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Notepad
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From : Winter, Jason <winterj@krause.com>
Sent : Wednesday, April 14, 2004 12:21 PM
Subject : SCRYE #74-75 CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
SCRYE #74-75 CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Thanks everyone for your work on the last two issues, and I hope you had a happy
Easter! If you haven't submitted your article(s) for issue #73 yet, the due date
is Monday the 19th. To help with your queries, the CCG/CMG release schedule is
at the end of this message.
I'd like to take a little time and space here to talk about reviews - you'll
also notice that I've included a copy of the writer's guidelines for reviews,
because I learned that some of you hadn't received it. Of course, I suggest you
read it
but here are a few important things to know:
Definition of review. A "review," for purposes of assignments, is only a review
of a new game or, occasionally, a supplement for a game that presents a new
world and/or new set of rules (like a d20 sourcebook for a new setting), or new
editions that are significantly different from previous editions of a product. A
review must include both the text of the review and the ratings/info box, found
at the bottom of every review page in the magazine. The given word count only
applies to the text of the article, not these "extras."
Informally, you or I might use the word "review" to refer to an article
describing a new expansion set for a CCG (like, "I want to write a review of the
next Magic set."). This is really a strategy/first cut article and adheres to
the guidelines for normal articles - not for reviews.
What we're looking for. We've been getting very few queries for role-playing and
videogame reviews. We'll take just about any role-playing game (subject to the
guidelines above), and we'll take videogames that have a strong CCG or general
gaming tie (like D&D or Vampire-based videogames).
What we're not looking for. Again, in addition to the above guidelines, only
submit queries for games that have been (or will shortly be) released in the
United States, in English. I know there are plenty of good games coming over
from Germany in their native language, but until they get translated, we won't
put them in the magazine.
Style notes of the month:
A few things to keep in mind when referring to people or entitities:
Companies are singular. Companies (Wizards of the Coast, Decipher, WizKids,
etc.) are always singular and should have singular verbs: "Wizards of the Coast
is planning to have a big presence at Gen Con, where it will run tournaments for
all its CCGs."
Singular vs. plural. Always keep the same format throughout a sentence and try
to keep it throughout an article. I see a lot of submissions that go like this:
"If your opponent can't get their best cards out, you'll win. They'll constantly
be frustrated by your plays."
"Opponent" is the subject. It's singular, so therefore, the verb should be
singular, and the next sentence should follow the same format:
"If your opponent can't get his best cards out, you'll win. He'll constantly be
frustrated by your plays."
Sticking a plural on "opponent" will also work in this case:
"If your opponents can't get their best cards out, you'll win. They'll
constantly be frustrated by your plays."
You and I. Avoid using these in articles, unless you are recounting a personal
experience or must talk directly to the reader. This is most often found in
rules descriptions.
Not OK: "You then draw three cards."
OK: "The player then draws three cards," or, if appropriate, "Players then draw
three cards each."
Sometimes, using these pronouns is unavoidable (such as in the previous
example), but try to eliminate them when possible.
Most articles come in three sizes. Please specify the size you want for your
article:
400-450 words: 0.5 page, best suited for deck articles, when you are absolutely
certain you can squeeze your concept into this much space
600-700 words: 0.75 pages
8-900 words: 1 full page
Everything (including deck lists) is included in this word count.
Reviews follow a slightly different pattern. Most are full pages (6-700 words),
though CCG reviews (5-600 words) need more space, so we can fit in the
description box. We also occasionally need shorter reviews (4-500 words) to fit
on a three-quarter page, so don't hesitate to suggest those for simpler games.
Also, for major releases, we will occasionally do 1.5 or 2-page reviews. I'll
give you a word count on those.
We'll send a CFS out approximately every two months sometime around the middle
of every other month (February, April, June, August, October, and December).
What we'll need from you is your article ideas for the next TWO issues. So
you'll need to think ahead a bit, not only for what you want to present now, but
for what you think will be a good article about two months down the road.
For most pieces, this won't be a problem, but keep in mind that a deck article
that is valid now may be radically altered by a future release, which only seems
like it's a long ways down the road. To make things easier, we've included our
release calendar (as much as we know) for the next few months, as well as the
expected street date of the next two issues of Scrye. Of course, if you need
more time for your article (to get the most recent information), that can
usually be arranged. As a result, the CFS will now have three dates: a combined
query deadline for both issues, and article deadlines for each issue.
