Its been roughly a year since I turned twenty-five and resolved to do more with my life. I was in a job which I really did not like (it was a pretty off job as a telemarketer), and within three weeks of having the job I was laid off for not meeting the desired quota. It was this action, and others started pushing me further towards seeking out more for myself. That year was rough as it was when Ashenfold Cartel ended for me (the guild ran strong for six months afterward, I however decided to seek my own works). I launched my own website, and I was thus able to start doing more work for myself in a capacity I had not done for years.
But as I reached my twenty-fifth year of life I came to a serious realization, I was not going far enough. I had written two stories part way to a level where I was able to at least get an idea where I could go. But, never had I gone on far enough to really challenged myself on a scale where I felt personally able to accomplish something. I wanted to finally move forward on all the talk I had done for the past few days.
Looking Back
Looking back I have started to do a lot more for myself along the lines of accomplishing a goal I have cultivated for quite a while. That goal however, took all this time for me to really formulate. That goal being the foundation of my own writing as something more than just a hobby, but a future means of making a living for myself. Said goal was then furthered from an old idea I have had bouncing around in my for years, that being forming my own studio or company focused around gaming in some manner. So after combining these two ideas, I moved forward to start looking for an appropriate degree.
For a while last year I was seriously thinking of applying to become a producer in the gaming industry which I later dropped. The truth is I -love- video games, but I do not want to produce them. The current market in gaming is not something I’m too fond of when it comes to work. Instead I have slowly been eyeing the independent market for writing, and for roleplay games. The new rise of start-ups, kickstarter, and independent publishers has driven my interest in getting out on my own.
Over the years I cultivated strong friendships with some seriously talented people: artists, writers, musicians, and much more. I worked with many of these people on previous projects such as Ashenfold, BlackSky, Altear, or forum games I created (Binding Attrition, The Sundered Way, Tides of Valhalla). These friends are now united in a singular community that I am building to help back future projects, several members of which are already part of the future staff to a degree who will be part of these ventures (DasWyrd which I am founding with my evil Twin, Zin). So I have the foundation, and the motivation, I just need to move forward.
Slaying Dragons
Dragons represent those big monsters in life, that people aspire to remove to save the land. But there is no Damsel, just the Dragon terrorizing the countryside. In this came the Dragon is the fear to move forward in what seems like a silly dream. Sure, slaying the Dragon is hard; getting a book written is hard; going back to school is hard. But if we did not accomplish things because they were hard than half the world; correct, the world as it is today would simply -not- exist. So last year after coming off a stressful experience I threw myself into doing better. The goal formulated within my mind, and I went forward.
A year before I lost a majority of my work on the Amazon Language, along with a book project I had not touched in three years I re-wrote half the entire language. I then wrote 100,000+ words in two months to finish a manuscript. A few months later I tackled a massive new project (which I am still working on) which now numbers well over 174 pages of ), and I am looking to apply at six schools (including Carnegie Mellon, and Oxford). I use to doubt about what I could do, now I just look at every day and think about what more I am going to add to my growing portfolio.
Support
I simply did not have half the cajones to attempt any of this if it had not been for my friends and family, true story. I am damn lucky to not only have a sibling who backs my crazy ideas, but also my parents. Local people where I live (Lummi Island) jumped in right away along with people I grew up with. Its so crazy to see people telling you that some random drive to publish a book is a good idea. Support on the internet was, astounding. All my friends from years of work showing not only support, but a drive to participate in the works was another reason I have continued to put effort in bettering my craft.
So a year in retrospect I’m proud of what I have accomplished, and for the fact I have people willing to back me in striving for my dreams.
Cover Art by AniHime