Dungeon Vault Magazine – Pitch Guidelines and Information

Thanks for considering pitching articles for Dungeon Vault Magazine. Before you pitch, here are some things you should know:

We are looking for you to pitch an article between 700 and 1,000 words. Or, on the other hand, allow us to publish already existing material of your authoring in a single issue of Dungeon Vault Magazine (like a blog post, or other kinds of content published online).
We offer a flat-rate payment of $20.00 USD for this writing assignment.
As of March 2023 all creations for DVM are to be either compatible with Shadowdark RPG or system-neutral.
You retain all rights to your article/content. By submitting your article to Dungeon Vault Magazine, you grant us non-exclusive commercial use of the content for use in a single issue of the magazine and for marketing purposes of the magazine. The product is distributed through DrivethruRPG, Patreon, and other smaller storefronts. You retain control and property of your content and are free to use it in any way you see fit.
You’ll receive the issue of Dungeon Vault Magazine you worked on for free. In addition, we may also send you copies of other issues for you to review, showcase, or just enjoy. You are not obligated to provide feedback on any other issue you have not worked on.
We need a little blurb about you, written by you. It shall appear in Dungeon Vault Magazine in a section dedicated to showcasing guest writers for the given issue. The magazine is a digital product, feel free to include hyperlinks to your website, portfolio, and other projects. We can also add your picture/logo if that is acceptable.

The Process

When you write a Dungeon Vault Magazine article, we want you to keep your artistic integrity and have as much control over the published material as possible. Our process for Dungeon Vault Magazine should work like this:

An author pitches an idea or we reach out to you about including content of yours in the magazine.
Your pitch is selected or you agree with granting us non-exclusive use of already existing content.
You write a draft.
We edit the draft and send it back to you for review.
The review process may incur some back and forth until we have the finished article.
We prepare the layout and add an art piece where/if appropriate.
You’ll have the chance to see the finished product before publication.

Article Topics

Dungeon Vault Magazine publishes content for the fifth edition of the world’s most popular roleplaying game but we try to keep rules-stuff and mechanics to the minimum. We also publish system-neutral stuff, advice, mechanics, and procedures that people can adapt into any kind of game. We look for content that gives GMs and players new stuff that they can add to their game to improve it and widen its reach. Below is a list of the kind of content we look for. If you have a different idea, feel free to pitch it. We may still choose to include something outside this list:

New magic item sets or a detailed article about a single magic item with a lot of interesting history and unique features. Magic items should not give gratuitous abilities. We want magic to be dangerous and interesting. Each item should have a considerable setback or cost to use.
New spells. Particularly those with included lore of its origin and the person who created it. Spells with costs and setbacks are preferred.
Downtime activities with tables, interesting things to do, and cool consequences.
General gameplay or tactical advice for players and GMs.
New traps and hazards. We appreciate nasty traps with clever ways to overcome them.
New poisons and diseases. Not just a table with damage. We appreciate lore, interesting uses, and ways to acquire and overcome such poisons or diseases.
Short adventure/encounter. We already publish several adventures of our own authoring in each magazine issue. Encounters or adventures shall be limited to one per issue and only where the lore/situation is interesting enough to be granted its own space.
Puzzles for GMs to add to their game.
Interesting NPCs for GMs to add to their game. We can provide the portrait art.
Organizations for GMs to add to their game.
New rules options. Particularly if they are system-neutral.
Storytime adventures or anecdotes from one of your games. We prefer memorable stories with something interesting to learn or share with others. We also appreciate a good laugh and funny stories.
Tell us about a memorable Player Character who finished a campaign or adventure and whose exploits are fuel for many stories and anecdotes. The story could be about their heroic death or deeds.

Send Us Your Ideas!

Please send your pitches to Derek at derek@elventower.com

Please send us one or two article pitches in your email. Here is an example of what a pitch should look like:

Author: Derek Ruiz

Article Title: Sir Lorentz’ Holy Helm

Brief Description: Short paragraph explaining the general idea of this holy helm, its origin, and its magical powers. This paragraph should be 3 or 4 sentences long. It’s just a pitch.

We accept articles on a rolling basis. Please let us know the earliest you can have a rough draft done for each article in your pitch. The latest we can accept a rough draft for each publication cycle is the 15^th of each month, but we’d love to get most of the articles earlier than that.
If you can’t make the 15^th deadline, do not worry. Your article may still be published in the next Dungeon Vault Magazine As long as it meets the deadline in the following cycle. Should a person not make the current publication cycle, we may choose a pitch from another author whose work is ready to edit and publish.
Please include your name and email address on your pitch email.

Please note that your pitches can only include content from the Open-Game-License SRD and original content. For more information, please see: https://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/systems-reference-document-srd