News of the Earth! [SotE / RotE "newspaper" project!]

[Nascent]

So I know I've pitched a couple ideas in the past that didn't go anywhere... but I think you're all going to like this.

SotE is an exceptionally active forum; there's always something going on here and LOTS of creativity going into it all. So much so, in fact, that the average member -- and newcomers in particular -- may not have much of a grasp of things going on outside of their own RP threads unless they actively go looking. Especially the plotlines of other people, which can sometimes have brilliant and inspiring ideas, easily slip by getting noticed. Yet with as much brilliance and talent as there is here, there's no reason that should be.

My fellow roleplayers, I have a proposition: NEWSPAPER!

Specifically, a community-drafted and contribution-open 'what's new and interesting here' newspaper, published in its own threads every other month and supplimented by columns about such diverse and relevant topics as roleplaying advice, interviews with staff and members, in-character interviews, art showcases and contests, and other forum-related interests and information.

('News of the Earth' would merely be the working title, open to suggestion and vote before the first release, by the way. Unless everybody likes it, which is kewl by me.)

An every-other-month setup allows the paper to be content-rich and production time crunch low; special event or holiday-based editions of the paper could also be arranged if people are interested. I'm looking for members who'd like to contribute, either in an ongoing or occasional basis; see the list of ideas below:

[Member / Staff Interviews]
[RP Thread Spotlight]
[Character Spotlight]
[What's New On SotE?]
[Progress Updates on the SotE Video Game]
["Inspiration Stew" (random inspirational character / thread ideas)]
[How Not to RP (ongoing advice column on Mary Sues, Godmodding, etc.)]
[Roleplay Tips and Tricks]
[Vocabulary and Interesting Words for RP Use]
[Artist Spotlight / Artwork Contest]
[Etc...]

So let's hear your thoughts, SotE! Let your voices be heard. Who's ready to "make the papers"?

[Anadwen]

Whoa, this is amazing! I love your idea, Nascent!

I wanna contribute - especially in-character interviews, thread spotlights, and artwork!

[visualspice]

I agree. This sounds like such a fun idea 8D

[zozee9]

I'm in. *_* I'm willing to help with whatever you need, too! <3

[Wicked Basket]

Not a bad idea. I'm up for it.

[Winters-Feather]

I think you can eliminate the "how not to rp" bit because that sorta falls under "rp tricks and tips" :P

[Stelmarisa]

I love this idea! Especially the idea of in-character interviews xD

[Nascent]

Wow... what a fantastic response in just one day! Now I literally HAVE to do this. ^_^

Anyways, got a few things I could use feedback on before starting to lay groundwork here. First off, name. Shall we keep 'News of the Earth', or go with something else? Second, it occurred to me that something to the effect of 'Great Cbox Moments' would be a keen addition, but I'm not sure whether to have that be contribution-driven (whatever people send my way) or ask if someone who's far more active in thec box than myself would see to that particular bit of the paper.

Lastly, out of those of you interested in contributing, is there any particular subject or idea you'd want to run with? What do you all really want to see in the newspaper, and what you'd be interested in adding.

Aaaaaaalso... I've had an excellent idea for an in-character interview column entitled 'Drinking With Mephy'. The basic premise is that one (maybe more?) characters from SotE / RotE do an interview with my demon character Mephisto while both/all sampling and commenting on an in-world drink of some kind, perhaps with a tiny blurb at the end about drunken mischief ensuing thereafter. Probably do the actual interviewing over Skype after brainstorming / taking suggestions for what the characters should drink in each interview. Thoughts?

[zozee9]

Tanya would do the drinking thingy! ... actually, she'd probably do her own column if she could, lol.

Oh there's an idea! Not to give Tanya her own column. I wouldn't do that for any character, just because then everyone would want one. xD But maybe have a guild promotion section, possibly in character?

I think the title could be left the same, or it could change. I don't have any ideas for it though... sorry!

[Nascent]

That's really quite an excellent concept, to be honest! And given that the newspaper's entire point is to help people know about what else is here on SotE / RotE, not having a section to promote guilds would be rather foolish. Thanks for the great idea! ^_^

[Tak]

I think it should have a part for IC news, in thew SotE world.
So the newspapers our guys read.

Good idea! I' m up for this.

