100% Festival

I had a blast at the 100% Festival at Otis College of Art and Design this past weekend. It was great connecting with other artists and so refreshing to hear different perspectives on how to stay focused, inspired and productive. The varied insights from industries outside of gaming was very informative for me - as I tend to get tunnel vision at times when I don't branch out of my usual circle. How others approach setbacks was a powerful conversation because it's not too often you hear about this- primarily because people tend to gloss over the times they've encountered difficulties. It's so valuable to be able to share these experiences with others to keep expectations grounded, to bring home the point that things aren't always perfect but you can always strive to find creative solutions.

Here are some highlights I appreciated and would like to expound on:


ekud stressed that you have to go out there and get what you want. It's crazy how understated that advice is but it's so powerful. Approach the opportunities you want and you may just get them! This has definitely worked for me in the past. However, you must be prepared for rejection. Don't let it discourage you, take it as a challenge.


Firefly-Path mentioned the complexity of taking concept and design to finished product. I couldn't agree with this more, there's just so much that can happen in between and at times you must learn to embrace the process because what you begin with sometimes exists as merely a jumpstart and not an indicator of the finished product.

Billy Hicks on 'passion' for your craft:
All too often, we can find ourselves burnt out. We can't be inspired 24/7. But we need to dig deep and rekindle the reasons why we set out on this journey. I've hit that roadbump many times on this path.

I began with just one thing in mind : "Draw Something, Create Something!". In the beginning this advice seemed to suffice.

Now that I'm older and have so many responsibilities. Bills, Family, 401K, etc... The list goes on, it's easy to get lost in "I just can't do this anymore". That's where 'passion' comes in. Remember why you did this in the first place. If you can distill it down to one thing, for me it's just to create something. I've been extremely busy as of late, but I've managed to churn out some sketches because that's the reason I'm here and it's important for me to share my work!

Melanie Abrantes on outsourcing/delegating work to others:

This is another big one. Accepting when you can't do everything. It's tough to step back from a big project you've started and admit you need help from others when you went into it wanting total ownership of what you call "Your Vision". Another aspect is finding people to help and allocating resources to secure the manpower. In that sense what you're creating is a production pipeline. However, it is still beneficial to start small and in my case, for the game my husband and I are creating- I am looking to hiring the help of a colleague for some insights on UI/UX.

I hope you all enjoyed the livestream. I learned so much from it. I'm still learning every day!





Me with and




L-R : , Billy Hicks, Me

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