| Angst | Emotional pain. Also fanfic in which a character’s emotional pain is a central plot element. |
| au or a/u | Alternate universe. Fanfic in which the story universe is radically altered from the canon show universe. |
| b&d, b/d, bd | Bondage and domination. |
| bdsm | The story contains both b&d and s&m. |
| Crossover or x-over | Fanfic using characters/scenarios from two or more different shows. |
| DAL | Deep abiding love. |
| f | Any show, non-major-character female. |
| h | Humor. |
| h/c | Hurt/Comfort. |
| m | Any show, non-major-character male. |
| m/m | male/male sex (or romance) |
| Mary Sue | A character who is a transparent double for the author of the story. A story featuring such a character. A male Mary Sue is a Marty Stu. (Wesley Crusher in Star Trek TNG is a typical example). |
| MSR | Mulder – Scully romance. |
| m/m/f, f/f/f, m/m/m/m | Multiple or multi. Multiple partners. |
| nc | Non-consensual sex. |
| PWP | Plot, what plot? A sex story, pure and simple. |
| R | Romance. |
| r | Rape story. Fanfic in which a character is raped. Usually implies an h/c plot. |
| Ratings | You’ll find the list of ratings here. |
| RST | Resolved sexual tension. |
| s&m, s/m, sm | Sadism and masochism. Always consensual. |
| s | Slash. A story containing same sex pairings. Can be very explicit. |
| UST | Unresolved sexual tension. |
| v | Vignette. |
Uncategorized