[Nascent]

Oooh, nice idea there! We can certainly use that!

[Brisinger987]

Oh definitely Nascent! Definitely go for it. I'd contribute any way I could.

[Codestar7]

OMG LET ME DO VOCABULARY AND WORDS!!

[Anadwen]

I wanna post chibis of people's characters!

[Nascent]

Okay then!! ;D Since this project has gotten a hearty vote of 'yes please!' from the community I'm gonna go ahead and move us from concept phase to pre-production.

Here's what I've got pinned down thusfar -- more can be added, but this'll be the foundation plan for the first issue of News of the Earth:

• Brief Introduction to SotE & RotE ~ [Nascent]
• Recent Events + General News ~ [Nascent + CONTRIBUTE]
• RP Spotlight: Top Completed Thread, Top Thread In Progress, Top New Thread ~ [UNCLAIMED / CONTRIBUTE]
• 'Inspiration Stew' ~ [Nascent + CONTRIBUTE]
• Drinking With Mephy {Character Interviews / Spotlight / Fictional Beverage Review) ~ [Nascent]
• Regional IC News ~ [UNCLAIMED + CONTRIBUTE]
• Guild Promotion ~ [CONTRIBUTE]
• Member / Staff Interview ~ [Nascent + OTHERS?]
• Artwork of the Earth / Artist Spotlight / Chibis of the Earth / Comics of the Earth? ~ [Anadwen + OTHERS + CONTRIBUTE]
• RP Tips & Tricks + Vocabulary Spotlight ~ [Nascent + SanguineBlade + OTHERS?]
• Want Ads ~ [CONTRIBUTE]
• Contest Feature ~ [Nascent]

Also, to give me something to work towards, I'm going to tentatively aim at having the first issue of NotE published in one month's time (March 10th). That means I'll be looking for a LOT of contribution content (please send to me via email or PM, not in this or other threads) over the next four weeks. Specifically, I'm looking for:

- Members / Staff willing to be interviewed (must have a Skype account)
- Recent Events (both IC and OOC news with broad implications, such as rule changes or large-scale story events like the Civil War in Connlaoth)
- RP Spotlight suggestions (please submit a brief one paragraph summary of the thread as well as a link to the thread)
- Regional IC News stories (flex your creative muscles and write a news story {or more than one!} from the perspective of someone living in the SotE / RotE universe)
- Guild Promotions (write up a brief summary of the guild / group as though advertising it in-story; this can take the form of a "posted notice" or a character "discussing" the guild / group with a prospective new member -- can include OOC notes as an afterword)
- SotE / RotE Inspired Artwork!
- Want ads (in-character "want ads", such as 'Noble warrior looking for plucky sorcerer/sorceress companion in Thantos. Must be interested in fighting monsters, exploring underground ruins, and talented with healing magic. If interested, PM NewMember42.")

Perhaps even MORE importantly, I'm looking for a few talented people to join me as "staff" for the newspaper project -- write up articles when needed, check articles for mistakes as an editor, and generally support the endeavor. Remember, with two months between each publication this *shouldn't* be a heavy-duty use of time, so it shouldn't impact you IRL or in RP very much if at all. If interested, shoot me a PM with a sample of your writing (RP or otherwise, as long as it's quality and yours) and we'll start getting a group together.

Now, question for ya SotE:

How would YOU prefer the newspaper to be formatted: as a normal post thread... or in a PDF document with the possibility of fancy formatting and such? Lemme hear your thoughts. And don't forget to contribute -- NotE's success depends on your awesome content contributions! ;D

[Brisinger987]

I will happily claim RotE/SotE regional news Nascent! If no-one else wants it!

[Nascent]

As stated Horm, send a writing sample over PM if you want to be an NotE writer. If you just want to contribute content occasionally then whatever you're submitting can be sent either to my email (MysteriousVoiceGuy@gmail.com) or PM'd to me.

[Zane]

I have a suggestion, Add a section, call it "New Faces" where we can introduce new and/or unused characters to the public as a whole, this would help for those that really want to get their character off the ground and quickly into threads

[Nascent]

That's not a bad idea at all! I'll add it to the design plan for the first issue.

Course, that means I need some awesome people to put characters up for introductions -- a short one-paragraph write-up on them and a link to the profile ought to do. Anyone interested?