FOFC Creators

[Brian Swartz]

So this idea semi-randomly popped into my head during work today, and I figured what the heck - I'll just run it up the flagpole and see if anyone salutes it. Shoot it down if it needs to be, I'm just curious about interest level.

The basic gist is I'm curious about the interest level in having a place where those in this community who have/are dabbled in being content creators on Twitch/YouTube/what-the-heck-ever could discuss how things are going for their endeavors and what they've been up to. I know there are at least a few of us - not to pick on him at all but I know a month or so back Abe Sargent put up a thing about his book review? stylings and that was really interesting to me having read some of his dynasty work in EUIV, FM, and the like. Seeing a different side of the creative person, and so on.

I thought it might be interesting to hear from others what they've been doing, and also for the larger group of FOFC who might not be involved but might be interested in some of what our community members are putting out there. It's too much to hope that it might help us see the humanity in each other and dispel some of the hostility that can crop up from time to time in the debate threads, but perhaps it might be interesting for those on both sides of the looking glass and ideas/advice/stories could be shared.

I also don't really know whether such a thing would be best done here or in the Dynasty subforum.

So … what say you all?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Brian Swartz

It's too much to hope that it might help us see the humanity in each other and dispel some of the hostility that can crop up from time to time in the debate threads, but perhaps it might be interesting for those on both sides of the looking glass and ideas/advice/stories could be shared.

One thing the FOFC is pretty good at is kinda "turning off" hostilities when it comes to the free flow of information on neutral topics. I've offered info/help, and been helped by, people with whom I don't swap Christmas cards if ya get me.

I see nothing but good coming from such a thread - though how many content creators we have here is a bit of a mystery to me, so I don't have a guess for the activity level - so I'd say go for it.

[JediKooter]

Had a podcast with a former co-worker for the San Diego Fleet AAF team and am also a really bad amateur filmmaker. Is that what you are thinking of?

[molson]

I'd love to read about creative pursuits of FOFCers. There's be a lot more volume years ago of course, but maybe people can just talk about what they're up to and provide links in this thread.

[Radii]

yeah I'm curious. I do a lot of live streaming, used to be some neat creative stuff (some coding and music) but lately just gaming. I suspect many others here do more interesting things than I

[Chief Rum]

I have a blog that is getting dusty with lack of use. Been meaning to pick it up again.

[JPhillips]

I don't have anything that all of you can participate in, but I am a working actor and director. I most recently performed Every Brilliant Thing here in Newburgh and I'm doing it in Ohio over Thanksgiving. The ticketing site for the NY show is still up:

https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4315305

I directed Or, by Liz Duffy-Adams at York College last Spring. There are some photos on their Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/YCPTheat...=page_internal

Most of my directing is at the college where I teach, Mount Saint Mary. There are a lot of photo albums here:

https://www.msmc.edu/Student_Life/th...msmc_theatre_M

We don't have a theatre major or full-time tech staff, so I focus on shows that feature the actors and the actor/audience conversation. We do good work, but the photos aren't always impressive because of the lack of spectacle.

The current production is another commedia del' arte(the renaissance, masked type). I write the scenarios for those and we use rehearsal to create all the staging and dialogue. Over the winter I'm going to adapt at least three works of Aristophanes into a single performance, title to be determined later.

I'm also working on a large oral history project with the Dominican Sisters of HOPE, based in Ossining, NY, but that's at least a whole different post.

[Brian Swartz]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

I am a working actor and director. I most recently performed Every Brilliant Thing here in Newburgh and I'm doing it in Ohio over Thanksgiving.

Good stuff! I never had much use for the theatre growing up. Then one of my brothers starting acting in local stuff - and he's good at it. Most memorable shows for me although unfortunately I haven't seen many of them were Clybourne Park and most recently Unnecessary Farce. Next month he's cast as Horton in Seussical Musical. We sometimes laugh about the fact that he's a very generous person, but gets typecast a lot as the jerk. He's very adept at playing that part, but it's not what his personality really is, except in jest. And he met his wife through the theatre as well.

