Remember "Maiden of Pain"?

Napftor

Explorer
I just finished crafting the "perfect" (cough, cough) outline for my submission to WotC's open call. I decided to see if anyone else had entered. I realize that the deadline looms close and many are probably finished and have their stuff submitted already. I work better under pressure though. :D

So who else decided to give it a go? Good luck to all!
 

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I also have sent mine in, but today I read about a non-disclosure agreement on the Forgotten Realms board at WOTC. From what is being said, your submission will not be looked at without the NDA. I looked through the announcement here and the one when it was originally posted, and have not found anything about it.
Apparently, there is one you can download from gamingreport.com for the Maiden of Pain submission.
Has anyone else heard anything about this?
 
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kaiscomet said:
I also have sent mine in, but today I read about a non-disclosure agreement on the Forgotten Realms board at WOTC. From what is being said, your submission will not be looked at without the NDA. I looked through the announcement here and the one when it was originally posted, and have not found anything about it.
Apparently, there is one you can download from gamingreport.com for the Maiden of Pain submission.
Has anyone else heard anything about this?


I have heard nothing about an NDA. I'm going by the original subission guidelines, which as you say does not indicate requiring one.
 

This was posted a couple of weeks ago. The green text is what was added:


Updated Guidelines for WotC Novel Submissions
Posted by: Morrus

WotC have sent along updated guidelines for their Maiden of Pain novel submission. The updated version has the words no drow of any kind for any reason, even in “cameos,” so I assume that a lot of people sent in submissions with Drizzt Do'Urden popping up for no apparent reason. WotC have also sent along an agreement which must be sent to them with your submission.


Guidelines for Novel Proposals Maiden of Pain
Wizards of the Coast is seeking proposals for one book in the FORGOTTEN REALMS® novel line. Please read these guidelines very carefully before submitting. Submissions that do not conform to the guidelines will not be considered. This is an "open call" and we expect a large number of submissions.

The book for which we're accepting proposals is Maiden of Pain, part of The Priests, a new series of stand-alone FORGOTTEN REALMS novels that focus on characters who are-you guessed it-priests. As such, the primary protagonist must be a priest or priestess, preferably of Loviatar (a.k.a. the Maiden of Pain). If the protagonist doesn't serve the Maiden of Pain, the principal villain had better do so.

Your essential references are the 3rd Edition FORGOTTEN REALMs Campaign Setting, and Faiths & Pantheons-study them well. Stories must grow organically from the setting. Please don't try to force a "generic" fantasy story in, and certainly don't ask us to do it for you. Learn the setting-as much as you can in the time allowed, anyway. Readers of the FORGOTTEN REALMS novel line are very particular about the world's continuity, and so are we.

Your story should be set in one of three locations in the Realms:

Anywhere in the realm of Sembia except the city of Selgaunt. Please do not use characters from the Sembia novel series or wander too far into Cormyr or the Dalelands.
Anywhere in Thay except the Thaymount. Please leave Szass Tam out of it.
The city of Luthcheq in the realm of Chessenta. Please don't wander east into Unther or west into Chondath.
The list is in no particular order, so choose the location that most strikes your fancy, but stories set anywhere outside one of these three locations will not be considered.

You will have a much better shot at the book if you avoid the following elements:

Avoid these gods: Lolth (or any other drow god), Mask, Cyric, Shar, Mystra, Umberlee, and Lurue-and their worshipers.
Avoid these monsters: aboleths, beholders, doppelgangers, dracoliches, dragons, giants, liches, mind flayers, orcs, vampires, and yuan-ti.
Avoid the following character archetypes: alchemists, any other author's signature characters (Drizzt, Elminster, etc.), anyone who fights with two swords, apprentice/inexperienced wizards, drow of any kind for any reason, even in "cameos," dwarves or gnomes for comedic effect, sorcerers, Asian/Oriental Adventures/Kara-Turan characters. NOTE: If you use one of the "iconic" characters that have game stats in the FRCS, they cannot be killed or permanently altered.
Please don't use any of these overused or banned themes/plots: an ancient evil has been awakened after centuries of sleep/death/undeath, kid/reluctant hero/Bilbo Baggins gets caught up in an adventure against his will, space travel, "the artifact hunt," time travel, or a monster (especially non-humanoids) as the principal POV character.
Considering the nature of the goddess in question, this book will probably end up being a bit more "dark" than the average FORGOTTEN REALMS sword & sorcery adventure, but please keep in mind a basic "PG-13" level of violence, gore, and sex.

