Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Special LTC Edition

I'd love to see the submissions come rolling on in for our Special Edition of the LetterPost dedicated exclusively to LTCs (Letterboxer Trading Cards)! I have a daring plan and not a whole lot of time to bring it all together but I'm excited about it! When I get excited about it, I MAKE time to get things done!

MY VISION
The special edition will be the same format as the regular Zine but I want PHOTOS!!! The front and back cover will be plastered with LTC images! There's no theme other than LTCs. If I get a lot of submissions, the inside front and back cover will also showcase LTC photos. So those are the covers...

On the inside, the meat of the issue is focused on techniques, stories, and links. I will try to assemble a nice hard copy version of the websites that may be useful to LTC creators. While these sites are accessed pretty easily through the FB page or other sources, I thought a Go-To list of Links would be nice to add (and Kurious Jo suggested it). I'll be checking the FB page first and going back through my bookmarks as well. It will by no means be THE list, but it might be interesting to check out. If anyone has an up-to-date blog that isn't on my radar, just send me the link and I'll try to add it to the list.

I would like to have you all share some of your tried and true, or experimental techniques for making awesome effects and cards. Or just tell me the story behind the card...remember that show on VH1...Behind the Music? Share some of your stories of how a card came to look the way it did. Disasters or A-ha moments. I'd even take a few little lines about why you make LTCs, what is it about them that keeps your interest? Share a LTC photo and a little story to inspire others.

Oh, and did I mention that the special edition will be FULL color. Yup, I want those LTCs to be viewed in their full spectrum glory! So don't skimp on those colorful cards! The other thing I plan is a full-sized LTC of my own making featured on the back cover. You can leave it on the cover or cut it out to add to your albums. It will be a legit LTC listed on AQ and everything. Yup, even hand-stamped. A Wyvern Card to add to your collection.

SUBMISSIONS:
So from the description above, you can see that I'm in need of submissions; lots of submissions! We don't have a whole lotta time because I'm making the VERY FINAL DEADLINE: JULY 15th. I'm giving preference to our Current Subscribers, but ANYONE can submit something for the issue. I just mean that if I happen to run out of room (that hasn't happened to me yet!), those that get cut will be those who aren't current subscribers. (If you're not a current subscriber, I'll still send you a copy of the Zine without charge! Make sure you include your mailing address.)

So in a nutshell, here's what I need:
*Photos of completed LTCs in jpg files with a good enough resolution to possibly be resized. Color preferred. The less cropping I have to do, the better. No stories, or written material to accompany. These will just appear on covers and you will receive credit within the issue. Please include the Title of the LTC, the date it was made (if known), and it's current status; retired, active, etc.

 *Photos of completed LTCs as above but WITH a story, or how-to technique, or other information about the card. Photos will appear on the inside pages with your accompanying text. (If you're not comfortable writing text, don't worry I can help you with it. I double check spelling and stuff!) Include the above information as well.

*Links. If you have a link that you'd like to share in the list, that isn't listed on the FB group or AQ, just send that along and I'll try to get it in there if space permits.

All submissions may be sent to our e-mail: theletterpost@gmail.com
Please put "LTC Edition Submission" in your title. I would LOVE for the submitted photos to be ones that aren't already posted to a website or shared in an AQ album but that's just a guideline. As well, I don't want any that may have already been submitted to the LetterPost. I'm not saying they have to be NEW, I'd love photos of retired LTCs and those that were made before LTCs became a "Big Thing". :) I just want them to be SPECIAL.

 Remember that the photos you submit must be of YOUR OWN creations. If you didn't make the LTC, I will not accept the submission. To clarify, if you made a card using a stamp you didn't carve, it's OKAY to submit. Just make a note of that in the info. In Conclusion: Remember to have your submissions to me by JULY 15th. I'm going to try to get the Special Edition out to you in a week or so from that, definitely before August. It's all about LTCs, in Full Color! Share your stuff!

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Issue #6: Hot, Hot, Hot

I'm working on assembling the Summer Edition of the LetterPost and am shooting to have them in the mail by Friday! Whoopee! Be watching for your copy next week sometime. Be sure to give us your feedback, if you feel moved to do so. Leave a comment here on the blog or shoot us an e-mail. jackbear and I do try to take all your suggestions and comments to heart. We're pretty thick-skinned so feel free to shoot straight. (hmm, I wonder if I'll regret saying that later...) :) I wanted this issue to be a bit bigger than last but I didn't get the number of submissions I would have liked. As well, I got bogged down in my day job (which was unexpected) and wasn't really able to drum up last minute support. I hope to make it up to all our subscribers with a special edition LetterPost this summer dedicated to LTCs. That will, of course, depend on interest. If it does come together, our current subscribers do not need to do anything. I'll ship it to you as a bonus. As always, keep in mind when you carve or create to maybe take a photo or two. I'd love to see what everyone is doing in the letterboxing world. I'd love to share that with our readers as well. The LetterPost is a zine dedicated to the creative side of letterboxing and while non-traditional forms are focused on, unique boxes planted out there in the wild with crazy clues are no less important to the zine. Stories and photos are welcomed at any time for future issues. jackbear and I thank you for your continued support. Wyvern