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Hi everyone!
As I am finishing up my commentary on the top 4 submissions this year I thought back over prior years' submissions and contestants. I hope everyone in the top 4 this year realizes that while winning the contest is great, its what you do after Superstar that really matters and each and every one of you has the chance for great things and for an amazing freelance career if you choose to work hard and do it whether or not you win Superstar.
Just look at the list of prior top 4:
2008 Top 4:
Rob McCreary
Clinton Boomer
Christine Schneider (winner)
Jason Nelson
2009 Top 4:
Matthew Stinson
Eric Bailey
Kevin Carter
Neil Spicer (winner)
2010 Top 4:
Alexander McLeod
Matt Goodall (winner)
Jim Groves
Matthew McGee
2011 Top 4:
Sam Zeitlin (winner)
Sean McGowan
Jerall Toi
Cody Coffelt
There are some "non-winners" on there who have gone on to great things.
So to some degree, all 4 of you have already won. Your post-Superstar success is really up to you!
Congrats to all 4 of you for your hard work and success during this great contest!
You four have done a great job and regardless of who wins, I wish you all a great post-Superstar career should you choose to pursue it.
And now your four names will be added to that above list, which is pretty impressive, and when I review submissions next year (if they let me) it will be YOUR submissions that I mentally compare their submissions to. I hope you get a feeling of your place in the history of this contest and how cool that is. It is quite an accomplishment. You should be proud of yourselves. And all the members of this community should be proud for their support and involvement in this great contest!
Nice work, top 4! Win or loose, welcome to the annals of RPG Superstar history!
Thanks, Clark. Seeing that list really does put it all into perspective.
Indeed. I've had a blast working my way through this contest--don't expect me to disappear once it's over, win or lose. You will never get rid of me!
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You guys are a part of superstar history. It is obviously amazing to just make the top 32. Of course, it is also awesome to win the whole thing. I think, historically, there has been some additional love given to the top 4, so you guys should be very proud of yourselves. Really, this process is about finding some great freelancers for Paizo, and if you are in the top 4 then you have probably caught their eye. The final round, while awesome to win, is a bit misleading as you are just being judged on one submission and real freelancing isn't like that--you'd get to send in several. All of the 4 of you are great. But each of you can, while still being great, submit a proposal that is a miss and fail to win the contest. That doesn't mean you won't be great freelancers. So win or lose, take heart! I am certain we will all be seeing much more of you in the future. But, as Neil likes to say, what you do post-Superstar is up to you.
Welcome to Superstar history! And good luck!
I'll echo Clark's comments here by reasserting that it's far more important what you go on to do after the competition. Jason Nelson and Rob McCreary didn't win the first year of RPG Superstar, but they've both gone on to write some tremendous stuff for Paizo. Jason is a workhorse with a product list a mile long now. Rob actually joined Paizo and has his hands in developing all kinds of material. Jim Groves is also starting to become fairly prolific now in his work for the purple golem.
Bottom line: You don't have to win the competition to win as a freelancer with Paizo. You just have to make the most of the next opportunity they give you. Based on your showing here, they now know what you're capable of. And, when they need someone to pitch in on a new product, they'll have each of you as a resource. Just make sure you're available when that call comes. And, once you commit, make sure you deliver on it. You do that and you'll go as far as you want to go.
So, when Clark says you're all winners right now...it's true! You really are. No matter how the final vote shakes out on who gets the opportunity to write the RPG Superstar module this year, all of you have the potential to contribute to something else in Paizo's product line, from PFS scenarios to bits and pieces of various sourcebooks and rulebooks to come. Remember, keep your eye on the ultimate prize of RPG Superstar. Not the final adventure module. It's the opportunity to become a recurring freelancer that's really worth grabbing here. And, I think the experiences of folks like Jason, Jim, and Rob can attest to that. Same goes for Sean McGowan, Jerall Toi, Dennis Baker, Jesse Benner, and so on.
But that's just my two cents,
--Neil
I find it fascinating that of the 2008 final 4, I see everyone *but* the winner nowadays.
Looking forward to these...
Cheapy, that's true. BUT Christine's run in the contest was legendary. Look who she beat, for goodness sake! Her module was really really good. And her body of work during the contest was amazing. So in the end, Neil is right--it is what you do after Superstar. But in Christine's case, though she has chosen not to do much afterward, you can't take away what she did in the competition. Other winners have perhaps equaled her body of work within the competition, but I don't know that there have been any who have exceeded it (and some could argue no one has even equaled it, since they had an extra round that first year). She really set the bar for this contest. I remember talking with Erik Mona and Wolfgang before the contest started. We had no idea what we would get or what to expect, then we got Christine, Rob, Boomer and Jason and we couldn't have been any happier. That was some amazing talent. And each year has been similar, I think Paizo has always been really pleased with the talent discovered each year. But that said, I'm not sure anyone has ever surpassed Christine's work during the contest for sheer talent.
