Welcome to the Website

Since you're here, I'll assume you're one of three: a fellow Aesthesian; a possible Aesthesian; or just someone who thought they'd have a nose around Kat's petpages. But, whatever it is, we welcome you warmly.

****Aesthetic is now a 16+ guild. Although we do make some exceptions, unless you are very close to this we recommend that you don't bother to apply.

About the guild

Aesthetic is a friendly, relaxed guild centred around the arts: predominately writing, art, music and photography. We were formed on the 15th of November 2009, but we're currently in the midst of major renovation after a long period of inactivity. This mix of old & new is in some ways quite unique: you can trust we're not going anywhere, but we also have many opportunities for new members to really get involved, and the added advantage that everyone's new too!

As a warning, Aesthetic is not a guild focused on its member count, nor do we claim to get hundreds of messages every single day. Not that we're saying that that never happens! So, if you're looking for a guild which chats non-stop so you can't get a word in edgeways, we'd suggest you either reconsider your criteria, or simply stop reading now.

Our member count is currently gradually increasing as we get ourselves to our feet. You can ask any member of the guild for the present figure, but for guidance we aim to return to the dizzy heights of around 35 - not too big and not too small. ;D

To contact us, you can go to the navigation bar at the top or click here for Nancy, and here for Kat.

Credit

Graphic: Josh
Coding: Castle
Content: Kat

Rules

These rules are here for the whole guild's benefit, so please try to follow them! If you don't, we'll be forced to take action: warnings, suspensions, and deletion from the guild. But let's not let it get to that!

Literacy & Spamming
Aesthetic classifies itself as 'laidback literate'. So long as you're consistent with your punctuation/grammar and try your best at spelling (we understand that not everyone can spell 'hippopotomontrosesquippadeliaphobia'!), we don't mind if you don't use capitals or dislike fullstops - we call it personal style. We do ask, though, that you think about the quality of the content of your posts: for example, if you're just checking in, don't limit yourself to 'hi' - tell us a little about your day, too!
However, please avoid spamming the board. We define this as 3+ messages in a row. But if there was something you just had to say, we'll likely let you off.

Activity
We believe the message board is the heart of any guild, so even the lurkers among us are expected to pop by from time to time. Ideally we'd like to see you every few days, but life can sometimes get in the way. Let someone know if you're going to be gone for more than a week though, because you'll get a warning after 2 weeks, and may be deleted after a month.

Etiquette
Please be considerate to others. This just means not forgetting to introduce yourself to newcomers and welcome them to the guild, taking care not to ignore others' posts, that sort of thing. You'd be surprised how far it goes!

Home.

Ranks and Societies

One of my favourite aspects of the guild: after you've posted 25-50 messages, you'll be given the opportunity to join one of our 4 societies: The Inklings, Les Artistes, Snapshots or The Melodies.

Here are the five ranks of the guild:

Renegade – This is the default rank. A warm welcome to the guild and, don't worry, you'll be settled in in no time! After you've posted 25-50 messages, neomail Nancy or Kat about which society, if any, you'd like to join.

The Inklings Rank; Inkling
The first of the four groups, The Inklings was a literary society which included in its members C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien. As you may have guessed already, this is our writing society!

Les Artistes Rank; Artiste
Are you a painter, or perhaps you enjoy drawing, sculpting or graphic art? Why not drop by les Artistes, the home of the art society in Aesthetic.

Snapshots Rank; Snapshot
If you're an avid photographer, this could be the group for you.

The Melodies Rank; Melody
For those of us who wish our lives had soundtracks: this is our music society.

But what do these societies do? They are linked to our points system for that competitive edge, and occasionally have private activities and competitions, but the main focus is on community: Don't feel by choosing one society over another you're being confined to follow only one artform within the guild: we actively encourage you to participate in all aspects of the guild - and don't worry if point scoring isn't your thing either, it's completely optional.

We're currently looking for leaders for all four teams! If you think you have that competitive spark and enough enthusiasm, this could be your moment to shine.
You'd be responsible taking care of the members of your team: keeping them involved in the guild, answering their questions, sending out warnings if anyone breaks rules or becomes inactive, and you'd also host a team homepage. In addition to this, we'll expect you to keep active on the message board and be generally helpful around the guild. Interested? All you need to do is fill in the form and neomail it to Nancy or Kat.

The Form
Tell us about yourself:
How active and dedicated do you consider yourself?
Which team would you like to run and why?
Anything else you think is relevant?

Please write it in paragraph format and, if you'd really like to impress us, put it on a petpage. Good luck!

Home.

Appling for council

So you fancy being a council member for Aesthetic? Great! Just be aware that this is not simply a rank, but a position of responsibility, and that it involves work and dedication. Think you're up for it? The application is below, you can just send it to us through neomail, or if you really want to impress us, why not put it on a petpage?

Form
Tell us a bit about yourself.
How often are you online_ and for how long?
How dedicated do you consider yourself?
HTML/CSS/graphics? Examples?
Why should we choose you?

**you may wish to consider applying to be a team leader first.

Once you've gained a place on council in the guild, don't think it stops there! We'll put you on a two week trial, to make sure you're really serious about helping out in the guild: all you need to do is get involved. So be prepared to help advertise, be really rather active, contribute ideas and maybe run a couple of pages for us.

Home.

So, how do I join?

Think Aesthetic might be the guild for you? Great! Before you apply, remember that:

• We have a fairly relaxed literacy policy we call 'laidback literate'. This means, to an extent, we let people type how they will: we call it individual style.
• We've recently reintroduced an age restriction of 16+. That said, age is just a number, so we may be willing to make exceptions where appropriate.
• We're a small, close-knit guild and intend to stay so, reaching up to around 35 members in the future.
• At the moment we are recovering from a long period of inactivity, and may not be fully active until after the exam season.
• We're actually quite friendly, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask Nancy or Katharine.

All you need to do now is fill us out a form and neomail it to Nancy or Kat (links at top of page). Try not to rush it, and we don't mind if it spans a few neomails, the more the better. Or you could even put it on a petpage. :D

The Form

Name - What you'd like to be called.
Age - This is optional, although we'd appreciate it if you could indicate whether you are 16+.
Activeness - How often can we expect to see you? For how long? Just be honest, we don't bite! Well, Katharine doesn't anyway.
Tell us about yourself - Do you have a chicken called Gertrude? Is your favourite pastime train spotting? And what do you like to do in the way of the arts? Are you a singer, graphic artist, poet, short story writer, photographer or pottery painter? We'd love to know.
Favourite Artist - Tell us about a musician/painter/poet/architect/etc who has particularly inspired you.
What kind of a role would you like in the guild? Are you the quiet one who needs coaxing out of their shell? The one everyone turns to when things go wrong? The ambitious one? Or the one who just likes to be involved, but doesn't want any responsibilities?
Do you have an onsite portfolio?If so, would you mind this being linked to in our portal after you join? And, if not, do you intend to create one if you are admitted to Aesthetic?
Other - Is there anything else you feel we've missed? Perhaps you have some examples of your work, or you're a keen layout maker? Now is the time to tell.

If you don't get in it is likely because we don't feel Aesthetic would be the right guild for you. However, you may try reapplying so long as you leave it at least 7 days.

Home.