The Indie Alternative Part 2

NOTE: I originally wrote this article in 2004 for my Joe Indie blog, so it focuses on indie game development. Much of what it says, though, can be easily applied to indie publishing.
 
In Part 1 of this article, I talked about what an indie is, and what it means to have the indie mindset.
 
To review:

An indie is someone working on their own projects, on their own time, using their own resources.
As an indie you can be an "after hours entrepreneur", using your full-time job to cover your living expenses while you build the life you want to live.
In other words:

You are not your job.
You should work to live, not live to work. (It's your life, not your boss's.)
Work for yourself.
Don't be afraid to start small.



In Part 2, I will present the 3 reasons why today is (still) the best time ever to be an indie, and cover the basics of getting started as an indie.

The Holy Trinity of the Modern Indie

As I discuss in my book, The Indie Game Development Survival Guide, there are 3 key reasons why today–now!–is the best time ever to be an independent game developer. These are:


Inexpensive, powerful development tools;
Inexpensive, ubiquitous distribution channel; and
The growth of try-before-you-buy marketing.

 
In the past few years, these same reasons have even been applied to writing and publishing:

Inexpensive, ubiquitous word processing and desktop publishing tools;
Inexpensive access to massive distribution channels like Amazon and Barnes & Nobles;
The growth of inexpensive ebook readers with free sampling (Kindle, Nook, and more).


Inexpensive, Powerful Development Tools

At no time in history have such powerful tools been available for so little money. And never has so much information about how to use those tools been so readily available.

From fully integrated development environments to graphic editing software that anyone can use (with a bit of practice); from configurable third-party libraries and components to pre-created graphic and music content; there are many, many resources available at low (or even no) cost. In a number of cases, these tools and resources are the same ones used in big budget retail game titles.
 
There are some tools that will be out of the reach of the un-funded indie, but there are many possible substitutes you can find on the Web.
 
As I will probably say more than once before this article is through: Don't focus on what you can't do. Instead look at what you can do.
 
Inexpensive, Ubiquitous Distribution Channel
 
By that I mean: The Web.
 
Do I really need to say more? The Web, in general, and sites like Amazon in specific, offer direct access to your potential players (and readers) and unlimited "shelf space", with an incredibly low barrier to entry. Creating and maintaining Web sites has become so easy now that even children have them.
 
While distributing and selling your indie project isn't as simple as "build it, and they will come", you can still accomplish a lot with a simple, clear Web page and convenient payment options (which are also easy to setup and use).
 
The Growth of Try-Before-You-Buy Marketing
 
Try-before-you-buy marketing has grown past its roots in "shareware" to encompass almost the entire spectrum of software. Just about any commercial software package you can name, from the least expensive value-oriented product to such widely-used professional tools as Adobe Photoshop, is now available in a demonstration version that allows users a chance to "test drive" the product before buying it. Most retail games offer the same option to players.
 
The synergy of this Holy Trinity–cheap tools, easy distribution, and try-before-you-buy marketing–allows you to build your game at low cost, make it available to players, and build a community of players over time completely independent of the publishers and retail stores.
 
Getting Started as an Indie
 
The first step to being an indie is as simple as deciding to give it a shot, to move past the normal work-to-earn-to-consume lifestyle that is so prevalent today, which was covered in Part 1. Now we will discuss the next steps to becoming a successful indie:
 

Accept your limitations;
Choose a project within those limitations; and
Be willing to learn the necessary business skills.

 
Accept Your Limitations
 
Indies have the same limitations as everyone else: limited time and limited money. There are never more than 24 hours in a day, and even no budget is still a budget that must be adhered to.
 
Since I'm advocating you start your indie career as an adjunct to your current career, time is going to be in as short supply as money. You are, after all, already losing 8-10 hours 5 days a week to your job. And if you have a family and friends, those will all take time, as well. So you will have to accept that the best you will be able to do, at least for the beginning, is 1-4 hours a day (or night).
 
Don't expect to "find" time. You will have to make time. Some suggestions for freeing up time in your schedule:
 

Watch less TV.
Cut down on time spent playing games (you can't make games if all you do is play them).
Get up earlier in the day, and work on your project before you go to your pays-the-bills job.

