On a general Purple Sorcerer note, once I have everything completed and delivered for our most recent Kickstarter, I will be stepping away from active development of our tools and adventures for a spell. I’m bummed, because I have three additional adventures – and a sourcebook – that are in various stages of development, and of course, there are always many things percolating on the tools front, including the HTML version of the Crawler.
But recent challenges have forced me to re-evaluate things.
In the run-up to Christmas, I was in the room with my Dad at his lung doctor when he got the news it was time to put his affairs in order, since the next cold he picks up will likely signal the end. With luck, six months is about all Pop can expect.
My sister provides the primary care for him and my Mom, but Kristi and I do what we can to ease the load, and this news has knocked me off balance in ways I didn’t expect. He’s been ill for a while, and there is an element of peace in knowing we don’t need to gently press him to get out to see his pals at the donut place, etc., that now we just need to make him comfortable… but emotionally I’m having a difficult time processing that my always-powerful, can-do Dad will soon leave us.
Additionally, my normal health challenges have nose-dived. As part of my physical therapy, I do water aerobics to help keep the nerve disorder I experience at bay. So paradoxically, I’m in the best shape and strongest I have been in 25 years, but the pain has returned in often near-crippling intensity. Over the last couple years I could expect a day or two each week where I would be largely out of action, but I would make up for it with 10-14 hour work days when things were good. Over recent months, good days have been few and far between.
The combination of these physical and other challenges have produced something approaching a block in terms of my ability to work to my normal standards, and for some stretches I’ve been unable to produce anything at all. The stress of deadlines and expectations seem to exacerbate things on both fronts, so my work for the foreseeable future will be quiet, and behind the scenes. I do love everything about producing our adventures and tools, and hopefully I will be back in the game sooner than later. But for now, I need to step back.
Of course, as always, if anyone in the community needs free adventure codes as prizes for the array of awesomely worthy projects you all seem to come up with, my ears are always open. (As well as listening for heads-ups concerning issues with our tools). I’m still here and will be checking in, but my public participation will be quiet while we try to get a handle on these physical and other challenges.
Thanks to everyone for your continuing support and patience, patience, patience.
Jon
Purple Sorcerer Games
