Episode 76: Capes & Crooks: A 5E Superhero RPG from Crit Academy

Episode 76: Capes & Crooks: A 5E Superhero RPG from Crit Academy

Greetings Entreprenerds!

This week I talk with Justin Handlin from Crit Academy about Capes & Crooks: A 5E Superhero RPG live now on Kickstarter! Justin and Crit Academy have published dozens of DMsGuild products and successfully launched Memorable Monsters on Kickstarter last year. Capes & Crooks is a brand new 5e superhero RPG. Customize your own unique characters with powers, roles, origins & alter-egos. Check out the Kickstarter.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

Capes & Crooks is live now on Kickstarter until July 29th. Check out the campaign now!

For more about Crit Academy, check out my interview with Justin, Ian and Brandon where we talk all about their podcast and Patreon: Episode 43: Crit Academy

Be sure to follow Crit Academy on Facebook and Twitter.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 75: The Marketing Campaign for Anyone Can Wear the Mask byJeff Stormer

Episode 75: The Marketing Campaign for Anyone Can Wear the Mask byJeff Stormer

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is podcaster and game designer, Jeff Stormer. Jeff hosts the Party of One Podcast, an actual play podcast focused on two-player RPG experiences. He is also the designer of over a dozen RPGs such as Mission Accomplished! and Big Fight Feel.

In this episode, we talk about the marketing campaign for his new game, Anyone Can Wear the Mask, a tabletop RPG about a superhero, a supervillain, and the city they share.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

  • 1:00 My Dad’s Monster Manual by James Introcaso on DMsGuild
  • 4:00 How Jeff got started playing TTRPGs
  • 7:30 What Jeff learned from launching past indie RPGs
  • 11:30 Lessons from Kickstarter that can be applied to any marketing launch
  • 14:00 Finding and marketing to your target audience
  • 22:00 Anyone Can Wear the Mask TTRPG
  • 24:00 Outreach to comic book influencers
  • 29:00 Pre-launch marketing plan
  • 38:00 Social media and podcast promotion plan
  • 47:00 Being genuine and honest in your expectations

Check out Anyone Can Wear the Mask at jeffstormer.itch.io/mask and follow Jeff at jeffstormer.com and @PartyofOnePod on Twitter.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 74: Creating D&D Content with Justice Arman

Episode 74: Creating D&D Content with Justice Arman

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is Justice Arman. In addition to penning best-selling DMs Guild adventure supplements such as Devil’s Advocate: A Guide to Infernal Contracts, Justice works for Beadle & Grimm’s Pandemonium Warehouse, where he works on boxed sets like the Legendary Edition of Curse of Strahd and the Gold Edition for Eberron: Rising from the Last War. He has also written for D&D Adventurer’s League and MCDM’s Arcadia.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode we discuss:

  • 3:00 How Justice got started writing Dungeons and Dragons content
  • 6:30 What his five-year plan looked like
  • 9:00 Building your resume and body of work with specific companies in mind
  • 16:30 Finding success on the DMsGuild
  • 19:30 Importance of collaboration
  • 23:00 Reaching out to other creators
  • 27:30 Marketing work on the DMsGuild
  • 33:00 Managing your geek brand expectations

Links to cool stuff:

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 73: Moving to Twitch with Nerdy Curious

Episode 73: Moving to Twitch with Nerdy Curious

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guests this week are Roni, Jaime, and Rachel from Nerdy Curious who return to the podcast after appearing in Episode 25.

After coming together through the NerdHQ community at San Diego Comic Con; Roni, Jaime, Rachel and Jen started a blog to share their nerdy interests and hobbies. The blog covers Nerdy Designs with nerd fashion, accessories and cosplay, Nerdy Eats for nerd-inspired food and drink recipes, and other realms of the nerd and con community.

Their It’s On the List Podcast follows the Curious Crowd as they cross trips, experiences and classic movies off their list.

Recently, Nerdy Curious made the move to Twitch as the new home of their Nerds R Us 2.0 show which interviews members of the nerd community and their Curious Bytes show which discusses what’s happening behind the scene, current Discoveries & Distractions, and Curious Qs.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

Be sure to check out Nerdy Curiosities at NerdyCurious.com and follow them on Twitch, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 72: Twitch Streaming and Podcasting with Chris Sully

Episode 72: Twitch Streaming and Podcasting with Chris Sully

Greeting Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is Chris Sully. I had Sully on the podcast back in Episode 4 to talk about Nerdfu. In the three years since, he has left his job at Funko and started a successful Twitch gaming stream and movie podcast. Sully brings a decade of marketing and social media experience to talk about streaming platforms, podcasting, and to answer some listener questions.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode we discuss:

  • 5:00 Moving from Mixer to Twitch
  • 10:00 From @NerdyCurious: If you could change one thing about streaming platforms what would it be and why?
  • 21:30 Running giveaways
  • 29:00 @vRONIs: What would you say are the top 3 things that make up the foundation for a successful marketing campaign?
  • 35:00 Creating 400 podcast episodes before the Movie Retakes Podcast
  • 48:00 Sully’s future plans for his geek brand
  • 51:00 @Niners_9: What would Sully’s (the Pixar character) ice cream flavour be?

