The gate
A deck tale is not a story you read. It is a night your friends live through. Before you write, know what clears the gate:
- Stakes on the first line. The table should know what is at risk before anyone rolls.
- Five to seven beats from the door to the ending, each one a choice worth arguing about.
- Endings across the whole spectrum, from triumph to ruin, and the clean win must be earned, never given.
- The world's own voice. A pirate tale should taste of salt. A noir tale should be raining.
- Peril that means something. If nothing can be lost, nothing is a tale.
Plain truth: most tales will not make it in. Curation is slow, by hand, and the bar stays where it is. That is why the deck is worth writing for.
The terms, in plain words
Your tale stays yours. By sending it you give us permission to edit it into the deck's shape and publish it in the game with your name on it. If it clears the gate we work the final cut with you, and your credit stays on it for as long as the tale is in the deck. If we pass, every right stays with you and we keep nothing.
Tales that enter the deck join the game for everyone. Nobody pays extra for them and neither do you.
Write the tale
The button opens your mail app with the whole tale written into the message, addressed to us. Nothing is sent until you press send there, and nothing is stored here.
What happens next
We read every submission, in order, by hand. If yours clears the gate you will hear from us and we will shape the final cut together, in the deck's schema and the world's voice. When it ships, the tale carries your name. If it does not clear, we will tell you so plainly. Either way, thank you for writing for the table.