this is a hub for all things kuroken!throughout the year, we will host kuroken based fandom events.

currently: kuroken masquerade 2026

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• mods
• event info
• schedule
• guidelines & specifics
• event links

Schedule

what is a masquerade?

a masquerade is a fandom event where fanfiction writers and fan artists post fanworks anonymously and guessers try to sleuth out who created what! prizes will be graciously offered via fic or art to winners.there are two main phases to a masquerade: the creation period and guessing periodcreation period:
entries for the creation period will be accepted january 14 - february 13.writers can submit an entry by posting directly onto the event's ao3 collection, and filling out a writer sign-up form. your fic will automatically be anonymized when you post to the collection, available to read for guessers. all writers are required to have an ao3 account.artists can submit any entry by filling out the artist sign-up form, where you will upload your piece. please do not post your piece of social media; you will be required/asked to upload your piece on ao3 to the collection so it may remain anonymous in order for people to guess the creator.as the goal is to be the least-guessed creator, participants are encouraged to adjust their creation style, try something new, or do something experimental to obscure their identity. this is however not 100% necessary! most importantly, you have to keep your identity a secret until the creator reveals.the same person may submit one fic piece and one art piece, but you may only submit one of each type at maximum.guessing period:the guessing period is between february 14 - match 13.guessers will read through all the fics posted and look at all the art pieces submitted and then try to determine which creator made what.when the guessing period arrives, we will share a form where you can fill out your guesses; the form will contain each creator participating as well as the titles of pieces for you to guess on.prizes:after all of the guessing is complete, the mod team will select prize winners and their specific prizes for the following individuals:
- the writer whose fic is guessed by the fewest people/is least correctly matched to their fic will get fanart of their choosing
- the artist whose art piece is guessed by the fewest people will get a fic of up to 5,000 words
- the guesser who guesses the most creators right/gets the highest number of writer-fic/art-artist matches will get a fic of up to 5,000 words or fanart of their choiceif their is a tie, a random number generator will be used to select the winner. both writers and artists have to fill out their respective forms in order to be eligible for these prizes. please also note: prize creators reserve the right to refuse creation of anything they're uncomfortable with.all participants in the kuroken masquerade 2026 must be 18 years of age or older by january 14 2026 in order to participate, whether writer, artist, and/or guesser.the use of ai is strictly prohibited within this event. any participant found doing so will be immediately and permanently barred from participation.

guidelines

artists:once you have a completed piece within the guidelines below, you’ll need to post your art work to the kuroken masquerade collection on ao3. your piece will be automatically anonymized and submitted to the collection. do not share wips!you may submit your piece to the ao3 collection at any point during the creation period, as long as it is received before 11:59PM EST, february 14, 2026.once you have submitted your piece to the ao3 collection, you will then need to fill out this form:artist submission formyour submitted artwork will only be available for guessing and prize winning if you fill this form out. otherwise, we have no way of contacting you and naming you as an artist for the guessing process.rules to abide by for your art:
- kuroken must be the focal point of the piece
- works must be original to this event, never published previously
- you may only submit one (1) art piece
- your piece must include at least flat colors and lineart (backgrounds optional)
- your piece cannot include identifying information (i.e. signatures, watermarks)once the event is over, feel free to post your piece on your own social media accounts and add them to your portfolios as preferred.writers:once you have a completed piece within the guidelines below, you’ll need to post your fic to the kuroken masquerade collection on ao3. your fic will be automatically anonymized and submitted to the collection. do not share wips!you may submit your fic to the ao3 collection at any point during the creation period, as long as it is received before 11:59PM EST, february 14, 2026.once you have submitted your fic to the ao3 collection, you will then need to fill out this form:writer submission formyour submitted fic will only be available for guessing and prize winning if you fill this form out. otherwise, we have no way of contacting you and naming you as a writer for the guessing process.rules to abide by for your writing:
- kuroken must be the focal point for the fic
- works must be published for the first time for this event
- you may only submit one (1) fic entry
- your fic must be between 1,000 - 2,000 words, with a 10% word count allowance in either direction
(2k words is in order to allow the guessers plenty of time to read, guess and comment on all the fics)
(1k words is in order to give the guessers enough content to guess the writers appropriately)if you do not have an ao3 account, but would like to participate, please reach out to the mod team and we can help you create an account accordingly.guessers:no sign-up is necessary! all you need to do is fill out the guessing form once it's live:guessing submission formto participate as a guesser, you will need to read all the posted fics and look at all the posted fanart, to then guess which creator made them. this will be multiple-choice; we will list all creators who signed up and link their ao3/social media accounts/portfolios so you can go sleuthing.you may only submit one (1) guessing entry, which includes every creator, to ensure fairness.