Café de Nuit

So? What do you believe?
I believe that QtR should continue as it is, and that this time was just bad luck and timing, not something that we should cry about.

For now, I'm going to say that it is probably better (from my perspective) that they be released on a longer schedule.

As I've said elsewhere, I had several ideas for issue 12, but not the time to prepare them properly. If there is another issue though, I'm going to make every effort to include something.

First, I would like to thank everyone for their interest and concern about the future of the Quoth the Raven netzine series. It is nice to see that their is enough interest among the on-line community to even start a thread and poll on this topic.

Second, as much as it is nice to see people voting to keep the series around, it would be much more beneficial for people to post their thoughts and comments on this thread. We can see that people have an interest in keeping the netzine going, but it is easy to vote "yes" for this. It is much more informative to have everyone provide their rationales for keeping (or stopping) the series.

Please keep this in mind as you read and cast your votes, since your responses may sway the final decision.

Jason
Master of Illusion
Fraternity of Shadows

Id like to see the QtR stay as it is. Seems like was just one those things that happened this time. Maybe give it a longer a period in between editions is actually sounding better and better to me. I really dont want to see it go away as it is one of the best reads .

Maraudar

I don't see a problem with the Quoth The Raven right about now. The reason I voted for slowing them down is the nostalgia over the BoS times. When there were released only once a year, each netbook was seen as a big event in the RL community, and took as such. I find myself taking the E-Zine entirely too much for granted lately.

One thing that bugs me a little is the imposition of theme. I know its not a real problem, as the zine accepts articles outside the theme, but it still feels like a restraint to your creativity. Also, articles that don't deal with the theme of the issue get somewhat less attention in the reviews. In the worst of cases you find yourself ignoring an issue that deals with a theme you're not interested in. Non-themed issues feel like you are free to fish them for whatever that suits your needs.

I agree that tight themes tend to shackle your imagination. I never got the chance to submit anything, but i'm looking forward to it with great pleasure since I have enough free time at my hands right now. So, I chose the third option at the poll.

If they were to cancel the netzine entirely where would the fans go to send out there own Ravenloft ideas?

Slow it down if you want more articles per issue but don't cancel. That would just hurt Ravenloft.

And no one wants to hurt Ravenloft (besides Azalin).

One thing about QtR is that it is really marvellous, by far the best web mag I've come to read for a rpg.
On the other hand, there are so many RL articles out there 8including the old Kargatane books), that it is difficult to include the worthy stuff in long-time games, as much as one may enjoy reading the material.

Maybe a slower procedure would make people appreciate the older material more...

Please keep the ideas and suggestions coming, but I wanted to briefly address a couple of comments so far. These answers are not meant to be inclusive or final, but I wanted everyone to know our thoughts as you review things...

Igor the Henchman wrote:When there were released only once a year, each netbook was seen as a big event in the RL community, and took as such. I find myself taking the E-Zine entirely too much for granted lately.

This is an excellent thing to know. When Quoth the Raven was originally created, we were releasing it on a bimonthly basis due to the lack of other projects (i.e., a lot of people complained about having to wait a year to receive materials). We've slowed this down from six issues to only four, but we might be better off going back to only one or two issues a year.

sabbattack wrote:I agree that tight themes tend to shackle your imagination.

Again, this is a good point to know. Themes were introduced to help produce creative juices and bring a unifying theme to the netzine. While we certainly allow any type of Ravenloft article to be included, there might be a benefit to removing the concept of theme and merely accept whatever comes to someone's mind.

Coan wrote:If they were to cancel the netzine entirely where would the fans go to send out there own Ravenloft ideas?

This is a very good questions, and I don't have a definitive answer at this moment. However, please keep in mind that even if the Fraternity of Shadows does decide to cancel Quoth the Raven, we would intend on still having other projects being produced (for example, an annual release of the Undead Sea Scrolls).

I must confess that I wonder a bit about your self-criticism. QtR 11 was the best issue in the entire series so far, IMO.

So, what's the exact problem?

Issue 11 was a real trial for some of us in the Frat. We had a lot of good articles, but there was a lot of tinkering and tweaking to do - and a busy life made things difficult.
Issue 12 has been considerably more difficult. We recieved few submissions (on the plus side, the article tally has risen to 6!).

Plus there's been less fan critique than we assumed there'd be - no fault of the audiance, of course, but we were depending on the regenerative power of discussion. The reader involvement just never materialized in volume we hoped it would - so the energy started to disipate.

As I said, don't do the TSR error... you have supplied us with excellent material, in part, much better than the official material, IMO, but as a gamer that only plays one or two time s a month, I personally must say that I have far more material than I can use at the moment.

While I am still checking out USS 03, I won't find the time to focus on never books. Always a matter of printing, too.

What I would really welcome would be theme-related compilations of older articles and, as the S&S materials that were announced don't sound convincing, maybe some more netbooks like your new CotN project...

Coan wrote:If they were to cancel the netzine entirely where would the fans go to send out there own Ravenloft ideas?

Slow it down if you want more articles per issue but don't cancel. That would just hurt Ravenloft.

And no one wants to hurt Ravenloft (besides Azalin).

So that is his new plan!

I, for one, think it would be a real shame if such an excellent series as Quoth The Raven came to an end.

Not since the Kargatane Book Of S_ netbooks has there been such a brilliant series of Ravenloft netbooks.

Desdichado wrote:While I am still checking out USS 03, I won't find the time to focus on never books. Always a matter of printing, too.

*Tries to remember how many articles he had in USS 2003....*

I hope you enjoy that book and it is never to late to leave feedback if you have any. Just post it in this forum if you feel the need to share any of your thoughts and comments