 
The other big limitation you will have as an indie is insufficient funding. For your first project (at least), any expenses the project incurs will have to be paid for out of your own pocket. The good news is that by basing your project on "sweat equity", your costs can be kept down. Also, a lack of money forces you to be creative about solving production problems, since you can't just "throw money" at the problem to make it go away. Creativity is always a good thing.
 
Like your time, you will find that you have little or no "extra" money. You will have to adjust your lifestyle to accommodate any costs your project can't avoid. Here are a few ways you can adjust your lifestyle to make room for some minor project-related expenses:
 

Eat out less often (AKA, learn to cook).
Buy fewer consumer goods, like DVD's, CD's, and books.
Treat your indie project (at least at first) as you would a hobby.

 
Everyone, it seems, has a hobby, into which they invariably sink a lot of time and money. As was said in Part 1, why not support a hobby that has a chance to pay you back? A benefit of thinking of the project as a hobby is that you can avoid the temptation to run yourself into huge debt to see it completed.
 
Choose a Project Within Your Limitations
 
Now that you have accepted your limitations, you need make sure that your choice of indie project fits within those limitations. In particular, you need to consider the following aspects of any project:
 

Technology required; and
Content required.

 
You should pick projects based on technology that you can readily acquire. In your un-funded or hobby-funded state, you will have to position yourself well back from the "cutting edge" of such technologies as 3D rendering, real-time physics, motion capture, and so on. In the same vein, you will want to avoid anything with the word "massive" in the description (e.g., massively multi-player role-playing games).
 
Fortunately, many low-cost alternatives exist for game technology. These may not look as sexy as the latest games, but you may be quite surprised by what is still possible with "yesterday's technology." And not all multi-player games need to host 3000 players on distributed servers. It all boils down to looking at what you can do with what you have available, and not wasting time wishing you had something else.
 
Even more fortunately for indie publishing, all you need to get started you probably already have on your home computer: word processing software, free graphics utility, and internet access.
 
Beyond the technology, you also need to choose a project that doesn't require dozens or hundreds of artists and musicians working full-time over a 2-year period to create the necessary game content. Which, again, means you should avoid any project that includes the word "massive" in it.
 
The easiest way to limit the content your project requires is to keep the game design tightly focused. Reduce your game idea to its essential elements, and focus on those. Again, though, don't focus on what you can't do. Look for what you can do that is new and creative.
 
You should start with a small project, one that has a reasonable chance of being completed within 3-6 months while you put in about 10-15 hours per week. Your can pursue larger projects in the future, as you learn how to create games within the independent context–and as earnings from your earlier projects begin to create new options for later projects.
 
Be Willing to Learn the Necessary Business Skills
 
Artists, or just people with the artist mentality of all-suits-are-evil (e.g., most programmers, most writers), shy away from learning business skills like distribution, sales, and marketing. The simple fact of the matter, though, is:
 
If you do not know the basics of distribution, sales, and marketing, you will always be working for those who do.
 
Though covering these topics in detail is beyond the scope of this article, none of them is particular hard to learn. In summary, these skills concern making your game available (distribution), getting the word out to players that your game is available (marketing), and them convincing them to pay for it (sales). That's it. Nothing inherently evil in any of them, and all of them vital to any business venture.
 
Just be willing to learn the basics, and to experiment as you go, and you will be surprised at what you're capable of.
 
Just Do It


With a nod to Niké, their old logo is still the best possible advice.
 

Stop thinking about doing it, and just do it.
Don't worry if you're doing it right, and just do it.

 
You won't know if you can until you try.
 
Conclusion
 
To wrap up, the Indie Alternative offers you a way to break out of the Rat Race.
 
You can live your own life, separate from your job and your boss, working on your own projects, creating your own unique products and experiences, without having to starve while living on the streets.
 
Use "corporate welfare" to keep you and yours fed and warm as you leverage inexpensive development tools, a ubiquitous distribution channel, and the power of try-before-you-buy marketing to build your independent future. You will have to start small, but there is no limit to how much you can grow.
 
More than anything else, "independent" is a state of mind. Think about it. Then go do it.
 
-David
 
Related Posts:
Why I Choose to be an Indie AuthorThe Indie Alternative Part 1The Day Job Strikes Back!