Welcome

Shadow Claw is currently being revamped and will return sometime in January

Welcome guest to Shadow Claw, the layout challenge which will test you to your limit.
The Shadow Claw challenge is run by me, Melissa, every two months, with the main aim to help the communiuty to improve their skills. No matter what skill level you are, as long as you have dedication and are willing to learn, anyone can take up the challenge.
On the site you will find the layouts which current participants have created, but also tips and tricks to help you on your way to making great layouts. There are opportunities to contact the participants, me, and various well known layout masters.
Even if you are not participating, feel free to look around the site and participant's work, and if you have any questions feel free to contact me

The Shadow Claw challenge has a number of aims, which include helping both participants and the general neopian public. These are:
To help improve layout skills
To improve content on sites
To help people get inspired
To share tips and tricks
To help people learn about layouts and how to create them
To help layout makers find their own style

Thumbs Up System

The thumbs up system is a way that the neopian public can like layouts created by the participants. There are a few rules for this system:
You may only like a layout once, but can like as many as you want.
Participants are also not allowed to like their own layouts, but can like other participants'.
You do not win the challenge by having the most likes, it is simply an extra.

If you would like to give a layout a thumbs up, please fill in the form to the left and click the envelope to send it.

Current Challenge

In this section you can find out all about what is currently happening, and participants should look at this regularly.

Challenge commencing: N/A
Challenge ending: N/A
Layouts Submission Deadline:N/A

This challenge will last 4 weeks and 2 days, so by the end of the challenge you will of submitted 12 layouts.

Updates

Saturday 24th December 2011
Revamping

Saturday 10th December 2011
Finished uploading week 1 submissions
Contacted people who have missed deadline

Thursday 8th December 2011

Entry|Closed

Anyone is allowed to enter The Shadow Claw challenge, from beginners to masters. Before you do enter, make sure you are ready to commit to this challenge because otherwise you will not be able to keep up with it, or get the most out of it.
To enter you must fill in the form and neomail it to me, which you can find beneath the rules section.
Make sure to read all the rules first before entering, otherwise if you are found to be breaking them during the challenge, you will be taken out of it.
The challenge lasts for one month, and you must be consistent with your work throughout.

Rules

There are only seven rules, but you need to read them carefully, and if there is any you do not understand, feel free to contact me

You must make at least 3 layouts per week. This means you can submit more than 3, but that is the minimum requirement.
The layouts can be petpages, user or pet lookups.
The layouts can be variations of each other, but there must be 3 clear variations not just simple colour changes.
A screenshot of each layout must be submitted by the deadline of each week, no exceptions.
If you are unable to reach the minimum requirement, you must neomail me 24 hours before the deadline, and with a valid reason.
You must not at all use or edit any premades. This challenge is to help improve your skills, not steal other people's work.
You only get one warning if you break any of these. If you break the rules a second time, you are out of the challenge.

These may seem very strict, but they are in place so that participants get the most out of the challenge, and to discourage laziness!

Participants are allowed to add any work they create for the challenge to their site!

Form|Closed

Please fill in all of the form, and click the envelope to the left to send it.
In the form you will see a line which says I have read and agreed to the pledge
This pledge is to help encourage you more to do the challenge since you are committing to it:
I will try my best in this challenge and will follow all of the rules. If I am unable to fulfil any of the rules, I will immediately contact Melissa. I will be friendly and helpful to other participants, and will get involved in the challenge as much as possible.

Services

Not only do particpants get to be part of the challenge, there is also a few perks!

Advertising - The challenge is a great opportunity to advertise your site because people can see what you offer before they even visit it! If you link your site in the entry form, I will add a button linking to your site in your section.

Advice - One of the aims of the challenge is to help people learn, so giving each other advice is also included! If you ever need any help, feel free to either contact me or any of the other participants. There is no shame in helping each other!

Showcase - Shadow Claw is a great way to display your work to the neopian public, so if you are a request or premades site, this is a great way to get recognised. It is also simply good if you want to display your work if you are proud of it.

Thumbs-Up System - This system means member of the neopian public can give layouts a 'thumbs up' if they really like it. This should help participants boost their confidence in their work, and also help site owners decide what kind of layouts to put on their site. This is only a thumbs up system, meaning no negative votes will be added. The challenge is to help improve skills, not hurt their confidence.

Submitting Layouts

To submit your screenshots of your layouts, please fill in the form to left and click the envelope to send it.
Recommended image hosting sites are Imageshack (my favourite), Photobucket & Tinypic
The browser you use does not matter
You do not need to resize the screenshot, I will do that for you
Please fill in all information in the form

If you are having issues with uploading screenshots or any other type of issue, simply neomail me.

Portfolio

A portfolio of your layouts is optional, but it will be helpful in tracking your progress. You can use premade layouts for this as it is not a compulsory requirement, and I will add a link to your portfolio in your section on Shadow Claw.

Here are a few suggestions if you are thinking of creating one:
Write pros and cons of each of your layouts
Have a contact link to you so people can comment on your layouts
Make a timetable/task list. This would help you make sure you make at least 3 layouts per week.
Keep a mini blog of your progress.

If there are any other suggestions you can think of, feel free to neomail me them and I will add them to the list.

Participants

Here you can see all the work which each participant has created and submitted to Shadow Claw. You will also find a link to contact each of the participants, and a link to their sites if they own one. If you would like to see a larger preview of the layouts, simply drag the image to the address bar.
Don't forget if there is a layout you particularly like, give it a thumbs up! (click thumbs up for more information)

Name|Contact

Info

Portfolio: Here

Week 1

Awards

At the end of each challenge, prizes are given out to a number of people.
People who are given prizes are:
Most Improved
Best Layout
Participating in the challenge

For the Most Improved & Best Layout, there will be a prize for the person who is chosen by the public and the person chosen by me.

Disclaimer: None of the awards are bought items or cost any neopoints. All awards/prizes are completely free with no costs involved.

Sitely

In the sitely section you can find link back buttons. This includes normal link buttons, but also buttons for people who are participating in the challenge. You will also find links to sites which Shadow Claw is affiliated with, and where Shadow Claw is listed.

If you are interested in either become affiliates or listing Shadow Claw, please fill in the form to the left and send it to me by clicking the envelope.
Please delete the other option in the subject line (if you are submitting an affiliate request, delete lister and vice versa)
If you have any questions along with your neomail feel free to add those to the end and I will reply as soon as possible.

Link Back

Affiliates & Listers

Credits

Coding and all graphics on Shadow Claw were made by me.
You can find the bullets and envelopes at my other site,Shadowed.
Counter base from Dark Light.
Buttons were made by various sites, so click the button for the credit.

If there is anything on Shadow Claw which has not been credited properly, please contact me and I will fix it as soon as possible.

Started 20th November 2011