| 7 people marked this as a favorite. |
- Numbers greater than 999 need thousand commas. 1,000 gp not 1000 gp.
- Don’t capitalize your spell names (except if the spell has a person’s name in it, or you manage to start a sentence with a spell name). Also italicize your spell names.
- Do capitalize feat and skill names, but not concentration checks or skill sub-categories like Knowledge (arcana).
- Apostrophes, talking marks, quotation marks, inverted commas, whatever you want to call them (the ' and " symbols) aren’t correct terminology for feet or inches in Pathfinder.
- There is a space between a numerical amount and gp, lb, DC, and CL.
The last two are particularly bad because they may seem to save a word in your word count, but if you are right on the word count limit, you really don't want that to be the thing that takes you over the line into DQ territory.
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
- Apostrophes, talking marks, quotation marks, inverted commas, whatever you want to call them (the ' and " symbols) aren’t correct terminology for feet or inches in Pathfinder.
- There is a space between a numerical amount and gp, lb, DC, and CL.
The last two are particularly bad because they may seem to save a word in your word count, but if you are right on the word count limit, you really don't want that to be the thing that takes you over the line into DQ territory.
I couldn't agree more with this.
If your word count is so tight to 300, that you need to start getting "creative" with Paizo's standard formatting, then you need to learn how to edit your own work better.
There is often always a better way to say something with less words. And some sentences are completely unnecessary. Describing the mechanics of how something works is often not necessary. Just refer to the mechanics already written in the rules (i.e. This works like a splash weapon) instead of describing how splash weapons work.
Even if you "want" a slightly different mechanic than anything that's written in the books, you gotta ask yourself if you could essentially get the same effect by using an existing mechanic.
| 6 people marked this as a favorite. |
you really don't want that to be the thing that takes you over the line into DQ territory.
And if you cross over into DQ's territory, she'll beat you with a stick.
(Seriously, though I know people are talking about disqualification, every time I read someone talking about "DQed" in Superstar with a negative connotation, my first reaction is "what did I do wrong?!??")
.
Yep, I stressed about it in 2010. Ways not to stress:
.
.
.
- Go under the word count by at least 5-10 words.
- Take a copy of your work as you submit it and save it so you know exactly what you submitted.
- Don't comment at all when you aren't allowed to. For the first round, this means don't say anything about your item (or when you submitted it) until the Top 32 are announced.
- Submit a decent amount of time before the deadline for each round. To me this means that hypothetically if your computer were to fail, then the amount of time it would take you to get to another computer and submit from there, with a fair margin for error.
- Be saving your work to at least 2 different places, memory stick, hard drive, skydrive, dropbox etc.
Edit: I hope you are entering DeathQuaker :-)
.
Take a copy of your work as you submit it and save it so you know
This is always the one that has me scratching my head. Every year you get people asking if other people saved copies of their item because they want to see it again.
What?!
How do you not have a copy of your own work, barring corrupted data or a computer crash? That makes me wonder: If it wasn't good enough for you to want to save a copy of it, then why should other people want to vote it into the Top 32? If you're just typing it up in the submission entry form and then letting it go, that sounds like a throwaway item to me.
Be saving your work to at least 2 different places, memory stick, hard drive, skydrive, dropbox etc.
Good point. I can't tell you how many copies of various items and ideas and whatnot have been sent from my home account to my work account (my work fortunately is very hands off in terms of that sort of thing).
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I use Evernote, which lets me jot down ideas and work on submissions over different platforms (phone, home computer, work computer, iPad, etc.). It automatically synchronises, so I always have the most recent version when I open up a document.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
I've started keeping all of my work on Google Drive. I actually create the documents in sub folders on the Drive and when you download Drive on your computer it sets up a folder that automagically syncs.
Last year I was guilty of only saving in one place and had my backup drive crash...followed closely by my main.
Can't recommend cloud type services enough for this type of stuff.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
I started using Google Drive myself after a computer crash too.
Hmm wish I read item 4 before. I never noticed the fact that the convention wasn't used, much less banned. I got some words free so hopefully it wont totally kill my submission.
