An unofficial Genshin Impact Charity Zine to benefit HEART Tokushima Animal Shelter.

Bringing About Change for Animals in Japan

HEART Tokushima is an independently owned nonprofit no-kill animal shelter in Tokushima Japan. The shelter was founded in 2006, by Canadian Susan Mercer and her husband Tojo Hitoshi. Together with dedicated volunteers, they work tirelessly to try and bring about change for animal welfare in Tokushima and the rest of Japan. The shelter has no paid staff or sponsored funding, and functions solely on volunteer help and donations.In 2014, Mod Kari volunteered at HEART Tokushima while visiting friends in Japan, and got to know Susan and Hitoshi. She was deeply moved by their tenacity and dedication, and the struggles they have faced for nearly 20 years now as they continue diligently working toward their goal of a world where people and animals can all live more safely and comfortably together.As a small independent shelter, every dollar of every donation counts, and it has been Mod Kari's goal for years to find a way to help raise awareness and funding for HEART and its mission. After participating in many successful zine projects, she decided to put together HEART Teyvat in honor of Susan and Hitoshi's efforts, and hopes to be able to make a substantial donation to the shelter with the project, as well as spread the word of the amazing and inspirational work they have done for so long.In 2016, Susan and Hitoshi independently organized a TED Talk, hoping to get word out about the work they were doing and talk about the amazing things they had accomplished in the ten years they had been in operation. Now, as they approach their 20 year anniversary, this project is being launched to celebrate every animal HEART has saved, and hopefully help them save many many more. Please check out the TED Talk below!

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Frequently Asked Questions

✦ What is this zine about?
To raise awareness and funds for an independently owned nonprofit no-kill animal shelter and rescue in Japan, this zine will focus on beloved characters from Genshin Impact, and the animals within the world that we all wish so desperately Hoyoverse would let us pet. The theme of this project is animal rescue, and will be full of heartwarming stories and artwork of your favorite characters helping and interacting with all manner of creatures from Teyvat.✦ Is this zine for charity or for profit?
All proceeds from sales of this zine in excess of funding needed to produce the zine itself will be donated to HEART Tokushima Animal Shelter and Rescue in Japan.✦ Will this zine feature any shipping or NSFW content?
No. All contributions to this zine will be wholly SFW and, while it's fine if you ship it, any character interactions will be depicted platonically. The focus of all contributions will be characters and various pets and wildlife from the game; shipping or any blatantly romantic imagery will not be permitted.✦ Will this zine be digital or physical?
We are planning to do physical bundles with a book as well as merch items, and an expanded digital version with tons of bonus content will also be available.✦ Is this zine "proship"?
We don't like these types of labels that get thrown around lately, as they imply that the issues currently plaguing fandom are rooted in fictional relationships, when the greater problem is how we real live people treat one another. We aren't going to judge anyone based on what ships they like (or don't), or what sorts of content they prefer (or don't); what we will NOT abide, however, is any form of harassment or threats made toward anyone whose opinions or tastes or individual boundaries and thresholds for any manner of content differ from anyone else's. This zine is about cute animals and good feelings, and we will not tolerate those who would seek to persecute others because of what they enjoy outside of the scope of the project.✦ Who can apply? Are there any prerequisites? What is the minimum age requirement?
We ask that all applicants be at least 16 years of age at the time they apply. Other than that, all we ask is that you have samples of your work to apply with! No prior zine experience is required!✦ How many contributors will you be accepting?
Depending on application turnout, we are currently aiming to have about 20ish page artists, 5 or 6 merch artists, 10ish story writers, and 3 or 4 flash writers for this project.
Due to the overwhelming number of applications we received, we have adjusted our previous expectations in order to accept as many contributors as we reasonably can. We will be expanding our digital options to accommodate additional contributions, and at this time we expect the final product to have over 60 participants!✦ What language will this zine be in?
The finished project will be in English, but contributors from anywhere and everywhere are welcome to apply! Our team will have some limited translation capabilities to help if English isn't your strong suit, and we will do our best to communicate what we need regardless of your language proficiencies✦ Okay but do dragons count?
Of course they do! They may be a bit more sentient than most of the other animals in Teyvat, but they're still critters we want to pet! Dvalin just looks so smooth and pettable. Apep might get bitey, but we'll still try!! Just please make sure to keep in mind that dragon critters vs dragon people will be considered different categories, in the same way we have foxes and cats, but Yae Miko and Diona and Kirara are still considered humany people!✦ But I want to pet Gorou and Tighnari's ears.
All right, all right, so do we. Just get permission first, okay? And for the sake of this zine, we still need a non-humany critter to be present for all contributions.✦ How many pieces will contributors be allowed to submit? Will comics be permitted?
Depending on the amount of interest we receive, comics, spreads, and other larger contributions may be permitted. However, at this time, we want to start off with everyone on an equal playing field with one contribution for those who are part of the physical release. Extra contributions will be welcome and encouraged for the digital version, though!✦ What sort of compensation can contributors expect?
All contributors will receive a free digital copy of all items. If the zine does well and sales allow for physical items to be offered free of charge, we would absolutely love to do so, but it will depend on how well the zine does in preorders, as we want to make certain we'll be able to make a donation to HEART. Contributors who want physical items will be responsible for paying their own shipping costs, but batch shipments may be an option to try and save on those costs. If we are unable to offer physical items for free, contributors will be able to purchase them at production cost.✦ Where will the zine be distributed from?
The zine will ship from the continental US and be available for physical purchase anywhere that can receive parcels from the US at the time preorders open. If any restrictions or embargoes are put in place between preorders and distribution, the necessary refunds will be made promptly at that time, and/or digital items can be offered in their stead.✦ What sorts of animals can we expect to see in this zine?
_{This section has been edited for clarification.}
While there are several quests and events from the game that are centered around helping animals, contributors will not be restricted to depicting only the creatures that canon has displayed. We welcome any and all stories and imagery our contributors want to create depicting interactions with animals in Teyvat, including creatures that may not have been confirmed visually by canon at this point. The only creatures we will not be permitting are those which are proprietary to their IPs and universes, such as pokemon, moogles, or other such animals that are world- or universe-specific.