Originally Posted by JediKooter

Had a podcast with a former co-worker for the San Diego Fleet AAF team and am also a really bad amateur filmmaker. Is that what you are thinking of?

Sure. I might define it as 'any creative endeavor where you're putting yourself out there for public consumption' or whatever. Since a few of you responded, let's try to take a stab at making this work. At least from my perspective, I was thinking maybe once in while those who are doing something they want to talk about could come and give an update on what they've done and how it's going. You could tell us more about that podcast, and films you've worked on. Radii could talk about what games he streams, Chief Rum about his blog, etc. Beyond the facts, I'm also interested in the motivation and experience of these things. I.e., what do you get out of it, what's the motivation for doing it, what reaction do you get/hope for from others, and so on. How are your goals doing, whatever they are. It also might be a good way to provide resources for anyone who might be interested in similar stuff - for example, I noticed a conversation not that long ago in the Video Games thread where Jon and Radii were talking about what is required to be a streamer.

Along with that I'll eventually share what I've done mostly over the last couple of years, but I'm knee-deep in something right now so it'll probably be a week or two before I can do that.

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by Brian Swartz

Sure. I might define it as 'any creative endeavor where you're putting yourself out there for public consumption' or whatever. Since a few of you responded, let's try to take a stab at making this work. At least from my perspective, I was thinking maybe once in while those who are doing something they want to talk about could come and give an update on what they've done and how it's going. You could tell us more about that podcast, and films you've worked on. Radii could talk about what games he streams, Chief Rum about his blog, etc. Beyond the facts, I'm also interested in the motivation and experience of these things. I.e., what do you get out of it, what's the motivation for doing it, what reaction do you get/hope for from others, and so on. How are your goals doing, whatever they are. It also might be a good way to provide resources for anyone who might be interested in similar stuff - for example, I noticed a conversation not that long ago in the Video Games thread where Jon and Radii were talking about what is required to be a streamer.

Along with that I'll eventually share what I've done mostly over the last couple of years, but I'm knee-deep in something right now so it'll probably be a week or two before I can do that.

I'll gather some links here real soon then for some of the stuff I've done/worked on/helped out with, etc... I did just write a song for a short film that a friend of mine shot and wrapped up on the 15th. I'll post a link for that once I get the all clear from him.

I would also be interested in maybe collaborating with others here even though I know a lot will be difficult because of the geographical distance of people here.

[PilotMan]

I've spent a lot of time in hotel rooms, and many of them are the kind of views that you might wish you had, and it's really easy to take them for granted. Years ago my wife accused me of being a really bad photographer so I have tried to improve and work on having a better eye. This year, I decided to combine these and created a FB page for sharing the view I get from various hotel rooms where I travel.



It's been a fun endeavor, but I'm not sure where it's going next. After this week I only spend the rest of the year in Denver and after that the new job only has 15 different cities I could be at, so I feel like it's going to get stale pretty quick. I'm willing to hear any advice as well. Or if you'd like to follow along that's great too.



https://www.facebook.com/Road.Views

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

I don't have anything that all of you can participate in, but I am a working actor and director. I most recently performed Every Brilliant Thing here in Newburgh and I'm doing it in Ohio over Thanksgiving. The ticketing site for the NY show is still up:

https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4315305

I directed Or, by Liz Duffy-Adams at York College last Spring. There are some photos on their Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/YCPTheat...=page_internal

Most of my directing is at the college where I teach, Mount Saint Mary. There are a lot of photo albums here:

https://www.msmc.edu/Student_Life/th...msmc_theatre_M

We don't have a theatre major or full-time tech staff, so I focus on shows that feature the actors and the actor/audience conversation. We do good work, but the photos aren't always impressive because of the lack of spectacle.

The current production is another commedia del' arte(the renaissance, masked type). I write the scenarios for those and we use rehearsal to create all the staging and dialogue. Over the winter I'm going to adapt at least three works of Aristophanes into a single performance, title to be determined later.

