AnimeSecrets.org was founded on December 11th, 2002 as an anime, manga, and video game review website. Over the next decade, it evolved to include coverage of many facets of the industry including conventions, interviews with industry members, cosplay, and the broader gamer/nerd/otaku experience. In January 2014, it became a property of Digital Phoenix Productions LLC.

As we move into this new phase in our lifespan, we need to do a little growing! We’re looking to bring on some new writers and editors to round out our staff and give us the greatest chance at success.

While these positions are currently unpaid, we are in the process of exploring several avenues for monetization of our content. This means that the judging will be stricter, but the opportunity is greater than ever before. There are no guarantees as to how slow or fast this process will be, however, so we need people who love to discuss and facilitate discussion about the media and community we love above any potential perks of the position they hold. At its core, since its inception, AnimeSecrets.org has been a labor of love at all levels, and that’s an attitude we don’t intend or expect to change even after this transition is finished.

Applications are being accepted on a rolling basis until we fill our open positions, and we will be notifying the people we select as soon as we process their submissions. Once the slots are gone, there won’t be any more for the foreseeable future, so apply early!

Writer

Position duties and expectations:
-All writers are expected to have an understanding and command of the English language.
-All writers are expected to submit at least 2000 words of content every two months.
-Writers are expected to contact the Editor in Chief or another member of the AnimeSecrets.org board if something arises to prevent them from meeting their 2000 word requirement. Failure to do so will incur consequences that, upon multiple infractions, may result in termination from staff.

-All writers are expected to respond in a timely manner to the editor working on their review.
-Do not steal someone else’s work and claim it to be your own. This is punishable by termination.
-Writers are prohibited from posting any of their material published on AnimeSecrets.org to any other medium, electronic or print, that is accessible by the public. This includes, but is not limited to, blogs, forums, other review sites, and social networking sites. Violating this is grounds for termination.
-Writers MAY link to their AnimeSecrets.org content on social media or blogs to increase visibility, and also may continue creating new content independent of AnimeSecrets.org. This non-AnimeSecrets.org content may be linked to in the writer’s profile on AnimeSecrets.org to help promote the writer’s greater body of work.

Writer Application Rules:

1) Only one writer application will be accepted per person. Failure to comply will result in disqualification of all submissions from noncompliant individual(s).
2) Do not steal someone else’s work and claim it to be your own.
3) Failure to provide all information requested will result in that applicant’s dismissal from consideration.
4) Any reviews of hentai or ero-game titles will automatically be denied without exception.
5) We will accept applications until all positions are filled. Please send all applications to applications@animesecrets.org with subject ‘Writer Application’

6) The application will be reviewed by the Recruiting Panel in the order it was received, and the applicant will be informed of the Panel’s decision beginning April 1, 2014.
7) The applicant may also apply separately for an Editor position.

Writer Application Content:

1) All Writer applications must include a cover letter that  tells us the following:

-Preferred writer type. You can declare either Full Reviewer, New in Japan writer, or Columnist. Upon hiring, being one does not exclude you from writing the other’s type of content, this simply gauges your primary interest.

-An area (or areas) of focus: anime/drama/tokusatsu, manga/light novels, gaming/visual novels, or, if submitting a column, the topic of the column (e.g. cosplay, industry history, music). Upon joining the staff, this declaration will not prevent the applicant from writing a review/column in another area. This is simply to gauge a writer’s primary interest.

2) All Writer applications must also include a sample of their preferred content:

-All reviewer applications must include a summary and review that utilizes the Anime Secrets grading scale and format. It can be on any manga, anime, game, or other medium that the applicant has completed. Length must be at least 600 words.

-All New in Japan applicants must include a summary and review of a pilot episode, giving it a score out of 10. Length must be at least 450 words.

-All Columnist applicants must include a short proposal of their column’s topic, publishing frequency (once/week, twice/month), its intended run length (months, years, installments, or ongoing) and the introductory column of at least 500 words.

Editor

Position duties and expectations:
-Editors must have a clear understanding and very strong command of the English language.
-All Editors are expected to be able to proof and approve, following AnimeSecrets.org editing guidelines, any review, or article for publication within a week of receiving their assignments.

-Editors are expected to contact the Editor in Chief or another member of the AnimeSecrets.org board if something arises to prevent them from meeting their editing obligations. Failure to do so will incur consequences that, upon multiple infractions, may result in termination from staff.

Editor Application Rules:
1) Editor Applicants should use the “Track Changes” feature in Microsoft Word or a compatible word processing program to mark all edits to reviews.
-To use this feature in Word 2007, click on the “Review” tab. The “Track Changes” button is in the center of the toolbar.
-To use this feature in older versions of Word, go to View->Toolbars->Reviewing. The ‘Track Changes’ button is on the new toolbar.
2) We will accept applications until all open positions are filled. Please send all applications to applications@animesecrets.org with subject ‘Editor Application’

Editor Application Process:
1) Applicants will send a cover letter to applications@animesecrets.org stating their interest in an Editor position.
2) Once we’ve received the email, we will send back an anonymous written review.
3) The applicant edits the review for grammar and flow, using the Track Changes feature in Microsoft Word or comparable/compatible program. The applicant should edit until they consider the review ready for publication.
4) Attach the edited review to an email and send it back to applications@animesecrets.org with the subject “Editor Application”
5) The recruiting panel will evaluate the edited review in the order it was received and inform the applicant beginning  April 1, 2014.