Hmm, a post with all those subtle and uncommon convention differences would be nice, since some people (like myself) my use the wrong one while believing they are being professional!
Darklight, you could check out Anthony Adam's template breakdown, which might have what you're looking for.
A few minor mistakes, like using apostrophes and quote marks and a lack of italics, doesn't help but it generally won't be fatal if your core idea is good enough.
I hope people are reading this and not freaking out about minor template errors as well. Minor template errors are just that, MINOR. The ideas should be judged on the merit of the idea, and its awesomeness. In my opinion, a missing comma should only be taken into account if you can't decide between two equally awesome ideas. Based on all of the judges comments I have read on top 32 items, I would venture a guess that MOJO is about 95%, formatting is about 5%. It is important to follow instructions, but don't let your quest for capitalization and proper italics ruin the fun of reading a really cool idea and voting for it.
Maybe we can sweet talk AA into writing a guide to VOTING :)
Or Sean can post a consolidated VOTING guide :)
Thank.
Jacob that link is helpful, but what a fine time to discover certain things that changed in later editions. Im still using my first edition core book! Guess its now a bad example.
- Numbers greater than 999 need thousand commas. 1,000 gp not 1000 gp.
- Don’t capitalize your spell names (except if the spell has a person’s name in it, or you manage to start a sentence with a spell name). Also italicize your spell names.
- Do capitalize feat and skill names, but not concentration checks or skill sub-categories like Knowledge (arcana).
- Apostrophes, talking marks, quotation marks, inverted commas, whatever you want to call them (the ' and " symbols) aren’t correct terminology for feet or inches in Pathfinder.
- There is a space between a numerical amount and gp, lb, DC, and CL.
I'd just like to chime in and say these things always bugged me, too. Matt and I are both perfectionists when it comes to pinning down all the little things in our designs, and we focus on that just as much as the creativity/mojo we try to bring, as well. While it's true that an awesome idea can often trump minor errors in following the proper template, I also think there's a reason Matt and I went on to win our respective RPG Superstar competitions. It's attention to detail that often makes the difference between a good design and a Superstar design. So, strive to be as complete as you can in what you create. Don't just expect creativity to carry you through every challenge or future freelance assignment. Neatness does matter. And so does following the directions (whether stated outright in the rules of the contest, or simply implied by a publisher's conventions in prior work).
you really don't want that to be the thing that takes you over the line into DQ territory.And if you cross over into DQ's territory, she'll beat you with a stick.
(Seriously, though I know people are talking about disqualification, every time I read someone talking about "DQed" in Superstar with a negative connotation, my first reaction is "what did I do wrong?!??")
I have a similar reaction every time I hear about a janke build... :)
Thanks for the advice Matt & Neil.
| 4 people marked this as a favorite. |
Maybe we can sweet talk AA into writing a guide to VOTING :)
Or Sean can post a consolidated VOTING guide :)
Lol,
Voting Guide coming up
You will see pairs of items.
a) Read the left one.
b) Read the right one.
c) Vote for whichever item you think is the most deserving of your vote
For c), You are NOT saying "This item is the best item", you are simply saying "This item is better than the other item". If everyone votes on each pair, the summation of all votes will trend the consistently `voted for` items above the others who get subsequently culled.
Culling - this is removing the lowest `consistently not voted for` items from the pool to concentrate attention and voting on to the better items. It is done based on votes made so far, so if you want the worst items gone, you need to make sure you weather the early voting storm as much as possible and vote lots, so your favorite items trend upwards :)
d) When the page refreshes with your next item pair, go back to a) - UNLESS the page says "Voting is closed now" or "You have voted on everything" or "No more votes for you Mr. Record Breaking voting machine you" or something along those lines.
Schedule a few breaks in that cycle for bio function like eating, sleeping, etc.
There you go, one quick, handy dandy Voting Guide.
That's a very good Voting Guide, actually.
Dedicated Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 8, Dedicated Voter Season 9
|
| 3 people marked this as a favorite. |
You are competing against THOUSANDS of other creative people. Not paying attention to small details as well is just sabotage. There is going to be a massive amount of creativity out there, but the professionals will ALSO check and double check their work to give themselves the best chance possible.
