Archive of Our Own

We released several batches of bug fixes and code updates in December, focusing on error handling, improvements to the posting and browsing of works, and largely invisible code optimization. Many thanks to our coders, code reviewers, and testers!

Credits

• Coders: anna; Bilka; Brian Austin; Danaël / Rever; Edgar San Martin, Jr.; marcus8448; warlockmel; WelpThatWorked; Zooms; ömer faruk
• Code reviewers: Bilka, Brian Austin, ceithir, lydia-theda, marcus8448, Sarken
• Testers: Brian Austin, calamario, Deniz, Dre, Lute, megidola, slavalamp, Teyris, Bilka, therealmorticia, marcus8448, Yuca, pk2317

Details

0.9.447

On December 3, we made some improvements to how we index information for admin user search.

• [AO3-7216] - Updates to the admin-facing user search feature were getting stuck due to their size, so we've reduced the amount of data we index.
• [AO3-7217] - We originally put updates for our admin-facing user search feature in the same queue as updates to user-facing search features (like work search). This meant that slowdowns in updating user search would also slow down updates to work search, so we've moved the admin search updates to a separate queue to prevent that.

0.9.449

On December 11, we deployed a batch of miscellaneous bug fixes and improvements. (We skipped version 0.9.448.)

• [AO3-7151] - Some buttons would become unreadable on hover and focus in the Low Vision Default skin, so we made sure all buttons have the correct border and text color to make them readable again.
• [AO3-7186] - In rare cases, trying to create a skin with the same title as an existing skin would throw an error 500 instead of telling you what's wrong. Now you should always get the proper error message.
• [AO3-6851] - We removed a column from the challenge assignments table that is no longer used after some code changes.
• [AO3-7218] - We updated one of the utilities we use to deploy AO3 to its testing environment.
• [AO3-5871] - Renamed an ambiguously named method in the Works model code.
• [AO3-6738] - We improved the performance of the page that lists pseuds for a creator.
• [AO3-7084] - In several places, we disallow embedded images and will instead turn the <img> HTML into a plain link. We have now updated our help text to reflect this practice where it applies.
• [AO3-7152] - In work downloads (such as epub or HTML files), links would use the http protocol instead of https. We now make sure that all links start with https.
• [AO3-7209] - We optimized our code to prepare the help text pop-ups for translated versions once language options become available on the Archive.

0.9.450

We deployed another batch of improvements on December 15, including some small fixes to the work form in particular.

• [AO3-6797] - Trying to post a work with invalid comment permissions (which can sometimes happen due to browser translation tools affecting parts of the Archive code) would throw an error 500. Now a proper error message is displayed in that case.
• [AO3-7177] - Trying to add a new first chapter before the part that was already posted, without previewing first, would result in two second chapters. Now, when you add a new chapter and assign the first position to it, the database will actually respect your artistic process.
• [AO3-7228] - Optimized the code used to put together work headers.
• [AO3-7044] - Migrated the tagging table (not to be confused with the tags table) to the BIGINT format, to allow for a BIG integer number of records to be added in the future.
• [AO3-7049] - Restricted the ability to manage users invite requests to Policy and Abuse volunteers (and superadmins).

0.9.451

December 18 saw another release of a few fixes and updates. The Open Challenges page will now show all challenges that currently accept sign-ups, even if they aren't allowing new works to be added yet.

• [AO3-4666] - The Open Challenges page wasn't including closed collections, even if the gift exchange or prompt meme in question was open to sign-ups. This has been fixed!
• [AO3-7224] - Some places in the AO3 code relied on an old feature in Ruby, our programming language of choice. They were not made better by doing that, so we stopped in order to make ourselves ready for new Ruby versions.
• [AO3-7203] - The mailer preview for a deleted work notification now allows for a work ID to be specified for the preview.
• [AO3-7232] - Some elements of our Terms of Service were missing the proper CSS list styles. Now everything that should be a lowercase alphabetical list, is.
• [AO3-7230] - Before upgrading Ruby on Rails, the framework that powers AO3, we took a snapshot of the current database structure for historical purposes.
• [AO3-7233], [AO3-7234] - Updated a couple of dependencies.

0.9.452

On December 29, another small batch of fixes went out to ring in the new year!

