Hi all,

First off thank you for your support this past month, I appreciate every single Patreon, from everyone at the $1 and up helped keep me housed, the cat fed, internet and electricity on so I can do this work.

So what have I been doing eh? A lot more streaming for one thing. I’m up to 3 times a week on my main, personal channel [twitch.tv/cypheroftyr] and 1x a week over at I Need Diverse Games. [twitch.tv/INeedDivGames] Much streaming, many hours with a controller in hand. I also made aDiscord server/community so if you want to hang out you can!

I set up a GameWisp subscription thinger on Twitch, but I’m not sure what to do to entice people to subscribe to me there. From what I understand it’s like Patreon for Twitch. You have levels, and people can sub starting at $3.99 a month up to whatever levels and rewards you put up.

I’ve also been prepping for GDC because it’s the first time I’m going with an All Access pass and having to be, I dunno I guess present and accounted for to make sure our #INeedDiverseGames scholarship recipients get there, have a good and educational time, etc. It’s a bit daunting to do this but it’s really gratifying to know that 25 people got to go to GDC via INDG! 😀

Still podcasting with a great lineup of guests in the coming month or so. Martin Sahlin from Unravel Game, Jamie Broadnax of Black Girl Nerds, Mel Fleming from Bioware who does localization, Elsa Henry who does game dev and is a GoH for OrcaCon 2017! I did get a better mic for podcasting and streaming, so improved quality for the win.

Also, thanks to the funding we got in January, I’m able to go to a lot more conventions this year. This personal patreon is strictly for living expenses, and the INDG Patreon + funding is for expenses there so no worries on that front about where you money is going.

Conventions I’ll be at this year [confirmed]:

  • PAX East – Doing two panels
  • Penguicon – Paneling, Featured Guest
  • Nebulas – Local, Doing panels
  • Podcast Movement – Local, attending only
  • DePaul Celebration of Star Trek – Local, Paneling
  • WisCon – Paneling, Guest of Honor Liaison, Programming Co-Chair
  • CONVergence – Paneling, Invited Guest

Unfortunately I won’t be at MidAmerica Con II aka Worldcon, because of money and uncertainty about where things will be later in the year.

Writing is the one thing I’ve failed at doing, especially posts for folks at the $10 level and up. Doing the prep for a lot of things has sucked up my time but I’ve also been stressed about …everything. It’s not an excuse, it’s what’s kept me from even fulfilling a couple paid writing things for publication.

I’m looking into alternative rewards for folks at the $10 level, so suggestions welcome. Its that or I need to put write rewards for Patreon on my calendar and not let it budge no matter what.

It’ll be a bit quiet here in the next couple of weeks as I prep for travel to SF for GDC, then spend a couple extra days crashing on a friends couch to have some downtime before I get back to Chicago and two conventions back to back in April, a lot of travel and socializing.

Thank you again, all of the support, kind words and signal boosts are appreciated <3

Tanya

Published by cypheroftyr

Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers, attendance at the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make the industry better and more inclusive for everyone. She’s part of the Rivals of Waterdeep actual play stream on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep, a partnered Twitch variety broadcaster; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics online, at conventions and as a public speaker.. She’s also contributed to publications at Green Ronin, Paizo and Monte Cook Games and is the co-developer for the Fifth Season RPG based on N.K. Jemisin’s three time Hugo award winning Broken Earth trilogy. She’s the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a Twitch supported RPG and Actual Play stream, airing weekly on her channel, twitch.tv/cypheroftyr. Additionally, she is a Senior Annenberg labs Civic Media Fellow at USC. She’s also the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a new sci fi afro-futurist RPG developed with a team of all POC and Black creators; live streamed on her twitch channel, /cypheroftyr. She’s named as one of The Game Awards Future Class 2020, a diverse group of builders, thinkers and dreamers whose voices elevate and diversify our artform. It recognizes individuals around the world who represent the bright, bold and inclusive future for video games. She was also named as one of Gamers of the Year 2020 by Kotaku along with three of her contemporaries. She was also invited to the Xbox MVP program in February 2021. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021. Tanya is the programming & diversity coordinator for OrcaCon and GaymerX. She also serves on the Board of Directors for OrcaCon and was named the Chair for Take This in January 2023. She often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications. She’s the editor of Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins (2018, CRC Press) and contributed to The Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox. (2019, CRC Press) Writer Bio for pubs: Tanya is the Founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago. She’s part of Rivals of Waterdeep, an actual play D&D show on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep; the programming coordinator for OrcaCon & GaymerX; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. She’s on the Board of Take This as well as a Stream Ambassador, and was part of the inaugural cohort of The Game Awards Future Class. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.