**-----> this week’s theme is music and art <-----** https://i.imgur.com/VhUYgQJ.png

Sndbox-Alpha Curation Trail Activates Tomorrow

As you may know, Sndbox-Alpha is Steem’s newest curation trail offering some powerful votes worth about $15 in [Steem Token Units](https://steemit.com/steem/@dragosroua/steem-supply-update-rewards-algorithm-rewrite-major-cleanup-version-bump) — equivalent to $60+ in USD per vote. (see @sndbox's explanation of the money math [here](https://steemit.com/steemit/@sndbox/how-much-is-your-post-worth-a-steemit-rewards-guide)) This is a major opportunity for musicians **and visual artists** of all kinds - from bubblegum pop to harsh metal (or cartoons to photo-realism :-P) and everywhere in-between, from all walks of life, for new users and established users of Steemit alike - to earn big rewards for your content. Our goal is to give upvotes to people who contribute valuable content to Steemit, and to spread the wealth in such a way that the entire community benefits. This is common sense to us - we love Steem and want to see it become an even better, fairer, and more fertile of a place for content creators.

The Biggest Problem With Curation Trails

I’ve worked with several curation trails - @curie, @OCD, and @illuminati-inc. The most common complaint for each trail was the same: **Complaint: How come I can’t submit my posts to this curation trail? It’s not fair. I work hard on great posts and nobody votes them, I thought Steemit was supposed to be better than Facebook and other bullshit websites.** This is understandable… while I do think that most great posts get rewarded at least after a few tries, it DOES feel bad to make a post and have no control over the rewards. Newer users just want to know that they are receiving fair consideration. They need financial rewards - *and if the content isn’t good enough yet,* they need **constructive feedback** to help them get better. That’s why you are **welcome, and in fact encouraged,** to share your posts with us for upvote consideration. **Sndbox-Alpha has an open submission policy and we will strive to keep it going for as long as possible.** This will help to distinguish our trail from other similar projects, and it will create a new and valuable resource for minnows and low-earners around Steemit.

Eligibility Requirements for Sndbox-Alpha Upvotes

These are moderately strict guidelines, but there is some flexibility for exceptional posts that fall outside of the boundaries somehow. + Original content: The post must include substantial original content. “Remix” or using appropriately sourced outside content like photos, videos, even text is fine. The guideline is this: “Would this post be worth an upvote if we stripped it down to ONLY the original material?” + Longform and Midform Content These guidelines are generally good: 300+ words for text-focused posts, at least two paragraphs even for non-text posts, videos should be more than a single shot (with an exception for well rehearsed performances of songs), audio recordings should be “studio recordings” quality, not “rough demo” quality. + The post must be earning less than $3 in rewards before we vote it. There is *small flexibility* if the post moves up a little - for example, a post going to $3.15 before we vote it - but this should be minimized. + The post must be less than 7 days old (within rewards window). For obvious reasons.

How to Submit Posts for Sndbox-Alpha Curation Trail

First you must read the eligibility guidelines in the previous section. **Users who repeatedly break the rules will be banned from submitting posts, if it’s really obvious they are not paying attention.** (occasional mistakes are OK of course) Secondly, remember the golden rule: **You are only allowed to submit one post per day no matter what.** Lastly, follow these steps: **(1) Post Your Content on Steemit and Wait 3 Hours** This is because if the post goes above $3, you won’t be eligible. It’s not a huge deal but this way you will avoid using your one daily submission on a post that isn’t eligible. **(2) After 3 Hours, Post a Comment on This Thread.** In the comment, include a link to your thread as well as a two sentence explanation of what the topic is about. Here is an example: *LINK TO POST: fakelink.com* *INFO: This post is a story about my band recording a new jazz song last week. It includes some original photos and the recording of the song (unmastered but still cool) is at the end of the post.* That’s all! You do not have to go crazy - upvotes are based on the post not based on the comment. Just give us a quick idea of what the post is. **(3) Wait 24-48 hours and see if your post gets upvoted.** We will respond to all submissions that *do* get upvotes. If you don’t receive an upvote or a response within 48 hours, it means that your post was not selected. **(4) Try Again!** You can submit one post per day so feel free to try again. Do not be discouraged - it may take 3+ tries before you get the upvote, but if you keep trying, we will recognize your effort and the most consistent applicants are almost guaranteed to get an upvote eventually. **(4b) Also Remember: Comments Do Not Need Upvotes for Visibility** We will simply look at all of the submissions. It is ok if your post is down at the bottom of hundreds of comments, as long as it is new and it meets the guidelines, we'll take a look.

Upvotes Start Tomorrow - Submit Posts Now!

Today’s the day to start submitting. **This thread is the submission thread for January 21 to January 27, 2018.** Remember you get a maximum of one submission per day and that **you must follow the guidelines.** Good luck and I think I speak for the whole @sndbox-alpha team when I say that we can’t wait to look at your posts. Cheers! (this post written by Matt @heymattsokol w/ graphics by Kirk @voronoi) https://i.imgur.com/zkBe3R1.png

emelanson