Author
Message
GasparLewis
Unfettered
Joined: 19 Nov 2005 Posts: 474 Location: vicinty of NYC
[OOG] Card Idea Submission Alright, maggots, do you think your mind is devious enough to cook up a nasty, mind-bending conundrum worthy of being a
Wave 4
Wave 1 Season 2 card?
Do you?
Do you?!
Do you, you little punk?!
To the less... capable cadets: I thought so.
To those of you who think you have what it takes: listen up!
(OK, seriously from here-on-in.)
The person you want e-mail is the Head of Puzzle Card Design,
Phil
DR. PAUL McCormick. His e-mail address is paul (at) mindcandydesign (dot) com. Decide what position you want: unless you actually want to go down to Mind Candy and shoot for a job, chances are you'll be applying as a freelancer, like me.
You need to submit a cover page in your e-mail along with your ideas.
A mailing address must also be included to receive your freelance agreement for your ideas, which involves forfeiting the rights of your puzzle to Mind Candy for the pay you get and their abililty to publish and use the puzzle. Payment, as he tells me, is £70/$140 a puzzle, and more if you do your own artwork. And, importantly (what I'm in the process of re-doing), your ideas must be submitted in the form of the Puzzle Brief if the initial idea is accepted and liked , which goes:
Paul wrote:
NAME: (of puzzle)
PUZZLE ARCHITECT: (you)
DIFFICULTY: (red (easiest) / orange / yellow / green / blue / purple /
black / silver (hardest) )
BACKGROUND: (any interesting or relevant background to the puzzle)
DESIGN: (any images that relate to the puzzle, and/or a suggested look
for the card)
TEXT: (All the text that appears on the card, including the actual
puzzle)
SOLUTION: (the solution a player should enter, along with any
acceptable
variation)
SOLUTION EXPLANATION: (how to get from the puzzle to the answer)
SUGGESTED HINT: (suggestion for a hint we could give the players if
they
ask)
Personally, on my first submission, I just mailed a cover page and some files to the wrong address. But, thankfully, my stuff got rerouted, and now I'm getting everything in order.
But, please, everyone: I was kidding around for a reason. Don't flood Paul with random junk or dinosaur-aged Red-level puzzles [HAY HEREZ A SLIVER WAT 2 PLUSS 2? 4 HURRRRR GIMEE $$$ NOW PRINT MI CARD]. Only, and I mean only send an idea if you really think you've got something clever and/or devious on your hands.
[OOG]
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
Just remember people: as much as we blame Kurt and Garnet for 13th Labor and Shuffled, they're really the work of this man, and those who work underneath him. Do not anger him, lest he ask us to solve Goldbach's Twin Prime Conjecture.
Posted: Tue May 16, 2006 11:19 pm
Last edited by GasparLewis on Wed May 17, 2006 5:25 pm; edited 2 times in total
duckiemonster
Unfettered
Joined: 10 Dec 2005 Posts: 554 Location: Oxford, UK
Quote:
Head of Puzzle Card Design, Phil McCormick
I think he prefers to be called 'Paul', as this is his name... He'll also answer to 'Moley', but only with a growl.
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:21 am
fretty
Decorated
Joined: 19 Nov 2004 Posts: 281 Location: South Yorkshire, England
I'm interested in getting some ideas sent off but do I need a cover page if it's just a one off entry. I don't really want to enter for a job.
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:39 am
European Chris
Unfictologist
Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 1264 Location: London's trendy Whitechapel
Where did the 'puzzle brief' come from? Did you construct it yourself or did Mind Candy ask us to do it in this format?
_________________
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The internet, giving the entire world a license to opine, since 1989.
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Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:48 am
skenmy
Veteran
Joined: 22 Aug 2005 Posts: 96 Location: Essex, England
Just a couple of pointers:
Do *not* flood the poor guy with requests. It may take a day or two for him to respond to you - and I was under the impression they wanted to keep their freelancer base quite low-key, so this may not have been exactly what they wanted.
Sending it in the above puzzle brief is what will get your request processed the quickest. Attach any images you design to the e-mail.
You don't need to send a cover page / resume / CV or whatnot. A freelancer is exactly that - free to do as much or as little work as they wish and get paid on a case-by-case basis. You will be asked to invoice them - but I have had a few designs accepted and a few pending, and not yet have I been asked for a cover page or resume.
Check, double check, and triple check your submissions. If you send in a puzzle that has a good idea but is full of mistakes in the puzzle itself - you will most likely get rejected. At the best you will be asked to tidy it up - but that just delays everyone. Check, double check, and triple check. And repeat.
_________________
PerplexCityTrades - Because the puzzle is only just beginning!
045/100
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:49 am
Juxta
Unfettered
Joined: 28 Aug 2005 Posts: 675
That'd be Doctor Paul McCormick...Er. Unless they've replaced him (which would explain the change to "Phil") with this fella .
It's something of a departure from his television career which has allowed him to "...galvanized millions of people to "get real" about their own behavior and create more positive lives. " I for one fear change however, and hope that Moley retakes his position from this usurper sharpish.
J
P.S. Poster campaign anyone? "FREE THE CLAPHAM ONE!", "A MOLE IS NOT JUST FOR XMAS, SLICE IT THIN ENOUGH AND IT'LL LAST WELL INTO THE NEW YEAR".
