Melting Pot: A charity fanzine celebrating the romantic, platonic, and familial love of the characters of Dungeon Meshi!
Preorders now open!
Nov 15th-Dec 20th
Melting Pot is an unofficial fanzine celebrating the platonic, familial, and romantic love & relationships between the characters of Ryoko Kui's Dungeon Meshi. It will be accompanied by two digital side zines, In The Kitchen, a behind-the-scenes zine looking at the creation of Melting Pot, and Midnight Snack, an 18+ pin-up/suggestive content zine. Learn more about our project below!
Learn more:
frequently asked questions
What is a zine?
Zines (pronounced like the third syllable in "magazine") are a tradition of collecting artwork, prose, and/or other forms of content centered around a theme together into a combined booklet. Fanzines, zines centered around existing media, are a tradition dating all the way back to the late 1960s with fans of Star Trek. They often include a combination of fanart and fanfiction, but can also include other forms of fan content such as cosplay photos, in-universe written works, poetry, and more!
How can I purchase the zine?
We will have a BigCartel shop open selling all zine bundles (digital PDF, book, merch) from Nov 15th to December 20th where you can purchase your copy! These sales will be pre-orders. After the store closes on December 20th we will begin production of the zine and merch regular updates on which will be posted on social media. After production (expected to be about 1-2 months, though further delays are possible), we will ship all orders and send out digital products via Email.If you were unable to purchase a copy or specific item during the pre-order period, we will have left-over sales of any remaining products once shipping concludes. These sales will be final and limited by our stock--if you would like to guarantee a product, this can only be done through pre-orders.
is this zine physical or digital?
The main zine, Melting Pot, will be a physical zine with physical merch. The zine will be standard A5 size and hardcover. We will also have a digital PDF available during pre-orders.Our two side zines, Midnight Snack and In The Kitchen, are both fully digital zines and will be available only as PDFs.
where is the money going?
All profit not used to pay for production or compensating contributors with bundles will be donated to World Central Kitchen, a world-class charity combatting food insecurity around the globe. More information is available here. The receipt from the donation will be posted to our social medias following the close of the project.
what type of content will be included in the main and side zines?
Melting Pot will be a mixture of art, writing, and comics about the characters from Dungeon Meshi, focusing on the romantic, platonic, and familial relationships of the characters. We are open to all shipping content which follows our guidelines: pitches for the main or side zines that include pedophilic or incestuous relationships or themes of rape, extreme violence, or similar topics will not be included.Midnight Snack, our 18+ digital side zine, will contain adult content centered around pin-ups and other suggestive content. Nudity will be allowed, but we will avoid depicting explicit sex (it will be rated M not E). No characters under the age of 18 will be included.In The Kitchen, our behind-the-scenes zine, will include sketches, works-in-progress, scrapped ideas, and other content giving a peak into the creation process of Melting Pot. It will also include exclusive Dungeon Meshi art not featured in the main zine.We currently plan not to include AU (alternate universe) content in the main zine, but it may be included in Midnight Snack. There may be spoilers included in the zine and contributor server.
How will shipping and refunds be handled?
Shipping will originate from the United States. Shipping including international shipping will be tracked. Shipping will occur about 1-3 months after preorders end, depending on the production timeline. We expect to ship in approximately Feb/Mar but this is subject to production and shipping delays. We will give regular updates on production via social media. Digital products will be sent out during or shortly after shipping.We are not responsible for lost or stolen packages nor are we responsible for any additional importation fees or duties necessary for the package to reach its destination. Unfortunately, we are unable to ship to any country with US shipping restrictions, such as Russia. If you have concerns or questions about shipping to your location please reach out via Email or social media DMs for more help.Due to the nature of this product as a preorder product, we will not be able to offer refunds after preorders close.
How can I apply to contribute to the zine?
We have already completed our contributor application period and have selected our contributor (artist, merch designer, writer) team. Unfortunately, this means that if you are finding the project now you have missed the window to apply as we will not be taking on any additional contributors. However, we encourage you to find other ways to get involved with supporting the project as that help is of immense value to us. If you stick around, there is always a chance we might do a second volume!
I have additional questions. Where can I ask them?
We're happy to answer any questions you may have. You can ask anonymously through our Retrospring or email us at [email protected] (both linked below), DM us on any of our social media accounts, or send an ask on our Tumblr. We also have an opportunity for questions in our interest check and application forms.Please be respectful! We are volunteering our time. If you send multiple rude or hateful messages, you'll be blocked!If we think the question may be helpful to more people, we may also make a public Q&A post with the answer (the asker would remain anonymous).
