Below are some basic guidelines and procedures for writers who wish to contribute to WomenGamers.Com. If you have any further questions, please send us feedback. Please let us know what article topics you would be interested in covering before you start writing.

• The review or article should be at least two full pages in a standard word processor, or 1,200 words, whichever comes first. This is not hard to achieve, we promise.
  
  
• The piece must be written according to the appropriate template. In other words, a review should fit the review template, a Digital Woman analysis should be written according to the Digital Woman review template, and so on. This often prevents authors from sending in categories that don't actually exist. Also, please don't lump categories together: each must be individually scored, when scoring is applicable.
  
  
• Templates may be downloaded in MS Word format here: Digital Women Template / Review Template. For more details on reviews guidelines, click here. For more information on Digital Women reviews, click here. For any review on our site, we prefer that contributors write in the third person, as it tends to create a more objective tone.
  
  
• It is preferable for the review to list the hardware requirements, as well as the game's ESRB rating. You can find ESRB information here: http://www.esrb.org
  
  
• Formatting tips:         
  • Please check spelling and grammar prior to submitting the article. Don't just rely on the spelling checker tool in your word processor, as sometimes a typo may be a real word that the checker doesn't catch, but that is nevertheless inappropriate for the context of the sentence.
  • Please use active voice, rather than passive voice, when possible.
  • Please italicize game titles.
    
    
• If the game has a multiplayer component, we ask that contributors review it, unless they are unable to do so because of hardware obstacles, such as a firewall. This should be noted in the review. Failure to review a game's multiplayer aspect is a disservice to our readers, and makes us look unprofessional. Reviews that fail to test multiplayer, or that fail to give adequate reason for not testing this element, will be considered incomplete and may be rejected. If you, the author, are unable to assess the multiplayer component on a regular basis, we ask that you focus on single player games, articles, interviews, and other WG content.
  
  
• While we are always willing to work with our writers to produce a quality piece, any article submitted should be complete at the time of contribution. In other words, "emergency" addendums should be kept to an absolute minimum. If there's a late-breaking, relevant bit of news from the developer, regarding a new feature, or perhaps an announcement that the game will go gold on a specific date, then by all means, do let us know. However, if an author happens to discover a "really cool" fan site for the game that he or she would like to include at the end of the piece . . . well, we'll probably still try to accommodate the contributor, but we make no guarantees.
  
  
• Tone is important. WomenGamers is often cited for well-written, thought-provoking content. Conversational tone should be balanced with professionalism. Authors should not use abbreviations like "LOL" or "IRL," unless they are providing a direct quote from a user. Also, please keep emoticons to an absolute minimum. Above all, the article should be a quality piece of insightful journalism, worthy of publication in any major magazine or newspaper. Rewrites can be very time-consuming for the editor. Articles which require many revisions may be rejected.
• Objectivity is a must. For example, if a contributor has a connection with a particular company, it could create bias if he or she attempts to review a product from that particular developer or publisher. Please contact us if you have any questions.
  
  
• Please be thoughtful when submitting content: check your files for viruses before sending them to us.
  
  
• It makes it easier on us if contributors refrain from formatting web hyperlinks within their word processor. Instead, please just paste the link straight into the document.
  
  
• The editor is not perfect: if you have a stylistic structure that you have put in there deliberately, e-mail the editor, or jot a note somewhere within the document itself. In some cases, if the person editing your piece has done a lot of tweaking, then she will e-mail the revised version of the document to the contributor. This way, the author can see it before it goes up, and can point out any necessary adjustments. After all, it's a lot easier to change it beforehand than afterward. However, if we're trying to meet a deadline and get it up the next day, we don't always do this. In either case, authors should let us know if we blew something artistic that they were trying to achieve. :)
  
  
• In the Marketing Efforts Toward Women section, it is very important to be aware of our publication audience and to be conscious of sexism in attire, plot, and other aspects of the character. A character that wears revealing armor is not practically equipped for battle, for example. The marketing strategy of the company as a whole should also be factored into the assessment. For example, G.o.D. Games' marketing was considered to be unfriendly by many gamers, both male and female.
  
  
• We use a weighted formula in determining final review scores, so don't worry if the published numbers look just slightly different from those submitted for the "total rating."
  
  
• HyperSnap is a handy shareware app for taking screenshots, if you don't already have a program. They offer a version that allows a temporary key to remove the nag message in the upper right corner. You can find the application here: http://www.hyperionics.com/index.html
  
  
• Screenshots should be submitted as JPGs or GIFs, and should be separate from the article. Four to five is a good number for reviews, while two or three may be sufficient for a Digital Woman analysis. Names of the image files should not contain spaces or capital letters. We use small GIFs that are 150 x 113 pixels in a column on the right side of the reviews, as can be seen in any review on the site. It's easiest for us to create these from standard-sized screenshots, so unless there's a real need to crop one, we recommend that reviewers avoid any tweaking, as it is time-consuming for us to edit them. :)
  
  
• All submissions become the property of WomenGamers.com. Although we try to work with our contributors, WG reserves the right to make the final decision on what content is published.
  
  
• As of this writing, we regret that we are unable to compensate our contributors at this time.