Interestingly, here is what I posted in my review of Neil's Realm of the Fellnight Queen adventure proposal, when I recommended he be the winner:
Neil, Neil, Neil. You are, in a way, the Jason Nelson of this year’s competition. I really thought last year Jason had all the professional chops to be the Superstar. I thought he was the most polished, professionally. He didn’t always have the A+ magic of Boomer or Christine (his creativity was A but not A+), but his stuff was so polished and professional and in the real world of writing that counts for as much sometimes. You are the same way. Lucky for you, you also have a dash of that magic just like he had. You have that A creativity too. And, lucky for you, there isn’t a Boomer or Christine in this competition (though Kevin is close). For many reasons, I think this year we valued professional work over just pure gonzo creativity and I think that has showed. And I also think you are the best of the bunch this year (and that is not to say you aren’t creative, you are absolutely). I loved – LOVED! – the last leaves. It was universally liked by the judges. Gulga, of course, was a smash hit. I thought you rested on your laurels in the second round and didn’t do much to improve Gulga, though. I told you then to put your foot back on the gas pedal. And you delivered in the following round with your lair for Sharina. Now, I didn’t recommend that lair to advance, but not for lack of quality and presentation and professionalism. I liked your swing for the fences approach. You took a big chance. You did what I asked and put that foot back on the pedal. And now this adventure proposal. Again, you took a chance. What you delivered was great and you delivered it very professionally.
I think your work has been the most consistently excellent and the most consistenly professional. I think you are the most “ready now” to be the RPG Superstar for 2009. Your biggest challenger in my view is Kevin. I recommended his adventure proposal for consideration as the winner and I will do the same with your proposal. I must say, though, that as between the two I think you adventure proposal is slightly better and your body of work also is slightly better.
So Christine's work has been the bar and the standard for a long time and likely will be the standard for a long time.
See how the final 4 become standards that later years are judged against? Who knows, maybe next year I will say a contestant is the Tom Phillips or the James Olchak of that year's contest (or Steve or Mike, not to leave them out). You guys become reference points and means of comparison. Cool, huh!
Contributor, RPG Superstar 2012
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Star Voter Season 6, Marathon Voter Season 7, Star Voter Season 9
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See how the final 4 become standards that later years are judged against? Who knows, maybe next year I will say a contestant is the Tom Phillips or the James Olchak of that year's contest (or Steve or Mike, not to leave them out). You guys become reference points and means of comparison. Cool, huh!
That is quite cool!
I can see it now: "You're like that Mike Welham guy who survived a complete misfire in the second round." :P
(Actually, as nerve-wracking as that round was, it proved to be a great learning experience)
As clarification, I didn't mean that as a sleight towards Christine at all. It was just something I noticed and spent ~15 minutes investigating. Hence the fascinating part :)
Cheapy, I hear you and I didn't take your comment that way. It just proved the launching pad for me reminiscing about that first year. In fact, your observation is 100% correct that of that first top 4, all three but the winner went on to some real serious freelancing or, in Rob's case, employment!
Contributor, RPG Superstar 2008 Top 4, Legendary Games
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Hi all,
I haven't been very in touch with this year's Superstar for a variety of reasons, but let me throw out a huge congrats to the Top 4 for getting this far. If you made it this far, you've got a chance to win, and that's all you can ask for. You've turned in something that you believe in and you think is great, and then it's up to the judges and the community at large to choose which is their favorite submission and total run through the contest and who gets to wear the championship belt for this year. You took the challenge to submit something; instead of saying "Why would I win? Why me?" you said, "Hey, why NOT me?" You came out strong and kept throwing haymakers round after round, survive and advance, survive and advance, and here you are sitting in the finals. Who's gonna win? Maybe it's you. Maybe it's not.
Here's the thing, though, as Clark and Neil have said, this ain't the end, unless you want it to be. This is the beginning of your chances to work your way up the ladder. A blast of brilliance is great, but can you deliver again and again? That what will earn you your stripes as a pro, whether your developers, your editors, and your readers and players can count on you and what you can do. You've impressed people here with your chops on this crazy hyperspeed roller coaster that is Superstar. Now show them that you've got what it takes to keep on bringing it hardcore.
I had a handful of things get published here and there before Superstar. I've had a lot more since. Coincidence? I think not. I wasn't THE winner of RPG Superstar, but I was certainly A winner. What it all comes down to is this: You're not gonna get rich with RPG writing, but you are going to GET PAID TO DO GAMING STUFF!!! How cool is that? You also get to do the patented Superstar Fist Bump at PaizoCon! :)
Seriously, good luck to all four! Welcome to the club, such as it is. Always have fun, and always be ready to give someone else advice or encouragement. They might be the next Superstar finalist just waiting to soar.
::fist bump::
One "take away" message from Clark is this isn't the end for you. You have the attention of Paizo and of other third-party publishers.
You can run with the ball.
You can put down the ball.
You can even fumble the ball.
What you do now is up to you. Are you going to work at being a freelancer? Are you going to self-publish? Are you going wash your hands of this craziness and go back to a normal life? It's your choice.
Some Olympic athletes only compete in one Olympics, win a gold, and retire. That's cool. Others keep going back every four years and continue to win medals. That's also cool.
