TR update: fermentation of ideas

Obviously, I’ve been really busy writing and making podcasts for the upcoming voyage. I’ve spent hours every day working on the project. It has been very satisfying.
 
Nevertheless, Christina approached me to work together with her on some creative project. So, Talkshow Rivals it is. I would like to publish it as an online novel series. Since the storyline is fleshed out, it shouldn’t take too much work to rewrite it as a serial. Or get Christina to do it together with ChatGPT or Claude.
 
My idea would be to create a persona for each of the main characters. We could use these personas to shape the tone and speech patterns of the dialogue. ChatGPT could then help Christina and me make sure the dialogue flows. One of the things I find difficult to imagine is how each character speaks in their own unique voice.
 
So, hopefully, Christina can read through the script in the next months while I am on the ship. When I return from the trip, we can start creating the personas.
 
Briz has also offered to help in any capacity.
 
Julien has suggested I make an interactive graphic novel of it. Graphically, it can be stick-figures. It would be an opportunity to learn some basic coding. Anna, Julien's colleague, and Amol have offered their help.
 
So, even though I haven’t “done” much, except rework the script by removing the gaming elements, the ideas are fermenting, bubbling to the surface.

TR update: another rework of the script and new ideas

This month has been crazy. I am working on so many different parts of getting the trip on an Oldendorff bulk carrier to happen. It is still not greenlighted, but I am hoping by mid-June I will know one way or another if I can go on the voyage. 

Here is the website I made to collect all the writing and podcasting about this and other journeys I took at sea. 

That doesn't mean I have forgotten about Talkshow Rivals. I did another rework of the script because a beta reader came up with some really smart ways to make the character of the player, Kay, more alive.

Now, I have to finish putting in all the corrections and new sections into the text.

Julien has convinced me that I should use AI to help me create an interactive graphic novel of one of the scenes, so that I can show game developer companies, what the game could look like. Doing a interactive comic version would be too much at this point in time.

I am also researching and looking at what interactive graphic novels are out there.

What all of this means is, for the next few months I am putting the project on the back burner. If all goes well, I will take it up again after the voyage is over. Since I have been working on it for the last 25 years, another few months won't matter.

TR update: first talks and a new detour

This month passed by so quickly.

 
I spoke with Frank, the lawyer who gave me legal counsel all those years ago when I pitched the game to SCEE. SCEE is still going. He assured me that the legal aspects are still essentially the same: NDA, formalized submission agreement, and commercialized contract.

Then I talked with Charlotte's second cousin, Jono. He's a senior business development manager at a game company in SA. He basically crossed out my hope of finding a mid-sized developer company to buy and take over the project. Instead, he suggested trying to find a way to enter into a partnership with an indie group.

He was super helpful. I have to look into Steins;Gate, Dorian, DevCon, and Discord.

Feeling a bit one step forward and now two steps back. Julien advises against becoming too fixated on abandoning the original intent of finding a mid-sized company. 

TR update: break through

It's been a good month. The Proof of Concept is nearly finished, and I am waiting for the last of the feedback from the beta testers. So far, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. 

Elsa is working on the layout of the Artistic Concept. I've worked through the text about 10 times and hope that I've managed to find the right balance. 

The difficulty is that though the documents obviously have two separate purposes, the language and look must be aligned. I cannot imagine how professional advertising and marketing specialists manage this tightrope.

TR update: plodding along

While it may have seemed to me like not much has been done, summarizing the activities of the Talkshow Rivals project reveals a pretty long list:

• Amol finished the rough sketches for all the comics and gaming elements for PoC and the artistic concept.

• I created a final style guide for us to use.

• Amol completed colouring two panels for PoC.

• Elsa has started working on the backgrounds for PoC.

• Sarah G. and I have agreed to attend Gamescom in Cologne this August.

• I’ve started connecting with people in the gaming industry on LinkedIn.

• I developed a concept for Pet Paradise in the Lifestyle Shop.

• I’m working on a final version of a POC page.

Both the PoC and artistic concept are expected to be finalized in March. Once completed, Charlotte and Sarah G. can help me develop a strategy to pitch it to various developers.

TR update: the little engine that could

I have always liked the story of the little engine that could. In my version, the Talkshow Rivals script I wrote 25 years ago is the large locomotive train that broke down. The little train that could is driven by Amol, a graphic artist and game developer. And, hopefully, or possibly, Elsa, a graphic designer. 

The three of us have gone through different stages of talks. We are at the "I think I can" stage of pulling the proof of concept and artistic concept up the mountain.

It's slow, arduous work, but a strong element of fun and collaboration makes the effort spent really satisfying. 

TR update: beginning with the proof of concept

I am working with Amol on three deliverables:

• proof of concept
• artistic concept
• game metrics

The proof of concept is to be a 60-second video /animation. It will consist of a comic sequence of a scenario I took out of chapter 4 of the script. There will be a storyline branching, where the player makes a decision, choosing one of three outcomes in the story. Lastly, there will be a game map showing what four of the mini-games look like.

It is a delight to work with Amol. His way of explaining his work process is very clear and easy for me to understand. Cannot wait to see the rough storyboard.

It will be the first time I will see the story I have been carrying around in my head for 25 years. Even if it is only a short sequence, it will free the characters from their long confinement.

I've written the text for an "artistic concept" document. This will be a document that is part visuals and part text. The concept explains the Talkshow Rivals’ world, the characters, the story, and the gameplay. Charlotte and Sara have kindly edited the text. It is in good enough shape to be a working version. I'll wait until I can see the sketches of the graphics before I do a last edit.

TR update: I am really excited

After much consideration and numerous delays, I am moving forward with selling my Talkshow Rivals (TR) script. I'm giving myself a year.

Here's what has happened in the last months:

• I finished reworking the script (now version 5)
• Research on the gaming industry as a whole
• Wrote an executive summary
• Approach first game developers (fein games in Berlin)
  
  

I also have a great team of people from various corners of the world helping me:

• Charlotte (Heidelberg) has kindly offered to help me with the pitch and all communication
• Nicola (Samui, Thailand) is helping me with strategy
• Iliana (Copenhagen) is reading the script and giving feedback
• Sarah (Lübeck) is helping me understand the gaming industry better and what players like and do not like about current games on the market