...because I will likely be starting up my own website sometime in the near future. I have to admit, my level of dedication to UFS has been lacking to say the least in the last two months, however I still have a great passion for the game and would like to see it grow. One way to do that in the past was through the forums, but as we have seen for the last few weeks there has been a steady stream of complaints about the current state of these boards and instead of adding to that, I would like to try and implement some sort of solution. So, as much as I enjoyed my time writing for UFScards.com, I want to branch out and do my own thing instead and kind of speed up the posting time and regularity of articles in order to keeps things fresh and relevant. I have yet to pick out a hosting site or the format, so any suggestions would be appreciated.
Now, as far as writers go, I do not want to have completely open submissions. There are several reasons for this; one is that I don't want to compete with the forums, and that is the place for everyone to have a voice. Second, I also do not want to prohibit anyone from writing pieces for both UFScards.com and my site if they are accepted, and I feel that if I have a specific set of regular writers then it will keep things more stable on my own site and less erratic than the current update schedule for UFS Cards. Third, I will be the one publishing everything and I want it all to go through me beforehand; I don't want to see an obscenity-laden rant on my site out of the blue.
So, having said that, I will accept "applications" of sorts for the writing positions up until January 1, 2009. All applications should be submitted directly to me via e-mail at [email protected] . Every submission should include your full name, your forum name, your age or DOB, your return email or some alternative contact information, and your availability as to whether or not you would be able to produce an article once a week, twice a month, or once a month. If you really cannot write an article on a regular basis but your submission is outstanding, I may still be willing to take you on as a "will call" writer, so it will not immediately disqualify you if you have a hectic life - believe me, that I totally understand!
In addition to the above, every application will be required to contain a short statement of 500 words or less describing: why you want to write for UFS, what topic interests you the most as far as writing about, any special qualifications that you have that you think would be a benefit to your contributions, and your experience within UFS so far (at the tournament level or otherwise, casual is good too). This does not have to be very detailed; I just want to get a general outline of what you are about and what sort of things you like and feel you can be good at enumerating upon.
The main part of the application, and the most important part, is the writing sample. Everyone who sends me an app will be required to submit a writing sample of 3000 words or less (minimum 1000 words). ANY APPLICATION SUBMITTED WITHOUT A WRITING SAMPLE WILL BE IGNORED. You may send this as an XP-compatabile attachment like a Word/Notepad/Works document or as the main body of your email. If you have already written an article for UFScards.com or any iteration of the forums and you feel that it is strongly indicative of your work, feel free to submit that as your sample - I have no problem with this but I would prefer original work for the sole reason that I will more than likely use these articles for the first submissions once I decide who will write for the site. ANY work that is even remotely plagiarized from someone else's previously published work will not only be ignored, it will immediately disqualify you to be chosen - and believe me, I will check.
Let me be more specific about exactly what I am looking for, so as to avoid confusion. I value creativity and esoteric thought more than most editors; the only requirement I have for the article you submit to me is that it must be related to UFS in some way. For example, let's say that you want to write a regular column about the psychology of card games. Your article could contain a lot of history of psychological thought and how it applies to Poker or whatnot, and then you could relate that information to UFS. If you want to do a regular deck-fixing article, make sure you include before and after decklists and your suggestions for upgrades and the reasoning behind them. Whatever you write, make sure that it is relevant to your theme. I should point out that grammar and punctuation is a major pet peeve of mine so please look over your submission multiple times before submitting it; minor errors are to be expected but large or frequent typographical or grammatical errors will exclude you. Proper formatting with paragraphs, sentence structure, and organization of ideas is also important; do not ramble. DO NOT use fouI language or informal/colloquial terms (like "Oh s**t, it's the cops!", which happens to be both). Be as specific as possible when you reference a card - capital letters and bolding if possible - or some other aspect of the game and make sure you source any quotations accurately. I do not care how old you are - if you're a minor it won't affect anything, as you don't have to be 18 or older to write for my site - but I expect the level of work to be equivalent to a college-level paper. Aside from that, what you talk about is all you, so think about it seriously. Humor is fine, and welcome, as is original research. ALL submitted papers will be judged solely be me and solely on the merit of the work. Whether you are a saint or a sinner, a friend or a foe, as long as you have talent it's all good. the only preferential treatment I will consider is if you have regularly submitted articles to UFScards.com or the forums in the past - in which case I have a large body of work from which to judge - or you have won a major championship (Nationals or Worlds) - which goes to highly increased credibility of whatever you say. Any further questions about your paper can be sent to me via email, so don't hesitate to ask if you need further clarification before you submit the application.
This is not going to be a paid activity, at least at first - I hope that if it is successful I will get sponsors and ad revenue. I may even pay out of pocket for a while depending on the site I host; I could do a free blog or I might buy a domain. However, I have already spoken to Steve Horvath and this site WILL be supported by Fantasy Flight Games in some capacity. That could mean anything from early access to preview cards from upcoming sets, to maybe free promos, to exclusive interviews with the staff - I don't know the full details myself yet. And I am fully aware that UFS is at a low point right now, and it may not be the best time to invest time and energy into this enterprise, so if I don't receive a certain number of submissions then it might not happen at all . At the same time, I want to change the culture of UFS and this is one proactive way to go about it - and I know that many of you feel the same. I take the game seriously and have tried to write about it seriously as much as I can in the past, and for those who have wanted to try and have some impact - well, here's your chance. So let's do it! If you think you have what it takes, send me a line (or 3000, heh) and post a message here saying "APPLICATION SUBMITTED" so I know to check, and good luck! Let's make this community what it used to be and what it should be, the best **** CCG community on the planet.
-Vik