There is no coasting in RPG Superstar. If you want to win you have to produce the best work you can, creatively, professionally and grammatically. The above is good advice.
Because it's saying:
"Be the best writer you can be."
Marathon Voter Season 7
|
You are competing against THOUSANDS of other creative people.
This is huge. This is, first and foremost, a competition. Your item will be constantly compared to other items. When two items are compared side by side and both seem roughly equal in creativity and "cool factor," the one with improper formatting is much less likely to be picked.
Take care though, some of the used coventions may not be what is expected.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
you really don't want that to be the thing that takes you over the line into DQ territory....
(Seriously, though I know people are talking about disqualification, every time I read someone talking about "DQed" in Superstar with a negative connotation, my first reaction is "what did I do wrong?!??")
Really? Because I think of delicious soft-serve ice cream and the fact I love those combination Dairy Queen/Orange Julius stores in the mall. It's just not holiday shopping without a quart of Orange Julius in one hand.
/threadjack
-Ben.
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
Try to remember that style guides can be taught. If someone misses a capital letter or a comma or some of these other nitpicks, but they have a really cool item...let the mojo win. I'm not saying that perfection isn't important, but if you can tell the best effort has been made to present the item in the proper format and the item is good enough then vote it up. This isn't Americas Best Editor, it's about finding a designer. True a good designer works hard to make their editors life easier and will take all the advice from these forums to use italics correctly, and to use commas accurately, and to ABC the order of spells listed, but if a good item has a minor format flaw remember that Amateurs are competing to become Professionals and if they have the stuff they can be taught the formatting. I guess I am saying designers need to work hard to present their items as perfectly as they can, but as voters we should allow for a little bit of slack and let design rule the day.
In my experience, something that is average but polished is better than something creative but sloppy. The former shows effort, attention to detail, and professionalism. Such things demonstrate you will yield consistent quality results even in times where you're not fueled by a rush of creativity. It shows you have the fortitude to write an adventure and will put the effort to ensure it has professional quality.
Now, creating an entry that's both creative and polished should be your goal in the competition. But making sure your work is written and formatted correctly is an "easy" way to push your entry a step further towards Superstar.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
If something is utterly outstanding in terms of idea, and there are a handful of minor errors, the errors will not undercut it, and I'll vote for it.
But if it is so poorly grammatically prepared/spelled/proofread that it is hard to understand or is otherwise distracting from reading the entry, this does two things:
1) It shows me the author really doesn't give a crap about doing their best. Minor, common errors are one thing. Clearly even failing to take advantage of spellcheck or, say, asking a friend to take two minutes to read over their entry to be sure it reads okay, shows that they are not worth my vote, because they don't even think their own entry is worth reading over or proofreading, something that takes seconds to do. Someone who doesn't want to try their best and put forth the best product they can isn't a Superstar in my book.
2) It increases the likelihood the item is misunderstood or unclearly written. If the item is so sloppily written that I'm not sure I understand the nuances of the entry, then the vote's likely going to be lost. I'm going to vote for the thing I am sure I understand how it works, not something so poorly explained that I'm not sure what it does. Someone who cares about what they've produced will be sure they've explained it clearly. Again, easiest thing to do is just ask a friend to take a quick look at it. This is not hard. If you can't be bothered, then I can't be bothered to vote for you.
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Nooks dont have spellchheck, and I dont have friends (not anymore anyway). So Im stuck with only proofreading, though Im not infallible.
I just love how everyone assumes that everyone has all these wonderful things accessable. Granted its a bigger problem on rpol, but still, its fascinating how rarely people consider the possibility that certain tools are not universally available.
Nooks dont have spellchheck, and I dont have friends (not anymore anyway). So Im stuck with only proofreading, though Im not infallible.
I just love how everyone assumes that everyone has all these wonderful things accessable. Granted its a bigger problem on rpol, but still, its fascinating how rarely people consider the possibility that certain tools are not universally available.
None of my friends are all that available right now, but some of the people here have been very helpful. Maybe they'd help you too?
