Small/Self-Publishing Panel Audio - NTRPGCon 2015

I had chance to host a Small/Self-Publishing Panel at the most recent NTRPGCon. Even for an 8 a.m. session, we had a great audience turnout, which proves to me that plenty of folks out there in RPG-land are interested in putting out their own material, and more importantly, learning lessons from those that have come before.

I do want to thank all of the panelists again. I know many of them passed up drinking on Friday night in order to be there for the early start time on Saturday morning, and I just wanted to express again how greatly appreciated their presence was. This panel could not have happened without their valuable input and insight.

Panelists:
Richard LeBlanc - Save Vs. Dragon (blog) / New Big Dragon Games Unlimited (moderator)
Eric Hoffman - Stormlord Publishing
Trey Causey - From the Sorcerer's Scroll (blog) / Hydra Collective
Chris Kutalik - Hill Cantons (blog) / Hydra Collective
Jeff Talanian North Wind Adventures
Zach Glazar - Lesser Gnome Games
Robert Parker - Hydra Collective
Matt Finch – Mythmere Games

Directly following the audio player is a breakdown of the entire panel discussion with time notes so you can skip around to listen (or re-listen) to the parts you'd like.
Click here if you'd prefer to download the entire MP4 file (68M).

Introductions
00:00:00 Introduction to Panel (Richard LeBlanc)
00:01:22 Eric Hoffman introduction
00:02:03 Trey Causey introduction
00:02:40 Chris Kutalik introduction
00:03.58 Jeff Talanian introduction
00:06:18 Zach Glazar introduction
00:07:18 Richard LeBlanc introduction
00:08:45 Robert Parker introduction
00:09:15 Why publish? (Zach Glazar)
00:10:55 Matt Finch introduction

Kickstarter Discussion
00:15:05 Kickstarter Introduction
00:15:55 Kickstarter Advice (Robert Parker)
00:17:50 Kickstarter Experience (Trey Causey)
00:18:54 Why Kickstarter (Eric Hoffman)
00:20:30 Kickstarter Skepticism, Preparation and Lessons (Chris Kutalik)
00:23:47 Kickstarter Complexity—Research, Preparation and Backer Transparency (Zach Glazar)
00:26:10 Kickstarter Transparency with Backers, Kickstarter Fees, Shipping Costs (Jeff Talanian)
00:29:51 Kickstarter Shipping Costs (Zach Glazar)
00:30:46 Kickstarter Preparation & Kickstarter Backer Response (Matt Finch)

Getting Started as a Self/Small Publisher
00:32:40 Starting Small as a Self/Small Publisher (Richard LeBlanc)
00:34:27 Starting Small, Taking Next Steps, Getting Help (Eric Hoffman)
00:36:12 Getting Help (Richard LeBlanc)

Sales & Marketing
00:36:37 Question from Audience (Jim): Sales Ceilings
00:37:10 Sales Ceilings (Eric Hoffman)
00:37:57 Sales Ceilings, Sales Curves, Sales Strategies (Trey Causey)
00:39:22 Long Tail Marketing, Value of Bloggers/Google+, Marketing a Product, Value of Outside Input (Richard LeBlanc)
00:43:30 Product Development & Sharing that the Community (Jeff Talanian)
00:45:27 Importance of Word-of-Mouth Marketing vs. Sales Ceiling (Matt Finch)
00:48:30 Building an Audience/Customer Base, Value of Reviews (Richard LeBlanc)

Print Resources
00:50:05 Question from Audience: Print Resources
00:50:14 Print Resources, Lulu Issues (Richard LeBlanc)
00:51:30 Matt Finch Leaves
00:52:25 Print Resources, Lulu Issues, cont. (Richard LeBlanc)
00:53:26 Working with Box Suppliers (Zach Glazar, Jeff Talanian, Eric Hoffman)
00:57:04 Under/Over on Vendor Orders vs. On-demand Vendors (Richard LeBlanc)

Product Bootlegging/DMCA Take Down Notices/Legal Issues
00:57:26 PDF Bootlegging, Filing DMCA Take Down Notices (Richard LeBlanc, Jeff Talanian, Robert Parker, Trey Causey)
00:57:56 Bootlegging Experience, Cost of Product vs. "Free" Bootlegs (Jeff Talanian)
01:00:03 Unintentional Promotional Consequences of Bootleg PDFs (Robert Parker)
01:00:34 Cost of Product vs. "Free" Bootlegs, DMCA Take Down Process (Richard LeBlanc)
01:03:15 Unlicensed Use of Artwork from Product (Trey Causey)
01:04:02 Bootleg Anecdote (Jeff Talanian)
01:04:22 Secondary Problems with Friends Sharing Products (Richard LeBlanc)

Production Issues: Expenses (Art/Printing), Layout/Typography
01:05:00 Opening the Floor for Questions (Richard LeBlanc)
01:05:41 Question from Floor: Expenses (Justin)
01:05:54 Expenses Answers (Trey Causey, Eric Hoffman)
01:06:30 Importance of Good Production Values/Layout & Typography(Jeff Talanian)
01:07:34 Subtleties of Layout/Typesetting (Richard LeBlanc)
01:12:10 10,000 hours of Experience (Zach Glazar, Richard LeBlanc)
01:12:40 Value of YouTube Tutorials (Jeff Talanian, Richard LeBlanc)
01:31:32 Value of Purchasing Fonts (Trey Causey, RIchard LeBlanc)

Seeking Outside Assistance (Value/Cost)
01:14:53 Question from Floor: Value of Outside Assistance
01:15:26 Value of Proofreading (Zach Glazar)
01:17:03 Copy Editing/Line Editing (Chris Kutalik)
01:18:38 Editing (Trey Causey)
01:19:06 Value of Exterior Input (Richard LeBlanc)
01:21:01 Kickstarter Backer Input (Zach Glazar)
01:22:18 Value of Exterior Input, cont. (Richard LeBlanc)
01:2328 Robert Parker Offers His Assistance
01:23:47 The Black Shirt Conspiracy

Flexibility of Digital and POD Formats
01:24:07 Comment From Floor: Digital Format Flexibility/Speed of Updates (Justin)
01:24:33 Updating Petty Gods/Flexibility of Digital and POD Formats (Richard LeBlanc)

Wrap-Up
01:25:42 Wrap-up (Richard LeBlanc)