Casual Connect 2013

It’s 5 and 1/2 weeks away but I’m getting excited about speaking at the Casual Connect in San Francisco at the end of July. I’ve never spoken at a conference and the Casual Connect is much smaller than the GDC, but I’ve already done a practice version of the talk at a local GGDA meet-up at DeVry university. There were over 50 people there and it seemed to go over well.

My talk is called “Secrets of  a Moderate Success: An Indie’s Tale of the Long Tale”.

It looks like I’m currently scheduled on the last day right before lunch but that could change. The Casual Connect is much smaller than the GDC but it’s also geared towards people that are interested in the same types of games and business that I’m in. Hopefully, I”ll make some connections and not just be speaking to an empty room.

Here’s the blurb from the Casual Connect website:

“When is a failure good enough? When is a failure not really a failure? What happens when the learning curve and the curve of the long tail cross in the middle? Can 1 + 1 ever be greater than 2? With a detailed analysis comparing and contrasting the release of Clutter with it’s sequel Clutter II: He Said, She Said, Puzzles By Joe creator, Joe Cassavaugh, will explore the ups and downs and the unexpected results of doing a sequel.”

It’s small beans, but it’s another step in the right direction.

In late 1989, I started taking more control of my future and began the transformation from “just another programmer working for some business” to “working in games for a living (1993)” to “creating game tools for a living” to “creating my own game  ideas for a living (2005)” to “creating my own semi-successful games (original IP and retaining ownership) for a living (2010)”.

I’m wrapping up Clutter III: Who is the Void? and then Minigame Madness soon after…

…then it will finally be Clutter IV: Clutter No More before deciding what to do next.

I’ve been a happy guy most of my life, but I’m still happiest when I’m creating something new…and I think the most amazing thing about my life in computers is that even after 32 years it has stayed interesting. I still love to code (especially new things) and I love seeing things “work” for the first time.

So, although it’s 5 and 1/2 weeks away, I look forward to what happens next. I don’t get paid for speaking at the Casual Connect, but I’m pretty sure it’s going to be worth my while to both speak and attend…and I like that I really don’t know what affect it will have on my future in games.

In some ways, Clutter is “my baby” and I’m definitely a proud Father. So now, I get to go talk about “my baby” in front of a crowd (large or small) of people that also love games. Sounds like a good week to me.