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 Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 3:50 pm
This guide is here to assist you in creating a quest thread that will turn out successful.
One thing you should know is that many things listed in this guide are things that we look for in applicants. Your quest thread plays a huge part in your application for a donation in this guild and so you want it to look as best as you can.
If you have any questions about this guide, feel free to post and ask a question. A crew member shall answer your question very quickly.
Table of Contents
[1.] Introduction
[2.] Quest Thread Posts
[3.] Appearance
[4.] Tips for Maintaining your Thread
[5.] Sample Quest Thread
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 3:58 pm
Q u e s t T h r e a d P o s t s ___Starting the Quest Thread
First and foremost, when starting a quest thread, put in the subject "Do NOT Post Yet!" or something to that effect. You want to be sure to reserve all the posts on the front page and then go back and edit in the proper information. This way, you don't need to rush through making the thread and instead can fill the posts to your convenience. Another reason for reserving all the posts on the front page is so that later on, if you need to add more information in your quest thread in another post, you can just use a reserved post.
___Adding in the Information
Now, you have all your posts reserved. It's time to fill all those posts with things pertaining to your quest. While you can choose what to have in your thread, there are a few must-haves in your thread. Here's a short list along with a short description:
Introduction
A post to welcome people into your thread. Maybe tell a bit about who you are, hence the introduction. Also add in some information on your quest itself (i.e. what type of items you plan to quest). You definitely would want to have some sort of table of contents to help navigate people throughout your thread.
Rules
This post is used to keep order. People need to know what not to do and this is where you tell them.
Quest Information
Here is where you talk about what you are currently questing and what you plan to quest. READ THIS VERY CAREFULLY. YOU MUST have your progress listed in this post. Say how much gold you have towards your quest item. There is no doubt that this is one of the most important posts in your thread so be sure to do it right!
Donators
Here you list the people who donate to you over the duration of your quest. This is done to honor those who have helped you along the way.
Here are some more optional posts to have. They aren't necessary but still recommended.
About Me
In this post, you talk about who YOU, the quester are. People are more prone to either post or donate if they can connect better. Now, this doesn't mean give all your personal information. Just some general things people might enjoy reading.
White&Black List / Regulars
Here you can list people who are special or not. With a white and black list, you can say who holds a high place in your thread or has broken the rules. Also, you can also have a regulars list of who visits and posts in your thread, establishing themselves as a "regular."
Contests / Giveaways
This post really isn't necessary. Only if you feel that you want to attract more attention to your thread. You can hold a variety of contests and put the info in this post. Again, it isn't necessary and you don't really need it. In case you do though, just use one of your oh-so valuable reserved posts. wink
Affiliates / Link Post
This post is used to exchange links with other people who have other threads. You usually have some sort of banner that links back to your own thread and a code that goes under it. I'll use my own personal quest thread's banner as an example:  [url=http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/t.36192685/] [img]http://i7.tinypic.com/6okv5vr.png[/img][/url] When you code a banner or button such as the one above, you should shorten the URL Link as much as possible but avoid using a site such as Tinyurl since when you click on it, it goes to Gaia's warning page that you're leaving Gaia. People are avoiding clicking on such sites due to the large amount of fake login sites. Instead, use this method provided by Pheregames.Pheregames {{♥ ♠ ♦ ♣}} You might want to change just a little in the quest thread thing...
TinyURL still gets the huge YOU ARE LEAVING GAIA thing.
However, you can still shorten your URL by omitting part of the url.
http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/charity-quests/jokette-s-wild-a-charity/t.40693829_1/
Is that huge text URL.
http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/charity-quests/jokette-s-wild-a-charity/t.40693829_1/
The bold section can go.
http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/t.40693829/
Basically, the URL only needs to have the Gaiaonline portion, then which area it is [fourm, guild, PM, ect] and then the Thread ID [notated by the T.######; Page number follows with an underscore followed by numbers, matching the respective page ( _####). If no underscore is used, it goes to the top post, on the front page. ]
Most of the times, people PM each other to exchange links. This post is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED as it gives a way to attract the attention of other people into your thread.
What you also should know is that if your page gets stretched because of the code for your banner, put a space in between the code like this:
Space here
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:02 pm
Okay, so you've filled the posts in your quest thread with all that valuable and essential information.
Now what you need to do is focus on the appearance of your thread. It isn't everything but it's still something essential in a quest thread.
Plan how you want your quest thread to look. Don't go with too many colors in a thread otherwise it might not be very appealing. Go with very few colors. Monotone might be a wise choice.
Remember, you have options in how your quest thread looks. You can either:
-Use graphics such as banners, buttons, or other images to decorate your thread
-Text effects such as color, size, and gradients
-A mixture of the two above
-Or go for something completely different
___Graphics & Banners
You can get graphics in a variety of ways. One way is to use a variety of images you can find on the Internet. Just be sure that the image doesn't belong to anyone before using it in your thread.
Also, you can make your own banners using an image editing program such as Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, GIMP, etc. If you aren't so fortunate and don't have such programs, don't worry! There are other methods of getting them.
If you're willing to spend some gold, you can buy them in the Personalized Graphics subforum. Just look through some of the threads and find someone to buy it from. Be sure to read the rules of the thread.
Another method of getting a banner is using an online generator to do so. You can use the following sites to do so:
http://www.bannerbreak.com/
http://cooltext.com/
___Text Effects
If you decide that you feel having a bunch of images isn't right for you, you don't need to! You can do amazing things with text. By altering it's size, color, or text formatting (bold, italicize, underline, etc.) you can have an attractive thread in no time.
Experiment with the size and color of the font. Bold, italicize or underline where you see it would be appropriate. Don't go overboard.