Also, there's a version of spellcheck right here on the forum. Just look for red underlines before you post.
Indeed, there are a number of people of here at the forums who have offered to check over your statblock, if you PM it to them.
Assuming that if you are posting to a message board you have access to spelling/dictionaries (something at least Nooks have) and other Internet resources as well as to people is not unreasonable. And while I've not used the Nook interface, Pamela Elizabeth is right in at least any format I've used these boards, spellcheck is active on all of them, even my piddly little Android. Googling around, it also looks like there are some apps for Nook that do come with a spellcheck feature, so that is no excuse. Most libraries also have computers with Internet access as well as programs like Word which have spell and grammar check.
Assuming most people have access to friends, or at least a cordial associate, is also frankly not unreasonable. I am sorry for whatever circumstances you're in and I didn't mean to rub a sore spot, GM DarkLightHitomi, but they're highly unusual.
But again, this is a virtual room full of people offering help, so saying you have no access to people is entirely incorrect.
Nooks dont have spellchheck, and I dont have friends (not anymore anyway). So Im stuck with only proofreading, though Im not infallible.
I just love how everyone assumes that everyone has all these wonderful things accessable. Granted its a bigger problem on rpol, but still, its fascinating how rarely people consider the possibility that certain tools are not universally available.
I agree with DeathQuaker. I don't think it's unreasonable for a person to assume that an individual capable of accessing the Internet, discussing on forums, and entering a tabletop RPG contest would have access to spellcheck and a simple word processor. If you have a nook, you should be able to purchase a bluetooth keyboard, get a wordprocessor off of Google Play, and get the Chrome browser, which has automatic spellcheck. If not, places like public libraries offer computers for public use.
I sympathize with your circumstances, but sitting around complaining that you don't have the same luxuries as others is not a Superstar attitude. The tools are out there! Go get them! There's plenty of people here more than willing to help you.
| 5 people marked this as a favorite. |
I'll tell you straight up, I'll go for the better item over the better formatting, every single time. I don't even debate it.
And I vote a lot. :-)
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Now that's where the question gets interesting to me. I know what I think is a good designer. I try to vote with that in mind (I also vote a lot) but do I really know what a good designer is? Probably not compared to the judges.
A boring item with a perfectly formatted stat block is still boring. When it comes to mechanics, I'll leave that consideration for last unless the formatting is so bad that, as DQ said, it interferes with actually understanding the item.
As the judges have said before: you can teach a writer the proper format, but you can't teach talent.
A boring item with a perfectly formatted stat block is still boring. When it comes to mechanics, I'll leave that consideration for last unless the formatting is so bad that, as DQ said, it interferes with actually understanding the item.
As the judges have said before: you can teach a writer the proper format, but you can't teach talent.
To me it's all about degrees of perfection/being written well, and also the context of what you're comparing it to.
A boring item formatted perfectly up against a zip-zowee item with a handful of mechanical flaws: the zip-zowee will win, of course.
Two good items, where one is better formatted than the other, the better formatted one will win (because I am then picking between talent AND a careful writer, and talent AND someone who is less careful, and therefore the difference is the care they've taken to perfect the entry).
A maybe-zip-zowee item that is barely readable versus a decent item that is written with clear literacy, I may well choose the decent item I am sure I understand. However, if the latter item is just awful, then and I'll go with the first.
If you have fantastic ideas but are incapable of expressing them coherently, to me that is no better than being a technical writing master who has no creativity. You have to be capable of both. It is after all a writing contest. If you can't write, that's a major flaw.
Especially as in some cases you can't always teach technical skills either. Depends on the individual, and how much time the editor's got to work with the writer. I've noticed especially in the writing world there are a number of egos large enough they are unable to accept even minor critique such as "you splice your commas a lot," let alone more important advice on technical mastery.
|
Marathon Voter Season 7
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Nooks dont have spellchheck, and I dont have friends (not anymore anyway). So Im stuck with only proofreading, though Im not infallible.
I just love how everyone assumes that everyone has all these wonderful things accessable. Granted its a bigger problem on rpol, but still, its fascinating how rarely people consider the possibility that certain tools are not universally available.