Timeline
All dates are subject to change
| Project announcement | Feb 25 |
| Interest check | Mar 10-Apr 21 |
| Moderator applications | Mar 10-Apr 25 |
| Contributor Applications | May 8-Jun 12 |
| Contributor results sent | ~Jun 19 |
| Contributor acceptance deadline | June 24 |
| Pitches due | Jul 3 |
| Check-in 1 | Jul 25-Jul 29 |
| Check-in 2 | Aug 25-Aug 29 |
| Check-in 3 | Sept 25-Sept 29 |
| Final Piece Deadline | Oct 25 |
| Pre-Order Period | Nov 15-Dec 20 |
| Shipping | ~Feb |
| Leftover sales | TBD |
Moderator Team
Mod Ray, Head & graphics
She/her
Hi! I'm an artist who uses art and animation to keep me sane as I go to school to get my medical degree. I've been involved with zines for almost four years now and adore the community around them. I read all of Dungeon Meshi in two days during my exams and don't regret it at all.
Mod JUBE, finance & shipping
Any Pronouns
JUBE is an artist and writer who has been reading dungeon meshi since chapter fifteen and adorea the world that Ryoko Kui has created. They have been involved in zines on a moderation level since 2016.
Mod Kay, production
She/her
Hello! I'm new to the Dungeon but not new to zine managing! This will be my ninth project and in one of my favourite roles - Merch Production! I'm excited to work with the team and hopefully get myself some cute monster girl Falin merch.
Application and contributor guidelines
General Contributor guidelines
All accepted contributors are expected to produce a new and unique work (art or writing) for this zine. This work cannot have been published or shared elsewhere and cannot be publicly shared during the creation process. If there is evidence that a work is created with AI or otherwise plagiarized, this could result in expulsion from the project.
Contributors are expected to meet their check-in and submission deadlines or else quickly communicate to mods if they need an extension or other leniency. A contributor missing multiple check-ins with no communication may force the mods to remove them from the project.
Contributors are expected to join the contributor discord and regularly check for updates and other information shared there. They are also expected to follow the server rules including remaining respectful to fellow contributors and mods and not engaging in hateful or offensive speech. Breaking these rules may result in expulsion from the project. We want to keep the server a happy and creative space for all!
Whether or not this project includes an NSFW side zine, all NSFW conversation is expected to remain off of the main channels.
Artist guidelines
Page artists are expected to produce either a one-page illustration, a two-page spread, or a 2-4 page comic (this may be done with a writer). All must be completed, in full color, and have a background or backgrounds.
We may include spot illustrations to accompany feature fics. In which case, spot artists are expected to produce 2-3 small "spot" illustrations by working together with a writer. These are not required to have a background but should blend with the page around them. Artist-writer teams will be made by the mods.
Merch artists are expected to design 2+ original merchandise designs. This may include digital merch. Product types will be assigned by the mods.
Again, work cannot contain elements generated with AI and/or be traced from others' art. These constitute plagiarism and are serious cases for expulsion from the project.
Writer guidelines
Feature fic writers are expected to produce an original written piece of 2k-3k words. They will also potentially collaborate with a spot artist to illustrate it.
Comic script writers are expected to work with an artist or artists to produce a 3-4 page comic script which will then be illustrated.
All written works are expected to be polished and contain no grammar or spelling mistakes. Contributors may receive help proof-reading from the writing mod.
All written works must be original and, again, any evidence of usage of AI or plagiarism will result in expulsion.
Page art application guidelines
Potential page artists are required to submit 3 samples that best display their artistic ability and the quality and style they plan to use for this project as well as a portfolio of 3-10 additional works.
A Dungeon Meshi example is not required, but is highly recommended.
At least one featured piece must contain a full background.
If applying for a comic art position, please have at least one featured art or portfolio piece be a page of comic work you have done, colored or otherwise.
Google Drive links are preferred (though not required) for the three feature pieces and portfolio. Please double-check that these are set to public sharing.
As for all zines, we recommend that your featured art and portfolio contain "zine-style" works that are colored, polished, and have a full background.
Because of the content of Dungeon Meshi, we recommend that you demonstrate skill at drawing a wide range of body types, food, and monsters/animals.
Merch art application guidelines
Similar to page artists, potential merch artists are required to submit 3 samples of merch designs that best display their artistic ability and the quality and style they plan to use for designing merch for this project as well as a portfolio of 3-10 additional merch designs. These can be any merch items, prints and digital merch included.
A Dungeon Meshi example is not required, but is highly recommended.
Mock-ups and photographs of physical merch are not required, but are encouraged.
Google Drive links are preferred (though not required) for the three feature pieces and portfolio. Please double-check that these are set to public sharing.
Because of the content of Dungeon Meshi, we recommend that you demonstrate skill at drawing a wide range of body types, food, and monsters/animals.
Writer application guidelines
Potential writers are required to submit 3 writing samples of 1-3k words that best represent their work as well as a portfolio of 1-3 additional works.
At least one feature or portfolio piece must be a complete work (within the word limit.
A Dungeon Meshi example is not required, but is highly recommended if possible.
Features can be full-length fics (max 3k words), excerpts from larger fics, or samples of other creative writing.
Google Drive links are preferred (though not required) for the three feature pieces and portfolio. Please double-check that these are set to public sharing. If sharing links to works on AO3, please make sure they are viewable by the public.
Works will be judged on grammar, style, flow, and characterization.
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