• [AO3-6944] - There's no option to sort a list of prompts by prompter if the list includes anonymous prompts. However, if you tried to do it manually by editing the URL, or refreshed a tab you had open from before anonymous prompts were added, it would cause an error 500. Now it just reverts to the default sort order.
• [AO3-7184] - If someone tried to access the related works page of a non-existent user (due to a misspelled link, for example), they would be redirected to the user search. Since the desired page does not exist, we now properly serve an error 404, like others for pages that don't exist.
• [AO3-7245] - We made the help text explaining the locale preference translatable, matching the code changes included in release 0.9.449.
• [AO3-7225], [AO3-7235] - Updated a couple of dependencies.

AO3 Tag Wranglers continue to test processes for wrangling canonical additional tags (tags that appear in the auto-complete) which don't belong to any particular fandom (also known as "No Fandom" tags). This post overviews some of these upcoming changes.

In this round of updates, we continued to adjust existing canonical "No Fandom" tags to add or remove new subtag and metatag relationships. We also continued to streamline creating new canonical tags, prioritizing more straightforward updates which would have less discussion compared to renaming current canonical tags or creating new canonical tags which touch on more complex topics. This method also reviews new tags on a regular basis, so check back on AO3 News for periodic "No Fandom" tag announcements.

None of these updates change the tags users have added to works. If a user-created tag is considered to have the same meaning as a new canonical, it will be made a synonym of one of these newly created canonical tags, and works with that user-created tag will appear when the canonical tag is selected.

In short, these changes only affect which tags appear in AO3's auto-complete and filters. You can and should continue to tag your works however you prefer.

New Canonicals

The following concepts have been made new canonical tags:

• Accidental Sibling Acquisition
• Balls & Galas
• Banquets & Feasts
• Charity Balls & Galas
• Royal Balls & Galas
• Balls | Testicles
• Hyper Balls | Testicles
• Large Balls | Testicles
• Bonding Over Trauma
• Characters Being Bad at Feelings
• Everyone is Bad at Feelings
• Characters Whimpering
• Chase and Capture Kink
• Child Trafficking
• Sex Trafficking
• Claws
• Female Characters Orgasming
• Generational Trauma
• Head Pats
• Hiding an Illness
• Hiding Injuries
• Intrusive Thoughts
• Long One Shot
• Past Bullying
• Simp Characters
• Subtitles Available
• Tentacle Bondage
• Thigh Riding

Subtag/Metatag Revisions

Additionally, we continued to adjust existing canonical tags to add or remove new subtag and metatag relationships, which help users find related content and filter in/out content as they browse works on AO3.

• Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse is now a subtag of Post-Apocalypse
• Post-Zombie Apocalypse is now a subtag of Post-Apocalypse
• Babies is now a subtag of Children
• Survival Horror is now a subtag of Horror
• Radio has been removed as a subtag from Technology

In Conclusion

While some of these tags may be tags and concepts you're intimately familiar with, others may be concepts you've never heard of before. Fortunately, our fellow OTW volunteers at Fanlore may be able to help! As you may have seen in the comments sections of previous posts, Fanlore is a fantastic resource for learning more about these common fandom concepts, and about the history and lore of fandom in general. For the curious, here's a quick look at a few articles about concepts related to this month's new canonical tags:

• Apocalypse AU
• One Shot
• Royalty AU
• Subtitles (Captioning)

While we won't be announcing every change we make to No Fandom canonical tags, you can expect similar updates in the future about tags we believe will most affect users. If you're interested in the changes we'll be making, you can continue to check AO3 News or follow us on Bluesky @wranglers.archiveofourown.org or Tumblr @ao3org for future announcements.

You can also read previous updates on "No Fandom" tags as well as other wrangling updates, linked below:

• Past "No Fandom" Additional Tags Updates and 5 Things Said by Wrangling Volunteers
• Past Fandom-Specific and "No Fandom" Tag Wrangling Change Posts

For more information about AO3's tag system, check out our Tags FAQ.

In addition to providing technical help, AO3 Support also handles requests related to how tags are sorted and connected.​ If you have questions about specific tags, which were first used over a month ago and are unrelated to any of the new canonical tags listed above, please contact Support instead of leaving a comment on this post.

