Robin”

That’s exactly what I was thinking.

About a year ago, I sent a HCG a PM letting him know that I would be willing to help his magazine. [I have no magazine-ing experience, but I can at least write coherent sentences] I figured I might as well help the underdog.

He never replied. No wonder he has no help, he won’t let anybody help him.

Eyas Sharaiha’s post was very true as well.

-Elmernite

Robin

Not with an attitude like that you can’t.

I really don’t want to play this card, but look: if I can do my magazine, which requires me to write seventy-odd pages of text-heavy game design articles four times a year, you can surely write less than twenty picture-heavy pages with a wider and more community-oriented focus. So don’t play this ‘I’m all by myself, so you can’t blame me if I fail” bullshit, because frankly that’s something I’m just sick and tired of.

One thing I’ve found in talking to other filmmakers is that human beings embarking on a creative project have a tendency to set up unnecessary obstacles for themselves– to create ways to ensure their own failure.

“I need to get a steadicam,” one will say; “I’ll start my film when I can afford a steadicam.” And, if they manage to get one, by that time another obstacle will have cropped up. “I need a big scene with extras. I need to find some extras.” “I need to get a crane shot.”

They pile on things that are just out of reach. Eight times out of ten, they don’t make the film; they’ve given themselves an excuse. They couldn’t get what they needed to make the film, it’s not their fault, poor baby!

One time out of ten, they make the film, and as they make it, they constantly complain about how they lack the things they need. And those things are like holes in the film; you can see how they try to fudge their way through a steadicam-like shot or a crowd scene.

But one time out of ten, they realize they’re setting up ways for themselves to fail. And so they re-write it and re-think and, sometimes, re-shoot it; they make it so they don’t need those things in the first place. They eliminate the need for a crowd scene instead of trying to fudge one. They make due with what they’ve got but they do so in such a way that the finished product is seamless.

You say you need an artist. You don’t. If you feel the need for a comic, you can use clip art. But you don’t even need a comic. (You certainly don’t know how to write one.)

You say you need a better layout. This is true, but you should not confuse a better layout with a fancier one. Go simpler. Make the text easy to read and the pictures recognizable. A functional layout is a thousand times better than some souped-up crap.

If you can’t do fancy properly, and if you can’t do a comic properly, then, for God’s sakes, don’t be fancy and don’t do a comic! Stick to what you’re capable of, what you feel you’re good at.

As for the content of the magazine…

… well, I think others have pointed out its short-comings. I think that, ultimately, is what you need to work on instead of creating opportunities (and excuses) for failure.