Re: Newsletter
Post
by Scriven » Thu Jan 31, 2013 4:58 pm
Okay, so I’ve been turning this over a lot since Keeper Murph brought this idea up on the forum. Paul Maclean at YSDC had a similar idea with the Yog-Sothothery newsletter he launched a while ago, although I’m not sure where that ended up. I think the editorial workload it put on him might have stalled production, especially considering all of the other projects he’s got in the hopper at any given time.
Anyway, here’s a few things, in no particular order, that popped into my mind about an MU Podcast newsletter.
1. I think it’s a great idea. It might even be fun to present it as the MU “Campus Newspaper” with articles and columns featuring prominent faculty and students including Monterey Jack (legal issues with Fantasy Flight allowing), Dr. Gerard, Jimmy and the Professor, and other personalities.
2. A well-designed PDF sounds right for the format. There’s no reason why epub and mobi formats couldn’t follow, but PDF works with so many devices it’s a good place to start.
3. I’m not sure I’d necessarily start off by aspiring to produce a publication that emulates or rubs shoulders with established publications like The Unspeakable Oath or periodicals with similar production values. That’s not to say it couldn’t grow in that direction, but sometimes these projects just need time to mature, and setting the bar too high too quickly can discourage the editors and contributors alike. Just a thought – I could be totally wrong.
4. I’m not sure that distributing an MU Newsletter through a paid subscription is the right way to go – at least not initially. If you really do want to use the newsletter to encourage a revenue stream for the podcast, it might be best to produce a “digest” one-pager version of the newsletter that’s freely available to everyone, and then make the full (multi-page) newsletter issue available as a premium for MU Podcast patrons. I believe this is similar to the approach that YSDC took with Yog-Sothothery and some of their other expanded/enhanced content for site patrons.
5. I’d recommend doing a pilot issue that sets the tone for the project without committing to a strict production calendar. Try it on for size and see how it works. If the stars are right and it all comes together nicely, that’s great. If the contribution, editorial and production process still needs work, you can go back to the drawing board without having a deadline hanging over your head. Also, making a free, full-issue “teaser” could interest contributors and encourage patrons to back the MU Podcast to receive future issues, if that’s the direction you want to go.
6. The proposed content you’ve outlined sounds right – anything that expands upon the podcast and provides house rules ideas, tomes, short scenarios, plot hooks, NPCs, artifacts, in-game props, etc. Granted, the MU forum itself can freely accommodate all of this already. But polishing that content for a publication that is vetted and governed by a set editorial policy can (I think) take it to the next level. The short/serialized fiction pieces could work too, so long as all the editorial policy spells out clearly and correctly what the legal terms are between contributors and publishers. Freely-given, original content is the only way to go, but the legalese probably still needs to be there, somewhere. Admittedly, I'm not an expert on that side of things.
7. Just from what I've seen on the forums and heard on the podcast, the growing MU Podcast community incorporates an amazing amount of talent and knowledge that could support this project. For what it’s worth, in real life I do layout and publication design, copywriting and editing and other related communications…stuff. Maybe those of us interested in contributing to the project could schedule an organized meeting online (IRC channel? Skype? Google Hangouts?) to talk out a rough work plan?
Anyway, just a few thoughts.
Cheers,
Mike
AKA Professor Max von Schiller of the Miskatonic Area Paranormal Society (MAPS)
AKA George Finch of the Secret Everest Expedition
"Let's see if someone tries to kill us and work backwards" -- Dr. Who