All proposals must be typed, on one side of plain white paper, with one-inch margins all around, and set in type no smaller than 10-point. Your package must include:

a ten-page, double-spaced writing sample: a scene from your version of Maiden of Pain.
a one-page, single-spaced story synopsis that tells us the whole story: beginning, middle, and end. Don't write cover or ad copy-tell us the story, and be specific about locations, character types, monsters, etc.
a one-page cover letter that tells us anything about you that you think we might need to know.
a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
Please put your name and contact info. on the letter, the synopsis, and the sample. Pay close attention to spelling, grammar, punctuation, and presentation.

The book itself will be 90,000 words in length, with a first draft due somewhere in the neighborhood of June or July of 2004. Please be realistic about your ability to do the writing. We're very deadline-driven here, and there's rarely any room for authors to run late. It's not a bad idea to read over our standard submission guidelines at wizards.com.

We will be accepting proposals through the end of the business day on July 1, 2003. Any proposals received after that date will not be read. Any proposal longer than a one-page synopsis/10-page sample will not be read. Proposals not specific to the novel Maiden of Pain, will not be read. We will only read hardcopy submissions sent by mail. Please do not email us. Flooding us with submissions will not help-please send us only your best proposal.

Though only one proposal will be chosen for Maiden of Pain, we will be looking at all of these as writing samples with other opportunities in mind. This is your chance to bring your talents to our attention, and we are known as a publisher that works with talented, unpublished authors. We've had the pleasure of launching a number of writing careers, and would like to launch some more.

Please include a signed copy of the legal agreement linked here . No submissions will be accepted that are not accompanied by a signed copy of this agreement. If you have already submitted a proposal, please download and sign a copy of the agreement and send it to us with a short cover letter.

Please address proposals to:

Maiden of Pain
c/o Book Publishing
Wizards of the Coast
P.O. Box 707
Renton, WA 98057-0707

GOOD LUCK!


Hope this helps. I'm trying to finish my submission in the midst of three courses to renew my teaching certification.
 
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Ya know, I tried. I tried my darndest. I went to Borders and leafed through the FRCS... I hunted on the Web. I constructed a story that was actually going to have, you know, characters in it and stuff. It just wasn't happening.

Maybe when it comes out, I'll be banging my head in frustration. Heck, I've got pro publications. It could have been a good career move for me. But it just felt stupid.

No offense intended to those who submitted stuff. I didn't say that it WAS stupid, just that everything I wrote felt stupid, felt like I was pandering to folks who wanted the PG-13 version of a latex bondage website.
 

:eek:

Wow! Thanks, burningman. I don't know how the hell I missed that. Fortunately, my submission is in the review process so I didn't quite send it yet. Thanks again!
 

Just received official reply from WotC about the need for the submission agreement.

After we started the search, our legal department has asked that we get an agreement signed by anyone who submits a proposal. Our website should be updated soon to reflect this change. If you have already sent a proposal, please send a printed copy of the agreement with your signature to the same address you sent your proposal. Attached is the agreement if you don't already have it.

**Please quote this e-mail in any reply.**
******************************************************************
Darrin
Wizards of the Coast - Customer Service
Website: http://www.wizards.com
Game Support Phone: 1-800-324-6496
Monday through Friday, 9 AM - 7 PM PST
Corporate Phone: (425) 226-6500
 

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