HiHiHi

Hi everybody! It's been a bit since I last wrote anything and I'm writing this to explain a bit why...

When I first started this blog, I had envisioned it being something that would interweave with the content that I create on Youtube, maybe sort of as a primer or in depth guide as to the things I was doing/playing. However, it quickly became apparent to me that as I recorded videos my strategy simply wasn't feasible. For one, most of my series tend to run fairly long. My first Dwarf Fortress series ended up running 40 episodes for example. I can't expect you guys to enjoy reading about DF twice a week for multiple weeks. Also, it just wasn't exciting for me! Don't take me wrong, I enjoy writing, at times. Something that I've stood by in my Youtube content has been this; If I'm not having fun, then I certainly can't expect my audience to enjoy it either. I'd rather not set arbitrary publishing dates and then grudgingly spew out filler posts. I do intend on putting out posts occasionally, but I think that I've become content to talk through my content on YT.

So just how is the YT going? Well, to be honest, I think it's going about as good as I could have expected. Going into this "adventure" I knew that it was a marathon and not a sprint. The content I make isn't going to suddenly "go viral" and net me tons of subs and views. Instead, I have to focus on being consistent with my videos. Making sure they are on time and that the quality is as good as I can get it. Since starting in the middle-ish of July, I've worked up to 75 subs currently. It doesn't sound like much, and to be fair, it isn't. However, due to the nature of how the tubes of you work, I'm very, very happy with my current subs. We are growing organically at this point. The viewers that I have are loyal and seem to enjoy watching, liking, and commenting on my work. This, in turn, increases the visibility of my content to other potential subscribers. I've described it to several people as like building a snowman, and I think that description is fairly apt. You start with just a tiny, hard, hand packed ball of snow. It takes effort! You have to bend ALL the way down to the ground and bat the hell out of that ball to get it to roll around and pick up more snow. The more snow your original ball picks up, the bigger it becomes and it is easier to pick up more snow. Right now the ball is still pretty small, but it's rolling!

My current goal right now is to hit 100 subscribers by the end of October. Going by my current numbers, it should be fairly doable. I've picked up about 40 subs in the past 28 days. One day I even picked up 8! From there, we aim for 200. We keep raising the bar just a little bit higher every time we hit a goal, we keep rolling that snowball, and hopefully before long we are only having to run along beside this massive monster ball of snowy nastiness that rolls itself. It'll take time. From what I've read, people often say that the first thousand subs are the hardest to get, but once you get those "seed" subs forming the base of your viewers, your growth begins to become exponential.

Currently, I'd consider the content I make to be of decent quality. I've invested into a studio quality microphone, pop filter, and microphone arm. The difference between using a boom mic from a very good headset and the mic I'm currently using is vast. The next step will be to integrate facecam into my videos. Before I can do that, I need to get a green screen setup for my recording space. I'd also like to invest in a better camera as well, to be honest. The webcam I have now will certainly do the job for recordings at my computer, however for some of the ideas I have for future content I will need something a bit more "mobile." I will also need to set up the actual green screen part as well, which could be something pre-manufactured and bought retail, or I could make it myself with lumber and a green blanket/sheet. For those of you who know me, the mental image of me holding a hammer probably draws a few chuckles out of you. As well it should! However, I don't have an infinite supply of money at this point to invest in my production, so I'm willing to do what it takes to make it happen.

Now, normally, this is the point where most people would probably start shilling about how you can help this way or that, and I'm no exception to that. However, just by reading this you are already helping! I draw a great deal of inspiration and encouragement just from knowing that there are those of you out there who enjoy my content and want to see me succeed. If you feel further moved to help in some form or fashion, you can help get the word out about my content. Share this blog. Share my facebook page. Share my website. Share stories. It all helps. Every little last bit.

Thanks, everybody, for believing in me.

~Nerd

#GameOn