1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:06,480 Speaker 1: [upbeat music] 2 00:00:06,560 --> 00:00:12,060 Speaker 1: Hello. Welcome to another episode of the Collected Developer Commentary. So this is 3 00:00:12,100 --> 00:00:17,920 Speaker 1: the show where I talk about the show and where it's all going. So this is part 4 00:00:18,020 --> 00:00:23,400 Speaker 1: one of a master plan series that explains exactly how we're gonna do things a little 5 00:00:23,420 --> 00:00:27,800 Speaker 1: bit differently here, uh, than most of the other podcasts you probably listen to. 6 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:30,840 Speaker 1: But I'm gonna go ahead and give you the punchline right now. 7 00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:37,660 Speaker 1: It's not about me. It's about all of us. So who, who is us? 8 00:00:38,300 --> 00:00:44,260 Speaker 1: So we are the storytellers and the lovers of story who support them. That's 9 00:00:44,300 --> 00:00:48,920 Speaker 1: who we are. So if you don't care about the creators or their wellbeing, 10 00:00:49,720 --> 00:00:55,180 Speaker 1: unfortunately this is not the place for you. Now, support isn't always 11 00:00:55,220 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: financial, but if you're not interested in getting involved somehow, then you're 12 00:00:59,860 --> 00:01:04,300 Speaker 1: gonna get less and less out of Collected. You're just not gonna enjoy it because 13 00:01:04,319 --> 00:01:09,920 Speaker 1: we're building it for our people, and our people are the creators of great story 14 00:01:10,400 --> 00:01:12,980 Speaker 1: and the lovers of story who support them. That's us. 15 00:01:15,000 --> 00:01:19,460 Speaker 1: Now, Collected is just the name of the brand. Uh, it's a creator-first brand and the 16 00:01:19,500 --> 00:01:25,120 Speaker 1: beginning of a user-created, user-owned multiverse. 17 00:01:25,740 --> 00:01:31,580 Speaker 1: It's not mine. It belongs to all of us, but we'll get into that. My name is 18 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:35,780 Speaker 1: Steven Schrembeck. I'm a writer and programmer. I see my role here really as a 19 00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:40,880 Speaker 1: facilitator and pace car. Basically, I'm gonna set the vision. I'm gonna get it all 20 00:01:40,960 --> 00:01:45,540 Speaker 1: started, but then I'm gonna take a step back and start supporting you all so you can 21 00:01:45,580 --> 00:01:51,200 Speaker 1: take it over. Now, I am personally committed to writing and producing a 12-story 22 00:01:51,320 --> 00:01:56,940 Speaker 1: block. So here's what's gonna happen. Each story follows the events of a different 23 00:01:57,180 --> 00:02:01,940 Speaker 1: inner world. Mortal Steel is just the first of these stories. Uh, it has 12 24 00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: episodes, and it's part of the 12-story block called the Revealer Block. If 25 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:12,480 Speaker 1: you wanna know why, you'll just have to keep listening to find out. But that's just 26 00:02:12,540 --> 00:02:18,380 Speaker 1: the surface level. Let's dig into what exactly I mean when I say Collected is 27 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:20,740 Speaker 1: not mine, it's ours. 28 00:02:22,580 --> 00:02:28,100 Speaker 1: So I have three important points to go over here. One, our shared multiverse is 29 00:02:28,140 --> 00:02:32,680 Speaker 1: called the Eternium. It's shared because once we're ready, Collected is going to 30 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:38,220 Speaker 1: start taking community submissions. That means any story which meets some very basic 31 00:02:38,280 --> 00:02:42,920 Speaker 1: qualifications for what is a Collected story is going to become canon in our 32 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:43,640 Speaker 1: multiverse. 33 00:02:45,200 --> 00:02:48,460 Speaker 1: Now, obviously, it's gonna take some time to build out a pipeline where we can start 34 00:02:48,500 --> 00:02:52,360 Speaker 1: accepting submissions, actually doing something with them and turning them into 35 00:02:52,420 --> 00:02:56,200 Speaker 1: stories and getting people to produce them, so for a while, just expect to see 36 00:02:56,260 --> 00:03:00,480 Speaker 1: mostly my work. But the goal is, eventually, my work is just gonna be a tiny portion 37 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:04,780 Speaker 1: of all the great stories that you have available here. So as a listener, that's 38 00:03:04,860 --> 00:03:09,460 Speaker 1: obviously good for you. There's gonna be more great stuff coming. But if you're a 39 00:03:09,500 --> 00:03:15,100 Speaker 1: creator or aspiring creator, so specifically a writer, voice actor, musician, or 40 00:03:15,240 --> 00:03:19,300 Speaker 1: visual artist, you're gonna wanna pay extra close attention because we've got some 41 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:22,740 Speaker 1: really cool opportunities coming up. But honestly, this is about more than just the 42 00:03:22,780 --> 00:03:27,580 Speaker 1: creators because not everyone wants to make stories, and that's okay. I'd wager that 43 00:03:27,660 --> 00:03:31,500 Speaker 1: only a small portion of the community will ever really be interested in learning the 44 00:03:31,540 --> 00:03:37,420 Speaker 1: skills to tell stories. No problem. So that brings me to my second point. Number 45 00:03:37,700 --> 00:03:43,300 Speaker 1: two, we're using an open, shared IP model. 