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Fan Material

Publisher's Introduction to the Fan Policy

In light of those difficulties, we have prepared additional materials to help laymen understand what this says. Here, first, is the "Publisher's Introduction," which you are reading. Then check out the Fan Policy FAQ. Then if you have other questions, ask Issaries.

Finally, while these more casual statements make it easier to understand, when it comes to hard actual facts, the language of the legal documents will prevail. So do take a look at it.

Q: Why did Issaries release this Fan Material Policy?

YGWV, but many people want to know the official understanding of Glorantha - which means material published by Issaries. We believe that the best Gloranthan fan materials should be official, which means being published by Issaries. It is our goal to collect and be the source of the best and the "most correct" information about Glorantha. Being published by Issaries grants significant recognition to the contributors of fan material and Greg would like to provide that official recognition. Finally, Issaries products sell a lot more than fan publication and we'd like to get the widest possible distribution of the best material.

A secondary issue is to protect the Issaries from litigation over Glorantha. Disputes over ownership of intellectual property are an unfortunate reality in publishing and the RPG world is hardly exempt. Examples exist in Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover, and with the Traveller RPG. Protracted litigation over intellectual property is incredibly expensive and could easily bankrupt a small publishing company like Issaries. If Issaries is to have any chance of resolving such claims without bankrupting itself in the process, we need to establish a clear and unambiguous protocol governing use and publication of fan material that will avoid any protracted litigation.

Issaries' Fan Material Policy codifies much of the Gloranthan fan community's existing practices. It should not impact the existing ability of fans to discuss their interpretations of Glorantha on the Glorantha Digest, the Heroquest-RPG Yahoo Group or the Heroquest-Rules Yahoo Group. Generally accepted Gloranthan concepts may be used in Issaries publications or in fan publications approved by Issaries. Owners of fan online websites will need to comply with the Policy for Online Fans. Publishers of fanzines will need to get a formal license from Issaries to publish Gloranthan material. These requirements are not new - the Fan Material Policy just codifies what has been the existing practice.

We know that these new procedural requirements are annoying and stringently worded. Heck, we know that the intrusion of legal terms and requirements into the activities of the Gloranthan fan community is about as welcome as a broo infestation in Sacred Time. However, they are necessary if we are to prevent Glorantha from being destroyed as a result of costly intellectual property litigation.

What do I need to do?

The license is your friend.

Q: OK, so what are the rules applicable to me?

• Posts on Gloranthan Forums and Digests: If you want to post your interpretation of Gloranthan to an online digest, don't worry. Just go ahead and post your thoughts on the origins of Carmanian Humakti or Orlanthi gods in the Lunar Empire or anything else - just as you always have. Please don't make posts that include more than 250 words cut directly out of Issaries' proprietary material or the forum owner will have to delete the post. But we almost never see this anyway, so the Fan Material Policy simply shouldn't affect you at all.
• Gloranthan Websites: If you want to have a website that reports details of your Gloranthan campaign, exploration of Gloranthan history or motivations, "house rules" or other such stuff, just fill out and comply with the "Website Compliance" form that will be made available on the Issaries website. You'll have to include appropriate Trademark and Concept Use statements on the website. Again, please don't include text or art that has been cut directly out of Issaries' proprietary material without written approval from Issaries (a formal license) or we'll have to ask you to take it off your website. Other than these few procedural hurdles, the Fan Material Policy shouldn't affect your website at all.
• Fan Publications: If you want to publish an article, magazine or original work for sale, you need to get Issaries' permission. The short answer is you need to get a license, and may be expected to send in a final copy of your work for Issaries' review. But read on.

Q: How do I get a licence with Issaries' permission?

1. Contact Issaries early, BEFORE YOU START to work on your fan material. Contact us when you have an idea of what you want to make and publish. Gives us a title, a paragraph explaining your idea and, for longer items, include a table of contents.

   If there is a reason to stop it, we will let you know. We might have something similar planned. If you wish, we'll put you in touch with that Project Manager as a possible contributor. We don't want to have a product out that directly contradicts our own material. If it does -- sorry -- that probably means that your project is dead. But at least you didn't put a lot of work into it, and you might be contacted to do a part of that one, or something else.

   If we think your idea is really good and think it should be made part of Official Glorantha, we'll ask you to allow us to publish it. You can agree or not. If you agree to write it as an official submission, the whole process shifts to the Submissions Procedure track.

   If Issaries wants to enlist your authorship, and you don't agree, we will either deny you permission, or give the go-ahead to write it up. This is not permission to publish it. It simply means we reserve the right to see it later, as per the usual policy.

   When are we likely to refuse publication? Issaries will likely refuse permission for you to publish articles that are wrong and contradict published or unpublished Gloranthan facts; subjects that are Issaries core product; anything that is scandalous, obscene or libelous; anything that we feel may bring harm to the Glorantha line. What are we likely to allow publication of? Look through just about any current fan publication and you have a good view of what falls between those two poles of official acceptance and unacceptable material.

2. Contact Issaries so that we can review the final product. After you've gotten Issaries clearance for your fan material, contact us when you have finished so that we can review the final product.

   Even better, tell us during the process if you think something may be unacceptable so we can save work being done (layout, editing, maybe even writing.). When you have text ready for our review, send it in. We will go over it as quickly as we can and will either approve the final version - or we won't. Remember, we are primarily concerned with use of our owned materials, so if you point out in advance what proprietary rights are being used, our review will go more quickly.

   If there are any problems with your final product, we may to work with you to fix them. Once we've approved the final product, it's ready for publication!

If you have any questions, ask me.