Please keep in mind that discussions about what tags to canonize and what format they should take are ongoing. As a result, not all related concepts will be canonized at the same time. This does not mean that related or similar concepts will not be canonized in the future or that we have chosen to canonize one specific concept in lieu of another, simply that we likely either haven’t gotten to that related concept yet or that it needs further discussion and will take a bit longer for us to canonize it as a result. We appreciate your patience and understanding.

Lastly, we're still working on implementing changes and connecting relevant user-created tags to these new canonicals, so it’ll be some time before these updates are complete. If you have questions about specific tags which should be connected to these new canonicals, please refrain from contacting Support about them until at least three months from now to give us adequate time to do so.

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

Are you a developer who has submitted pull requests to the otwarchive GitHub repository? Want to help shape the future of the OTW in a flexible, collaborative role? Are you interested in following checklists to administer personnel related tasks? Would you like to wrangle AO3 tags? Can you read and translate from Portuguese to English? Can you read and translate from Chinese to English? The Organization for Transformative Works is recruiting!

We're excited to announce the opening of applications for:

• Communications Social Media Moderator - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC or after 60 applications
• Organizational Culture Roadmap Volunteer - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC or after 60 applications
• Accessibility, Design, & Technology Software Developer - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC
• Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteer - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC or after 30 applications
• Tag Wrangling Volunteer - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC or after 125 applications
• Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Portuguese) - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC or after 30 applications
• Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Chinese) - closing 25 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC or after 45 applications

We have included more information on each role below. Open roles and applications will always be available at the volunteering page. If you don't see a role that fits with your skills and interests now, keep an eye on the listings. We plan to put up new applications every few weeks, and we will also publicize new roles as they become available.

All applications generate a confirmation page and an auto-reply to your e-mail address. We encourage you to read the confirmation page and to whitelist our email address in your e-mail client. If you do not receive the auto-reply within 24 hours, please check your spam filters and then contact us.

If you have questions regarding volunteering for the OTW, check out our Volunteering FAQ.

Communications Social Media Moderator

Are you familiar with Instagram or Facebook? Do you want to help connect the public with the OTW?

The Communications committee is recruiting for Social Media Moderators to help us manage our Facebook and Instagram. Social Media Moderators will help the OTW maintain an active presence on their platform, creating or reblogging a range of posts of relevance and interest to the OTW's userbase, and doing outreach to fan groups and individuals on the site. Moderators are also responsible for handling user questions and managing responses to the OTW's news content. You will be working as part of a team, and you must be able to dedicate at least 3-4 hours each week to the OTW.

For this position, we are seeking people who are familiar with the conventions of one of these platforms and who ideally have experience moderating a social media page. We are also interested in hearing from those with customer service experience, especially in an online environment. We expect you to have an interest in fandom at large and an understanding of the concerns and activities of the OTW (although we will, of course, provide you with training once you start).

You must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. If you're a frequent Facebook or Instagram user who enjoys helping others, have wide-ranging interests across the fandom space, and are curious and willing to learn, we'd love to hear from you!

Applications will close 25 February 2026 or after 60 applications

Apply for Communications Social Media Moderator at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Organizational Culture Roadmap Volunteer

Want to help shape the future of the OTW in a flexible, collaborative role? Organizational Culture Roadmap (OCR) Volunteers support the implementation of OTW Organizational Culture Roadmap goals by assisting with planning, documentation, and team coordination. Whether you prefer jumping into projects, offering behind-the-scenes support, or helping teams stay on track, there's space to contribute in a way that works for you.

This role is great for those with clear communication skills who enjoy collaborative work. Time commitment is 1-5 hours per week. As an OCR Volunteer, you'll play a key role in ensuring smooth operations by:

• Writing and editing OCR project plans, goal documentation, statements, surveys, replies to public questions, policies, minutes, and reports
• Assisting in the research, development, management, and delivery of internal projects
• Working as part of a team to support specific goals to reaching completion

We're looking for volunteers who are proactive, driven, and committed to the OTW's long-term success.

You must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. In addition to the initial application, you will be required to complete an assessment to help us understand how well you understand and can complete the committee's tasks. This will be emailed to you after you complete the application form.

Applications will close 25 February 2026 or after 60 applications

Apply for Organizational Culture Roadmap Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Accessibility, Design, & Technology Software Developer

The Accessibility, Design, & Technology (AD&T) committee coordinates design and development of the software that powers the Archive of Our Own. It is currently seeking Ruby on Rails developers to enhance features, fix bugs, review code, and test new changes in line with the priorities established by AD&T committee chairs and senior developers.

