The Job

I haven’t done the update on the job for a while, since to some degree, I feel like I’m still settling in. And its feeling that won’t go away for a while.

The story so far: WizKids had its layoffs, and I was pounding the pavements for a few weeks looking for work. I then picked up a two-month gig with Wizards of the Coast for their Star Wars miniature game. In the middle of this, I started working for a small web design company called True North (that's what its called this week – we’re still in process of settling on who we are). Then Wizards extended my contract, and I spent the month of January splitting my talents between the two companies (which was a physical and emotional drain – I didn’t want either company to feel I was playing faves with the other).

So January is over, and I’m working for True North as a copywriter/game designer/consultant/general dogsbody. So far I’ve completed a first draft game design for Hasbro, and contributed to upcoming work on Super Soaker and Star Wars for the web site. In the offing I have some work for GI Joe and an online demo program for the new D&D Basic set.

It’s a rather diverse grouping of projects. Instead of not getting any respect because I use the word “Spider-Man” when discussing my job, I now get no respect because I use the word “Super Soaker”.

Now, I’m in the same location I was when I was working for WotC – most of True North’s business is with Hasbro, and we are currently situated in the WotC offices. In addition, my desk is “embedded” in the R&D department, since this is where I started out three months back, and there is no room upstairs in web design. BUt I shouldn’t get too comfortable, because R&D is going to need the space, eventually.

The good news is that this job has medical. The bad news is that it is hourly, and dependent entirely on how much work there needs to be done. Right now, there’s more than enough – the needs of web design are pretty high. But much like my position at my desk, I shouldn’t get comfortable.

It’s a weird sort of feeling – quasi-freelance, quasi- full time. I’ve decided that for the month of February, at least, I’m concentrating on this gig – they’re good people, and I really like working with them. It’s sort of like working in a clear little meadow, surrounded by this climax growth of a huge forest. A lot of the stuff that goes on in the forest has no net effect on my job, while at the same time, we meadow-folk are trying to figure out what we want to do.

OK, its a strange analogy. More later,