Be sure to follow Sully on Twitter @CSSully, on Twitch at Twitch.tv/CSSully and listen to the Movie Retakes Podcast.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 71: Growing a D&D Brand with Nerdarchy

Episode 71: Growing a D&D Brand with Nerdarchy

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guests this week are Dave and Ted from Nerdarchy, a multiplatform content creator focused on Dungeons & Dragons and other tabletop roleplaying games. They have over 3,300 videos on YouTube with advice, guides, reviews and other D&D related content. They also provide content through Patreon, blog posts, Nerdarchy merchandise, adventures and supplements, and last year fully funded their first Kickstarter for Out of the Box: Encounters for 5th Edition.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode, we discuss:

  • 4:00 How Nerdarchy got started
  • 8:30 Creating an efficient production schedule
  • 12:30 Benefits of outlining videos
  • 14:00 Growing Nerdarchy into new channels
  • 19:00 Launching a successful Kickstarter for Out of the Box Encounters
  • 24:00 Organizing Nerdarchy the Convention and postponing to 2021
  • 29:00 Future plans for Nerdarchy
  • 31:00 Engaging with fans at conventions
  • 35:00 Building collaborations
  • 43:00 Importance of starting a business you are passionate about

Be sure to check out Nerdarchy at Nerdarchy.com and follow them on Youtube at Nerdarchy and Nerdarchy Live.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 70: Organizing Diversity Events with Kyle-Steve Porter

Episode 70: Organizing Diversity Events with Kyle-Steve Porter

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is Kyle-Steven Porter, artist, podcaster and event coordinator. Kyle is the Diversity Lounge Manager for PAX and a board member for Flame Con, the world’s largest queer comic con.

Through Geeks OUT, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that seeks to rally, promote, and empower the queer geek community, Kyle attends conventions, coordinates queer spaces at other events, and helps producing Flame Con – a two-day comics, arts and entertainment expo, showcasing creators and special guests from all corners of the LGBTQ fandom. It features thoughtful discussions, exclusive performances, screenings, cosplay and more!

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode we discuss:

  • 4:30 How Kyle got involved with Flame Con and other diversity organizations
  • 8:30 Flame Con’s presence at conventions
  • 11:00 Choosing which conventions to get involved with
  • 17:15 What goes into organizing a Diversity Lounge
  • 22:00 Paneling at conventions
  • 26:00 Making the most of a convention
  • 30:30 Promoting artwork and The Shade of It All Podcast
  • 32:00 If it moves you continue to do it

Be sure to follow Kyle on Instagram @kyled4nger and at kylestevenporter.com and learn more about Flame Con and Geeks Out at geeksout.org and @geeksout and @instaflamecon.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 69: Anya Combs, Director of Games at Kickstarter

Episode 69: Anya Combs, Director of Games at Kickstarter

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is Anya Combs, Director of Games at Kickstarter. Anya works to make the games category as successful as possible and help creators marketing and Kickstarting video games, board games, TTRPGs and other gaming projects.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode we discuss:

  • 2:30 How Anya became Director of Games at Kickstarter
  • 5:30 Importance of planning ahead for successful Kickstarter
  • 7:30 Tips for becoming a Kickstarter Featured Project
  • 12:00 Building your project and community before coming to Kickstarter
  • 15:30 Preparing your games project for Kickstarter as early as possible
  • 19:00 How to build your game community online and at conventions
  • 25:00 The lifecycle of a Kickstarter campaign
  • 30:30 Common Kickstarter mistakes
  • 32:00 What to learn from an unfunded Kickstarter

Be sure to follow Anya on Twitter @AnyaynA

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 68: Indie Game Marketing with Victoria Tran

Episode 68: Indie Game Marketing with Victoria Tran

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is Victoria Tran, Communications Director at Kitfox Games. The indie game studio is currently developing Boyfriend Dungeon, Lucifer Within Us, Dwarf Fortress, Mondo Museum and more.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode we discuss:

  • 3:00 How Victoria got into game marketing
  • 5:00 Best strategies for indie games marketing
  • 9:00 Testing and optimizing different aspects of game marketing
  • 13:30 Growing a Discord gaming community
  • 20:00 Finding the right pitch for your game
  • 23:00 Importance of persistence

Be sure to follow Victoria on Twitter at @TheVTran and Kitfox Games @KitfoxGames and at Kitfoxgames.com

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!

Episode 67: Digital Comics Publishing with GlobalComix

Episode 67: Digital Comics Publishing with GlobalComix

Greetings Entreprenerds!

My guest this week is Christopher Carter, CEO and Co-founder of GlobalComix, digital comics publishing platform that provides publishing and translation solutions for comics publishers, professionals, and indie creators. With tools to easily get comics published, translated and mobile reader friendly, GlobalComix aims to help comic creators bring their work to a global audience.

Listen on iTunes or Stitcher.

In this episode we discuss trends shaping the comics industry as a whole, how creators can engage a global audience, and how GlobalComix has grown their community of comics creators and readers.

As a special offer for readers, Christopher provided two promo codes:

  1. Readers can claim 50 free reading credits using code ENTREPRENERD in their account page for “claiming credits”.
  2. Creators/publishers can get 50% discount on GlobalComix Creator Pro (premium tooling subscription) using code ENTREPRENERD during their checkout experience.
Both codes are valid until April 30th

Check out GlobalComix to learn more.

I’d really appreciate any feedback either on Twitter @UndertheCapes, in the blog comments or through a rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Thanks and see you soon!