Please note: applicants must have submitted a minimum of two pull requests – at least one for an issue with medium or higher difficulty – to the otwarchive GitHub repository that have been deployed to production prior to applying for the software developer position.

If you don't have the time to commit to formally volunteering for the OTW, we gratefully accept bug fixes from anyone on GitHub! Please check out our contributing guidelines before submitting a pull request.

Applications are due 25 February 2026

Apply for Accessibility, Design, & Technology Software Developer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteer

Are you great at admin and enjoy the satisfaction of completing short tasks and ticking them off to-do lists? Or do you have experience in CRM or database software, data privacy, managing software access, or other related areas? Volunteers & Recruiting is looking for additional volunteers to help our busy team!

Volunteers & Recruiting supports the Organization for Transformative Works as a volunteer-driven organization by ensuring that volunteers are in the right roles, at the right time, with the right tools.

We recruit and manage incoming volunteers, handle exiting volunteers, and handle all committee setup as well as chair and board turnover. We help answer volunteers’ questions about the OTW or the tools we use, or direct volunteers to the right places. We set up tools for committees and subcommittees, mentor volunteers in their work, and track the service of each and every volunteer throughout their time with the organization. We ensure that every volunteer in the organization has the resources they need to complete their work efficiently and effectively.

This recruitment round we’d especially love hearing from applicants who are interested in regularly helping with our day-to-day work! This includes following checklists to answer tickets related to personnel changes, software access, recruitment setup, and general queries. Shortlisted applicants will be invited to a live text-based chat interview.

Applications will close 25 February 2026 or after 30 applications

Apply for Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Tag Wrangling Volunteer

The Tag Wranglers are responsible for helping to connect and sort the tags on AO3! Wranglers follow internal guidelines to choose the tags that appear in the filters and auto-complete, which link related works together. This makes it easier to browse and search on the archive. If you’re an experienced AO3 user who likes organizing, working in teams, or having excuses to fact-check your favorite fandoms, you might enjoy tag wrangling! To join us, click through to the job description and fill in our application form. There will also be a short questionnaire that will help us assess whether you have the skills and attributes that will lead to your success in this role. Please note: you must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. For this role, we’re currently looking for wranglers for specific fandoms only, which will change each recruitment round. Please see the application for which fandoms are in need. Wranglers need to be fluent in English, but we welcome applicants who are also fluent in other languages, especially Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian), Čeština (Czech), Español (Spanish), isiZulu (Zulu), Italiano (Italian), Polski (Polish), Suomi (Finnish), Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese), Türkçe (Turkish), Українська (Ukrainian), ไทย (Thai), Русский (Russian), беларуская (Belarusian) and 한국어 (Korean) — but help with other languages would be much appreciated!

Applications will close 25 February 2026 or after 125 applications

Apply for Tag Wrangling Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Portuguese)

The Tag Wranglers are responsible for helping to connect and sort the tags on AO3! Wranglers follow internal guidelines to choose the tags that appear in the filters and auto-complete, which link related works together. This makes it easier to browse and search on the archive. If you’re an experienced AO3 user who likes organizing, working in teams, or having excuses to fact-check your favorite fandoms, you might enjoy Tag Wrangling! To join us, click through to the job description and fill in our application form. There will also be a short questionnaire that will help us assess whether you have the skills and attributes that will lead to your success in this role. Please note: you must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. For this role we’re currently looking for applicants who are fluent in both English and Portuguese. We welcome all Portuguese dialects! The work will involve both regular Tag Wrangling work and translating tags from Portuguese into English.

Applications will close 25 February 2026 or after 30 applications

Apply for Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Portuguese) at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Chinese)

The Tag Wranglers are responsible for helping to connect and sort the tags on AO3! Wranglers follow internal guidelines to choose the tags that appear in the filters and auto-complete, which link related works together. This makes it easier to browse and search on the archive.

If you’re an experienced AO3 user who likes organizing, working in teams, or having excuses to fact-check your favorite fandoms, you might enjoy Tag Wrangling! To join us, click through to the job description and fill in our application form. There will also be a short questionnaire that will help us assess whether you have the skills and attributes that will lead to your success in this role.

