Post by stevep on Jan 30, 2022 16:00:14 GMT
AH, Alternate History as a concept and genre of fiction.
TL = Timeline. Either refers to only the timeline of an alternate history scenario or (increasingly more often) to the scenario as a whole.
WI = What If? The basic question that leads to alternate history ideas. What if this or that had happened otherwise than in real history, etc. This acronym can mostly be seen in the pre-1900 and post-1900 forums of the board, where it is used by board members while suggesting points of divergence.
OTL = Our Timeline. Our real history, our own historical universe. More rarely, the acronym can also refer to the AH website OtherTimeLines.com.
ATL = Alternate Timeline. A single, specific alternate universe and its history, More rarely, the acronym can also refer to the AH website alternate-timelines.com.
AT.com = acronym also used to refer to alternate-timelines.com.
(I)OTL and (I)TTL = “In Our Timeline” and “(In) This Timeline”.
PoD = Point of Divergence or points of divergence. A point in which an ATL branches out from OTL, creating an alternate history.
ASB = Alien Space Bats. A plot-device creature capable of ISOTing (see below) anything up to whole planets galaxies, to allow time travel and teleportation, to create and destroy life, make everyone change sex and give them the arms of a bear, and so on. Used as an explanation for scenarios which are magical or otherwise unlikely. By AH.com Convention, this category also includes WIs within fictional universes, such as Star Wars.
ISOT = Derived from the name of the novel Island In the Sea of Time, written by S. M. Stirling. On AH.com, “ISOT” is used as both a verb (magically transporting an area of Earth through time) and a noun (the name for a timeline that involves an ISOT, or a reference to the event). Strictly speaking, the term “ISOT” should only be applied when it concerns a large area (such as a country or island), but AH.commers have taken to using it in lieu of the 'time travel' or 'teleportation to the past' concepts in general (e.g. as in the phrase “I'll ISOT myself to the year 1914”).
AHC = “Alternate History Challenge” (often just “Challenge:”). A challenge to create a specific type of alternate history scenario, preferrably in the most realistic/plausible manner possible. Often doubles as a “What if?” or “How can I create such an AH scenario?” question.
PC = “Plausibility Check”, a close relative of the WI and AHC style of discussion thread. As its name implies, it isn't purely about spitballing “What If?” ideas, but focuses rather on discussing the plausibility of a potential what if idea (e.g. “PC: Can the modern Kingdom of Norway found overseas colonies in the Pacific with a PoD after 1920?”).
FH = Future History.
DBWI = Double Blind What If.
FBWI = Future Blind What If, derived by analogy from DBWI. Appearing in the Future History subforum, FBWIs generally consist of roleplaying and never actually ask “What If?”.
TLIAD = “Timeline in a day.” A type of deliberately short TLs that you only need a few hours or a day to write and post in its entirety, but still presents an interesting AH scenario worth reading. Can also have week-long (TLIAW), fortnight-long (TLIAF) or month-long (TLIAM) variants.
FHSW = The Future History & Shared Worlds board on of alternate-timelines.com.
Self-Insert = the term used for a particular type of the “personal ISOT” scenario.
KB = Kick & Ban thread.
TL-191 = The timeline of the Southern Victory book series (written by Harry Turtledove), referring to its POD centered on Robert E. Lee's Special Order 191 (failed in OTL, successful in the ATL of the series).
DE = the Darkearth verse created by simon darkshade .
HYW = Hundred Years' War.
SYW = Seven Years War.
ARW/AWI = American Revolutionary War/American War of Independence.
ECW = English Civil War.
ACW = American Civil War.
RCW = Russian Civil War (or, occasionally, Reverse Cold War).
WWI / WW1 = World War 1 / The First World War.
WWII / WW2 = World War 2 / The Second World War.
CSA = Confederate States of America.
HRE = Holy Roman Empire. Also used in the verb/phrase 'HRE-ise', which means even wilder balkanisation than the usual one.
A-H = Austria-Hungary. Not to be confused with the “AH” acronym.
WOI = War of Independence.
POTUS = President of the United States.
Wank = AH where one nation is distinctly preferred, more than would be a.) understandable, b.) realistic and/or c.) tasteful. Typical nationwanks: USA conquers both American continents. Russia conquers Eurasia. Japan creates its Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere. The British Empire/Ottoman Empire/Austria-Hungary/Roman Empire/Napoleon's Empire lives until today and becomes yet even stronger. Germany wins WWI or WWII. Etc. There are also non-national forms of Wank, such as “techwank”, in which the side with the superior technology (especially in ISOTs from the future) ALWAYS wins, and we're expected to cheer. For even more outrageous scenarios, Doctor What and David Bar Elias coined the term “nation-bukkake”.
Butterfly Effect = Describes the secondary, minor effects of every Divergence that add up over time. Read the main article for a more in-depth analysis.
Good summary of the main points. Including a fair number I had forgotten. Three points to consider please?
a) If meant for newcomers I would give some detail on a DBWI i.e. - a thread which describes OTL but as presented by somebody in ATL where it obviously didn't happen to get people to discuss what might have happened if it did. Generally IIRC used for people to make suggestions which diverge greatly from OTL.
For instance a DBWI might be what if "Harold II had been defeated at Hastings and the Normans had conquered England?" - which might lead to anything from people discussion England being a permanent part of the French kingdom to suggestions that the Anglo-Saxons would quickly throw off the Norman yoke say.
b) You have Wank but not Screw.
c) For that last entry there's a reference to a main article somewhere else. Presumably you copied the entry from somewhere. Plus I'm not sure that its accurate to say that the effects of a PoD would be minor as even ones not immediately affected can be huge in time. I would say its more any effects of the POD to possibly spiral wildly. After all the origins of the term is the phase that a butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazon can change the direction of an hurricane.
For instance on the AH site there's a Trent War scenario which leads to a peace conference in late 1862. The US asks for the neutral adjudicators to include a Prussian representative because they thing he would be friendly to the US. At the time Prussia is in the midst of a constitutional crisis and the king is threatening to abdicate. OTL this was resolved by Bismarck who managed to circumvent the Prussian parliament and cripple its abilities to restrain the military and aristocracy. ITL a frustrated king on receiving the request hurriedly picked the man in front of him at the time, a minor figure who had just returned from a short spell as Prussian ambassador to Paris and was appealing for a new post. As a result a disappointed Otto v Bismarck finds himself heading for the Americas and the king does abdicate, leading his markedly more liberal brother to take the throne. Not saying you use this example as its gotten long but to show how minor butterflies can have massive impacts.
Thanks
Steve