YSDC - A Peek behind the Curtain

[PoC]

I recently received a question about the apparent (lack of) speed of new material on Yog-Sothoth (both Patron & non-Patron). While I gave a private reply I thought it might be useful to share some of that response publicly, to "pull back the curtain" a little on what goes on. It may or may not make for interesting reading but here goes:


Yoggie Patronage

YSDC patronage goes towards keeping this site online. Without the support of patronage Yoggie would disappear within three months (that's our run-down time based on seeing quarterly subscriptions to their end). The materials we produce on Yog-Sothoth are a thank you for support. We understand that some people like to have exclusive content - and that such content can be a deciding factor in patronage - and we do our best (by "we" in this case... ultimately there's only one person co-ordinating this and that's just me, I'm afraid).

You can see the current list of some of the extras at: www.yog-sothoth.com/patron - which includes discounts at InnsmouthHouse.com among other things.


Why the Push for Patronage?

Over the past few years we've been doing our best to keep things afloat. It is difficult (more so in the current climate). In essence, most audiences can be seen as breaking down into three groups:

1) Those wonderful people willing to support regardless of return.
2) Those who may support but would like a little something extra.
3) Those who would not support whatever was offered.

Those three groups follow a general pyramid-shaped distribution with Group 1 at the apex (smallest) and Group 3 at the base (largest).

Since we suck at Google Ads (and advertising revenue in general) we've been trying to engage Group 2 where we can.


More Material, More Shows

Any show takes a lot of co-ordination, organisation and resource to produce. No small part of that is getting (sometimes multiple) hosts together to record. The Silver Lodge show hosts for example come from various parts of Leeds, Bradford and Manchester. Chris is fairly local and so News from Pnakotus shows are easier to arrange (but still take work to produce).


The Silver Lodge Christmas Show was free (for example), so what am I paying for?

It was "free" because it was a Christmas show and we thought it would be a nice thing to do.

It's a truism that you can't please all of the people all of the time, so it's not unexpected that we get complaints (we do) for making things free and also complaints for not making them free. We understand that and all we can do is our best. There is much material on YSDC that is freely available and much just for Patrons.


So?

In essence, all patron materials are produced as a thank you for supporting the site in a direct way (without which as I've mentioned, we would otherwise disappear). We are independent and do not receive support from the likes of Chaosium.

Some material is freely available and some is restricted (to act as an enticement for those on the cusp of patronage).

I'm afraid there's only me at the front end co-ordinating this (with several others extremely kindly volunteering their help, often behind the scenes). We are not the size of say, EN World, with 1000s of Patrons and able to employ others to produce & co-ordinate content. We do (I do), what we can with very limited resources.

If you want to thank anyone for what we do... it should be Helen as she has the full-time job and pays far more than her fair share of the household bills. Helen can possibly tell you better than I how many hours are put into YSDC. Helen also has the ability to pull the plug.

Everyone involved really appreciates the support people are able to give in keeping "olde Yoggie" going (in the myriad ways). If you're a patron and you feel you're not getting out of it what you want, then we understand and cancelling patronage is easily done - and we always say a big *thank you* for the support you have been able to give.


Finally

I don't normally make posts like this, it can be deemed "unprofessional", but the question arose and I thought in this case it was worth airing the once.

Please accept my apologies for the above.

With best wishes,

Paul

[nosferatude]

Dear Paul, Helen, and all the other who help out with keeping Yog-Sothoth alive,

If anything you deserve a big Thank-You! I personally love going to your site and catching up on the news, but my favorite is listening to the Cthulhu Podcasts and News from Pnakotus. Sadly I haven't been able to become a patron because of an extremely tight budget so I have only been able to listen to the Christmas Episode of the Silver Lodge which was fantastic by the way! Hopefully all that will change soon. I am glad to see that you now offer the Silver Lodge to patrons only. People need to wake up and realize that a lot of time and effort (not to mention money) goes into making shows and keeping the website going. It is nice to know that there are people out there as crazy about all things Lovecraftian as I am. Your shows are witty and fun and it is a pleasure to hear everyone's voices. No complaints here! Keep up the great work, and thank you for letting us see "behind the curtain"!

