The other day I was mindlessly scrolling through Dragon+ magazine and I came across this article, talking about members of the WOTC creative team (Wizards Of The Coast; for those uninitiated) and how they made it to where they are today. And it got me thinking…

So many times we ask successful creative people “how did you get to where you are?” and they tell us tales of their hardships starting out, their big breaks, the years spent honing their crafts, their acceptances and their rejections, and we leave feeling inspired to start our own journeys and follow in their golden footsteps.

But these stories are always told the same way: from a point of success looking back.

Why? Because these people have made it (in whatever way you choose to define ‘made’ and ‘it’) and we want to know how they achieved the seemingly impossible. And although these stories can hold invaluable advice, they are by default dated: “when I was starting out the industry was different…” being a common narrative, due to the fact that the narrator has already achieved at least some of the goals to which we aspire.

No-one wants to hear from the rookies who don’t know what they’re doing, who have untested strategies, unsuccessful efforts, and many of whom are going to fail time and time again. We want to hear from the Stephen Kings and Neil Gaimans of the world, from the Frank Turners and Amanda Palmers, from the Matthew Mercers and Jeremy Crawfords.

…Or do we?

Here is my proposal. Instead of taking a successful creative and looking back on their path to success, we are going to take an unsuccessful creative… me… and see what path it takes to get me to where I want to be.

Will everything I do plan out exactly as I suspect? No. Will all my assumptions about the career to which I aspire be accurate? Definitely not. Will there be mistakes? Many, I can guarantee. But what this will create is an honest, step by step guide, starting from point zero and working day by day, month by month, to a defined end goal. A “how did you do it?” piece, while it is being done.

But why should this interest you? Currently, I am at the same stage that you are; looking up at the stars and wishing there was an easy way to get there. Mind filled with endless possibilities of what we would like to achieve, but no actual point from which to start. I am right there with you. My ‘Bucket List’ of creative projects I would love to be part of has been overflowing for years. But are you really any closer to achieving that list that you were yesterday? or you were last year? The problem with Bucket Lists is there is no urgency to complete anything. “One day before I die” is not what one can consider a realistic and defined goal.

So screw the Bucket List. This isn’t about ‘things you should do before you die’. This is about things you will do. Today! This is about how to make the change you want to make, and how to make it now.

So come with me on this journey. I will take you through my process, my struggles, my achievements and my failures. We will talk about plans for the future and document the everyday progress we make to get there. We will talk about research and education, what helps and what doesn’t, about finances, creative block and elusive art of Motivation. Each step will be documented, explained and most importantly current. I am doing this right along with you.

And instead of looking backwards, we can look forward, and find the way together.