I don't want to beat a dead horse, as others have responded to the points raised here, and offered some good advice as well. However, I feel that it is worth mentioning that the "goal" of this competition is becoming a freelancer. If you do not have access to spellcheck, or other tools that will help you fine-tune any and all future submissions (for the competition or professionally), the later rounds are going to be even more difficult for you.
I'm not saying that it's impossible. I'm saying that later rounds have higher word counts, and rounds 3 & 4 both require writing descriptions of reasonable length. Moreover, the ultimate prize is going to be writing a full-length adventure. The more you write, the more you will need to edit and refine, and that can be hard to do without some of the tools that someone else might take for granted. It will be up to you and you alone to overcome those hurdles.
It frustrates me that I always notice the minor error in my item right after submission, despite a day full of second-guessing and rewording.
C'est la vie!
| 4 people marked this as a favorite. |
It frustrates me that I always notice the minor error in my item right after submission, despite a day full of second-guessing and rewording.
C'est la vie!
It's the rewording that gets you, because you know what you mean so you miss where your rephrasing is missing a comma or something.
If you have time left, sitting on it for 24 hours (without making changes) and then re-reading it is a good way to catch these errors. As is showing it to a friend who hasn't seen any version of it before. A quicker method that sometimes works is reading your text back to yourself out loud. That slows you down enough, and makes you send the words through a different part of your brain, to sometimes read the words that are actually there, not the ones you think are there.
But yeah, there's nothing that's foolproof. There's a saying that an artist's favorite work is always the thing he's currently working on, and his most hated is the one he just finished.
I'll especially second the "read out loud" part. That can really help, amazingly more than one might realize. Same goes for most forms of writing--when I was a journalist, I used to quickly "mouth" through an article on a tight deadline to at least be sure it made sense and read well before I sent it off to the copy editors (to spare them time having to ask me clarifying questions later).
But yeah, there's nothing that's foolproof. There's a saying that an artist's favorite work is always the thing he's currently working on, and his most hated is the one he just finished.
Don't I know it. Thanks for the advice! However, it was (from my perspective) an extremely minor error, so aside from the requisite forehead-slapping I'm not going to let it discourage me too much.
I try to vote for the mojo item.
If you make me want the item, I will forgive template issues, and I will forgive wording (mine is often clumsy at times, so I can't hold you to a light that I can't hold myself to).
I understand that we aren't professionals and that we have much to learn about word craft, so I won't hold those sorts of things against you. They only really come into the vote if I have two items that match in every other respect of design, coolness, etc.
It has to be about originality, coolness, desire-ability. Game balance is important too but even that is something that can be taught and fixed.
So your task with your items is simple in statement, tricky in execution to get my votes.
Be original + wow me.
First, my point was about people making assumptions, not so much about my issues,, which were used for illustration. (And they were bugging at the time)
Second, my hope is to have laptop in a month or so, if I actually make it to the next round, this becomes more then hoping. Though, my nook will probably still be used for day to day checking an reading.
Third, red squigglies in a web page entry form come from the browser you are using, not the web page itself.
Fourth, google play and all associated apps are not available on the original first edition nook, only the later versions. Guess which I one I have.
Fifth, I can always "hire" my sister as an editor if I really need to. She is a much better writer then me.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
If you haven't already tried, get your sister to enter!
Dedicated Voter Season 6, Star Voter Season 7
|
I find it amusing to look at a thread like this. Given the number of minor errors of this type and worse that make it through editing cycles to a final product, I find it interesting that such minor errors from non- professional writers should be weighed so heavily. Yeah it's a nuisance for sure but your judging a superstar who will ultimately work with editors and proofreaders in order to create interesting ideas.
| 6 people marked this as a favorite. |
I find it amusing to look at a thread like this. Given the number of minor errors of this type and worse that make it through editing cycles to a final product, I find it interesting that such minor errors from non- professional writers should be weighed so heavily. Yeah it's a nuisance for sure but your judging a superstar who will ultimately work with editors and proofreaders in order to create interesting ideas.
