Writing for Goblin Crafted
Goblin Crafted is looking for new writers with a passion for role-playing games; this page explains the details.
Who Can Write For GoblinCrafted.com?
Anyone ... more writers means more recommendations! Our only requirements are that you:
- are familiar with the game(s) you're recommending
- write using your best/most professional English
- cam accept feedback from our editorial team
What if I Have Game Industry Ties?
Anyone can write a recommendation, even the game's author (who knows it better)? However, you must write it as objectively as possible, and that means disclosing any potential conflicts of interest up front.
How is a "Recommendation" Different From a "Review"?
Reviews are an incredibly helpful way to learn about a game, but they are inherently subjective: they focus on the reviewer's own opinion. Like reviews our recommendations aim to help people find a new favorite game, but we instead try to do it more objectively, like Wikipedia. In a sense, a recommendation is a sort of "meta review".
Our recommendations generally start with an objective report of what the game is, and then they offer a similarly objective report of how the game has been received by others. Of course, recommending games always has a subjective element, but our goal is always to try and be as objective as possible.
How Can I Submit a Recommendation?
First, familiarize yourself with at least a few of our existing recommendations for that genre. Part of providing a good recommendation is being able to explain what RPG A offers that RPGs B, C, and D don't ... but if you don't know what B, C, and D offer, you can't do that.
Next, review our basic recommendation format, below. After that, you're ready to write the recommendation, using an online editor (we recommend Google Docs). Once you have the recommendation ready, use the site's feedback link in the upper-right corner to provide the link to it. Be sure to share the document with anyone who has that link, so that we can access it.
A Goblin Crafted editor will review your submission as soon as possible, and provide feedback. Please be prepared for an open to feedback: the goal is to produce the best recommendation possible.
Once all feedback has been incorporated, the editor will add the recommendation to the site, and you'll officially be a Goblin Crafted contributor!
Do You Need Any Games in Particular?
We welcome recommendations for any games that fit a category on our front page! However, we do have some games that are already on the site, and just need a recommandation (and/or rules summary) written, and a list of them can be found at our help wanted page.
Writing Guidelines
Recommendation Format
Recommendations on Goblin Crafted follow the same basic format: Introduction, Rules Summary, and Conclusion. The rules section itself is further broken up into three sub-sections: Character Creation, Basic Mechanics, and Combat.
Introduction
This section should introduce the RPG. This section typically mentions how new the RPG is, who it's intended audience is, and why fans of the game enjoy it (eg. any "gimmicks" it has). For RPGs that include a setting, this section also introduces that setting.
Rules: Character Creation
This section should explain how to create a character in the RPG. It's important to note that you don't have to include every last detail of character creation. Instead, you simply want to give the reader a sense of what it's like to create a character using that system.
Rules: Core Mechanics
This section should explain how basic "success checks" (eg. stat checks, skill checks, etc.) work in the RPG. If the RPG includes other unique core mechanics, such as a sanity mechanics in a horror game, this is also a good place to mention it.
Rules: Combat
This section should explain how combat works in the RPG, including how intiative is determined, whether players act together or separately, and how many/what type of actions a character can take. It should also explain how to attack in the RPG, and how the resulting injuries are handled.
Conclusion
This section should summarize what the RPG offers, and "sell" the reader on it by mentioning useful information, such as good online ratings, awards won, or free versions of the RPG that can be downloaded.
Bonus: Provide Links
Although it's not required, we'd appreciate it if you could include relevant links for the game. It would be ideal if you could provide the game's RPG Geek link (both for the "item" or product, and for the "rpg" or system). It would also help if you could provide links to the game on the following sites (if they sell it): Amazon, Drive Thru RPG, Ebay, Itch.io, Noble Knight.