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Zine Specs

This zine is planned for a physical book release in A5 size, with merch and digital packages. We will be accepting four different types of contributions: page art, merch art, story writing, and flash writing. Multiple roles can be applied for, but each applicant will only be accepted for one role.PLEASE NOTE: NO GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF ANIMAL HARM OR CRUELTY WILL BE PERMITTED. We know that Animal Rescue implies an Animal In Need, and it's perfectly fine to create something involving an injured or sick creature being cared for by your fave. However we will not be approving any pitches or accepting any submissions with explicit descriptions or imagery of enactment of deliberate harm or cruelty to an animal in our project.Below you will find a breakdown of the general expectations for each role.


✦ Page Artist ✦Page artists will be expected to produce a high-quality complete illustration, fully rendered with a background, depicting at least one Genshin Impact character interacting in some friendly or assistive way with at least one animal creature. All submissions will need to be 300ppi, on a canvas of absolutely no less than 1748 x 2480 pixels, in CMYK. Applicants accepted to produce page art will have the option to create their own individual artwork design, or to collaborate with another contributor to produce one full illustration or up to three small spot illustrations for a story writer, or the background/accompanying base art for a flash writer. Page artists may also have the opportunity to assist in the design of page borders, dividers, or other graphic assets for inclusion in the formatted PDF and book. Templates will be provided by the modteam to make sure everything is uniform and meets printing requirements.Competitive applications should include multiple examples of complete illustrations, including a background, and show a strong grasp of anatomy (both human and animal), color theory, and rendering capability. Examples included in applications should represent the style in which you plan to contribute. Art of Genshin Impact characters is preferred, but not mandatory.


