Soapbox: About the Industry

Fine Print, part I

by Sandy Antunes
June 5, 2001

Hi,

Anyone know someone good at writing humor? We have a killer idea we want to print, and quite frankly we're willing to pay big bucks for it. We're talking a 96-page paperback at 9 cents/word* here! We're paying well because we need quality for this, for it is the one publication that will rejuvenate the entire tabletop RPG genre.

We want to bridge the gap between Joe Public and Jerry Geek, between console/computer RPGs and 'real' RPGs. And to do that, we need... a walkthrough/cheat guide. Hence its title:

"How to Win at RPGs (Inside Secrets of the Gamemaster)"

And featured back-cover plugs:

• find out which games are the easiest to beat
• learn the secret ways to beat the 'boss'/GM for treasure
• get insider tips and maps for over 50 of the most popular levels!

Now, because we believe in tabletop RPGing, the above aren't really what we'll cover-- that's just to lure in the computer RPG folks. In reality, we'll be presenting RPG-dom from a gamer's perspective, not a video game one.

So really, the topics will be things like 'party balance: how to ensure victory while maximizing your individual experience point gains', i.e. good, solid team-player stuff. And we'll cover experimental and new style games, including diceless. These are always a favorite of roleplayers-- after all, the more of a dramatic agenda the GM and players have, the easier it is to min/max the flaws in the system to gain massive amounts of character power. So we're "keeping it real".

Oh, we're also looking for some famous game industry personality to loan us their name for the authorship title. Don't worry, you won't have to do real work, so those years of growing rusty manning your company ledger won't count against you. The actual work will be written by writers with talent. If you have:

1. >20 years in the industry
2. A name everyone would recognize (or at least a cool nickname)
3. A cult of personality, and
4. are 'edgy', or at least 'retro cool'

... feel free to drop us a line inquiring about licensing out your name.

All inquiries will be replied to! But remember we need folks with a published track record. So, just to ensure accuracy, we do ask that you use your real name when you write to us-- not any pen names or net 'handles' you may have had. And, please include a valid credit card number just so we can run a quick verification of your identity+. This is just to screen out posers and wannabes, so we can make sure this quality book gets the best writers out there!

So that's it in a nutshell-- the Holy Grail of Gaming, and you can be part of it! Just send in those pitches and proposals as outlined above, and a slice of the fortune may become yours!

Thanks!

Sandy

* minus a small publishing fee, given as a loan against royalties at a reasonable 12% per month!

+ our merchant bank says they have to run a nominal charge against the card to access the verification information, but don't worry, it isn't for much.

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Next month: on really get published without starting your own company, in Fine Print: Part You.
Sandy Antunes
sandy@rpg.net