I was excited as the new year rolled in. Subdued, but still looking forward to a year of getting things Done. I saw the calendar reset whileshowing Short Round the original Tron and dozing off on the couch. It’s like I am an old guy or something.

I woke up January First with a head full of wrong, like the mucus gnomes snuck in and filled my sinuses with 32 ounces of liquid nails. I took Short Round to the airport, went home, and slept for something like five days.

Has it really been five days? Wow.

In my brief waking interludes, I reflected on 52 Weeks Of Done, and that all important S in SPLAT : Space.

I cannot get things Done without a Space. A Space for getting things Done will be made. Making this Space will be the first thing that is Done.

I spent days in the run up to the new year purging my place of things long stored. Records for a friend who fled the bay for LA. Comics for a friend who fled his space for a slightly smaller space. And a whole multitude of things held on to for too long because they might be useful someday. But I had more purging to do, and more work to do, if I was going to create the Space I intended.

Then five days happened, with the liquid nails and the sinuses, and I’m staring down the end of the first week, and not only don’t I have a chicken in the pot, I haven’t even build the hen-house. In layman’s terms, I’m five days behind schedule already, and I’m only five days in.

So, folks, we find ourselves at a very early cross-roads with 52 Weeks of Done. And I may as well use this as a chance to talk about What To Do When Things Ain’t Going Right. The way I see it, you’ve only got so many options.

Option 1 – Do Something.

Option 2 – Do Nothing.

Everything else is a variant on one of these two options. Allow me to demonstrate.

“I want to do this right, so I’m going to do this later.” That’s Do Nothing.

“I want to do this right, so I’m going to push the date back and keep working on it.” That’s Do Something.

“I’m upset that this isn’t turning out and I’m only getting started.” That’s Do Nothing.

“I don’t have time left to do what I wanted, so I’m doing this instead.” That’s Do Something.

“I need to think about this some more.” That’s Do Nothing.

And so on.

The end result is, I’m only just feeling a little human, I’m 5 days behind, and I don’t yet have a Space in which to get things Done. So, what do I do?

I’m going to Do Something. I may not have the Space I wanted when I’m Done, but I will have a Space. Even if that’s just re-clearing my desk and not moving the desk into a walled off niche with the amontillado. Some part of Space was also intended to be the creation of a format for the posts that follow : The kick off post, the update, the wrap up. There are other senses of Space which are still undefined, but in my head. There will still be a wrap-up post on the week, but for now, this will have to do for the kick off.

Should this experience be an omen of the 52 Weeks To Come, then I hope a favorable interpretation of the omen will prevail.

Like many of you, I have a lot of projects in various states of Done. Some are nebulous ideas, some are half written, some are well formed thoughts that haven’t been Done.

I have scads of gaming related projects in various states. Supplements. Adventures. Website improvements. Tools. Props. Scripts. And none of them are getting Done. Some are getting worked on. Many are being ignored.

I’ve been thinking about Done, off and on, for a while now, ever since I first stumbled on that whole Cult of Done thing. And while I can’t get behind everything in their manifesto, one thing stands out among all the others as being, at the very least in my case, unquestionably true:

Done Is The Engine Of More

I have a lot of things I want to work on, and I can’t work on them because there are other things that aren’t finished (or in some cases, started). And I want to do More.

So, next year, at the start of each week, I am going to pick one thing. And at the end of the week, that thing will be Done. That might mean completed, or it might mean abandoned. But at the end of the week, it will no longer be a thing I’m not doing, or a thing I’m working on. It’ll be a thing that is Done.

Conceptually, this is more of a new years kind of post. But I’m trying to avoid thinking of it in terms of ‘resolutions’ – because we all know those never work. And this isn’t really the same thing as Secret Project Update Club – I may still post those updates, though the SPUC is more or less down to me holding meetings in the living room with some beer and the cat.

I’m putting out an open call, for anyone else out there who is in the same sort of boat. If you’ve got a lot of things that you’re “working on” that aren’t getting Done, and if you want to do More, then join with me next year for 52 Weeks Of Done. If you’re serious about it, you’ll want the next couple weeks to prepare – clearing some space, booking some regular time, etc. You may also want to lay out some principles that will help you get things Done. I have opted for 5 Principles, because they will fit in one hand. Yours may be different. These are mine:

1. I cannot get things Done without a Space. A Space for getting things Done will be made. Making this Space will be the first thing that is Done.
2. I will Post at the beginning of the week, to say what will be Done at the end of that week, and again at the end of the week, to demonstrate that something was Done.
3. I will Limit what is being Done to what could sensibly be Done in the time I have allowed.
4. I will Applaud when something is Done, regardless of the outcome. Mourning does not get anything Done.
5. I cannot get things Done without Time. I will set aside an inviolate block of Time, daily, in which to get things Done.

Space, Post, Limit, Applaud, Time. SPLAT. This is by design.

I will be blogging about this here. If there are relevant updates for Twitter, I will use the tag #52WoD

If other people do this too, we will all get a lot of things Done. And we can encourage each other to stay the course. If you don’t have that much to get Done, I hope you’ll rally us on.

This post is Done.

It’s been about three weeks since I opened up the application process for A Terrible Grant – it seems like a good time for an update.

1 – Applications are being accepted Until June 1, 12:01 AM PST. That gives you about two weeks to get your application

2 – I indicated that I expected to have the product in hand by June 1. If I don’t have it in hand by the time I’ve selected a winner, I’ll let the winner know about the delay.

