Feb 05

My Introduction to Video Game Streaming

I am someone who consistently loves trying something new.  This has lent to me having a lot of hobbies, such as video games, writing, and photo manipulation.  Overall, I would say I’m a very creative person with a passion for delving into games.  I believe there have been times in my life where I wished I could make some sort of living from video games.  I remember a period of time where I thought about seeking employment as a game tester, but nothing ever came of it.  Nor did I have success in pursuing a degree in software engineering; that never panned out because a full-time job took priority over college courses.

About half a year ago, I started viewing videos on YouTube from a vlogger called Tipster.  He is someone I gradually found I had much in common with and I started looking forward to whatever new videos he’d post.  After several months, I started checking out live broadcasts (or streams) of his on a site called Twitch.  Over time, more channels got added to my watch-list – among them Katastrophe, Stando, and YeskaYuggz, Tipster’s sister.

The more time I spent viewing streams, the more it felt like something I wanted to try for myself.  This feeling was compounded when I viewed a YouTube video from Tipster on what it took to be a successful streamer.  Providing a good commentary, engaging with your audience in the chat room, and just being yourself and having fun are key components to building a thriving Twitch channel.

The start of 2018 felt like a good time to try something new.  After researching what I’d need to begin streaming, I bought a set of headphones with a mic attachment.  On January 9th, I broadcast my very first video game – Dead in Bermuda – from a Surface Book.  The basic premise of the game is to keep the eight survivors of a plane crash alive until they can be rescued from the tropical island – not necessarily Bermuda – they’re stranded on.  I had attempted multiple times to get through the game, but all of my playthroughs ended with two or more characters starving to death.  The longest I lasted was around 29 days.

I started streaming Dead in Bermuda with the intent to survive for 50 days if possible.  I don’t know if it’s because I was taking my time and thinking things through more, but I surprised myself by actually making some good headway this time.  I started feeling more confident that I would make it through the entire game with all eight characters.  This belief changed when one of the survivors – Illyana — died of illness on Day 47.   The next night, her father, Yuri, succumbed to depression over losing her.  Despite this setback, I ended my stream at the 50-day mark with the resolve to try to make it through the rest of the game with the remaining six characters.  It might be difficult since Illyana and Yuri were the most skilled at researching and scavenging, but I aim to do my best.

On the flip side, my forays into streaming were just as much of a learning experience.  When I reviewed the first couple videos I recorded, I discovered that the mic on the headphone wasn’t the best.  In addition to picking up my voice really well, it also recorded every breath I took.  I hate to use the term ‘mouth-breather’, but that is pretty much what it sounded like.

Prior to my final recording of Dead in Bermuda, I decided to invest in a webcam.  I believed it might be good to have an alternate mic recording my commentary as well as have a visual of me reacting to the game.  The one downside to this is that the volume of the game was too high.  As I found out when I reviewed the recorded video afterward, the sound effects and music of Dead in Bermuda were so loud that it was drowning out my commentary at times.

Since I failed to gain much of an audience with Dead in Bermuda, I decided to switch to a more popular game on January 12.  The one I picked this time was Party Hard, a satirical little game where the objective is to slaughter the participants of a given party without getting killed or arrested.  Prior to starting my stream, I tweaked the game’s volume and moved the webcam video to a different corner of the screen so it wouldn’t obscure what I was doing within the game.  I was much more animated in my commentary with Party Hard than I was with Dead in Bermuda.  I felt more confident that I would start building an audience to my budding channel.

Unfortunately, I found out after I’d recorded 90 minutes of gameplay that I’d hit another snag.  For whatever reason, the mic failed to record my voice at all for the entire broadcast!

While I haven’t yet recorded any further streams as of January 17, it is something I do plan to continue.  I have been spending my time researching to avoid any further hiccups.  I have also been brainstorming on ways to make my channel unique and entertaining enough that viewers will want to keep tuning in.  And I have ideas geared toward putting together a background for the webcam that will better showcase my interests, such as reading and photo manipulation.

The bottom line is that streaming is something that I greatly enjoy so far.  I could easily see myself doing this long term, even if I don’t gain much of a following from it.  I’m glad to have some means of sharing my love of video games with like-minded individuals.  And if I can entertain an audience while I’m at it, then all the better.  It will mean I’ve finally found the perfect niche for myself.

For any readers who are interested in giving my channel a chance to see what I’m all about, be sure to tune in for the streams of Sahara4877 at https://www.twitch.tv/sahara4877.

Tags: Twitch, video games, streaming, Tipster, Dead in Bermuda, Party Hard, games

Feb 04

The Challenge

The creative writing instructor challenged the class to write a 100-word story. Too easy I thought as I completed the assignment. On my own, I challenged myself further to write a story using 100 single syllable words.

