[OFFICIAL] New Project, Help Needed!!

Well, as I mentioned in a post yesterday the little seed that Tom
planted
(re: a collection of GZG-based material from the list) has grown, quite
literally overnight, into a solid proposition - largely thanks to my
finding someone who both can and will undertake the editing job (and who
I
know and trust, have worked and gamed with before and am geographically
near to - so we can actually get together to discuss things face to
face).
So, whether this flies or plummets depends on what we now get from you
good
guys and girls.

If you have something that you would like to submit, rather than send it
immediately could you just drop me a quick email with an outline (which
will probably jog my memory on the piece if it has already been posted
to
the list). ALL SUBMISSIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS FOR THIS directly to me at
<jon@gzero.dungeon.com> please - NOT to the list!!!!!!
If you are inspired to design something new, then again send us an
outline
proposal first so that we know something is coming.

We're looking at doing this SOON - that is, getting it into print THIS
YEAR
if possible; therefore we are looking at having all submissions in by
END
SEPTEMBER LATEST - as in most cases we're actually looking for stuff
that
you've already done, which hopefully only needs a quick tarting-up and
emailing off to us, we hope this doesn't seem too tight.

Oh, and please attach your full name (if you want a piece printed under
a
pseudonym for any reason, state this clearly!) and your SNAILMAIL
address
on all pieces - it's a bit tricky trying to stuff your complimentary
copy
into the modem.....  :-)

So, now we sit and wait...... <grin>

Jon (GZG)

Project Outline:
We at GZG are planning to produce a collected scenario/background book
covering all our published game systems (FT, SGII, DSII), which we hope
will largely consist of material written and submitted by players of the
games, especially those on the GZG mailing list. We have engaged an
experienced editor, Alex Stewart, to oversee the project - Alex has
practical experience of editing anthologies and shared-world
collections,
has written professionally for the games industry, and has a number of
TV
script credits and tie-in novelisations under his belt, so is the ideal
person to collate and edit a project such as this.

To be clear from the start, we're sorry, but the budget for this project
simply doesn't allow us to offer any payment for any submitted material.
What we DO offer you is the chance to see your name and your work in
print
in one of our publications, plus of course a free copy of the book
mailed
to you as soon as it is off the presses. If we can, we'll probably chuck
a
few freebie figures in with each copy as well....

Note that we are not (necessarily) asking you to sit down and create NEW
stuff, although we'll be happy if you do. What we really want is
material
that has already been posted to the GZG mailing list (or elsewhere,
provided you currently have copyright - eg: that it hasn't been
commercially published by anyone else), or that you've been using in
your
own games. Feel free to send stuff even if it doesn't fit the categories
given in the guidelines - we'll look it over and decide if it fits in
the
book or not.

The most important thing about any scenarios or rules submitted is that
they have been tested and proved to work - this is why we ask for an
after-battle report wherever possible (as well as it providing a lot of
background colour for the book, of course). Scenarios written for shows
or
conventions would be especially welcome if they worked out well in
practice, provided of course there are no copyright conflict issues with
any commercially-run shows at which the games were run.

Please pay careful attention to grammar, spelling, sentence construction
etc. - we'll edit where necessary of course, but the better your
submission
reads in the first place then the more likely it is to get in the book.

Material for FT should ideally be using the FB1 modifications wherever
possible, so that it remains compatible with the future FT3 and other
materials during the life of this book.

Humour is perfectly acceptable, both in fiction and scenarios (I'm
thinking
of the infamous "GZG troops vs. Sp*ce M*r*nes" story from a while back,
and
things like "Rednecks vs. Martians" games). A little bit of silliness is
a
great antidote to over-serious gaming....

New factions/powers within the GZG-verse MAY be considered if
particularly
well developed and written up, and may thus make their way into the
"canon"
universe (hey, more fame....), but please ensure that these don't
unbalance
or conflict with the published history. For example, a small fringe
nation
of a couple of worlds would be more likely to get published than a
completely new major power bloc appearing within the human core!

