Do you live and breathe massively multiplayer online games? Can you chart the history of your game characters all the way back to Ultima Online? Is the list of betas you've participated in enough to wallpaper a small room? Then you may just have what it makes to join us and make some money doing something you love -- writing about games. The Joystiq network is looking for some talented writers with an interest in those funny "massively multiplayer online" games to add to the team. Have we got your interest yet? Then keep reading for complete application instructions!Please read all instructions before submitting your application. Incomplete applications will be printed out and used for paper airplane races -- because if you can't follow instructions now, there's nothing to make us think you'll be able to follow instructions if we contract you to write for us.
First off, what we're looking for:
- Bloggers willing to commit to writing at least 50 posts a month. (Not sure how much work 50 posts a month is? Take a look at an average-length post on this site. Now multiply that by 50.)
- Columnists willing to write weekly columns between 500 and 1000 words.
- A passion for massively multiplayer games. You don't have to play every game that's been made, but you should have a solid base of knowledge about your favorite game.
- Solid writing ability. Basic spelling and grammar are required -- and the ability to form words without any numbers in them a major plus. Insider tip: we're going to assume that the writing in your application is an example of the best writing you're capable of. Once we see a spelling mistake, grammatical error, or typo, we usually stop reading.
- Prolificacy! We want people who can commit to writing on a regular basis.
- Possess a computer and a reliable Internet connection. If you're reading this, that's an important first step!
- Have the software and knowledge to create and manipulate photos and screenshots. (You'll need to be able to resize images, but you're welcome to do fancier stuff if you feel like it.)
- Know basic HTML. (Our CMS is all WYSIWYG, but sometimes a bit of additional knowledge helps.)
- Are eligible to work wherever you're writing from. We can, and often do, contract bloggers from outside the US. The only caveat is that people outside of the US must have a bank account and be able to accept payments by wire transfer.
- Are reachable outside of your game world -- via e-mail, IM, Skype, phone, etc.
- Absolutely no attachments -- please include everything in the body of your message.
- Your full name and whether you're applying as a blogger or a columnist in the subject line. I.e. "John Doe -- blogger" or "John Doe -- columnist."
- Your city and state. (If outside of the US, include country as well.)
- Your contact information, including email address and any instant messenger addresses.
- Availability information -- when and how often you think you'll be able to post.
- An explanation of why you think you'd make a good Joystiq network writer.
- Some information about your gaming background, including games you've played in the past and games you're currently playing. For current games, please include current characters, classes, and levels. (We don't need you to list every alt, but we want to know exactly where your gaming experience comes from.)
- A list of MMOs you're planning on playing at launch.
- A list of your top three MMOs, past, present, or future.
- Three sample posts about your MMO (or MMOs) of choice, in the style of a typical Joystiq post.
- A proposed theme for your column.
- Ten sample topics you might explore. (if you can't think of ten sample topics, you might want to re-consider your theme.)
- A sample first column of around 500 words. (Even if you're hoping to write longer pieces, 500 words represents the minimum length we're looking for columns and is enough to give us a feel for your writing ability. We get many applications -- please do not write a novel.)
