2009 January | Broadcasting Brain

Archive for January, 2009

A creatively presented game for your consideration

Friday, January 23rd, 2009

Kingdom of Loathing is an unusual online game compared to many of today’s web games. It has no moving graphics, it’s very simple in format and appearance, and on the surface it could look boring.

The real beauty of this game, though, is the narrative and the imagination behind it. It relies heavily on the text and the hand-drawn images that appear throughout. KOL, as many players refer to it, is snarky, silly, ridiculous, vexing, and sarcasticly funny.

I’m presenting this to you today not necessarily because I think it’s a fun game (which I do) but because it’s an example of how good writing and creativity are key ingredients to make a great game. Sound and graphics don’t make or break the gaming concept.

If you’re an aspiring content creator, I’d recommend that you take a look at this game and trying playing it to get a good idea of the creative process and design behind the game. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

P.S. another game that I enjoy, although it’s not as witty, is Treasure Madness. See my guide here: Treasure Madness game on Facebook: Hints and tips.

Tags: Browser Based, creativity, games, kingdom of loathing, Online game, treasure madness
Posted in games | 2 Comments »

The soul of America reboots today

Tuesday, January 20th, 2009

This is a historic day in the United States of America. Barack Hussein Obama will become the 44th President of the United States today. He also happens to be African-American by virtue of his father’s heritage.

Emotions will be high today. People will see this as a fresh start for the US, a chance to do things better. It surely is that and more.

It’s important to remember, though, that President Obama and his government are ultimately human beings who currently have the admiration and expectations of gods. To hear a lot of people talk, they seem to think that Mr. Obama can walk on water, turn water into wine, etc.

A President is many things, but ultimately they are a communicator, a decider, and a motivator. But they can’t, and don’t, do everything by themselves.

To my American friends and family: you do have a new day and a new chance to do things differently. There will be good days and bad; triumphs and mistakes. Just remember: you’ve elected a charismatic man, a personally powerful man, but ultimately he’s just another human, like the rest of us. Ultimately, it comes down to you, your neighbours, and our will to do things better.

In other words, it’s all up to you. Good luck and have a great Inauguration Day!

Tags: america, inauguration, politics, usa
Posted in news | 4 Comments »

How to lighten your mind to create better content

Monday, January 19th, 2009

This is part of a series of posts of small hints, tips, and ideas to help you do better creative work. Wherever possible, I’m acknowledging the sources of these ideas.

I’ve been a fan of The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron for years after it was recommended to me by an old friend. The book is an interesting and useful collection of exercises to help people recover their creative selves. However, you can derive huge benefits from the very first exercise that her book discusses. It’s a wonderful way to lighten your mind (conscious and subconscious) prior to doing any kind of work. It’s definitely worth sharing, so here’s my gift to you on this, with an extra variation to consider.

An exercise to lighten the mind

Cameron calls this exercise morning pages. On the surface it is very simple. In practice it can be hard but (more…)

Tags: content creation, creativity, just write, morning pages, the artist's way
Posted in creativity | 18 Comments »

Book Review – The Road Less Traveled – M. Scott Peck

Sunday, January 18th, 2009

This is a book review of The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth by the late M. Scott Peck, M.D. of M. Scott Peck, M.D..

How I got the book:

Gift from a family member

Background:

M. Scott Peck, M.D. was a psychiatrist who wrote a number of books about life, spirituality, psychiatry, and growth. Over the course of his psychiatry career he collected stories, developed ideas, and ultimately wrote about these things. The Road Less Traveled, first published in 1978, was his first big success as an author and helped to make him famous.

The Road Less Traveled was a very striking book. It started with a stark acknowledgment: “life is difficult”. Instead of being a downer, Peck proceeded to describe his “new psychology” in terms that were ultimately uplifting to the reader (more…)

Tags: book review, m. scott peck, the road less traveled
Posted in book reviews | 3 Comments »

Rehearsal or redundant practice – where is the value?

Thursday, January 15th, 2009

Image by StuSeeger

Today I have a question for you about practicing. By practicing, I mean exercising a skill or technique over and over again.

Musicians, athletes, soldiers, and public speakers are examples of people who practice skills on a regular basis, particularly when they are trying to master those skills. Practice can involve both the body and the mind.

The purpose of practice, IMHO, is two fold:

To master the use of a skill or technique under “normal” conditions when there are no distractions.
To master the use of a skill or technique so that it is used without conscious thought, which becomes very important when distractions are present.

By contrast, we generally don’t practice very simple tasks like opening doors, entering telephone numbers on a keypad, changing a lightbulb, or (more…)

Tags: practice, redundancy, skills, value, work
Posted in work | 11 Comments »

Are questions getting in the way of publishing something?

Tuesday, January 13th, 2009

Corvida Raven asked an interesting question about yesterday’s content creation questions:

Why so many questions and things to consider to just ask 1 question or inform others? Is all this really necessary?

My reply to her was that my post was a checklist that should be used before publishing content.

Since then, I’ve thought over both my post and my response to Corvida. Corvida is an accomplished blogger and knows what she’s doing, so her question is both valid and worthy of a better answer.

The short answer is: it depends on what you want to achieve.

The longer answer:

There are many different styles, formats, methods, etc. for creating content as well as many different motivations for creating content. The questions that were included in yesterday’s post were intended for creating high quality, readable, accessible content that would be shared by many readers. It would have a clear message, tone, and have the best chances for influencing the reader.

You don’t need to be able to answer YES to all of those questions to create good content; yesterday’s post probably implied that you do. I think that answering YES to even one question can help you to create good content.

HOWEVER, I do think you have the best chance for success if you can answer YES to all of those questions.

Does this make sense?

Tags: blogging, content creation, publishing
Posted in blogging | 4 Comments »