✦ Merch Artist ✦Merch artists will be asked to create a design that can be sent to a manufacturer and made into a physical item, such as a charm or a sheet of stickers, depicting at least one Genshin Impact character interacting in some friendly or assistive way with at least one animal creature. The sizes and dimension requirements for merch vary greatly, but for items that require templates, a template will be provided by the modteam. All designs will need to be 300ppi and CMYK color. Merch artists may also have the opportunity to assist in the design of page borders, dividers, or other graphic assets for inclusion in the formatted PDF and book.Competitive applications should include multiple examples of merch designs, and show a strong grasp of anatomy (both human and animal, standard or chibi proportions are both acceptable), color theory, and innovative product design. Examples included in applications should represent the style in which you plan to contribute. Art of Genshin Impact characters is preferred, but not mandatory.


✦ Story Writer ✦Story writers will be expected to create a self-contained (one-shot) fanfiction story of no less than 1,000 words, depicting at least one Genshin Impact character interacting in some friendly or assistive way with at least one animal creature. Contributions should not exceed 3,000 words, and must be written in the English language. Story writers will be allowed and encouraged to collaborate with artists to include illustrations with their works.Competitive applications should include multiple examples of completed (one-shot) works that do not exceed 5,000 words. Single chapters of larger works will be permitted, but at least one standalone piece is required. Works should show a strong understanding of the English language with a good command of spelling and grammar, as well as the ability to convey a complete story, concept, or situation/scene in a single piece of writing. At least one sample piece of writing MUST be set in the Genshin Impact canon universe.


✦ Flash Writer ✦Flash writers will be expected to create a self-contained one-page written composition depicting at least one Genshin Impact character interacting in some friendly or assistive way with at least one animal creature. The word count is flexible, but should not exceed 450 words, in order to be contained to a single page.We know this one is likely a new concept for most people, as zines usually only have story writers, so let us explain the origin of this contribution and our vision for inclusion a little more! The term "flash writer" derives from the concept of "flash fiction", which is usually described as a very short, standalone piece of fictional writing. Flash fiction can also often be referred to as a "drabble", "microfiction", or a "short short story", but these are usually considered sub-categories under a greater umbrella.Though the term "flash fiction" was really only officially accepted as a formal genre of writing in the early 1990s, the concept of flash fiction has roots all the way back through history to the origins of writing, and has been going strong since humans were putting words to paper. Some of your favorite fables and fairy tales, as well as many types of narrative poetry are all examples of flash fiction. Zines often have to strictly limit the number of writers they can accept, or throttle the word count for each writer, in order to prevent the page count of a physical book from getting out of hand, and we think that's a damn shame. Fanfiction is the very backbone of fandom, and so in order to allow more writers to participate in our project, as well as to encourage more varied and creative forms of writing being included in zines, we've decided to add a whole second category for writers to throw their hats into.If your work leans more into poetry and very short stories, or you're interested in doing something more akin to diary entries or epistolary writing, the Flash Writer category may be for you! Additionally, these pieces will have the option to be a bit more decorative than longer story contributions, as they are limited to a single page, so if you are both a writer and an artist and would like to design the full page with accompanying art yourself (such as a letter written on fancy stationery, or poetry with a scene illustration), that is awesome and we are all for it! If art is not your forte, we will also be encouraging collaboration between artists and writers for exactly this purpose.Competitive applications should include multiple examples of very short stories, poetry, or other comparable self-contained written works that do not exceed 500 words. Works should show a strong understanding of the English language with a good command of spelling and grammar, as well as the ability to convey a complete story, concept, or situation/scene in a very short piece of writing. Poetry can be free-verse and does not have to rhyme, but should demonstrate an understanding of meter and rhythm or other cadenced or visual distinction that sets it apart from a short piece of written prose. At least one sample piece of writing MUST be set in the Genshin Impact canon universe.

ABSOLUTELY NO USE OF GENERATIVE AI OF ANY KIND IS PERMITTED. ALL SUBMISSIONS MUST BE THE ARTIST OR WRITER'S OWN WORK, IN FULL.

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