I'm also working on a large oral history project with the Dominican Sisters of HOPE, based in Ossining, NY, but that's at least a whole different post.

My HS senior daughter is interested in Theatre & Performance. She's been doing HS plays (tech, ensemble) for past 3-4 years.

We are looking at Theatre & Performance programs in GA. I am somewhat concerned about her ability to find a job and support herself. Any thoughts, suggestions or recommendations on what we should be thinking about?

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by Edward64

My HS senior daughter is interested in Theatre & Performance. She's been doing HS plays (tech, ensemble) for past 3-4 years.

We are looking at Theatre & Performance programs in GA. I am somewhat concerned about her ability to find a job and support herself. Any thoughts, suggestions or recommendations on what we should be thinking about?

She will more than likely need a job that gives her the flexibility to work around her school schedule and any performances as well. Typically though, those are the lower paying jobs like in restaurants, which more than likely won't be enough money, unless she has a free place to live while at school and doesn't have to worry about transportation. I'd try and reach out to any of the instructors at those schools and see what their students do to balance school and financially supporting themselves.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

She will more than likely need a job that gives her the flexibility to work around her school schedule and any performances as well. Typically though, those are the lower paying jobs like in restaurants, which more than likely won't be enough money, unless she has a free place to live while at school and doesn't have to worry about transportation. I'd try and reach out to any of the instructors at those schools and see what their students do to balance school and financially supporting themselves.

Its post college finding a job that concerns me the most. She will get the HOPE scholarship so that will help offset the costs quite a bit.

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by Edward64

Its post college finding a job that concerns me the most. She will get the HOPE scholarship so that will help offset the costs quite a bit.

Ahhh gotcha! Other than theater, what has she expressed interest in? I'd look at Glassdoor and some other sites and see what kind of entry level pay is being offered for certain career fields and see if any of those interest her, especially if they are pretty decent pay for entry level.

[JPhillips]

If she decides to go into theatre, what is she interested in? That can make a difference in job prospects in the field. I've gotten paid to act, direct, sound design, light design, build sets, hang lights, operate sound boards, produce, manage, pretty much everything except costuming. There's work out there.

But, I don't think major matters much unless you're going into a certificate field(nursing, accounting, etc.) Skills matter, and theatre teaches a lot of valuable skills. Every non-theatre job I've had in life I've been offered full time, permanent work. I could talk, be polite, answer the phone, etc.

What schools is she looking at?

[Brian Swartz]

Originally Posted by PilotMan

It's been a fun endeavor, but I'm not sure where it's going next. After this week I only spend the rest of the year in Denver and after that the new job only has 15 different cities I could be at, so I feel like it's going to get stale pretty quick. I'm willing to hear any advice as well. Or if you'd like to follow along that's great too.

I admit I don't have any real good advice on how to keep it fresh, but I think there were some real high-quality shots in there. I also liked the sarcastic ones, like the person who gave you a picture of their traffic jam and the brick wall in Cincinatti.

[Izulde]

I'm literally a content creator every day as a copywriter.

I also have a really terrible, there just for convenience sake, food blog I'm awful about maintaining a consistent update schedule on.

[Brian Swartz]

Ok so time for me to peel back the curtain. I want to give a bit of backstory here as to why it is I do that thing that I do, and although I suck being even vaguely concise I'll give it a shot. You could call this whole arc Search for an Audience. I've played video games far too much for much of my life, just for fun at first. I found in my late 20s that I didn't enjoy them much anymore if I wasn't writing about them, and became a dynasty writer. A few years ago, as communities such as this one began to dwindle I wanted more interaction with readers, leading to a number of interactive dynasties (most of which sputtered but a couple worked), briefly tried my hand at YouTube but gave up on it, and eventually found my way to Something Awful, which has a … uh... 'storied' history, but is also the place where that thing we call a Let's Play was literally invented and popularized.