46 00:03:44,900 --> 00:03:50,700 Speaker 1: That means any member can create their own content, sell their own merchandise, 47 00:03:50,860 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 1: and even spin off their own podcast and make money from any Collected story IP. 48 00:03:56,960 --> 00:04:01,720 Speaker 1: Whether that's one of my 12 worlds or somebody else's, it doesn't matter. Now, if 49 00:04:01,780 --> 00:04:05,680 Speaker 1: you're a creator, your brain is probably melting. What do you mean other people can 50 00:04:05,720 --> 00:04:10,660 Speaker 1: make money off my story worlds? I'm not gonna get into the details today, technical 51 00:04:10,720 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 1: implementation or otherwise, but the gist is that as long as the sellers and 52 00:04:14,460 --> 00:04:18,320 Speaker 1: creators play by a few simple rules, a small portion of the revenue is gonna come 53 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:23,080 Speaker 1: back to the entire community, including the authors that created the stories. But 54 00:04:23,100 --> 00:04:28,500 Speaker 1: the gist is anyone can sell stuff, and we all get a little bit of money from it. So 55 00:04:28,560 --> 00:04:33,280 Speaker 1: if you want to sell Mortal Steel stickers or a T-shirt or a fan-made sequel, you 56 00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:37,540 Speaker 1: don't have to ask me. There's gonna be a very simple self-service and mostly 57 00:04:37,620 --> 00:04:42,560 Speaker 1: automated way of going about this. But I'm also aware that a lot of people aren't 58 00:04:42,600 --> 00:04:48,540 Speaker 1: gonna wanna do that either, which brings me to the third point. Anybody who 59 00:04:48,580 --> 00:04:54,580 Speaker 1: contributes to Collected is a part owner. This is gonna take a little explanation. 60 00:04:55,380 --> 00:05:00,860 Speaker 1: Just imagine that if every time you commented or posted or did a like on Facebook, 61 00:05:01,420 --> 00:05:07,420 Speaker 1: you got a tiny share of the business itself, and anytime Facebook made money, you 62 00:05:07,460 --> 00:05:12,680 Speaker 1: got a cut of that money relative to how many of those tiny shares you owned. That's 63 00:05:12,700 --> 00:05:17,440 Speaker 1: what I'm building for you. It's not lip service when I say that it is ours. 64 00:05:17,860 --> 00:05:21,980 Speaker 1: Collected is actually going to be yours in the financial sense as much as it is 65 00:05:22,020 --> 00:05:27,240 Speaker 1: mine. This is obviously a very lofty vision, and it's gonna take some time to build 66 00:05:27,320 --> 00:05:32,340 Speaker 1: out, but that's the goal. So anytime Collected makes money, as long as you hold 67 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:37,340 Speaker 1: something that gives you a share, you're gonna make a little bit of money too. So 68 00:05:37,680 --> 00:05:41,960 Speaker 1: you might be asking, "Who gets these shares?" Uh, the short answer is anybody who 69 00:05:41,980 --> 00:05:46,600 Speaker 1: contributes value. Obviously, there's a lot of details here. Besides producing 70 00:05:46,620 --> 00:05:50,980 Speaker 1: things to consume, like stories or merchandise, whether that's digital or physical, 71 00:05:51,720 --> 00:05:56,080 Speaker 1: you can do things like start discussions, host events, or just share stories. 72 00:05:56,500 --> 00:06:00,920 Speaker 1: Really, anything that benefits all of us, you're going to get rewarded for, and 73 00:06:00,960 --> 00:06:04,676 Speaker 1: that's going to earn you a piece of the total pie. I'm gonna get more into the 74 00:06:04,716 --> 00:06:09,536 Speaker 1: mechanisms behind this actually works and how it's possible in the next Master Plan 75 00:06:09,596 --> 00:06:12,116 Speaker 1: episode. But just know that that's what's coming. 