Why come to Rudius Media?

If you have something really good, be it a blog, an idea for a book, funny cartoons, a hilarious video diary, or any other sort of art in any medium that can be transferred over the internet (i.e., text, cartoons, video, etc), here are the reasons you'd work with us:

* Your stuff has been rejected by the mainstream entertainment industry
* You don't want to put up with the restrictions the conventional media wants to put on your content
* Your content is already on the internet, but you can't seem to get noticed
* You have great stories to tell but don't know how to write them or publish them or create and support a website
* You want to publish a book, create a TV show, or sell a screenplay, but either don't know how to do it or do not want to be used by the established agencies or management companies

If one or more of these are true, then Rudius Media is where to turn. If your stuff is good enough, we will fill in the gaps and bring your work to the world.

I'm unsure if I should submit. How do I decide?

This is a difficult question to answer, as there are several issues to consider. Do you have something interesting to say? Do you want to commit to writing? Do you really want to put the work in? Is your live/job/whatever interesting enough to compel people to read it? These are all questions that you must consider. But generally speaking, since the cost of submission is free, there is little reason not to give it a shot.

If you think you have a life, occupation, set of stories, unique perspective or some sort of art or other content that would make a great site, fill out the application and we will evaluate your material and possibly work with you.

What do I get by joining Rudius Media?

Being a Rudius Media author brings a number of benefits:

* Instant audience: Each Rudius Media site is linked to every other one, and all the sites combined draw almost a million unique visits every month. New sites typically launch with 10,000 readers the first day, and get between 5000-10,000 unique referrals per week from the other Rudius Media sites. This kind of traffic is enough to easily build a top 100,000 Alexa.com ranking in less than three months. [For comparison, most blogs don't see 1000 unique users in an entire year.]
* Instant revenue stream: Every Rudius Media site is supported by advertising, and the writer takes home 50% of his/her site's gross revenue. We handle all the advertisers and money, you just write the content and cash the checks. The more traffic your site generates, the more money you make. (There is no 'average' amount of revenue that a Rudius Media site generates since it is solely based on traffic. The highest grossing site, TuckerMax.com, generates gross revenue in the low five-figures every month, but that site generates a huge amount of traffic. The lowest grossing make a few dollars a month.)
* A distinct, branded site: Our in-house designer Erin Tyler will work with you to create your own site. You aren't just throwing some crap up on Blogger and wishing for the best; this is a real stand alone site with a distinct design and dedicated domain.
* Complete artistic freedom: Write whatever you want without worrying about the consequences, whether they be legal, commercial or social. We take all the heat, deal with the legalities, lawsuits, advertisers and everything else. You just worry about writing. No one will ever tell you to censor something to please a sponsor or to avoid offending someone. Fuck them if they don't like it [of course, because we share liability with you we can't let you do something illegal like print truly libelous statements, but beyond that, you are free to write anything you want].
* Total anonymity: If you work in a sensitive job where disclosing your identity would result in consequences, but you still want to write about something, we can assure you complete and total anonymity. You can even stay anonymous from the Rudius Media editors (we honestly do not know the identity of two of our authors). We don't need your name, just your art.
* Professional editing/copywriting for all your work: It really doesn't matter if you are a shitty technical writer, your stories and your art are what is important. There are thousands of professional writers who possess technically beautiful writing and are masters of the eloquent turn of phrase yet still have nothing of interest or import to say. We don't want them. We want the people who have great things to say and interesting stories to tell (even if they can't necessarily write them well at first). We can teach you how to say something, but we can't teach you what to say. Some of our writers were very rough when they first started, but now the quality of their writing matches the quality of their content.
* Immediate access to book agents, movie producers, and TV agents: If you have the idea, we can put you with the right people to get it made. Rudius Media has close relationships with numerous book agents, publishers, TV/movie agents, producers and studios. We have already done numerous deals, and have many more pending or in development. If your stuff is good enough, we can not only get it in front of the people in the entertainment business who make decisions, but we can also guide you through the process.
* Partnership with the author, not exploitation: This company was started by writers who were sick of the establishment fucking them, and we are not about to become who we hate. Rudius Media partners with it's writers to create and foster their talent, and protects the author from exploitation. For example, the author retains full copyright ownership over his/her work, and over any ancillary deals they get. We do not sign you to a personal services contract and then bleed you dry; this is your art, you deserve to control it and own it. Furthermore, our financial books are completely transparent to the author. If you want to see the reports from the various ad agencies to verify how much your site is made, you are absolutely free to do so anytime. If we get you a book or TV/movie deal, we only take a standard 10% management fee, and we guide you through a difficult and dangerous process that we've managed many times before for many other authors. The standard Rudius Media Author Contract is viewable here. You'll never see a better contract from any established media company.

