Once Upon a Trail (OUT) is an upcoming digital charity zine. It will feature arts and short stories of The Legend of Heroes: Trails/Kiseki characters in a high fantasy alternate universe (AU), representing different character archetypes. This project is an expansion of a previous art collaboration where 20 artists recreated a Trails cast without communication (posted on Bluesky).This is an SFW zine that honors human creativity. Generative AI in any of the zine creation processes is prohibited.This is a fanzine and is not affiliated with Nihon Falcom.
Mod Team
Miyew:
Head Mod
Bluesky . X/Twitter . VGen . Ko-fi . Pixiv . AO3This is my first time leading a zine, but I have been organizing Trails art collaborations for more than a year now. While this is a bigger project, I trust the talents and skills of this community. Really excited to see what we can do this time!Favorite Trails Character: Of course, it's Bestelle!
Kurii
Art Mod
Bluesky . InstagramHi ! I'm a French artist who has been into Trails for 3 years now, its large cast and intricate lore immediately got me hooked and it's always a joy to work with fellow Trails fans !Fave Trails character: Lloyd Bannings, but i have a disease that makes me seriously love literally every characters
Jer:
Art Mod
BlueskyHi! I'm a Canadian designer that draws a lot of Trails too! I love giant robots! Let's make something cool.Favorite Trails Character: Fie and Altina
SailorCheerio:
Graphics Mod (Zine Formatting)
Bluesky . TumblrHello! c: I am a hobby artist and love dabbling in many creative things! This will be my second time in a graphics/formatting role for a project like this! Trails is incredibly important to me and I cannot wait to create more AU fun with everyone!Favorite Trails Character: Emma Millstein!
ScheduleInterest Check: October 12 to November 26Interest Check Results Processing: November 27 to December 4Applications Open: December 5 to January 5Application Decisions: January 6 to January 15Pitches Open: January 16Pitches Deadline: January 23Pitches Return: January 24 to February 41st Check-in: March 62nd Check-in: April 63rd Check-in: May 6Final Submission: June 20Formatting: TBDRelease Day: TBDThis is the ideal schedule, but this is subject to change depending on any delaying factors that the project may face in any stage.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)For Contributor Requirements, please click this link
What is a fanzine?
(blend of fan and magazine or zine) is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleasure of others who share their interest. (Source: Wikipedia)A fanzine can be a collection of arts and short stories dedicated to a specific character, ship, or theme.
What is this fanzine about?
OUT is an expansion of a previous high fantasy AU project that featured 20 Trails characters. This fanzine will build upon that foundation.Please check this link for the established lore so far.
Since this is based on an older project, does that mean that if a character I want is already taken, I can't create my own AU version of them anymore? Do I have to choose another character? (Example: There is already an AU Estelle; does this mean I can't create another AU version of her?)
Correct. You have to choose another available character. You are still free to include the taken character's AU version on your work, though. Our only ask is to follow the established lore (if any).Please check this link to see the list of character availability.This list also indicates which characters have no established lore/backstory/relationships, which means the interpretation of these characters will be up to you.
Does this mean if a character still has no AU version from the previous project, only one contributor can create for that character?
Yes. We encourage contributors to at least think of 3 characters they want to work on in case there are duplicate choices.
Can I choose to work on NPCs (Anton, Ricky, Vivi, etc.) for this zine?
Yes!
I'm not really the type to create my own lore/design. I just want to draw/write from what is created already. Can I still join the zine and just choose from others' creations?
Yes! Our only ask is to follow whatever lore (if any) has been written for that character.Please check this link to see the list of character availability. This list also details which characters have no established lore/backstory/relationships.
I'm a writer, and I don't draw. I want to write an AU version of a certain available character; is that fine?Given that there is already a foundation for this project, we highly encourage writers to expand on whatever is available instead of creating for a new character.However, if there is an artist interested in the same available character and would not mind working with a writer, this is possible. If there is no artist for it, writers will be asked to work on whoever is taken in the previous project and taken by the current contributors of this fanzine.
What charity will the zine’s proceeds go to?
Those interested in the zine will be given options to support any of these organizations:
Strays Worth Saving - SWS
Red Cubs Pet Patrol
Dolly Parton's Imagination LibraryMore details regarding the process will be posted on release day.