76 00:06:14,516 --> 00:06:18,716 Speaker 1: Obviously, this is a pretty new way to run an organization, but it's actually 77 00:06:18,756 --> 00:06:23,436 Speaker 1: gaining in popularity. We're not the first, and it really represents part of a 78 00:06:23,476 --> 00:06:28,456 Speaker 1: larger shift. People are kind of tired of top-down organizations that really only 79 00:06:28,496 --> 00:06:32,856 Speaker 1: reward the people at the top, more or less at the expense of everyone else, or at 80 00:06:32,876 --> 00:06:37,636 Speaker 1: the very least, they don't get nearly as much out of it. Collected is actually just 81 00:06:37,696 --> 00:06:43,556 Speaker 1: a small part of this bigger cultural movement happening right now. It is a shift in 82 00:06:43,616 --> 00:06:48,956 Speaker 1: power to creators, which is being enabled by technology. And it's also a shift to 83 00:06:48,996 --> 00:06:53,096 Speaker 1: the people who support those creators. It's cutting out a lot of middlemen. But it's 84 00:06:53,136 --> 00:06:57,976 Speaker 1: doing more than cutting out middlemen. It's also making the supporters part owners 85 00:06:58,016 --> 00:07:02,436 Speaker 1: in the entire project. I'll also talk a little bit more about the creator economy in 86 00:07:02,456 --> 00:07:04,356 Speaker 1: some of the, uh, later Master Plan episodes. 87 00:07:06,036 --> 00:07:11,976 Speaker 1: I hope you found that useful. Yeah, let me level with you. I can get this started, 88 00:07:12,516 --> 00:07:17,196 Speaker 1: but I can't do it on my own. I'll be announcing some opportunities to get involved 89 00:07:17,296 --> 00:07:21,556 Speaker 1: later, but only to the people who are on the email list. So if you wanna get 90 00:07:21,596 --> 00:07:25,556 Speaker 1: involved on the first projects, make sure you're on it. Sign up is at 91 00:07:25,596 --> 00:07:31,176 Speaker 1: collectedaudio.com. And remember, this is a shared project, and the way these 92 00:07:31,196 --> 00:07:35,956 Speaker 1: projects usually go, even though it's early days, the people who get in early are 93 00:07:35,996 --> 00:07:40,636 Speaker 1: the people who get rewarded the most. And that's as it should be because those are 94 00:07:40,656 --> 00:07:44,816 Speaker 1: the people taking the biggest risks with their time, effort, and money. While I 95 00:07:44,916 --> 00:07:50,456 Speaker 1: can't promise financial returns, and this isn't financial advice, if you 96 00:07:50,476 --> 00:07:55,136 Speaker 1: believe in this model and in this bigger cultural shift and you kinda buy into this 97 00:07:55,176 --> 00:08:00,776 Speaker 1: vision, you will be rewarded. And the more you do and the more you contribute, 98 00:08:01,376 --> 00:08:06,096 Speaker 1: and the earlier you contribute especially, the more you will be rewarded. 99 00:08:07,356 --> 00:08:10,776 Speaker 1: So I'm gonna leave you with one question to chew on before the next Master Plan 100 00:08:10,836 --> 00:08:15,536 Speaker 1: episode in, I don't know, maybe a month or so. Should I bet on this? 101 00:08:18,476 --> 00:08:23,976 Speaker 1: Do you want to see more of this kind of thing in the world? Think about it. This 102 00:08:24,036 --> 00:08:29,096 Speaker 1: space is moving insanely fast, like crazy fast, uh, and we're not gonna slow down. 103 00:08:29,656 --> 00:08:33,756 Speaker 1: So I'm only bringing in the people who really know that they wanna get in early. If 104 00:08:33,776 --> 00:08:35,876 Speaker 1: that's you, cool, sign up. I'd love to have your help. 105 00:08:37,476 --> 00:08:41,236 Speaker 1: All right, let's wrap this up with a little bit of housekeeping. So Mortal Steel is 106 00:08:41,256 --> 00:08:45,796 Speaker 1: going to wrap at twelve episodes. We're gonna do a short break, which I'm going to 107 00:08:45,836 --> 00:08:51,336 Speaker 1: fill with a couple surprises. Uh, and then season two starts. Production on season 108 00:08:51,356 --> 00:08:55,056 Speaker 1: two is picking up. The major characters and the plot are done, but the story's still 109 00:08:55,076 --> 00:08:59,356 Speaker 1: being written. I'll be putting out casting calls for voice actors soon, and work on 110 00:08:59,376 --> 00:09:05,296 Speaker 1: the cover art and music will begin as well. So as far as the sound design goes, I'm 111 00:09:05,316 --> 00:09:10,496 Speaker 1: gonna tease you with this. I am planning something rather ambitious. I think it's 112 00:09:10,516 --> 00:09:16,036 Speaker 1: something you've never heard before. Uh, and I [laughs] I might regret the 113 00:09:16,076 --> 00:09:20,316 Speaker 1: workload, to be honest with you. But we'll see. We'll see. If you wanna hear a 114 00:09:20,376 --> 00:09:26,216 Speaker 1: teaser of that, as always, be on the email list. Collected is less and less 115 00:09:26,336 --> 00:09:30,616 Speaker 1: and less for the passive listener and more and more and more for the engaged 116 00:09:30,656 --> 00:09:35,616 Speaker 1: community member. That's just how I think it should be. There are thousands of great 117 00:09:35,656 --> 00:09:39,636 Speaker 1: podcasts and audiobooks for you to listen to. If you just wanna be a passive 118 00:09:39,676 --> 00:09:44,976 Speaker 1: listener, please go consume those. They absolutely need your support. And finally, 119 00:09:45,576 --> 00:09:49,156 Speaker 1: special thanks to the alpha readers who made season two better already. I really, 120 00:09:49,436 --> 00:09:54,456 Speaker 1: really appreciate your work. And I appreciate you, traveler, for listening to our 121 00:09:54,476 --> 00:09:58,976 Speaker 1: show. And I can't wait to bring you more. See ya.