What do you look for in a writer?

Only one thing matters here: quality. If the quality is there, we can help you do everything else. Aside from great content, there is no defined formula for what will or will not become a Rudius site. It can be anything from long, emotional, stand alone stories or simple captioned cartoons or short fiction or a daily blog about an interesting job or just about anything imaginable in between. For an example of what we think is good, take a look at the other Rudius Media sites: Just remember: we don't give a shit about your resume. We don't care where you went to school, what internship your parents got you or what grades you earned. We don't care who you fuck, how much money you make, what you look like or where you grew up. We really don't even care if you are a good writer or artist; as long as you have great content, we can help you edit it to overcome any other shortcomings. You don't have to be a "writer" to write or an "artist" to make art; housewives, escorts, mechanics, writers, social workers, college students, nurses---anyone and everyone is eligible.

Is there a deadline for submissions?

No. We will be taking submissions for the foreseeable future, so take your time, there is no rush.

Who owns the content I submit?

Rudius Media does not claim any ownership rights in the Content that you submit to the Rudius Media. After submitting your Content to Rudius Media, you continue to retain all ownership rights in such Content, and you continue to have the right to use your Content in any way you choose. By submitting Content to Rudius Media, you hereby grant to Rudius Media a permanent license to use, copy, modify, adapt, display, reproduce, and distribute such Content solely on and through Rudius Media related websites. This license will terminate when Rudius Media gives the Author notice of intent to publish the Content. An executed Author Agreement between Rudius Media and Author voids this Agreement.

I haven't heard back. Did you receive my application? Does that mean I suck? -The computer hiccuped and I can't tell if my application went through.

All applicants receive a confirmation email. If you have one, we have your application. If your computer tripped up and you never received any email, resubmit. Most applications are reviewed privately by our editors, however some are publicly reviewed on the Rudius Writers board. Due to the volume of submissions we won't respond to all those who apply but feel free to email us if you have any questions.

If I get rejected, how long do I have to wait to re-submit?

This depends. Shit, you can submit once a day if you want, but it isn't going to help you. Generally speaking, most of the submissions we get are really bad and totally unsalvagable. Re-submitting, no matter how long you wait, won't make a difference. Once in a while, we will get a submission that we think has potential, but for whatever reason we decide not to develop it. In those cases you will get an email from an editor that outlines what you need to work on and encourages you to keep trying. In that case, you will be invited to re-submit when you have addressed the problems.

I think I want a site, but I need writing practice. Where can I find some help?

Start with Tucker's guide to writing, then hone your skills in the Rudius Media Writing Forum.

Will you consider other things besides non-fiction writing, like fiction, video, politics, poetry, etc?

As we say in the intro, the only thing that matters is quality content (the only thing we specifically exclude is music). If it is artistic content and can be transmitted via the web, we will consider it.

I have some legal questions regarding my content submission, who do I ask?

Direct all legal inquiries to our general counsel, Michael Soloway.

Forget submitting, what if I want to work for Rudius Media?

We are always looking for people who can help push this company forward. If you feel you have the talent and drive to work for Rudius Media let us know.