Our current CCG release calendar is at the bottom of this file.
The query deadline for these issues is Friday, April 23. All queries must be
received by 3:00 p.m. Central. All queries MUST be in by this time. Though it is
possible for articles to be added after this time, if there's room, there are no
guarantees. Assignments will likely be sent out on Monday the 26th or Tuesday
the 27th.
The article deadline for issue #74 is Monday, May 17. This issue has a street
date of June 23.
The article deadline for issue #75 is Monday, June 14. This issue has a street
date of July 21.
Save this e-mail, so you don't lose track of your deadlines. Extensions can
usually be given for articles, if asked for. Do not deliver an article late
without giving proper notice (a day or two is usually fine, but when it gets to
a week, we get testy).
If you have any questions, feel free to call or email.
Thanks everyone, and don't play too hard!
Jason Winter
Associate Editor, Scrye
winterj@krause.com
715-445-4612, x604
LATE APRIL
A Game of Thrones: A Crown of Suns (Fantasy Flight)
Cyberpunk: 2020 (Social Games)
Horus Heresy: Traitor's Gambit (Sabertooth)
Knights of the Zodiac: Mythological Forces (Bandai)
Legend of the Five Rings: The Hidden City (Alderac)
Mage Knight: Dark Riders (WizKids)
Neopets: Return of Dr. Sloth (Wizards of the Coast)
Shadowfist: Seven Masters Versus The Underworld (Z-Man)
may
Dragon Ball GT: Super 17 Saga (Score)
Duel Masters: The Evo-Crushinators of Doom (Wizards of the Coast)
Lord of the Rings CCG: Reflections (Decipher)
Lord of the Rings TMG: The Fellowship of the Ring (Sabertooth)
Marvel HeroClix: Universe (WizKids)
Vampire: Gehenna (White Wolf)
WarCry: Legions of Chaos (Sabertooth)
JUNE
Allegiance: War of Factions (Lucid Raven)
Call of Cthulhu (Fantasy Flight)
Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures: Giants of Legend (Wizards of the Coast)
.hack//Enemy: Epidemic (Decipher)
Magic: The Gathering: Fifth Dawn (Wizards of the Coast)
Marvel HeroClix: Ultimates (WizKids)
MegaMan: Power Up! (Decipher)
Pokémon: Hidden Legends (Nintendo)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Swift as the Wind (Upper Deck)
JULY
Bratz (Upper Deck)
DC Comics TCG (Upper Deck)
Digimon CCG (Bandai)
Lord of the Rings CCG: Mount Doom (Decipher)
Marvel TCG: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock (Upper Deck)
Pirates of the Spanish Main (WizKids)
Spycraft (Alderac)
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Ancient Sanctuary (Upper Deck)
AUGUST
Cyberpunk: Chrome and Kilobytes (Social Games)
.hack//Enemy: Isolation (Decipher)
MechWarrior: Falcon's Prey (WizKids)
Navia Dratp (Bandai)
Star Wars CMG (Wizards of the Coast)
WarCry: Siege of Middenheim (Sabertooth)
WWE Raw Deal: Vengeance (Comic Images)
MID-2004
Gundam CCG (Bandai)
Initial D: Racer's Edge (Alderac)
Star Wars TCG: Phantom Menace (Wizards of the Coast)
SEPTEMBER
Mage Knight: Sorcery (WizKids)
MegaMan: Grand Prix (Decipher)
MLB SportsClix: Extra Bases (WizKids)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Still as the Forest (Upper Deck)
Winx Club (Upper Deck)
LATE 2004
Cyberpunk: Storm Front (Social Games)
Inuyasha (Score)
Lord of the Rings CCG: Shadows (Decipher)
Lord of the Rings TMG: The Two Towers (Sabertooth)
Shaman King (Upper Deck)
Star Wars TCG: Return of the Jedi (Wizards of the Coast)
Jason Winter
Krause Publications
Associate Editor, Scrye
Games Editor, Comics & Games Retailer
winterj@krause.com
(715) 445-4612, ext. 604
<<Writer's Guidelines - Reviews.doc>>
Sent : Wednesday, April 14, 2004 12:21 PM
Subject : SCRYE #74-75 CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
SCRYE #74-75 CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS
Thanks everyone for your work on the last two issues, and I hope you had a happy
Easter! If you haven't submitted your article(s) for issue #73 yet, the due date
is Monday the 19th. To help with your queries, the CCG/CMG release schedule is
at the end of this message.
