Announcing . . . THE PBM REPORT! From: kmgraphiks@aol.com (KMGraphiks) Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 00:00:00 +0000 =========================== Announcing a New PBM Publication! Greetings everyone! This is Ken Mitchell, lately the designer/production dept. of the now defunct American Flagship magazine. Ever since AF's demise (thanks, Bob!) I've felt there is a void in the PBM industry that is just crying to be filled. The most popular sections of Flagship have always been those that had short news articles, playtest announcements and player comments. The idea of a newsletter devoted to these type of articles seemed ideal. So here I am, announcing that newsletter...THE PBM REPORT. =========================== THE PBM REPORT An Overview THE PBM REPORT is a bi-monthly, 8-10 page newsletter designed to keep play-by-mail gamers informed of major (and minor) events in our hobby. It will specialize in short news articles and reviews, but it will also feature a number of other floating departments... PBM-News What's new in the play-by-mail industry PBM-Reviews Short evaluations of currently run games PBM-Playtests Announcements and progress reports of games under development PBM-Updates Follow-ups on previously published articles PBM-Online PBM happenings on the Web, AOL, CompuServe, etc. PBM-GUI GUI games like VGA Planets!, Stars!, and also PBM games with optional GUIs PBM-Preferences Readers sound off on games,companies, rules and policies PBM-Strategies Tips for doing well in various games from players and moderators PBM-Classifieds Small PBM-related text ads PBM-Flashbacks Nostalgic remembrances from the rich past of play-by-mail PBM-Mysteries Whatever happened to... companies, games, players And more! To make the most of a small format I've limited the ad space in each issue, with no ad bigger than a quarter page. The newsletter is designed to have an attractive, easy-to-read format, but I'm not trying to compete against established publications like Paper Mayhem. If you want in-depth reviews, diaries, fiction and moderator reports you'll still need a PBM magazine. There have been many publications that have appeared to great fanfare and then fizzled. What makes THE PBM REPORT any different? The 4 Ps... Price ----- A subscription is $15 for 6 issues. That's $2.50 an issue, less than a single turn fee in most play-by-mail games. Professionalism --------------- I've run my own Graphic Design/Desktop Publishing company for over 10 years. I've played games by mail for nearly as long, and in that time I've designed ads, rulebooks, and maps for many different PBM companies. I compose 8 newsletters every month for my commercial clients. I know how it's done. Players ------- I'm not looking for 'established' reviewers. I'm looking for players who will make THE PBM REPORT truly a player's newsletter, with down-to-earth articles about what's really going on in the hobby written by people like yourself. The kind of stuff that I'd want to read in a play-by-mail publication. And the fourth P? Well, it's... Profit ------ THE PBM REPORT will be around for the long haul because my costs are low and my goals are reasonable. I'll make a small profit and avoid the biggest pitfall of any enterprise: the need for the owner to subsidize it with his personal funds. =========================== I plan to send a free 4-page sample issue of THE PBM REPORT to over 1000 play-by-mail gamers in the middle of June 1997. This smaller version of the newsletter will allow gamers to check out the format and the content before investing $15 in a six-issue subscription. If you're interested in receiving this sample issue, please send me your postal address. More imporant, if you're interested in writing for the sample issue (limited space left), or for following issues, please submit something. Anything from a short blurb (50 words) to a full article (500 words) is welcome and will earn you free issues (and fame) if published. Artwork, cartoons and photographs are also welcome if you send a self-addressed, stamped envelope for their return. See you all in print! Ken Mitchell Ken Mitchell Graphics THE PBM REPORT KMGraphiks@aol.com Referenced By Up