Jon (GZG)

Now, over to Alex for the basic guidelines he'd like to see:

In general, submissions should fall into one of the following
categories,
and follow the formats for them set out below.

Scenarios:

These may be for any GZG game system (Full Thrust, Dirtside II or
Stargrunt
II, or even FMA or a combination of one or more games), and should
consist
of the following sections, in the order presented. Scenarios using
settings
other than the main SG/DS/FT universe will be considered, especially if
they're unusual or interesting, but anything based on someone else's
copyright material obviously won't be. So a generic 50s B movie scrap
between invading Martians and the US Army, or a shootout between
superpowered villains and cops in power armour would be fine; rebels
fighting stormtroopers a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, or
stereotyped fantasy races in space with spiky bitz would be right out.
(Unless you've done a very good job of filing the serial numbers off).

1)	Scene setting. A brief description of the reason for the battle,
and how the sides involved came to be there. This can be purely
descriptive, a colour piece from the viewpoint of one of the
protagonists,
or anything else that hooks the reader and makes them want to grab the
dice.

2)	Player briefings. A brief description of the objectives of each
faction, what they know of the overall situation, and their victory
conditions.

3)	Table setup. Anything from a brief generic description ("A
built-up
area with lots of densely packed buildings") to a detailed layout plan.
Any
restrictions on deployment or special rules for concealed units, booby
traps, and the like, should be set out here. Maps/diagrams are not
essential, but are useful if in a well-drawn and publishable form.

4)	Army lists. Statistics for the forces available to each player,
including vehicles. Also any neutral or umpire controlled units. These
can
be detailed stats or left loose (as with the scenarios in DS and SG) to
allow players to tailor them to their own forces.

5)	Special rules, if any. This includes notes on new or unusual
weapon
systems, the effects of any unusual environments, or tweaks to the game
system to make it more suitable for backgrounds other than the GZG house
universe (eg psionics, new alien races, that sort of thing). We'd rather
you stick to the published rules where they apply, rather than use house
variants.

6)	An after action report, describing how the scenario went when
you
played or ran it, either as a simple game description, or as a piece of
narrative fiction (the latter is preferable).

Maximum length for scenarios is around 5000 words; campaigns linking
several engagements may be allowed a little more elbow room.

House Rules:

Any new or interesting rule variations you've come up with which you
feel
enhances one or more of our games. These should be presented as clearly
and
succinctly as possible, with examples of their use. Follow the format of
our rulebooks here, and you won't go far wrong.

In general these will set their own length; anything from a paragraph or
two to a couple of thousand words.

New Stuff:

A wide-ranging category, this; anything like the statistics for a new
weapon, a vehicle (from our range or generic), or the description of a
new
alien race you've introduced into your games. Surprise us. But remember
anything really major might be better showcased in a full-scale
scenario.

Again, length may run from a paragraph to an essay.

Background material:

Anything you feel fleshes out our house universe; unit histories,
descriptions of famous battles, tales of individual heroism or tragedy.
Fiction pieces should try not to outstay their welcome; nothing longer
than
5,000 words, and remember that the longer it is the more likely it is to
get bumped in favour of something people can actually play. We are,
after
all, a games company...

Artwork:

We need something to break up the text; show us what you can do.

Initial submissions should be by email, with the material sent as RTF or
plain text attached files. Artwork should initially be attached as GIF
or
JPEG files.

Notes: By submitting any material for this project, you agree that:

1) All material submitted becomes the property of GZG, and may be
edited,
modified or changed in any way at their discretion. The material may be
published by GZG in any form they choose. All material in its final
published form will be copyright GZG.

2) No payments can be made for any material submitted, but the
author/creator of each piece that is published will receive full written
credit for his/her work in the book, plus a complimentary copy upon
publication.

3) Submitted material may or may not be published, entirely at the
Editor's
discretion. Unpublished material may be retained by GZG for possible use
in
future publications.