Guidelines

• Printable Guidelines PDF

About the Zine

DiRT: A Life in the Day of Ainosuke Shindo is a Sk8 the Infinity zine starring Ainosuke Shindo (ADAM). This is a charity zine that will benefit The Skatepark Project and The Trevor Project.Our objective is to showcase artwork and writings of Ainosuke/ADAM’s daily life routine and experiences as recorded and documented by his secretary Tadashi Kichuchi. Though the title says this is “a day in the life”, it is not literally happening all on the same single day.We are looking for fanart, fanfiction, and cosplay photos to include in this zine. Note that we’re using Tadashi as the zine’s “in-character” reason for putting this collection of media. Tadashi does not have to be literally involved in the pieces. It’s a peek into his stash of Ainosuke/ADAM material since Ainosuke is supposed to start caring about his image and such.The original inspirations for this zine’s prompt are menswear, political parody, and the works of J.C. Leyendecker and Norman Rockwell. Both iconic artists were known for fashionably portraying everyday life for magazines and advertisements.The inspirations serve as the backstory baseline rather than a hard guideline because Ainosuke/ADAM is a subject that plays well into these themes but also one that is fully capable of subverting them. Let’s explore this together.

What We're Looking For

- 15-20 artists
- 6-10 writers
- 3-6 cosplayers
- 2-5 merch artists

Zine Specifications

- 7 x 10 inches
- Perfect-bound
- Softcover

Piece Requirements

#1. Must fit within the “daily life” theme of the zine. Ainosuke/ADAM must be depicted in the context of doing everyday life activities. The pieces may either play this prompt seriously or put a cheeky twist on it.Some very general ideas: Political photo op, getting dressed for the day, desk work, eating a meal, preparing for S after work, interacting with his constituents as Ainosuke or with S fans as ADAM, etc.Some series image examples that would fit the theme:- Ainosuke fresh out of the shower with Tadashi holding a towel for him in the bathroom
- Bumping into Kaoru(Cherry) and Kojiro(Joe) bickering at the park
- The “CATCH ME” image from the ending credits
- Tadashi driving ADAM to S as he’s getting ready in the backseat#2. Must involve or depict Ainosuke/ADAM in a meaningful way even if he is not the direct subject Ainosuke/ADAM affects everyone around him! Lets show his influence. For example: the pieces may be from another Sk8 character’s POV reacting to ADAM, SK8 characters being silly in front of Ainosuke’s political campaign posters, etc. Pieces may poke fun at Adam but this zine is about LOVE so don’t be mean-spirited.#3. Pieces may include child or teenage Ainosuke/ADAM but with limitationsWe are looking for mainly adult Ainosuke/ADAM works but pieces depicting him in his childhood or teenage years are allowed in some capacity. These pieces should be portrayed in a present-day context such as being old photos, characters flipping through a photo album, part of a TV interview/variety show, a dream, etc.#4. Pairings are not the focus of this zine but canon-compliant interactions are allowedThis zine is about Ainosuke/ADAM rather than about his potential romances. Pieces may lean towards a pairing but should refrain from being centered on overt romantic relationships. Please refer to the SK8 the Infinity series for general character interaction dynamics. (i.e.: a piece where ADAM showers Langa with roses is acceptable. A piece where he’s kissing someone is not.)#5. Pieces may be suggestive but must fit comfortably within the 16+ rating. This means no visible genitalia or explicitly depicted sexual acts can be portrayed in the zine’s pieces. Something along the lines of pin-ups or sexy charity calendar level material is okay but beyond that is not. Think spicy, not steamy.Ainosuke/ADAM is a playful character who dances on that fine line of decency and has many outlandish tongue-in-cheek moments so we are certain artists can have fun with that.NOTE: This rule does not apply to child Ainosuke. Pieces involving child Ainosuke must be suitable for general readers.#6. Pieces may not include extreme graphic content, hate, or violenceWe’re aiming to produce a zine that highlights Ainosuke/ADAM enjoying everyday life so gratuitous violence, hate, or gore falls outside of the intentions of our project. Please refer to how the SK8 the Infinity series itself handles these themes to gauge what is appropriate.If a contributor has any questions about their contribution concepts, the mods are available to chat about it throughout the project timeline.

Contributor Requirements

- Artists and Writers must be 16 years old or older as of the time of application submission
- Cosplayers and cosplay photographers must be 18 years or older at the time of application submission.
- Discord will be required for communication, as it provides a single communication space to make things easier! (https://discord.com)
- Your piece(s) for this zine must be entirely new and follow the zine’s theme and piece requirements.
- Previews of your piece(s) on social media may be posted only after mods give the okay.
- If you miss more than one check-in without communicating with the moderators, you may be removed from the project and replaced with a substitute.Artist Specific Requirements- Artists will be provided a template with a print and bleed guide they must follow
- Traditional art will be allowed but it must be scanned/photographed at a print quality level and be submitted while following the same provided template and criteria as digital artistsWriter Specific Requirements- 500-2000 words
- Will be beta read by our Beta Reader Mod
- Pieces do not have to be written in Tadashi’s POV. He can be collecting other people's literature to include in this zineCosplayer Specific Requirements- Cosplayers will be provided a template with a print and bleed guide they must follow
- If applicable, we will request written permission from your photographer to print the photos in the zine
- Cosplayers should not alter skin tones either with makeup or editing in post (darkening, to represent a different ethnicity, etc) for their pieces.
- Photos submitted must be print quality level and not have a watermark or logo on them
- Photographers can send a watermark or logo separately as a transparent PNG to be added to the credits page
- Follow all precautions given by the CDC or local health guidelines in relation to COVIDMerch Artist Specific Requirements- Based on the interest check, we are looking for: 1 keychain, 1 set of stickers, 1 poster print, 1 door hanger, 1 button
- The last three will be political parody merch
- You can apply as both a Merch Artist and a regular ArtistWhen contributor applications open, the answer to the final question on the form is “adamruinedeverything”

Contributor Rewards

The current plan for contributor compensation is a free digital copy of the zine, and any other digital goods. If contributors would like physical goods, then they will be asked to pay just the cost of shipping. This to prevent the cost of physical contributor copies from taking away from our donation to our chosen charities.

If you have any questions regarding anything on the guidelines (or not on the guidelines), please contact us via email or social media!

• Printable Guidelines PDF