I couldn't disagree more. It's not Superstar to hand over a submission which is rife with errors. Work like that is just going to make the job of Paizo's editors and developers that much harder. And, when people do that, they stop receiving new opportunities to write for a publisher like Paizo. Why? Because Paizo's staff would much rather work with someone who's professional enough to follow directions, apply some self-editing, and proofread their work before turning over a sloppy assignment. And, if you're not willing to do that, there are plenty of others out there who are capable of that level of professionalism in their work. And Paizo would much rather work with them. Anyone would.
Instead, it's a lazy designer who handwaves such errors and says someone else will clean up after them. What's more, we're talking about your calling card or resume for gaining entry into the coolest RPG design contest on the planet...not a 64-page, 40,000-word book with multiple authors. If you're incapable of focusing in on a single, 300-word task to make sure you put as much professional polish on it as possible, you're clearly not Superstar-worthy in my book. You might be a capable designer on some tasks, and even go on to become published in other venues. But you're not worthy of the Superstar title if you don't come at it with a professional attitude...even if you're currently a non-professional. In other words, be what you wish to become. Don't make excuses because you haven't reached that plateau yet and then slough off shoddy work for someone else to clean up. And certainly don't do that in the submission you want to present to the voters and judges as an example of the highest quality work you're capable of...especially when you're literally given months in which to work on it.
That said, minor errors of this kind are rarely the primary exclusion criteria for not making it into the contest. It's not the first thing the judges assess. And it usually isn't even the second thing the judges assess. Unless you royally screw up and don't even follow the template at all, they're going to be reviewing the creativity of your idea, the soundness of your mechanics, and your overall writing ability ahead of that. But, once all those things are equal...and, they usually are when it comes down to examining the last few items/designers to elevate into the Top 32...your professional polish (or lack thereof) can become the deal-breaker that leaves you on the outside looking in, waiting for your next opportunity the following year.
So, I don't find it amusing at all. And I think it's a serious mistake to consider it such.
But that's just my two cents,
--Neil
| 2 people marked this as a favorite. |
Try to remember that style guides can be taught. If someone misses a capital letter or a comma or some of these other nitpicks, but they have a really cool item...let the mojo win. I'm not saying that perfection isn't important, but if you can tell the best effort has been made to present the item in the proper format and the item is good enough then vote it up. This isn't Americas Best Editor, it's about finding a designer. True a good designer works hard to make their editors life easier and will take all the advice from these forums to use italics correctly, and to use commas accurately, and to ABC the order of spells listed, but if a good item has a minor format flaw remember that Amateurs are competing to become Professionals and if they have the stuff they can be taught the formatting. I guess I am saying designers need to work hard to present their items as perfectly as they can, but as voters we should allow for a little bit of slack and let design rule the day.
All that said, I actually agree with Andrew's perspective here, as well. There's no harm in up-voting an item with small mistakes in formatting and template use. The contest has a long track record of that. Since you'll (presumably) be comparing two items at a time again like last year, you should be able to elevate more on idea/mojo/creativity in most instances. But, when you've got two that come out equally strong, I don't think there's any issue with turning to the professional polish as a tiebreaker. And that's why everyone should strive for professionalism in their work. Always.
And that is why I made the minor conventions thread.
|
RPG Superstar 2015
,
Marathon Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Marathon Voter Season 8, Star Voter Season 9
aka mamaursula
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Nooks dont have spellchheck, and I dont have friends (not anymore anyway). So Im stuck with only proofreading, though Im not infallible.
I just love how everyone assumes that everyone has all these wonderful things accessable. Granted its a bigger problem on rpol, but still, its fascinating how rarely people consider the possibility that certain tools are not universally available.
While I realize we are down to the wire, please do not let this be a reason to not have someone proof read. I am happy to proof read for anyone. Really and truly.
While correct formatting is important, I think whether or not somebody marked his or her thousands place with a comma, or capitalized a feat name should probably be about the last thing you use to determine if the item is good or not.... useful only tie breaker situations when the other object is being compared to is just as good in every other way, but lacks those minor errors.