Welcome to Gaia! ::

Table of Contents
(1) Monthly Schedule
(2) Staff Announcement
(3) TGP Policies
(4) Pending Projects
(5) Newbie FYI
(6) Staff Application
(7) Submission Guidelines

ONE. Monthly Schedule - 08.01.06
- Aug 1-5: Open submissions thread.
- Aug 25: Prep work (selecting submissions, draft editing and revisions, etc.). Close Submissions Thread.
- Aug 25-30: Voting for BOI.
- Aug 31: Publish Issue 17.0/June '06.

TWO. Staff Announcements - 08.01.06
-

THREE. TGP Policies - 08.01.06
- The publication date will always be set on the last day of every month.
- Scouting and the submissions thread will be running for the first 2-3 weeks of every month.
- Drafting the new issue will begin during the fourth week of every month.
- Voting for the Best of Issue entry will take place in the remaining days leading up to the day before publication.
- If the Issue contains 10 or more pieces, a Second Runner Up prize for 250g will be put into affect.

FOUR. Pending Projects - 05.28.06
- Staff Spotlight: Deabus Amor (if I can ever catch her for long enough) will showcase her comic, Coffee, Mate?

- The Mini-Shop Project: Check Clavy's temporary thread in the guild forum for more details!

FIVE. Newbie FYI - 08.01.06
Generally, we staffies disregard our so-called 'Positions' and simply help where we can. Among the things we do are:

- Content for the Neighborhood Watch. This is actually a very easy task. The Gossip section is mainly a repeat of things in the Announcement thread along with neat threads found throughout the forum. For advertisement, look to see if anyone is interested or scout out some interesting writing-related threads and ask if they would like to be advertised.

- Voting for Best of the Issue and other things. Every issue, as you know, we have a Best of the Issue (BOI). The winner is awarded 500g. This is always voted on by the staffies. If we have no staffies around to vote, then we're at a loss.

- Giving opinions and ideas. Often times we have discussions in the Headquarter's thread (HQ), where we generate ideas and suggestions. Every new mind is an asset to help think these things over.

- General editing. Watch for mistakes in the issue as well as in our submissions. We want good quality work.

- Keeping track of our threads outside the guild. Our submissions thread has a tendency to sink. Keep an eye on it and post something now and then to keep it afloat. Not necessarily "BUMP," just a comment. There may also be questions that need answering.

- Critiquing in The Mound. You don't have to critique anything, but someone should. You don't even have to do it all at once or as it comes in. Just every now and then, critique one or two things. Lastly, it's okay to add something of your own to the Mounds, but please, don't make a mound of you own.

- Occasional judging. Our contest, which no longer requires us so much as our readers, needed some of our staffies to judge. It was fairly easy, but more judges would have been preferable. You won't have to, but it would help a lot in the future.

- Decide your literary contribution to the 'zine. Again, you don't have to add something to each issue, or any issue at all. You can work behind the scenes if you wish. But adding something can not only be fun, it adds to the experience of running a magazine! You can make your own column, providing you have the writing ability to. You can run a project, like my Seven Sins project or Jaho's Political Writing Project. Or even a small segment to help other writers in their pursuits. There's a long list of possibilities, so why not explore them?

- Advertise the guild around Gaia. Please include a link back to the TGP guild in your signature. This isn't a requirement, mind you, but it would help promote the 'zine to more readers.

SIX. Staff Application - 08.19.05
(1) What are your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to writing?
(2) What's your favorite kind of writing -- poetry, fiction, editorial, or prose?
(3) On a scale of 1 - 10, with 1 being a disappearing-and-reappearing writer and 10 being a chief editor, how active do you plan to be at the 'zine?
(4) How often are you online at Gaia?
(5) Preferred position?

- Scout: Look through the Gaian forums for potential writing to publish. Once you find something that catches your eye, please contact the author and politely ask for their permission. I've found that a bit of heartfelt praise can go a long way... Please note that The Gaian Press WON'T publish ANYTHING without the writer's consent! Finally, PM me with your nomination after receiving the author's approval.

- *Critic: Help review the submissions and offer commentary in the 'zine every now and then. Include a sample of your writing for this position.

- Columnist: Strong writing background is required! You'll be a given a portion of the magazine to free flow about whatever you want! Provide a writing sample for this position.

- *Editor: Help arrange the layout and manage the issues as they come out. Mostly housekeeping type stuff.

- *Reporter: Announce the latest happenings around Gaia in The Neighborhood Watch. Short one-liners summarizing recent glitches or mod updates will do. The only requirement is that you hop around the forums more often than I do, hehe!

- *Reviewer: Provide a monthly short or detailed review about anything that interests you -- whether it's music, books, or anime -- we want opinionated writers that aren't afraid to speak their minds! Please include a writing sample for this position.

- Techie: We're currently looking for a staffie who has experience in creating and managing a website. TGP is going to be archiving all the past issues outside of Gaia as well, so someone with this kind of knowledge would be greatly appreciated!

- Public Relations: Mingle with other writers and tell them about The Gaian Press. We want the 'zine to be a community effort from the rookie writers to the seasoned vets. Just post something interesting about us (new contests, latest writing projects, etc.) and link back to our guild every now and then. I suggest the Writer's Forum and Guild Forum as a good place to start.

*This is a prime position that the Press lacks or needs more of.

(6) PM Serieve with your application.

SEVEN. Submission Guidelines - 05.28.06
(1) Pen name? This doesn't have to be your Gaian screen name!
(2) Entry title?
(3) Rating - G, PG, PG-13, R?
(4) Can we comment on your work if it's published?
(5) PM Serieve with your submission, or visit our monthly Submissions Thread to post it.

Submission Policies:

Editing Policy: Please edit your entries before we begin the drafting process at the end of each month. All chosen entries will be published as they are posted since the 'zine wishes to retain your creative vision in its entirety. However, all-knowing and magical though we may seem (haha), the staffies at TGP still can't tell the difference between a typo or an artistic intention. In special situations, we may choose to PM you with suggested revisions or small changes, but otherwise you're on your own.

Publishing Policy: Please make note that, with so many submissions, not all of them may be used at once. Should they be used in future issues, we will inform you and provide a link. However, don't hope for too long; we do not traditionally send out rejection letters.

Link Policy: If you want to submit a long story, simply put together a tag or sample piece, something to catch interest in your work, and provide a link. The tag/sample has no length limit, but please keep it reasonable. If your tag fails to intrigue, it will not be included.

Submission FAQs:

Is there a limit to how long my piece can be? We do not have a length limit for submissions, but trust you to use your judgment. In other words, if it is outrageously long, we may either ask you to shorten it --or simply ignore you.

How many pieces can I submit? As many as you like. Just follow the posting guidelines for each submission and keep all of the above in mind.

I was just in the last issue/have been published by GP before/won BOI. Can I submit again? Of course you can. You can get published as many times as you earn it.

Okay, let's make a list of stickies to be made. This might take some thought, so if my lost screws get in the way, forgive me, please. xd

We need a neighborhood watch sticky and maybe a sticky for pending entries and things that need to be critiqued.

Sounds good, although maybe we could put the two index stickies into just one; maybe a list for each issue of who appeared in it and soforth.

Gladly, as long as I get to lasso in some people. Would you put all teh rules for the guild in teh HQ sticky or what?

Sure~ What should I put it under?

Just start a sticky titled Dev's Pretty Banners or something like that, hehe! It'll make things easier for us to get the files without digging through the thread. Also, I'll probably be requesting certain graphics from you off that post, so don't lock it! wink

Can you find all those links again and archive them under a post titled The Neighborhood Watch? Thanks!