Nosferatude

[Noble]

Yes keep up the great work the YSDC team are doing, I know what a logistical nightmare it is just for me to get to my games night, and for yourself this must many times harder. The site is a roleplay crutch for a lot of your users, as we all find getting older means less time to spend on yourself and your hobbies, but YSDC helps us keep our interest alive. Thank You.

[cjearkham]

I also want to express my thanks to the MacLeans for providing YSDC. When I went to MythosCon, I started a couple of comments by mentioning (only where relevant) "a site called yog-sothoth.com", but quickly stopped, as it seems far more people had heard of YSDC than had not. I'm convinced that Chaosium is as responsible for the increased familiarity, over the years, with Lovecraft as is S. T. Joshi, which considering how hard Joshi works is saying something. But I hear far more "I found the game, then read the stories" tales these days than people coming to the stories on their own merit. By providing a forum in which people can talk about all matters Lovecraftian, literary or gaming, and by culling news from a variety of sources to support all interests, YSDC has become my single favorite Lovecraftian resource on the Internet. It's one of only five things I pay regular pledges to, and I've found it to be worth the money, even though I might have gotten much of any immediate returns I get from it without pledging at all.

As my own wife benignly tolerates my Mythos interests (she has no interest whatsoever), I've always been amazed at how actively supportive Helen appears to be of Paul, at least in her public persona. I'm sure there have been difficult private discussions about where the household money should go, as there are in any relationship, but YSDC continues, because of Paul's deep devotion to it, and therefore the two of them deserve the thanks of all of us.

[ShadowDenizen]

Add me to the list of people offering a hearty "Thank You" to the entire YSDC crew, and especially Paul and Helen for all the up front coordination. I can't imagine how much time and money it must take to coordinate all the quality items on the site.

I'm not a patron (yet; hopefully that will change in the near future once finances are settled come tax time), but I certainly can't complain about the abundance of freebies on this site! The audio games alone have provided countless hours of entertainment over the last half-decade! (I've been a listener since "Masks", but just recently signed on to the fourms for the first time mid-last-year.)

So, in short, I salute you, Paul, and the entire YSDC crew for your dedication and comittment to the game and the fans.

[mjmedwick]

What can I say in support of YSDC that has not already been said by others, and more eloquently?

Yes, there are RPG-themed sites out there that offer more substantial premiums, boast a larger membership and feature significant new content on a day-by-day basis. However, I'll also point out that more than a few of them have hitched their wagons to the product franchises of industry giants like WoC and Paizo. Kudos to them - their approach makes shrewd business sense, after all. When you focus a good part of your communications on product lines with the kind of market penetration of D&D and Pathfinder, you're not going to have quite so much trouble finding, developing or adapting content for your website. Not that maintaining those kinds of sites doesn't require a lot of effort - it obviously does, judging by all the bells and whistles you'll see out there.

But, let's put aside the obvious fact that YSDC focuses on a niche in the RPG marketplace that is not usually high on the radar of its more mainstream counterparts. And forgive me - I'm about to get all touchy-feely here.

YSDC is, at heart, a rather different kind of enterprise. When I first landed on the YSDC homepage - quite by accident - about a year ago, I immediately picked up on the culture of the site. The tone and content of the YSDC forums were distinctively thoughtful, demonstrated an astonishingly comprehensive knowledge base, and - most importantly - conveyed a genuine sense of collegiality. As an aging (40+ y/o) hobbyist, I increasingly value the company of those who choose to engage in a lively, productive exchange of ideas, encouragement and resources - rather than grognards who are more interested in an ongoing cycle of number crunching and one-upmanship. A positive, rewarding online culture like YSDC's is increasingly rare, and I think it's worth cultivating wherever I find it.

