Weekly Update - 13 May, 2024

Hey everyone!

As some of you may know, the early access period for the full second draft has begun! Everblooms got access on Saturday, and those of you in the Bud and Blossom tiers will have it as of this time tomorrow. Seedlings will get access on the 18th, and I'll be taking the project down on the 21st (all times AEST).

I know there are still a lot of things that could be better about the game, and it's an odd feeling to release it even knowing that. But of course, I don't think I'd ever reach a place where I thought it was ideal, and I know well that I'd never be able to put it in such a state as to satisfy everyone who might read it. But I've been editing this monster for almost six months now, and it really needs to go to publication.

I am, at least, satisfied that it is better for the edits and changes I have made. Perhaps there still isn't enough romance, or scenes with Makaria, or enough emotional heft to the events immediately after the trial, but I believe I have made progress in all these areas, and I hope that, with the first two at least, those who feel that way will be willing to accept that at least there will also be more of those things in the sequel.

My plan for this week, while the draft is with all of you, is to do a bit of a blitz-edit on my other project (Diaspora, for those familiar), so that one can also get published someday. So it may be the first week in a long time where I don't get much done for FoA, though I still have some publication assets to put together for the publishers as well, so it won't be completely without any progress on this front!

Once the game is submitted, well... I might give myself my first week off in actual years. But then, I may also decide I can't go without at least tweaking the outline for Blood of the Living, or maybe HG will have a ton of edits for me to make before they'll publish the thing; I'm not really sure. In any case, rest assured that even if I do take a break, I'll be back to work soon enough, this time with a fresh game file and a lot of lessons learned from FoA.

So there will be no additional BIP this month, since I almost certainly won't have much to show for that, but I fully anticipate that, come the end of June, we'll be back to previews of a game being written. I hope you're looking forward to it as much as I am.

Anyhow, I think I've rambled long enough for now. As always, I hope you all have a fantastic week, and I'll be back in this slot next week with whatever news is new. :)