Freelancing is hard. To consistently get work as a freelancer, you have to think about the current project, and the next project, and the next next project. It requires a big time commitment for scheduling and work-wrangling. A lot of people don't like it. A lot of people aren't good at it. Some people prefer to just do one interesting project a year, and maybe blog a lot. That's also cool. Find something that works for you, and go for it. You have an incredible opportunity open for you right now, a window of time where you're fresh from the competition and have everyone's attention. If you're going to take advantage of that, now is the time.
Not to go all "dad," on you, but I am proud of you. This was hard work and required a lot of learning, often on your feet. You made hard choices, and though I may not have always agreed with those choices, they were your hard choices to make and you weathered the criticism with cool heads. Good job. Carry on. And good luck in the voting!
CEO
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Getting to the end of RPG Superstar is not a prize... it's an opportunity. Make the most of it!
I remember cornering Neil at the first Paizo-run Paizocon and telling him the same thing. He had just won RPG Superstar and I told him that the time was ripe for him to make a move and establish himself as a star if he wanted to. Being at Paizocon was the first step. Now he needed to grab the bull by the horns and turn himself from contest winner to industry veteran. We had given him the opportunity. Now he needed to seize the golden ring. I think Neil did a pretty good job with my advice. :)
-Lisa
That advice has been much appreciated ever since. And the opportunity, as well.
/salute
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One "take away" message from Clark is this isn't the end for you. You have the attention of Paizo and of other third-party publishers.
As a third-party publisher, let me affirm what Sean says is true. You have my attention.
Freelancing is hard. To consistently get work as a freelancer, you have to think about the current project, and the next project, and the next next project. It requires a big time commitment for scheduling and work-wrangling. A lot of people don't like it. A lot of people aren't good at it.
Unsurprisingly, this is also very, very true. I've been freelancing essentially since 1997, and I manage to make it my full-time income. But that takes huge amounts of work. I strongly recommend anyone considering taking up regular freelance take just 1 project to start yourself off. It'll be tempting to take every offer of work you can find, but if you bite off more than you can chew, you're not doing yourself any favors.
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What Owen said. I greatly respect a freelancer who says, "I REALLY would love to work on that, but I'm all booked up right now and shouldn't take on any more."
In other words, it's okay to say "no," especially if "I'm too busy to give this the attention it deserves" is the reason why. :)
I've certainly found all the advice in this thread very helpful, and I'm not even a top 4 contestant!
I agree with Sean. Even I reached my limit earlier this year. Taking on two AP modules back-to-back with two RPG Superstar contests on either end of them isn't conducive to anyone's health...or, consequently, giving a product the attention it deserves. You have to know when to say "no," despite how much you want to stay involved in everything and be a publisher's go-to guy.
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In other words, it's okay to say "no," especially if "I'm too busy to give this the attention it deserves" is the reason why. :)
And that's much better than having to call your developer/editor and say "Due to two hurricanes, a death in the family, kidney stones, and a tornado, I'm not going to be one schedule with any of the following 3 projects..."
Catch me at a Con sometime and ask me about it. For bonus chuckles, do it while Sean is nearby to poke me...
(That said if you ARE going to miss a deadline, or even think there's a good chance you may, be honest to yourself about it, then be honest to your developer. While missing a deadline is always bad, it's much worse not to warn the person you are working for. If three weeks before deadline you send your developer an email that says "Somebody dropped a house on my grandmother*, and it's taking up a lot of time to sort out. I may be a few days late," that's TONS better than doing the same thing two days before deadline.
By two days before deadline, you ought to be almost done, anyway. And day of deadline, you shouldn't ever have to tell a developer anything other than "Here are my files." If you can think of anything that might interfere with such a declaration, ever, fix it. Afraid your house might burn to the ground? Do off-site back up.)
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Contributor, RPG Superstar 2008 Top 4, Legendary Games
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All money ain't good money. It's great fun to get paid to write gaming stuff, but make sure that you realize that your time is valuable, time for your regular job (assuming you aren't doing the Owen and making it full-time with just gamer freelance), time with yourself, time with your kids, time with your spouse/partner/etc., time with your family, time for church, time for exercise, time for travel, WHATEVER your time needs are, work-life balance is terribly important and easy to get out of balance when you start adding freelance on top of everything else that you normally do. Adding freelance means you need to re-balance how you organize your life and your time, so be mindful of it. It's fine to get extra-busy sometimes around deadline time, but do your best to keep your life outside freelance happy and copacetic, and your freelance work time will be a lot less stressful and a lot more fun and productive.
Sometimes you'll be ready to take on big piles of stuff. Sometimes you won't have room for anything. Most of the time you'll be somewhere in between.
It will take you a little while to learn how fast you write things, which parts of the writing go easily or more slowly. Maybe fluff just flows from your fingers but crunch gets you all backed up, or the other way around. Finding out how you work will help you estimate what you can do in what amount of time. Once you start to get an idea, be honest with yourself and with your editors about what you can promise and what you can deliver; you'll both be a lot happier.
