Here's how it's going to work:The concept is pretty simple. Sign up in this thread if you want to participate. Your involvement will require you to write one fic, but you will be gifted one fic in return.
Since this community is devoted to various 'ships and and sexual orientations therein, this activity is going to require a degree of flexibility on the part of the authors. Remember, authors, while the activity is meant to challenge you by including several elements of someone else's choosing, it's ultimately about the friend you are making the gift for, not you. Like last year, you will be allowed to opt out of writing smut (you will declare "smut" or "no smut" when you sign up), but you will not be allowed out of writing het or slash, or a requested pairing.
Sign-ups will be taken until November 15, giving you about two weeks to decide whether or not you want to participate. I will lock the thread before I go to bed that night.
On the 16th, names will then be written on pieces of paper, thrown into a hat, and drawn randomly. If a smut/no smut incompatibility between author and giftee occurs,the name will go back into the hat and a new one will be drawn. You will be informed via Private Message who your giftee is. We're working this sort of like "Secret Santa," so don't tell anyone until you archive! 8)
YOU MUST ABSOLUTELY HAVE YOUR FIC BETA READ!! It's a gift, please don't half-ass it or assume you're good enough to get away without one. In fact, since it's a gift, be *more* careful than usual!
You may begin archiving your responses on Thanksgiving, but you have until January 1, 2012 to post your fic, as those dates bookend the "holidays" for most people.
Your fics do not have to be holiday-oriented, unless your giftee specifically requests it.
When you sign up, include the following information in your post:
THREE THINGS I WANT IN MY FIC:
THREE THINGS I *DON'T* WANT IN MY FIC:
PROMPT (optional)
I AM WILLING TO WRITE SMUT: yes/no
I AM OKAY WITH RECEIVING A SMUTTY FIC AS A GIFT: yes/no
NOTE: If your giftee says he or she is okay with receiving smut, it isn't mandatory that you write smut unless that was one of the three things they requested. Conversely, if you are *asking* for smut, specify if you want a particular 'ship smutted.
Questions? Post them here!
I didn't mean to come across like a skinflint. When I actually engaged my brain before my typing fingers, I realized that I didn't have to do a multi chapter saga (those take me months) but nonetheless, whatever it would be would still have effort put into it.
Sorry for being thoughtless. 
Sorry. As many Monsters as I've drank already today, the brain itself is still fatigued. Basically, I was just trying to use your question to head off other people who might think they can skate. The first year we did this at the other site, most of the fics were great, but I remember one that came in kind of at the last minute, and it seemed a little halfassed, and I remembered thinking I'd feel a little disappointed if I was the person who got that, especially since I knew that the person who'd received takes a lot of pride in her own work and always does her best. So I just wanted to make it clear that I didn't want to see anything like *that* happening again, while using your question to address it, and it didn't work so well.