Requesting A Banner
by BitterEpiphany

Requesting a banner is definately easier than making a banner yourself if you don't know how to use photoshop or paint shop pro, and that's why The Dark Arts exists. However, there are a few things that you will need to do to make it easier for our designers to ensure that you get everything you hoped for. This guide will walk you through some of the key steps to getting there.

Registration:
The Dark Arts requires all users who wish to request a banner to register with our forums. This is to prevent users from creating multiple accounts and requesting multiple banners for the same stories. (If your story already has a banner but you would like to have it changed or updated, you can do so after getting permission from the original artist.)

Registration is free and easy. The Dark Arts will not share your personal information or cost you any money. Simply fill out the registration form and familiarize yourself with the forum rules.

Gathering Information:
Requests require a lot of information from you and before you even begin to fill out the form, it's best that you have all of the right information.

Your Story Link: Stories must be validated bofore you can request a banner for them. This is to prevent people requesting banners for stories they have not/will not write.

Pictures: If you only want pictures of Harry Potter characters on your banner, you do not need to include images with your request. However, if you would like any objects or other characters (original characters for stories on FictionCentral.net included!) you will need to provide images. There are a number of places to get these images but this thread should help you in your pursuit.

Placing Your Request:
Now that you've registered (and answered your validation e-mail) it's time to get ready to post your request. We have two main area's for posting your request but they both work the same.

Within these sections there is a pinned topic called Standard Request Form. Read through this topic carefully and follow the enclosed instructions. [For HPFF | For FictionCentral] Not following the instructions fully can result in a delay in creation of your banner or in it being put in the Out Of Luck forum - where banner requests that will not be filled go to die.

What Happens Next:
What does happen next? You wait. Once your request has been filled (which can take three days or more, depending on who you've requested your banner from) you need to first save the banner to your harddrive. This is extremely important. In order to post a banner in your story you need to "host" it somewhere and some hosting services clear their servers occasionally, which may result in in the loss of your banner if you haven't saved it.

Hosting:
Because The Dark Arts has several threads on how to host your banner and put it in your story, I wont enter into the subject in detail here. However, if you're looking for information, please check The Dark Arts FAQ's