P.P.S. What's the difference between golf and helicopters?
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
With golf, you'll only ever get a hole-in-one...
_________________zzzshusoharuxpfrp
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:56 am
European Chris
Unfictologist
Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 1264 Location: London's trendy Whitechapel
Jesus wept.
_________________
http://www.hayfestival.com/archive/2006/05/blasphemy-debate.aspx
The internet, giving the entire world a license to opine, since 1989.
http://littleatoms.com/
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 6:04 am
idlemichael
Veteran
Joined: 06 Nov 2005 Posts: 123 Location: Bucks!
I fear that Juxta's post-birthday celebrations are affecting his mind. This is NOT GOOD. I think I just saw a pig flying outside my window... The end is nigh!
_________________
A silent, deadly killer. A bit like Carbon Monoxide - http://perplexcitytrades.com/idlemichael
"There are no save points when it comes to ladies..." - http://idlemichael.blogspot.com/
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 6:26 am
Tintintin
Veteran
Joined: 20 Apr 2006 Posts: 137 Location: London
*wince*
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 9:29 am
fretty
Decorated
Joined: 19 Nov 2004 Posts: 281 Location: South Yorkshire, England
Let me just dispell a few myths:
1. No resume is needed
2. It's not for Wave 4 Season 1 but for Wave 1 Season 2. Wave 4 is already being printed
3. Paul prefers if you don't use the puzzle brief first as the ideas could have been used/proposed already. It is better to just ask first then you'll be told if the idea has been used. Then the puzzle brief can be used.
I sent some ideas today in the form of the puzzle brief and was told that the ideas have already been used for some wave 4 cards. It would have been better to have just asked if the idea would have been useful first.
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 2:40 pm
GasparLewis
Unfettered
Joined: 19 Nov 2005 Posts: 474 Location: vicinty of NYC
Something told me this would be a can of worms I might have done better not to open, let alone proving my ignorance about the finer details of exactly what the [BLEEP] it is I'm doing.
1. Yes, that was a miserable and shameful typo.
2. Paul sent the Puzzle Brief directly; those were his exacted typed words.
3. Everyone else is right, in addition to where I'm not wrong.
Now, to elaborate on (3), using things everyone else has said.
Like I said, don't waste Paul's time and send half-arsed goods.
Do multiple checks to make sure you've got it down pat.
Send it to the right address.
Be sure your idea isn't old hat.
I just went by the cover page the first time I went around; not necessary for freelancers.
My response took several days, but then again it was because I was re-routed for being a ninny.
Use the Puzzle Brief only if your idea is accepted.
Keep submission nice and low; don't put all the nice Mind Candy designers out of jobs.
Card will appear in Wave 2, Season 1; Wave 4 is done.
You see, this is what happens when people actually listen to me; trouble happens.
But, then again, this is something (I assumed) people wanted to know.
Just so happens I made a big 'ol mess of it.
Posted: Wed May 17, 2006 5:20 pm
Bakers_12
Decorated
Joined: 01 Feb 2006 Posts: 195 Location: Dartford
I sent a puzzle to SubmissionsSPLAT perplexcity.com like it says on the help page and got a reply with the breif and pauls e-mail address. I want a card with my Name on it
_________________"Skip To The End"
Playing : Dark Knight, Find 815
Posted: Fri May 19, 2006 4:26 am
Bakers_12
Decorated
Joined: 01 Feb 2006 Posts: 195 Location: Dartford
Sent and now got a replay from Mind Candy about my puzzle card idea. This is the brief I sent, I have removed the reply at the request of Mind Candy ( sorry Mind Candy)
> NAME: Directing Numbers
> PUZZLE ARCHITECT: Martin Baker
> DIFFICULTY: Blue
> BACKGROUND: Movies and maths
>
> DESIGN: Could have a sequence of the count down they use before old films .
>
> TEXT: Solve this equition : ((Billy Crystal + Mark Christopher) * David
> Fincher) ((Catherine Hardwicke - Tom O'Hara) * Blake Edwards) = ?
>>
>
> SOLUTION:
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
see Anna Heath's site
>
> SOLUTION EXPLANATION:
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
see above
>
> SUGGESTED HINT:
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
You can Count on these films.
_________________"Skip To The End"
Playing : Dark Knight, Find 815
Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 11:55 am
Last edited by Bakers_12 on Wed May 24, 2006 12:19 pm; edited 2 times in total
duckiemonster
Unfettered
Joined: 10 Dec 2005 Posts: 554 Location: Oxford, UK
Could you please edit to remove the spoiler in Paul's email? I really don't want to know what's coming in season 2. - edit. Thanks.
I also fail to see the point in posting all of the above. Sorry.
Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 12:20 pm
Bakers_12
Decorated
Joined: 01 Feb 2006 Posts: 195 Location: Dartford
duckiemonster wrote:
Could you please edit to remove the spoiler in Paul's email? I really don't want to know what's coming in season 2. - edit. Thanks.
I also fail to see the point in posting all of the above. Sorry.
Sorry , it has gone now. yes i'm going to the nineth ring of hell.
_________________"Skip To The End"
Playing : Dark Knight, Find 815
Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 12:23 pm
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