Still easy for me because I’ve always enjoyed writing short stories. How could I make the challenge even harder? Could one hundred, non-repeating single syllable words tell a story? My story, “Stilled Voice,” answers that question.

Stilled Voice

When Bill Gray learned that Joan might die in less than three months, his heart sank. Tests dashed hope she’d see their girl’s new boy. He wished to hear her sing babe’s first song.

Each night they cried and prayed the staff was wrong. God’s dawn brought joy. Breast lumps grew but death closed its eyes.

June tenth, just past noon, cries were heard. Cheers filled Room Five.

“Big C, you did not win. I am Gram at last. Love kept me here this long.” She held him, rocked, sang, took one breath, looked up, then died with a smile.

Fellow writers, are you ready to try a 100-word writing challenge? See the tags.

 

Feb 01

Editor’s Log: Creativity Wisdom from a Rock & Roll Star: Bono

Writing is a journey without a permanent destination. Each story that we tell is only the part of the iceberg that appears above the surface. Sure, the great authors show tremendous depth in their stories like Toni Morrison, Ernest Hemingway, and Chinua Achebe. One of the ways that their stories are remarkable is by what’s left unsaid.

Writing is like other creative processes in that the skills to acquire and strengthen are limitless in how much one can develop. Bono, the lead singer of U2, reminded me of this in his recent interview with Rolling Stone magazine. The article is titled: Bono: The Rolling Stone Interview. Much of it sounds like a recording of a conversation between two people in a room, which I suspect was the case.

In the interview Bono shares much about his creative process and growth. It resonates with what I’ve heard others who create for a living. After 40 years of success in an industry that is tough to stay relevant, Bono and his bandmates continue to seek growth.

  • He talked about learning how to write music through structures like from musical theater as way to create sounds that stay with people—in a good way J
  • He reads voraciously across multiple genres. For example, he references the work from Saint Paul, “…he writes this ode to love, which everybody knows from his letter to the Corinthians: “Love is patient, love is kind. . . . Love bears all things, love believes all things” – you hear it at a lot of weddings.”
  • He analyzes song lyrics such as from Dylan like one does with poetry. Because good music IS poetry.

Creativity is a demanding mistress who is there for you if you commit totally to her. Dedicating time and thought brings about moments where I feel like I’m in “the zone”—this perfect cocoon of synchronicity where ideas, emotions, and structure flow melodically.

Bono reminded me that to get those moments requires preparation, study, and dedication. Sometimes it’s easy to get distracted with doing “stuff” that feels real in the moment. It’s getting stuck in the minutia and not organizing time set aside for that which we love the most: Creating. My takeaway is a reminder to do these things more, if I want to stay creative:

  • Reading others
  • Journal
  • Dialog on topics that move me to laugh and to tears with people who disagree and agree with my perspectives. Avoiding “the conversations” diminishes the depth of creativity
  • Being comfortable with being uncomfortable
  • Exercise
  • Notice how I am creative in areas of work and non-work
  • Most importantly: truly listen to others, the world, and my inner self

These last couple of days, I’ve been listening to U2 songs, both the ones that I’ve always loved, and now the ones that I’ve not paid too much attention. I listen for the joy, and to learn author craft from someone I admire even more now that he’s shared the gifts of his reflections.

Jan 21

Is This Just Mercy?

I grew up trusting the police, the courts and the justice system. In elementary and high school civics classes, I learned a lot about the American system of justice, the importance of telling the truth and that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.

I loved watching court dramas on TV. Some of my favorites were Dragnet, Judd for the Defense and Perry Mason. I believed the police always told the truth, the lawyers did their best for their clients and the innocent always went free.

Fast forward to today. I just finished reading Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson* which was published in 2014. Bryan wrote about his experiences defending death penalty cases in Alabama from the 1980s until now. The stories he tells are heartbreaking.

For the most part, his clients are sitting on Death Row because they are poor, African-American and have had bad to abysmal representation in court. If they weren’t so poor, they could have afforded a lawyer who would have attempted to represent them, if for no other reason than to keep getting paid. And, if they weren’t African-American, having an all-white jury in Alabama might have been a plus.

In Just Mercy, the author doesn’t just talk about legal motions so much as tell stories. And the stories are heart breaking. There’s Walter McMillian, who was on death row for six years after being convicted of murdering eighteen-year-old Ronda Morrison, a clerk, working in a dry cleaners. It didn’t matter that he had numerous witnesses, one of whom was a police officer, to the fact he had been attending a church fish-fry many miles away at the exact same time. In Walter’s case, Sheriff Tom Tate and other law enforcement officials and witnesses were so determined to convict him that they committed perjury and fabricated evidence.