Please note: you must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. For this role we’re currently looking for applicants who are fluent in both English and Chinese. We welcome all Chinese dialects! The work will involve both regular Tag Wrangling work and translating tags from Chinese into English.

Applications will close 25 February 2026 or after 45 applications

Apply for Tag Wrangling Volunteer (Chinese) at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

Welcome to International Fanworks Day (IFD) Feedback Fest 2026! Feedback Fest is when we celebrate fanworks that creators have made on AO3 or elsewhere by recommending them to others and leaving comments for the creators as well.

Our theme for IFD 2026 is Alternate Universes (AUs), where we celebrate all the fun and exciting AUs that fans have created!

Want to participate in this year's Feedback Fest? Here’s how to do it!

Leave a comment under this post recommending your favorite fanworks that involve an AU. Tell everyone why you love these works and why they should check them out. You can also link to a recommendation post you've made elsewhere, or create a new recommendation post on your social media accounts using the #FeedbackFest2026 tag. Keep the diversity of fanworks in mind when making recommendations—you can share fics, podfics, fanart, zines, archives, collections, newsletters, and anything that sparks joy in you about fandom. There's many wonderful fanworks out there and we want to hear about all of them!

While going through the recommendations, it’s nice to leave feedback—comments, kudos, likes—for the creators as well! Feel free to boost the recommendations from other people that you enjoyed. This year’s Feedback Fest is all about the universes and worlds people have enjoyed placing their favorite characters in, so try and think of your favorite AU fanworks to recommend!

Start your reccing, and we’ll see you on the other side—and once again we wish you a happy #IFD2026!

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

February 15 is almost here, and it’s time to get ready for the 12th annual International Fanworks Day (IFD)! This year’s theme is Alternate Universes (AUs), and in honor of #IFD2026, the OTW has quite a few activities planned to celebrate with all of you. Check out the list below to find out how you can get involved!

• Feedback Fest: It wouldn’t be IFD without our annual Feedback Fest! This is your chance to share your favorite Alternate Universe fanworks and get some great recommendations for yourself in return. Look for our Feedback Fest post on February 13, and leave a comment with 10 fanwork recommendations for your fellow fans. On social media, use the tag #FeedbackFest when posting.
• Share your fanworks: Tag your own AU fanworks on AO3 with International Fanworks Day 2026, or share them on social media using the #IFD2026 or #IFDChallenge2026 tags!
• Fanlore Challenge: The festivities aren’t limited to AO3! Fanlore, the OTW’s fannish history and culture wiki, will be celebrating as well! From February 14-20, join Fanlore for a new editing challenge to complete every day. To participate, refer to the IFD 2026 Fanlore Challenge page for more information.
• Games and Fan Chat: On February 15, we’ll be opening the gates of the OTW's once-a-year Discord server. Join us between 21:00 UTC February 14 (What time is that for me?) and 03:00 UTC February 16 (What time is that for me?) to play games and chat with other fans! The chat room will be moderated in English, and we’ll post a detailed schedule on the 15th.

We also invited you to send us your community events for this IFD, so in addition to what we're doing, here are some fan-led events:

The Fandom Melodies, Intertwined Edition

(in English, some small parts in other languages allowed)

This event is already running, and ends on February 28. You can submit entries in any form, though written material is preferred.

You can learn more on their event information page.

Hey, Sweetheart

(in any language)

This all-fandom fic & art fest will run from February 13 to February 15, and you can submit works in any language.

You can learn more on their event information page.

FebUcomment

This event will run from February 1 to February 28. It's meant to motivate people to comment more on fic (new and older!), especially since February is the month with the lowest amount of commenting! There are multiple challenges and there are also fun things one can do to spice up their comment a little!

You can learn more on their event information page.

Lov bobříků s Fanpolis

(in Czech and Slovak)

This event will run from February 16 to February 22, and is all about editing Fanpolis' fandom encyclopedia.

You can learn more on their event information page.

Glory of the Fanworks

(in any language)

This event will run from February 15 to February 28. You can participate however you like, and there will be a set of questions provided for people to reminisce about and share their fandom experience!

You can learn more on their event information page.

Thank you so much for being a part of our fan community throughout the year. See you at #IFD2026!

