Goals for 2012 or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Blog

2011 wasn't exactly a banner year for me personally, but in terms of gaming it turned out to be a fairly landmark one.  For the first time in over a decade I started gaming again on a regular basis.  I also discovered the OSR late in 2010 which really helped to spark and rekindle my passion for gaming in general.  The fact that there's this entire group of like-minded gamers who love and appreciate classic gaming pushed me to get back to the dice.  Oftentimes I wondered if this was some sort of early mid-life crisis, but I don't think so, and if it is, so what?  I've been having a blast gaming again with my old crew, and that's all that matters.  And as to this last year in the blogging world, I thank all of you in this whole OSR thing for providing me with inspiration and a greater understanding of the game we all know and love.  I follow many of you in the scene, and stand amazed by the things I read daily, so thank you for that.

 

I'm not going to continue railing on about the past year on my blog, and all about different posts I wrote, because, well...frankly, you probably don't care anyway, and who could blame you?  I probably wouldn't carer either, were I in your position as the reader here.  Rather I'm going to state out some goals I have for the upcoming year, both for myself and for the blog here. 

 

Read at Least 3 Appendix N Works

 

Finding time to read anymore has become a tedious task it seems.  I have read quite a bit from the Appendix N list over the years, but I'd like to read more.  I am almost ashamed to admit I've never read Vance's Dying Earth series.  I know, I know, this is borderline heresy, but I plan on correcting that this year.  I'm also planning on reading more Moorcock, specifically his Hawkmoon books, and finishing up the Amber series.  Some of these books I already have in print, and the others I'm hoping I can find e-book editions for so maybe I can get some use out of this Nook Color I bought a few months ago.  And, of course, I will continue my reading of REH and Lovecraft, both of which have been large influences for me already.

 

Finish a Project and Make it Available

 

I've started a few projects here and there, but they eventually fell by the wayside as my interests began varying here and there.  One example is the megadungeon project I was working on, Dreadrock.  This fell on the backburner for several reasons, but primarily because much of the time I spend on developing gaming material is for my own campaign, and because Dreadrock wasn't a part of my current gaming campaign, it sort of dropped off the map for me.  That and the fact that designing a megadungeon is a monstrous and laborous task, and one I probably didn't fully understand when I decided to begin the project.  I can understand why there are so few published megadungeons available.  I suppose the best way to develop one is through sessions of playing, and while I've played in my share of megadungeon crawls, it would be easier to develop the thing during play, or for an actual campaign I'm running.  Perhaps one day I'll return to the task and complete it.  Either way I would like to provide some form of completed work, be it a module, hexcrawl setting, or something else, and make available for others in the OSR.  I think for me, just finishing something would be a start.

 

Blog More

 

As you have probably noticed by looking at my archive timeline on the right, there have been large gaps where I haven't really posted on the blog.  There are various reasons for this, and while I have had prolonged periods of not writing, I have still been reading.  So, one goal I have for the new year is to blog more often.  At least 3 times per week.  It's strange because I feel I have gotten to know so many people in the OSR simply by reading their blogs.  In some sort of surreal fashion you begin to get an idea of these bloggers' personalities and tastes just from reading what they write daily.  I find this connection even more satisfying than social network sites like Google+.  Maybe I'm just old school that way, but at any rate, I intend to blog more, and comment more on the blog entries I read daily.

 

Try Something New

 

I really want to do this in 2012.  I love DnD, don't get me wrong, but to get a chance to run or play in something like Carcosa. LotFP, Stars Without Number, or Mutant Future would be a much welcome change of pace for me.  It's not that my current group isn't open to such a thing, but more due to the fact that the mundane intricacies of life have made it difficult to get together more than once or twice a month, and when we do, we almost feel obligated to play in our current campaign.  I don't want gamer ADD to overtake me completely to the point where I'm not running my main DnD campaign, but I'd like to take a chance on something new at least once this year.  Carcosa has intrigued me quite a bit, but then again, who hasn't been intrigued by Carcosa?

 

Play in a Google+ Game

 

For many, DnD is a social game.  It provides many of us the opportunity to meet new people and socialize, but for me that is not really the case.  While I have nothing against meeting new people and making friends, the idea of playing games randomly with people I've never actually met seems...strange to me.  Perhaps it stems from playing with essentially the same group of friends for nearly two decades.  I'm not sure, but I do know there are many of you out there who blog and whom I find interesting and often think, "man I'd love to play in a DnD game with that person," and now that chance is available with the Google+ thing, and Zak's whole Constantcon movement which he helped propel.  I just need to take the leap, as I'm sure it would be something I'd really enjoy.

 

So, obviously I have a lot I'd like to accomplish over this next year.  If I can somehow manage to do even half these things, I'd consider the year a success as far as my gaming/blogging life is concerned.  I wish you all the best in the new year, and thanks for a great 2011.