Sixteen Years of Awesome

The world is overflowing with advice for writers. Write constantly! Act professional! Purge all adverbs from your brain with battery acid!

There’s a similar wealth of advice for game designers. Prototype quickly! Playtest often! Find the fun bits and burn the rest!

As a writer and game designer, I devour this stuff. I try internalize the best, laugh off the rest, and focus on turning my brain into the most efficient content-creating engine it can be. (Sort of like an athlete training his body, but with less exercise and more carpal tunnel syndrome.)

But the best thing I ever did to improve my craft wasn’t found in any list of tips. I just sort of stumbled into it, and I’ve never regretted it. But I don’t know if it’s advice I can pass along. After all, I can’t encourage anyone else to marry my wife.

It was sixteen years ago today that I married the only woman who was not only unoffended at my tasteless humor, but actually found it funny. She was–and remains–my best friend, and I’m honored, blessed, and grateful to have her in my life.

What’s more, she’s my primary editor. If I can help it, nothing leaves this keyboard without her keen eyes upon it. She’s my sounding board for game designs, finding the rule holes that I overlook. She’s my playtester, my proofreader, and my number one fan. Without her support, I don’t know where I’d be. (Probably hanging out at the counter at the local game store, arguing about who would win in a fight between Han Solo and Jean Luc Picard.)

Sixteen years. Seems like nothing. Seems like forever. And yet it’s only the beginning.

(P.S. My wife says Han Solo would win. Because he’d shoot first.)