Ultimately, I think that the singular culture of YSDC somehow evolves from the fact that it is, as Paul points out, something of a family affair. Patronage revenues and income from Innsmouth House notwithstanding, it's pretty clear that Paul, Helen and their colleagues invest an enormous amount of their own time and resources into keeping the YSDC doors open and lights on for the rest of us. It's important to recognize that it's a labor of love, carried out by dedicated people who lead lives and work in jobs that we never get to see. I'll go on to say that, for me and many others on the forums, the beating heart of YSDC is in the the audio game sessions of the Innsmouth House (née Bradford) Players. I don't know these people personally - although I sometimes feel like I do, having listened to hour upon hour of their witty, engaging roleplaying, wishing I was there to take part. Yet, audio content Paul produces and posts here gives a face and personality to YSDC that I've never encountered on other websites, and for me that alone makes it worth the price of admission.

It comes down to what you value. Whether or not one is in the position to support YSDC as a patron, I think it's worth knowing how special and unique this site, its membership - and all the people who make it possible - really are.

<<SNIFFLE....GROUP HUG>>

[PoC]

Wow. Thank you, everyone.

All I can say is that your responses are deeply touching and mean a great deal.

It is the members of this site that inspire us to carry on.

I don't know how to express myself more eloquently than to say:

Thank you.

[gazza567]

Paul and Helen and the rest of the yoggie crew.

I have said it before, I joined as a patron to support this wonderful site and to help support you guys. I don't care when things come out, how
Quickly or if it is free. I enjoy listening to the games and they are something that is keeping me going ATM. I will keep my patron+ for as long as I can, finances pending.

Thank you so much for the fun so far and I am looking forward to listening in the future


---
I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-34.901012,138.503299

[Karloff]

I don't know how to express myself more eloquently than to say:

Thank you.

Shoot. Thank you, Paul!

[Tigger_MK4]

Exactly. I'd like to add my thanks and appreciation in agreement with the other posters, who have expressed the sentiments far more eloquently than i can.

[StuartB]

You have my support. And my axe, should it come to that.

[Macbeth]

Adding my heartfelt "Thank you!" for this remarkable site and its many valuable services. Your reminder prompted me to become a patron this morning, and I'm glad that I had the opportunity to do so!

[Donnovan_Sunrider]

I think it's reasonable that users would wonder about the changes that the site is going through. Change is hard, but impossible to avoid. Thank you to Paul and Helen for keeping the site and community alive.

I also have to thank the person who brought the comment up with Paul for making it a private message and not a complaint on the public board. That kind of thing is rarely beneficial.

[WiseWolf]

I don´t get to listen to all the games, because I hope that I can play -and not keep- some of those.
I don´t download a lot of the patron content, I just don´t have time any more to go through all the stuff that is there.
NfP podcast is free.
I don´t get to buy much stuff from Insmouth House because of the shipping cost, so I miss the offered discounts.

So, why?

Because I want to help YSDC to stay alive, that´s why, and there is no other reason. This is one of those unique places where I am not an outcast, a weirdo, a nerd, a geek, and so many other adjectives that people use for me when they don´t understand my passion for Call of Cthulhu and all things lovecraftian.
This is the place where people "get it" ,where the jokes make sense, where we can discuss the same thing over and over again and never get tired of it.
This is the place I visit when I need a break by reading a blog, a post, a reply.
YSDC replies pack my email, and I am happy to receive them.
This is the place where I feel that I am part of a group of people like me, where the "freaks" can come and share points of view, ideas, laughs, and get all excited about things other people will never comprehend.
This is a community, MY community, and I will do what I can to keep it going, for as long as I can.

[Mortificus]

I understand exactly where you are coming from, Paul. I too have a wife with the power to pull the plug . . . in so many ways.

Also, please add my "thank you" and "happy to help" to those already here.

Thank you.

Happy to help.

~Mort (group 1 curmudgeon)