I'd like to take a little time and space here to talk about reviews - you'll
also notice that I've included a copy of the writer's guidelines for reviews,
because I learned that some of you hadn't received it. Of course, I suggest you
read it
but here are a few important things to know:Definition of review. A "review," for purposes of assignments, is only a review
of a new game or, occasionally, a supplement for a game that presents a new
world and/or new set of rules (like a d20 sourcebook for a new setting), or new
editions that are significantly different from previous editions of a product. A
review must include both the text of the review and the ratings/info box, found
at the bottom of every review page in the magazine. The given word count only
applies to the text of the article, not these "extras."
Informally, you or I might use the word "review" to refer to an article
describing a new expansion set for a CCG (like, "I want to write a review of the
next Magic set."). This is really a strategy/first cut article and adheres to
the guidelines for normal articles - not for reviews.
What we're looking for. We've been getting very few queries for role-playing and
videogame reviews. We'll take just about any role-playing game (subject to the
guidelines above), and we'll take videogames that have a strong CCG or general
gaming tie (like D&D or Vampire-based videogames).
What we're not looking for. Again, in addition to the above guidelines, only
submit queries for games that have been (or will shortly be) released in the
United States, in English. I know there are plenty of good games coming over
from Germany in their native language, but until they get translated, we won't
put them in the magazine.
Style notes of the month:
A few things to keep in mind when referring to people or entitities:
Companies are singular. Companies (Wizards of the Coast, Decipher, WizKids,
etc.) are always singular and should have singular verbs: "Wizards of the Coast
is planning to have a big presence at Gen Con, where it will run tournaments for
all its CCGs."
Singular vs. plural. Always keep the same format throughout a sentence and try
to keep it throughout an article. I see a lot of submissions that go like this:
"If your opponent can't get their best cards out, you'll win. They'll constantly
be frustrated by your plays."
"Opponent" is the subject. It's singular, so therefore, the verb should be
singular, and the next sentence should follow the same format:
"If your opponent can't get his best cards out, you'll win. He'll constantly be
frustrated by your plays."
Sticking a plural on "opponent" will also work in this case:
"If your opponents can't get their best cards out, you'll win. They'll
constantly be frustrated by your plays."
You and I. Avoid using these in articles, unless you are recounting a personal
experience or must talk directly to the reader. This is most often found in
rules descriptions.
Not OK: "You then draw three cards."
OK: "The player then draws three cards," or, if appropriate, "Players then draw
three cards each."
Sometimes, using these pronouns is unavoidable (such as in the previous
example), but try to eliminate them when possible.
Most articles come in three sizes. Please specify the size you want for your
article:
400-450 words: 0.5 page, best suited for deck articles, when you are absolutely
certain you can squeeze your concept into this much space
600-700 words: 0.75 pages
8-900 words: 1 full page
Everything (including deck lists) is included in this word count.
Reviews follow a slightly different pattern. Most are full pages (6-700 words),
though CCG reviews (5-600 words) need more space, so we can fit in the
description box. We also occasionally need shorter reviews (4-500 words) to fit
on a three-quarter page, so don't hesitate to suggest those for simpler games.
Also, for major releases, we will occasionally do 1.5 or 2-page reviews. I'll
give you a word count on those.
We'll send a CFS out approximately every two months sometime around the middle
of every other month (February, April, June, August, October, and December).
What we'll need from you is your article ideas for the next TWO issues. So
you'll need to think ahead a bit, not only for what you want to present now, but
for what you think will be a good article about two months down the road.
For most pieces, this won't be a problem, but keep in mind that a deck article
that is valid now may be radically altered by a future release, which only seems
like it's a long ways down the road. To make things easier, we've included our
release calendar (as much as we know) for the next few months, as well as the
expected street date of the next two issues of Scrye. Of course, if you need
more time for your article (to get the most recent information), that can
usually be arranged. As a result, the CFS will now have three dates: a combined
query deadline for both issues, and article deadlines for each issue.