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

What do the country of Portugal, the city of Seoul, and the Archive of Our Own (AO3) have in common? They are all home to more than 10 million people! That's right: AO3 has surpassed 10 million registered users this month! We at the Organisation for Transformative Works (OTW) are delighted to share this incredible milestone with you.

Even as the community is growing year by year, the active exchange of creations and ideas between fans remains as a cornerstone of fan culture. Whether it's gifting each other fanfic, recording a podfic of your favorite story, or putting together a reclist of fics—no fandom thrives without the myriad ways fans share their passion with one another. In today's world, where ideas are just one more commodity, and content is curated for maximum revenue, it's more important than ever to appreciate and celebrate these aspects of fan spaces.

One way to let other fans know you appreciate the love and hard work they pour into their creations is commenting on their work. In celebration of this milestone, we have prepared a Bingo all about comments! Below you can find the bingo cards in both a square and vertical format.

You can fill out as many bingo squares as you want—the more comments, the merrier! Let us know on this post or on social media which Bingos you scored.

Happy commenting, and a huge thank you to everyone who helped us reach this milestone!

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

I. AO3 STATISTICS ROUND-UP

2025 was a busy year for AO3! The site continued to see rising traffic, with Communications publishing an update on AO3 statistics from 2020-2025. In December, Support received 3,589 tickets, totaling to over 40,000 tickets received in 2025, an all-time high. Meanwhile, Policy & Abuse (PAC) received 6,357 tickets in December, totaling approximately 47,500 tickets in 2025. Check out PAC's pie chart for more details.

In the first half of January, User Response Translation translated or betaed 32 ticket requests from Support and PAC.

Open Doors finished importing three archives in December: Absolution - The Inugrrrl Memorial Archive about the manga InuYasha, InDeath.net Fan Fiction about the In Death book series by J.D. Robb, and The Pinky and the Brain Page about the cartoon Pinky and the Brain. In total, Open Doors completed the imports of eight archives in 2025! They also announced the import of the Randall Morgan Memorial Archive, a Queer as Folk (US) fanfiction archive by the creator Randall Morgan.

In December, Tag Wrangling wrangled approximately 598,000 tags, or around 1,300 tags per volunteer. In total, they wrangled approximately 4,944,000 tags in 2025. They also continued work on handling "No Fandom" additional tags, publishing December and January news posts detailing recent changes. In total, Tag Wrangling published nine "No Fandom"-related news posts in 2025 covering around 399 new canonical "No Fandom" additional tags.

II. ELSEWHERE AT AO3

Accessibility, Design & Technology coordinated improvements to bookmark searches in the latter half of January, including the ability to filter bookmarks by word count. They also continue their work on performance improvements, bug fixes, and working with PAC and AO3's spam detection service to address spam comments. In conjunction with Communications, they posted a December 2025 update on how to recognize and report AO3 spambots.

In January, Tag Wrangling updated their Fandom Tag Metatag guidelines, including clarifying when a fandom metatag should be made and when to merge closely related fandoms into one fandom tag. Check out the news post detailing the new policy.

As part of International Volunteers Day (IVD) 2025, Communications collected and batched answers to the IVD Q&A by committee, resulting in five committee-specific news posts highlighting Communications, Support, Tag Wrangling, Translation, and Volunteers & Recruiting. Answers across committees, along with additional responses not featured in the news posts, have been compiled in a separate AO3 work.

III. ELSEWHERE AT THE OTW

Fanlore ran an editing chat to close out 2025, and it was a lot of fun! They also began preparing for their annual IFD Fanlore Challenge and Femslash February event! Keep an eye on their Bluesky, Twitter/X, and Tumblr for announcements.

Legal answered many internal and external questions this month.

TWC is readying the publication of the two 2026 special issues: "Disability and Fandom" and "Gaming Fandom". They also continue work on the two 2027 special issues: "Music Fandom" and "Latin American Fandoms", and there continues to be a rolling deadline for submitting to TWC’s next general issue.

In January, Communications' Fanhackers wrote about the Transformative Approaches to Fan Identity, and they began a multi-post survey of acafannish research and publishing resources.

IV. GOVERNANCE

In December, Board announced the resignations of two directors: Kathryn Solderholm and Erica Frank. We would like to thank Erica and Kathryn for their service as members of the Board, and wish them all the best in their future endeavours with the OTW.