My first project over there didn't last long. The second was different. Taking on the original Master of Orion, granddaddy of the 4Xs and probably the game which I am best at, I ran through each and every race on Impossible difficulty - which can on occasion beat even the best players out there - with eventually a pretty strong positive reaction. There were scattered suggestions that I should stream the game, but I didn't think I was up to it - I'm a better writer than speaker by a country mile and a half, which says more about the latter ability than the former, and I was - heck, still am - nervous and tongue-tied when recording. But I decided to give doing recordings of my stuff a more serious try.

So at the start of 2018, almost two years ago, I formed an alter-ego; I became Thotimx of YouTube. While I started this journey for selfish reasons driven more by my ego than I'm remotely comfortable with accepting, the process has gradually beaten at least some of that inward focus out of me. I sucked at first - and I mean I REALLY sucked. One of the early series was just raw gameplay with no commentary; the others were completely unedited with more dead air and awkward blather than you can shake a stick at. Eventually I improved at a painfully slow rate to bad editing, but even stuff I did at the end of '18 I almost want to shove in a drawer and not let anyone watch … after a kind soul repeatedly pointed out that the audio balance was so bad that I couldn't be heard over the in-game effects a lot of the time (see: Creeper World 3, Story missions), I fixed that issue - but it was still badly distorted at times. I almost quit in the late summer/fall of '18.

Instead, I found determination from somewhere, and needing a new series with a couple having wrapped up, tried my hand at AI War. There being no beginner-level tutorial series out there (an excellent standard one by Temeron's Tactics had been out for a while), I started there and gradually ramped things up. AI War 2 had just gone into early access, and I thought I might be able to capitalize on some of that interest. Over the last three months of the year I doubled my subscriber count … to a whopping 57. This year things were looking pretty decent with slow but steady growth until I finished my most popular series and traffic started declining again in the early fall. Then there was the unexpectedly-early (at least to me) release of AI War 2. I jumped on it … and virtually nobody else did. The original did well enough that none less than quill18 did a series on it, people like Wanderbots (300k subs) did previews of it during the early EA stages, and there are like a bazillion levels of strategy gaming channel levels between places like that and me, but for the first couple of days there was virtually nobody else in the game.

The last couple of weeks have been pretty zany. Developer Chris Park pinned some LP/tutorial materials, starting with mine, at the top of the Steam forums for the game. He did an AMA on reddit that I got linked on and got some good editing tips that I've started implementing. I'm still not happy with my audio but it's a million miles better than it used to be. PotatoMcWhiskey, a professional Civ6 youtuber(50k and growing quickly), came by and offered helpful advice. Meanwhile my meager subscriber count has nearly doubled and I saw traffic levels 10-15x of what I'd ever seen before, though of course with the launch buzz dying off that's tapering. The only other title I did at launch was Frostpunk, which got effectively crickets both because it was disappointing to a lot of people and because a lot of big channels were doing it. The most gratifying part has been generally getting a lot of positive feedback and an overall feeling that I've passed the 'you REALLY suck' stage into the 'eh, this hole in the wall of the internet might eventually become something' category.

Personally my #1 takeaway from all of this is that if people say you have the potential to do something you enjoy doing, don't try to tell them they're wrong like I did at first. My 'big break' recently so to speak owes a lot more to blind dumb luck and an untapped part of the market than it does to me doing anything more than show up, and I won't know for months at a minimium what the new normal will be. At the same time I had to crawl my way up through the learning process and be in a better place personally in order to be there for it to have a chance to happen. And now I'm a legit part of the community for a unique game that was ranked on Steam's Top Sellers and did six figures in sales during the first week. I have no idea what that'll end up meaning, but it's been pretty darned cool for this middle-aged nerd uploading from a location in the sticks of the Midwest.

I guess I hope my journey so far will be encouraging to someone else who might be struggling in their endeavors, and feel free to ask if there is anyone interested in short-cutting the learning curve on this kind of thing.

[Izulde]

Very cool, Brian. And yes, dumb luck often plays a role. But it sounds like you're taking advantage of the opportunity.