Our current CCG release calendar is at the bottom of this file.
The query deadline for these issues is Friday, April 23. All queries must be
received by 3:00 p.m. Central. All queries MUST be in by this time. Though it is
possible for articles to be added after this time, if there's room, there are no
guarantees. Assignments will likely be sent out on Monday the 26th or Tuesday
the 27th.
The article deadline for issue #74 is Monday, May 17. This issue has a street
date of June 23.
The article deadline for issue #75 is Monday, June 14. This issue has a street
date of July 21.
Save this e-mail, so you don't lose track of your deadlines. Extensions can
usually be given for articles, if asked for. Do not deliver an article late
without giving proper notice (a day or two is usually fine, but when it gets to
a week, we get testy).
If you have any questions, feel free to call or email.
Thanks everyone, and don't play too hard!
Jason Winter
Associate Editor, Scrye
winterj@krause.com
715-445-4612, x604
LATE APRIL
A Game of Thrones: A Crown of Suns (Fantasy Flight)
Cyberpunk: 2020 (Social Games)
Horus Heresy: Traitor's Gambit (Sabertooth)
Knights of the Zodiac: Mythological Forces (Bandai)
Legend of the Five Rings: The Hidden City (Alderac)
Mage Knight: Dark Riders (WizKids)
Neopets: Return of Dr. Sloth (Wizards of the Coast)
Shadowfist: Seven Masters Versus The Underworld (Z-Man)
may
Dragon Ball GT: Super 17 Saga (Score)
Duel Masters: The Evo-Crushinators of Doom (Wizards of the Coast)
Lord of the Rings CCG: Reflections (Decipher)
Lord of the Rings TMG: The Fellowship of the Ring (Sabertooth)
Marvel HeroClix: Universe (WizKids)
Vampire: Gehenna (White Wolf)
WarCry: Legions of Chaos (Sabertooth)
JUNE
Allegiance: War of Factions (Lucid Raven)
Call of Cthulhu (Fantasy Flight)
Dungeons & Dragons Miniatures: Giants of Legend (Wizards of the Coast)
.hack//Enemy: Epidemic (Decipher)
Magic: The Gathering: Fifth Dawn (Wizards of the Coast)
Marvel HeroClix: Ultimates (WizKids)
MegaMan: Power Up! (Decipher)
Pokémon: Hidden Legends (Nintendo)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Swift as the Wind (Upper Deck)
JULY
Bratz (Upper Deck)
DC Comics TCG (Upper Deck)
Digimon CCG (Bandai)
Lord of the Rings CCG: Mount Doom (Decipher)
Marvel TCG: Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock (Upper Deck)
Pirates of the Spanish Main (WizKids)
Spycraft (Alderac)
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Ancient Sanctuary (Upper Deck)
AUGUST
Cyberpunk: Chrome and Kilobytes (Social Games)
.hack//Enemy: Isolation (Decipher)
MechWarrior: Falcon's Prey (WizKids)
Navia Dratp (Bandai)
Star Wars CMG (Wizards of the Coast)
WarCry: Siege of Middenheim (Sabertooth)
WWE Raw Deal: Vengeance (Comic Images)
MID-2004
Gundam CCG (Bandai)
Initial D: Racer's Edge (Alderac)
Star Wars TCG: Phantom Menace (Wizards of the Coast)
SEPTEMBER
Mage Knight: Sorcery (WizKids)
MegaMan: Grand Prix (Decipher)
MLB SportsClix: Extra Bases (WizKids)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Still as the Forest (Upper Deck)
Winx Club (Upper Deck)
LATE 2004
Cyberpunk: Storm Front (Social Games)
Inuyasha (Score)
Lord of the Rings CCG: Shadows (Decipher)
Lord of the Rings TMG: The Two Towers (Sabertooth)
Shaman King (Upper Deck)
Star Wars TCG: Return of the Jedi (Wizards of the Coast)
Jason Winter
Krause Publications
Associate Editor, Scrye
Games Editor, Comics & Games Retailer
winterj@krause.com
(715) 445-4612, ext. 604
<<Writer's Guidelines - Reviews.doc>>