DDDDD ZZZZZZ // D D AAAA RRR GGGG OOOO NN N Z I NN N EEEE || D D A A R R G O O N N N Z I N N N E || -=========================================================+|) D D AAAA RRR G GG O O N N N Z I N N N E || DDDDD A A R R GGGG OOOO N NN ZZZZZZ I N NN EEEE || \\ \ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- Readers' Frequently Asked Questions -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Note: This file was last updated 12/26/1998. Recent changes are noted by a bar '|' in column 1.) What is DargonZine? DargonZine is an electronic magazine (ISSN 1080-9910) that prints original fantasy fiction by aspiring Internet writers. It is the publication vehicle of the Dargon Project, described below. It only prints Dargon-related stories. DargonZine is the successor of FSFnet, which was founded in 1984 and was the Dargon Project's original magazine. Between FSFnet and DargonZine, it is the longest running electronic magazine on the Internet. What is the Dargon Project? The Dargon Project is a collaborative project, where many authors write in a common milieu, sharing settings and characters. Stories take place in a medieval fantasy world that is predominantly human, at a late medieval technology level, and where magic is relatively rare. The project was founded in 1985 as a way for aspiring fantasy writers on the Internet to meet and become better writers through mutual contact and collaboration as well as contact with a live readership via the Internet. See below for details if you are interested in joining the project as a contributing writer. What is Dargon? The Duchy of Dargon is a typically small, out of the way holding, situated in the extreme northwest corner of the Kingdom of Baranur. It is separated from the rest of the kingdom by a vast wood and a range of hills, and is ruled by the young Lord Clifton Dargon. Dargon Keep stands on a hill overlooking the town and port of Dargon, which lie at the mouth of the River Coldwell. The port is Dargon's only link to the more populated south, and the town is an active and busy place. Adventure can be found both within the city's walls and in the surrounding wildlands. | Maps, a glossary, and a more detailed description of the milieu | can be found on the "About Dargon" page on our Web site at | . How can I subscribe to DargonZine? Subscriptions to DargonZine are free of charge. If you wish to have issues sent directly to you via electronic mail, you should | fill out the online subscription form at | or send an email | request to with your full name and email | address. If you prefer to download issues from the Web site, the rec.mag.dargon newsgroup (where issues are posted as they come out), or the various archives and FTP sites (see the "Back Issues" section, below), we offer a "notification subscription", whereby you will be sent a brief email notification each time an issue is published. That way, you won't need to periodically scan the archive site to determine that a new issue has been made available. If you would like a notification subscription, please clearly state that in your subscription request. Both types of subscriptions may be requested online via the | online subscription form. Is there a DargonZine site on the World Wide Web? Yes! You can reach us at the URL: | This site includes documents or pointers to all the Dargon-related resources you might need, including current and | back issues, a collection of maps, author bios, an online glossary, and much more! If you read DargonZine via the Web or an archive site, we'd still like to include you as a "notification only" subscriber (see the "Subscriptions" section, above). What if I don't have network access? | At the present time we can only directly support readers who can | exchange email messages with the Internet. Relatively low-cost | network access can be obtained through many online services. What's this Dargon-L I heard about? Dargon-L is the forum the Dargon Project writers use for planning, kicking around story ideas, and critiquing works in progress. Only contributing writers may subscribe to Dargon-L. (see "How can I submit stories to DargonZine?", below). How can I obtain back issues of DargonZine or FSFnet? The easiest way is to start at the DargonZine Back Issues Web | page, at , but you can | also access them directly via the following methods. Back issues of both FSFnet and DargonZine are available online via anonymous ftp. Ftp to ftp.shore.net and look in the /members/dargon/back_ish directory. In addition, the Etext Archive maintain a collection of FSFnet and DargonZine issues in GNU Zip format. Ftp to ftp.etext.org and look in the pub/Zines/FSFNet and pub/Zines/DargonZine directories. AOL users can find back issues via the following: Keyword PDA Mac users select "Software Libraries" *All* users then select "Palmtop Paperbacks" The path from there is: Ezine Libraries->Science Fiction/Fantasy->Dargon-Zine Delphi users can find the FAQ and recent issues in the Fanzines database of the Science Fiction & Fantasy SIG. The Internet archive site for DargonZine is available on the Internet Gopher menu in the SF&F SIG. Look under the Fantasy Sites, Newsgroups and Homepages selection. The Dargon Project newsgroup is also on the Usenet Reader menu in the SF&F SIG. How often do issues come out? | Issues are distributed irregularly. There are usually 8 to 12 issues per year. Issues are usually four to eight weeks apart. How large are typical issues? Issues usually are between 1000 and 2000 lines (75-100k). Users | of some systems (notably juno.com) may find that they are unable | to receive issues due to arbitrary file size limits on their | systems. In that case, we recommend that you obtain a | "notification-only" subscription and retrieve issues via FTP or | the Web. How can I send comments or feedback to the writers? Comments and feedback are welcome, and can be sent to the editor | or directly to the individual authors (email addresses usually | accompany stories, and can also be found on the Web site). The newsgroup rec.mag.dargon also provides an unmoderated forum for readers to discuss Dargon stories with each other and the | writers. There are pointers to all these on our reader | feedback page, . Reader feedback is enthusiastically encouraged. How can I submit stories to DargonZine? New writers are always enthusiastically welcomed. Writers who are interested in joining the Dargon Project should contact the editor, Ornoth Liscomb, at , requesting the DargonZine Writers' FAQ, or view the Writers' FAQ at the Web | site at . That file is laid out very much like this one, and discusses all kinds of things that you need to know in order to get up to speed as a contributing writer. Thanks for the interest, and help spread the word!!! -Ornoth D.A. Liscomb Editor, DargonZine dargon@shore.net http://www.dargonzine.org