Though I think this may have been killed by blogs and podcasts, I can't help but like the classic format of the fanzines, so I was wondering if there were still any out there that are particulary oriented to our fun little hobby.
The classic is Alarums and Excursions. I think it is still being printed:
http://thestarport.com/xeno/aande.html
That people like the print Zines but I wouldnt even mind a good one in .pdf form that covers a broad spectrum of games. It can reach a broader audience and it would be more cost effective to do
I do an occasional broadly themed PDF 'zine called Autopsy.
When RPGnow is working you can get them from there.
Though it's now defunct, I likes OD&Dities, a PDF zine, while it was still around. And it's still being hosted if you've never read them before. (http://tower.newcenturycomputers.net/oddities.html)
Quote from: GRIMI do an occasional broadly themed PDF 'zine called Autopsy.
When RPGnow is working you can get them from there.
I will have to check that out.
I ran across a PDF of something called "Imazine" not too long ago.
Definitely not to my taste ... if anything, a kind of concentrated dose of "gaming that isn't for me," but it seemed very well put-together, very intelligently done, and had a fair bit of variety.
Quote from: S. John RossI ran across a PDF of something called "Imazine" not too long ago.
Definitely not to my taste ... if anything, a kind of concentrated dose of "gaming that isn't for me," but it seemed very well put-together, very intelligently done, and had a fair bit of variety.
I have been considering doing a general gaming 'Zine for awhile. I wonder if a well put together .pdf zine would work. Maybe give it away for free but sell ads to cover the cost of putting it together (software, etc).
Quote from: Geek MessiahI have been considering doing a general gaming 'Zine for awhile. I wonder if a well put together .pdf zine would work. Maybe give it away for free but sell ads to cover the cost of putting it together (software, etc).
I'd love to see such a thing done well but I think you'd have a lot of difficulty selling adspace in a PDF.
I too constantly waltz with the dream of producing a general gaming 'zine ... When I was (briefly) the editor of Pyramid I got a tantalizing taste of what it could be like had I been given much leeway, and I've itched to put that into practice for a long time now. Later on, someone tried to snag me into another magazine-editing job but it was to be a shill-organ for a specific distributor, so I declined/balked/ran screaming (before that, my magazine editorial experience was non-RPG, limited to two computer-game magazines in the early 90s).
General magazines were always a tough sell, even when the hobby had a much larger commercial base. Great mags like Different Worlds and pretty-good mags like Gateways and then later things like Shadis all eventually faded ... on the other hand, I'd still take that ride, even knowing the end. I love gaming magazines and want 'em back :)
Quote from: S. John RossI'd love to see such a thing done well but I think you'd have a lot of difficulty selling adspace in a PDF.
I too constantly waltz with the dream of producing a general gaming 'zine ... When I was (briefly) the editor of Pyramid I got a tantalizing taste of what it could be like had I been given much leeway, and I've itched to put that into practice for a long time now. Later on, someone tried to snag me into another magazine-editing job but it was to be a shill-organ for a specific distributor, so I declined/balked/ran screaming (before that, my magazine editorial experience was non-RPG, limited to two computer-game magazines in the early 90s).
General magazines were always a tough sell, even when the hobby had a much larger commercial base. Great mags like Different Worlds and pretty-good mags like Gateways and then later things like Shadis all eventually faded ... on the other hand, I'd still take that ride, even knowing the end. I love gaming magazines and want 'em back :)
The magazine could be done, given away for free and be ad free for awhile and then when the magazine has proven itself we could then look for ads.
Maybe it would have more crediability then since we would have a proven base (Could keep track of how many times it has been downloaded) so when we are talking to advertiser we could say "This magazine is downloaded XX,XXX times a month. We wouldnt even have to charge that much for ads (It could be really cheap) and we could make deals with small game companies to get ads in (Maybe for $5 or $10 a month).
It's a thought
Quote from: Geek MessiahThe magazine could be done, given away for free and be ad free for awhile and then when the magazine has proven itself we could then look for ads.
Well, good luck with that, but in the early stages you'll still need a pile of cash to pay the writers, pay the artists and other vendors (cartographers, etc) and pay the production staff. It can be done on the cheap, to some extent (depending on how willing you are to compromise quality ... but the more you compromise quality the less chance you have of eventually attracting advertisers, so it's a very difficult balancing act in a high wind with greasy slippers).
For
bare bones but still professional quality, you'd be looking at a rock-bottom minimum of about $1,600 for a 64-page PDF magazine, in terms of content-production cost. For one example. And ideally you'd want either double or triple that amount of money, or half or a third of the page count on the same budget, in order to build something that would attract advertising revenue ... and then you'd have to attract enough advertising revenue to justify spending that much money to begin with :)
(And to clarify the point, just in case I made it too obliquely: with a fanzine, you eat the costs [or in the case of an APA, you share them]. If you want to sell ads, it opens a whole new universe of issues and standards).
Quote from: S. John RossWell, good luck with that, but in the early stages you'll still need a pile of cash to pay the writers, pay the artists and other vendors (cartographers, etc) and pay the production staff. It can be done on the cheap, to some extent (depending on how willing you are to compromise quality ... but the more you compromise quality the less chance you have of eventually attracting advertisers, so it's a very difficult balancing act in a high wind with greasy slippers).
For bare bones but still professional quality, you'd be looking at a rock-bottom minimum of about $1,600 for a 64-page PDF magazine, in terms of content-production cost. For one example. And ideally you'd want either double or triple that amount of money, or half or a third of the page count on the same budget, in order to build something that would attract advertising revenue ... and then you'd have to attract enough advertising revenue to justify spending that much money to begin with :)
You probably could get writers who would work for free in order to get a writing credit but then you get what you pay for so the quailty would be hit or miss.
I think its something I will pass on. More trouble then its worth.