Speaker Series
In collaboration with New Voices In Gaming and The Tabletop Network, we are proud to present the 2020 Tabletop Mentorship Speaker Series.
2020 Speaker Series
The Life of a Game: An Overview of the Tabletop Industry with Matt Fantastic
Before a game enters your shopping cart, hundreds of people will have put thousands of hours into making sure that it's the best it can be. This talk will take you through the people and processes involved in how a game goes from idea to finished product and beyond.
About Matt Fantastic: Matt primarily does freelance game design and development for publishers around the world as the Creative Director of Forever Stoked Creative, the studio they founded over a decade ago. They also own a game shop/library (Elm City Games), are sometimes an adjunct instructor of game design, publish indie games, books, zines, vinyl records, and other creative weirdness with killjoy and Prettiest Princess, are a Creative Director at Vice Games, founded the New Haven Game Makers Guild, organize Fantasticon, and do consulting/fixing across the game industry as well as for corporate clients like Netflix and Yale.
From the Tabletop Network Vault: Designing with a Story Focus by Ryan Laukat
Check out our Q&A with Ryan Laukat that followed the release of his talk.
How To Get Started Writing In Games with Banana Chan
You're interested in the writing side of things for games and would like to know how to get started! In this talk, Banana will be talking about her experiences, how she got started and some things that she found to be useful when breaking into the field. She'll also go over the different kinds of writing that are related to games and how you can uncover what you would be more interested in doing.
About Banana Chan: Banana Chan (she/they) is the owner and co-founder of a small-box board game and RPG publishing company, Game and a Curry. She is also a designer and writer for board and card games and RPGs. She is the co-designer of Jiangshi: Blood in the Banquet Hall and has worked on games such as Scooby-Doo: Betrayal at Mystery Mansion and Terror Below. You can find her on Twitter @bananachangames
From the Tabletop Network Vault: Being a Professional Game Designer by Rob Daviau
Check out our Q&A with Rob Daviau that followed the release of his talk.
Board Game Graphic Design: From Pencil Sketch to Production with Brigette Indelicato
Get an inside look at Brigette's graphic design process for working on board game projects - from the initial brainstorming and sketching phase, to the print production and preparation of files for the manufacturer.
About Brigette Indelicato: Brigette Indelicato is a full-time graphic designer, art director, and creative consultant based in Philadelphia, PA. Her game graphic design credits include: War Chest, Santa Monica, Dice Miner, Magical Kitties RPG, and Star Trek: Galactic Enterprises. She specializes in board game graphic design, logos & branding, custom typography, and boundless optimism.
From the Tabletop Network Vault: What Your Artist Should Do For You & What You Should Do For Your Artist by Adrienne Ezell
Check out our Q&A with Adrienne Ezell that followed the release of her talk.
Pitching in the Era of Social Distancing with Sydney Engelstein
In a world without conventions, how do you connect with game publishers? How can a single email stand out from the crowd? What should you have prepared before you approach an acquisitions team in the age of social distancing? From sell sheets to print and plays, let’s talk about the new normal of game pitches.
About Sydney Engelstein: Sydney Engelstein is the head of game development at Indie Game Studios, and has designed 7 published games with 3 more in production. She is also the head of new game acquisitions for Stronghold games and Indie Boards and Cards, and has a variety of experience with evaluating prototypes.
From the Tabletop Network Vault: How to Build an Audience For Your Game by Debbie Moynihan
Check out our Q&A with Debbie Moynihan that followed the release of her talk.
Why the World Needs Tabletop Game Hubs with Kenechukwu Ogbuagu KC
The presentation will feature NIBCARD Games’ journey as a designing, manufacturing and publishing company and how that grew into becoming a Tabletop Games Hub in Nigeria highlighting the benefits, challenges and opportunities. It will also include Actions that can be replicated especially in Third World countries.
About Kenechukwu Ogbuagu KC: Kenechukwu Ogbuagu KC is the owner and creative director of NIBCARD Games; a Nigerian Tabletop games designing, publishing and production company. He is also the convener of the African Boardgame Convention (AB Con); a yearly boardgame convention since 2016. He has self-published 27 games and also manufactured 4 other Nigerian games for different Nigerian designers. Among his games are Wan Wan Touch, Village War; the calamity, Concentration Concentration, Battle of Adrica, Luku Luku and Homia.
From the Tabletop Network Vault: How to Grow a Game Company by Rob Dougherty
Check out our Q&A with Rob Dougherty that followed the release of his talk.
Getting Started in Content Creation with Eric Yurko
What does it take to become a content creator? And what does it take to keep it going? Join us for a conversation with Eric about getting started as a content creator. This will be a Q&A format, so bring your questions!
About Eric Yurko: Eric is a writer and reviewer for What’s Eric Playing?, a board game review and photography website, as well as the host of the monthly Late Night Table Talk talk show series. When not talking about, writing about, playing, photographing, or thinking about board games, you can usually find him watching superhero movies or asleep. Find him on Twitter @whatseplaying.