistro said:

No.

Okay cool I’ll ask her

[Likesn]

I'm not a mod, but I think that as long as you're asking politely (and not making it sound like a demand) it should be cool. The exception to that rule is if the author explicitly stated they will not be continuing the story. In that case - don't ask. 

[SleepingPhlox]

I agree with @Likesn, it's not strictly sharky or anything but there's etiquette to follow.  Definitely if the author has explicitly stated that it's a one shot or that they have stopped continuing the story it would be a no-no to ask. 

I think there are also other things worth mentioning for this sort of thing too, for people to keep in mind:

1.  If the story is years old, it's probably best not to ask for a continuation.  Especially if the author hasn't logged in since, like, 2017.  Now it has happened before that very old stories have gotten continued after people showed interest!  But after that long, the author probably isn't thinking about that story anymore and has moved on to new things.  If something is very old, show your appreciation by all means, but asking for more might not be for the best.  And if the author is no longer logging on, they may not see your request at all.  Check to make sure!

2.  Just kind of a general FYI,  not all writers like comments that are suggesting what they should do next.  Some authors DO! A good rule of thumb is, if the author has asked for suggestions like "Who should catch this next?" or said they've run into writers block and they are looking for suggestions, then suggest away! But if they do not specifically ask for suggestions on how the story should go, it's probably best to avoid doing that.  So if a request for a continuation is along the lines of "Can you make XYZ catch this and they go to the library then ABC takes care of them and brings them tissues" and the author hasn't said "That's all for this one, who should catch this next?", don't.

 

[Likesn]

@SleepingPhlox made some good points. I would also like to add that you should make sure that the author is still a member. I've seen people asking for a continuation of a story even though the word "Banned" can clearly be seen under the author's name. It's probably something you're already smart enough to know not to dot, but I just thought it's best to be sure.

[cameronsneeze]

I would say no!