You can also use tektek's color gradient generator to make cool gradient text. Check it out here:
http://www.tektek.org/color/
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:03 pm
T i p s F o r M a i n t a i n i n g Y o u r T h r e a d Here are some tips that will not only keep your thread in tip-top shape, it will also attract more interest into it.
When creating a quest thread, have an interesting title. There are so many people questing nowadays that having an interesting title attracts more attention to yourself and also the attention of others willing to donate to you or people who might talk to you in your thread.
Have clear, well-thought out posts. Having an unorganized thread might confuse people. Before you open your quest thread, make sure that each post is clear and concise and that the information is not scattered among different posts.
Be respectful. You are more likely to be a successful quester if you present yourself and your thread in a respectable way. You can do this by typing as literately as possible. I don't mean you have to be a Grammar Nazi, but you should type as best you can with proper punctuation, grammar and capitalization. Use chatspeak with discretion. Also, if someone decides to donate to you, be polite to them and thank them for their generosity.
Activeness is a must. Be sure to bump and post in your thread on a daily basis. And that does not mean to post once a day in your thread. It means to post throughout the day on a regular basis. The reason for bumping is to attract attention. If you don't bump or post in your thread, chances are, you aren't going to get the attention of any willing donator. So you must be active. Charities really value activeness in a thread. Especially this guild.
Conversation is key. While bumping to get the attention is nice, something better is to have a conversation going on with other people. Nothing looks better and more interesting than a nice active thread with people in polite conversation with each other. It's a real turn-on to donators.
Be as literate as you possibly can. People usually avoid people who type lyk dis. It's a real turn-off and you don't want that. Grammar, punctuation and capitalization. They're all your friends.
Patience is necessary. While bumping your thread, don't get impatient. If someone sees you getting aggravated that you haven't received any donations and you've only been questing for two days, it's likely that they'll be turned off and won't think about ever donating to you. Be patient and it shall be rewarded in time.
Stretching is very, very bad. Never ever stretch the page in your quest thread. It is very unappealing to people. If you have an image that has too much width and stretches the page, resize the image. You can do so when hosting the image at Photobucket or Imageshack. Those are generally the most used ones to do so. Also if coding stretches your page, use the suggestion in the second post of this thread.
Give Credit where Credit is due. If someone does something for you such as making a banner or something similar to that, give credit to them. People appreciate being recognized for what they have done.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In the posts right after this, I will create sample posts in a sort of sample quest thread. It is a basic layout and you don't have to use it but it might be a good idea to use some of its ideas in your own thread.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:05 pm
A n I s a o t a s t i c Q u e s t This is my sample quest. What am I questing you ask? Why to teach all of you what a respectable quest thread looks like. Here is where you'd usually welcome users into your thread and hook them into reading the rest of the posts in your thread.- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s[1.] Introduction / Table of Contents / Updates
[2.] Rules
[3.] Quest Info
[4.] About Me
[5.] White&Black List
[6.] Contests
[7.] Affiliates
[8.] Reserved
[9.] Reserved
[10.] Reserved
[11.] Reserved- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Updates July 03rd 2008: Today I made a sample quest thread to help other people create a wonderful quest thread of their own. July 05th 2008: Today, I finished my quest to make a sample quest thread.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:06 pm
1. Follow the Terms of Service
2. No begging.
3. Don't pagestretch.
4. Don't spam.
5. Be kind to everyone in the thread. Cause we say so.
6. Don't go overboard with quoting. Four is the max.
7. Have fun! <3 Yes it's a rule! D:<
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:06 pm
Currently Questing: [what you're questing here]
How much you have / How much you need
Other items I want to quest:
[list of items you plan to quest]
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:09 pm
You have freedom to make your about me section how you want. Just make sure it doesn't negatively affect your thread. I just have this list with random facts.
-Nickname: Isao
-Gender: Male
-Age: 16
-Birthday: June 12
-Favorite Food: Fruit. Delicious. ;D
-Favorite Music: Alternative Rock
-Favorite Movie: Arranged
-Favorite Book: 1984 by George Orwell
-Favorite Smell: Chocolate chip cookies. *drool*
-Favorite Video Game: Final Fantasy III
-Favorite Sight: Any of my old photo albums
-Favorite Touch: My computer's mouse.
-Favorite Word: Soliloquy
-Favorite Sound: The sound of my Nintendo DS turning on. ;D
-Favorite thing on Gaia: Questing!
-Favorite Song EVAR: Misery Business - Paramore
-Favorite Color: Blue ftw!
-Favorite Animal: Pandas. No contest.
-Favorite Subject(s): Biology, Lit. and Calculus!
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:11 pm
W h i t e & B l a c k L i s t You can list good and helpful people to you under the white list and rule breakers under the black list.
White List
Me of course. ;D
*insert other people here*
Black List
Mr. Evil
Dr. Mad
Mortimer the Mouse
Maleficent
Mena Suvari
etc.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:13 pm
This is a very optional post in your thread. However, if you'd like to hold contests feel free and go ahead. Just be sure it doesn't interfere with your quest. However, your questing comes before any contests.
Contest #1
*insert rules and how to win here*
Contest #2
*insert rules and how to win here*
etc.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:15 pm
This post is used to link yourself with a banner leading to your quest thread and to link other threads who have linked your thread. When coding the banner or button for your own quest thread, refer to second post in this thread for how to shorten it as much as possible.
Link Me: [url=http://www.gaiaonline.com/guilds/viewtopic.php?t=13002923]
[img]http://tinyurl.com/5u558t[/img][/url] The above banner was made using Cooltext.com
Link You
Here you would just use the codes for banners that the people you are affiliated with have.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:16 pm
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:17 pm
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:18 pm
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 4:19 pm
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