In January, Board finalized and approved the OTW Procurement & Purchasing Policy. They and the Board Assistants Team (BAT) organised the first quarter of 2026 public Board meeting on January 18 which had 54 attendees. Minutes of this meeting will be available soon on the OTW website. Elsewhere, Board and BAT continued work on document review and archiving board statements, Code of Conduct tasks in conjunction with Organizational Culture Roadmap, and ongoing projects for mental health resources for volunteers, scheduling tools, public meeting best practices and volunteer retention in BAT. BAT also updated their OTW website committee page.

Organizational Culture Roadmap finalized a confidentiality policy in preparation for upcoming external recruitment.

V. OUR VOLUNTEERS

In December, Volunteers & Recruiting thanked all OTW volunteers on International Volunteer Day with their organization-wide email and graphics campaign. In January, they ran recruitment for Open Doors.

From November 22 to January 23, Volunteers & Recruiting received 355 new requests, and completed 378, leaving them with 52 open requests (including induction and removal tasks listed below). As of January 23, 2025, the OTW has 1,013 volunteers. \o/ Recent personnel movements are listed below.

New Subcommittee Leads/Workgroup Heads: Eevee (Internal Complaint and Conflict Resolution Lead) and megidola (Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup Head)
New AO3 Documentation Volunteers: Lulu S (Chair Trainee)
New Fanlore Volunteers: Elfie, Konsta Morales, Watts, and 1 other Graphic Designer
New Open Doors Volunteers: Addiebees, AviLine, feelyx, LeighR, Marie K, meservey66, MetaKass, miffmiff, Mort, pinkconstellations, SleepyJane, Spit, StormySea, Truendz, Vail, and 11 other Import Assistants
New Policy & Abuse Volunteers: megidola (Supervisor) and 1 Chair Track Volunteer
New Tag Wrangling Volunteers: Chelsea Cheyanne, inspiredstork, Sanity, will, and Yrindor (Supervisors)
New Translation Volunteers: Rhine and 1 other Chair Trainee; Arushi, athursdayschild, Eirinar, Linarii, Mira8, Niki K, Phoebe B­, Pi, Rita P, and 12 other Translators
New TWC Volunteers: Fiona M, Yumi, and 3 other Layout Editors; and 2 Outreach and Communications Editors
New User Response Translation Volunteers: Eki, f0f8ff, HARRitte, Jules R, Laus, PanPan, rosings, zoy zauce, and 3 other Translators

Departing Directors: Erica Frank and Kathryn Soderholm
Departing Committee Chairs: 1 Communications Chair and 1 Elections Chair
Departing BAT Volunteers: 1 Volunteer
Departing Communications Volunteers: KW Ukuku (TikTok Moderator), Lori P (Graphics Volunteer), 1 Fanhacker Volunteer, and 1 Social Media Moderator
Departing Communications News Post Moderation Volunteers: 1 News Post Moderator
Departing Development & Membership Volunteers: 1 Graphic Designer, 2 Membership Data Specialists, and 2 Volunteers
Departing Fanlore Volunteers: 1 Discord Moderator, 1 Outreach Analyst, and 1 Policy & Admin
Departing Open Doors Volunteers: Pelagia and 1 other Administrative Volunteer, Wynne (Import Assistant), and 1 FCPP Intern
Departing Policy & Abuse Volunteers: 1 Volunteer
Departing Strategic Planning Volunteers: 1 Volunteer
Departing Support Volunteers: Nary and 22 other Volunteers
Departing Tag Wrangling Volunteers: Nary and 1 other Supervisor; Asas Carmesins, Bruno, Eevee, lianneder, Lily_Haydee_Lohdisse, McBangle, Sayornis, Tea Huimyni, and 10 other Wranglers
Departing Translation Volunteers: Teelee (Task Assistant); Illiterations and 4 Translators
Departing TWC Volunteers: Melanie Kohnen (Review Editor); Courtney Lazore and 1 other Proofreader; and 1 Symposium Editor
Departing User Response Translation Volunteers: 1 Translator
Departing Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteers: 1 Senior Volunteer and 2 Volunteers

For more information about our committees and their regular activities, you can refer to the committee pages on our website.