At one point, when Walter protested his innocence, Sherriff Tate replied, “I don’t give a damn what you say or what you do. I don’t give a damn what your people say either. I’m going to put twelve people on a jury who are going to find your goddamn black ass guilty.”**

Then there’s the story of Michael Lindsey. In the spring of 1989, several other of Mr. Stevenson’s Death Row clients asked him to help Michael. He was scheduled for execution in May. After that execution, they asked that he help Horace Dunkins, who, even though he was mentally retarded, was scheduled to be executed in July and then Herbert Richardson, who had gotten P.T.S.D. in Vietnam, and who was scheduled for August. Everything was happening so fast—so many executions and not enough time for good defenses.

There are also a number of stories of people who were exonerated and freed from prison after tremendous amounts of work. This would have never happened without both the resources Mr. Stevenson was able to bring to bear, such as first-class criminal investigations, and his own brilliance in presenting the evidence so convincingly that courts could only decide in favor of his clients.

If you’re interested in how our justice system really works and like sitting on the edge of your seat until you find out the verdict, this is the book for you!

* Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, 2014, Spiegel & Grau, New York.

**Wikipedia: McCarthy, Colman (October 10, 1995). “A Matter of Death and Life”. Review of Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town by Pete Earley Bantam. Retrieved December 14, 2017.

Jan 10

Aspirations and Efficiency

This past December my Deadwood Writers Voices editor, John McCarthy, asked us if we were thinking ahead into 2018 and would we like to share what was on our minds for our writer’s life. There was also a post by Robin Covington on her Facebook page asking if we could pick one word to carry us through the new year what would it be. My word was efficiency. To reach my goal, I’m combining the answers to both questions because I find that I need one to go with the other if I’m going to make any progress in my career.

The answer to the first part is:

  • Dive deep into A NEW LIFE, book 1 in my Leeti vampire series, and see what needs to be done so it’s ready to be published.
  • Write on a schedule instead of when I feel like an idea is brewing.
  • Continue to develop new stories in a loose format so when I’m ready I can start writing the novel.

To help with the points above, I asked the same person, Robin Covington, what she used as an organization tool. She had mentioned Erin Condren’s Life Planners. What’s great about them is that an individual can customize it for a particular use. Plus, bonus, the planners, are made in America. In my case, writing. Here’s the link https://www.erincondren.com/. What it’s going to help me do is narrow my focus on writing while the appointments and scheduling for my family are on the periphery of this schedule.

In my twenties, I used Franklin Covey’s planning system, but I don’t think that style works for what’s happening in my life. I need more visual space to plan my day to day tasks. And I don’t want it to be on the computer. I want to be able to spread it out, look at it, touch it, get a feel for what’s happening next. I won’t stop using my computer schedule because I love being able to get a notification telling me that I better get on my way to make my appointment on time. But having something that is not digital helps my creative side and allows me to get down on paper the ideas of the sexy heroes and heroines I’m writing into stories. And one thing I did learn from Franklin Covey was how to prioritize a full schedule and strive to reach my life goals.

For the first point, regarding A New Life re-reading and editing content, I also need to tackle the grammar errors for publication and make sure the storyline is consistent. With all the things listed above scheduling is essential. If I tell myself I’ll set aside some time for the next day, if I’m not being specific in my listed tasks it won’t get done. I’ll sit down and read or go shopping.

Writing on a schedule seems natural enough, the dates and times and all. It’s the other things that get in the way that hinder the process. So, scheduling the time to write is what’s got to happen.  I’m used to free-writing on Tuesday’s. It’s my day off from making coffee and I have a significant amount of time. What should I do, I write it on the schedule. Appointment. Write on the schedule. Cello lessons for Kid #1. Write it on the schedule. My hope is, the time I set aside to write is productive. I still want to read as many romance novels as I can, but with my hours laid out, it will be easier to focus my ideas and get things done.

Marketing Hot Blacktop is something I’ve been doing throughout 2017, but I don’t think I’ve been as consistent as I can be. I could be using Facebook more efficiently plus all the other media platforms. I need to plan time to watch some tutorials. I need to link my Twitter, Pinterest, and Snapchat accounts to ramp up my marketing presence. Each one is part of my story, and I need to use them the best that I can. Here’s a helpful video I’ve watched regarding scheduling for a marketing focus by author Hildie McQueen.

And for the developing of stories, this planner system will allow me to add pics and fun notes about characters I’m developing, story ideas, arcs, and other tidbits. There are extra pages to use just for this purpose.

Now I have a plan. Here’s to being more efficient in 2018. Happy writing!