3 – Please read the application details in the original post and comments and follow the instructions. I’m not asking applicants to jump through a lot of hoops, but if you don’t follow the application guidelines, your application will be rejected. Even if I know you and like your work.

4 – A number of people have said to me “I was thinking of applying, but…” If you’re thinking about applying, but aren’t sure, then apply. Especially if you’re holding back because you’re doubting yourself.

5 – If you know someone who should apply, tell them. Spread the word. It won’t affect your chance of winning yourself, but may help someone win. And that’s good mojo.

In more general update news, I’m running a new Shambles scenario at the Endgame Oakland Minicon and you should come play it.

I’ve also put some pendants and such up for sale in my Etsy store – it’s mostly backstock I’m clearing out, but we’ll see what else turns up there.

Also, it’s GM’s Day tomorrow, and there’s a big sale going on at DriveThruRPG.

Finally, threw down a piece of Flash Fiction that I’ve added to the Trophy Case.

As for the regular SPUC stuff… not a lot of traction. At all. On anything.

On The Table:

1. RPBGN – I put up a member survey, and have collected some good information from that.
2. Shambles Source Material #1 – I got off to such a strong start, but I’m not much further than I was last week.
3. Maschine Zeit Material – Mostly in the planning stages still.
4. Codename: Pandoran Apothecary Chest – Unchanged
5. Codename: Gremlin Persistent Malice – Unchanged
6. Codename: Insignificant Diversionary Anaconda – Unchanged (double erp).
7. Codename: Simulated Jocular Anaconda – Unchanged
8. Codename: First Rural Delusions – Unchanged.

In The Closet

1. Mobile Audio Rig v2.0 details here- Mothballed 2/24/10
2. Unfinished – (NaNoWriMo 2009 Entry) – Mothballed – 01/28/09
3. Codename: Enormous Intersected Automaton – Mothballed 11/04/09
4. Codename: Big Audio Dynamite – Mothballed 11/04/09
5. Codename: Unwashed Repeat Pedestrian – Mothballed – 11/04/09
6. Codename: Cackle Smash Soup – Mothballed 10/28/09
7. Codename: Tactical Plastic Laser – Mothballed 10/28/09

In The Trophy Case

1. NEW – A Single Moment Of Weakness – A piece of Flash Fiction I wrote for a little roundup. Read it here
2. Shambles – My RPG about life as a Zombie. First revision. (read about it here) – Completed on 2/17/10
3. Obnoxious Howler Monkey – An Arduino driven, VMUSIC2 bases soundboard designed for use as a mood-setter for tabletop games. (read about it here) First Revision. – Completed on 11/18/10
4. The Grognards Of Gygax – My entry into the “Best Quest” contest for Legends of Zork. It won Second Place – Completed on 11/11/10

Excuse Of The Week: Still not getting the things done I NEED to be getting done.

It’s a busy week for me, and a busy week for Shambles. I also have some catching up to do.

FINALLY – The Print Layout Is Done

Over the weekend I was sent the Print Layout for Shambles. I am in the process of setting up with a POD vendor, which means that soon you’ll be able to get actual, real hard copies of the book. This is more exciting than I can measure.

I’ve update the package over at DriveThruRPG to include the print version, so if you’re purchased the digital copy already, you should have gotten an update about the files. If you haven’t, then there’s good news because…

Shambles Valentine’s Day Sale

If you’ve not gotten that special someone something for Valentine’s day, and if you’re some kind of nerdy cheapskate, then I have very good news for you. From now until the end of the weekend, you can get Shambles from DriveThruRPG for just five bucks by using this link

Yes, nothing says “I Love You” like giving your significant other the opportunity to pretend they are a brain-hungry walking corpse. But it you’re looking for a little something extra, and if you happen to be in the area, then I have even better news for you.

While I’m waiting for POD to get set up, I am doing a limited run of saddle-stitched copies. These will be with me this weekend, and you can…

Play Shambles At Dundracon

I’ll be at Dundracon running Shambles. I’ll have these saddle-stitched copies with me, and you’ll be able to buy them at the Endgame booth.

If you want to play Shambles and can’t get into an official game, I may run some unofficial games as well. Keep your eyes open.

Updated Shambles Page

I updated the Shambles page to include some reviews and more information. Drop on by and check it out.

That’s it for now. More again soon!

Last year, I rode in the Napa Valley Tour de Cure, doing 50 miles and raising money for the American Diabetes Association.

This year, I’m riding 100 miles. If you would like to sponsor me with a donation to the ADA, please go here and give what you can. Every little bit helps.

It’s a good cause, and a great event.

I’ve made a bunch of hosting changes over the last couple days. If anyone notices anything not working or unusual, please let me know.

Thanks!

I don’t know if I want to add forums to my site or not. I have a sort of specific purpose in mind, but I’m not sure if this is the right medium. Convince me, one way other. Good idea? Bad Idea?

Please come check it out and leave comments in the forum, unless you think it’s A Terrible Forum, in which case leave comments here.

Just a quick update on the Shambles art.  As the artist who is working on Shambles is frantically preparing for her wedding on the 22nd, it may be a couple weeks before we see any more art for Shambles.  However, we should still be able to hit the October timeframe for release and availability.  Cross your fingers, knock on wood, and so on.

For a point of reference, I am not doing the art myself, because my art looks like this:

This is why I don't draw.