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

AO3 Tag Wranglers continue to test processes for wrangling canonical additional tags (tags that appear in the auto-complete) which don't belong to any particular fandom (also known as "No Fandom" tags). This post overviews some of these upcoming changes.

In this round of updates, we began adjusting existing canonical "No Fandom" tags to add or remove new subtag and metatag relationships. We also continued to streamline creating new canonical tags, prioritizing more straightforward updates which would have less discussion compared to renaming current canonical tags or creating new canonical tags which touch on more complex topics. This method also reviews new tags on a regular basis, so check back on AO3 News for periodic "No Fandom" tag announcements.

None of these updates change the tags users have added to works. If a user-created tag is considered to have the same meaning as a new canonical, it will be made a synonym of one of these newly created canonical tags, and works with that user-created tag will appear when the canonical tag is selected.

In short, these changes only affect which tags appear in AO3's auto-complete and filters. You can and should continue to tag your works however you prefer.

New Canonicals

The following concepts have been made new canonical tags:

• Brother's Best Friend as Love Interest
• Best Friend's Brother as Love Interest
• Cuddle Pollen
• Dollification
• Dragon Sex
• Disordered Eating
• Emotional Intimacy
• Emotional Whump
• Erotic Horror
• Eroticism
• Female Characters Masturbating
• Happily Ever After
• Matriarchy
• Mobility Aids
• Female Omegaverse Alpha Characters
• Male Omegaverse Omega Characters
• Political Marriages
• Romantic Tension
• Resolved Romantic Tension
• Reverse Cowgirl Position
• Standing Sex
• Non-Consensual Sedation
• Sedation
• Small Penis Humiliation
• Small Penis Appreciation
• Tongue Fucking
• Wrong Phone Number

Subtag/Metatag Revisions

Additionally, this month we began making adjustments to existing canonical tags to add or remove new subtag and metatag relationships, which help users find related content and filter in/out content as they browse works on AO3.

• Alternate Universe - Time Travel is now a subtag of Time Travel
• Alternate Universe - Zombies is now a subtag of Zombies
• Cross-Posted on deviantArt is now a subtag of Cross-Post
• Back Pain is now a subtag of Pain
• Barely Legal has been removed as a subtag from Underage

In Conclusion

While some of these tags may be tags and concepts you're intimately familiar with, others may be concepts you've never heard of before. Fortunately, our fellow OTW volunteers at Fanlore may be able to help! As you may have seen in the comments sections of previous posts, Fanlore is a fantastic resource for learning more about these common fandom concepts, and about the history and lore of fandom in general. For the curious, here's a quick look at a few articles about concepts related to this month's new canonical tags:

• Alpha/Beta/Omega
• Masturbation
• Sex Pollen
• Whump

While we won't be announcing every change we make to No Fandom canonical tags, you can expect similar updates in the future about tags we believe will most affect users. If you're interested in the changes we'll be making, you can continue to check AO3 News or follow us on Bluesky @wranglers.archiveofourown.org or Tumblr @ao3org for future announcements.

You can also read previous updates on "No Fandom" tags as well as other wrangling updates, linked below:

• Past "No Fandom" Additional Tags Updates and 5 Things Said by Wrangling Volunteers
• Past Fandom-Specific and "No Fandom" Tag Wrangling Change Posts

For more information about AO3's tag system, check out our Tags FAQ.

In addition to providing technical help, AO3 Support also handles requests related to how tags are sorted and connected.​ If you have questions about specific tags, which were first used over a month ago and are unrelated to any of the new canonical tags listed above, please contact Support instead of leaving a comment on this post.

Please keep in mind that discussions about what tags to canonize and what format they should take are ongoing. As a result, not all related concepts will be canonized at the same time. This does not mean that related or similar concepts will not be canonized in the future or that we have chosen to canonize one specific concept in lieu of another, simply that we likely either haven’t gotten to that related concept yet or that it needs further discussion and will take a bit longer for us to canonize it as a result. We appreciate your patience and understanding.

Lastly, we're still working on implementing changes and connecting relevant user-created tags to these new canonicals, so it’ll be some time before these updates are complete. If you have questions about specific tags which should be connected to these new canonicals, please refrain from contacting Support about them until at least three months from now to give us adequate time to do so.

The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, OTW Legal Advocacy, and Transformative Works and Cultures. We are a fan-run, donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.