Sparks, Little Embers, and Life — 42 days to ship

Here’s the quick version;

I’m working on a new, unannounced (as of yet) project in Unreal Engine 5. I’m a full time dad of a toddler with big, unpredictable plans for each day. And I want to share my experience trying to hit another crazy deadline! Those always seem to be the most fun.

I’ll try to include little comments about surrounding events as I work in these sorts of blocks to help keep the chaos true to source. Like the fact that the little one just tried to eat a cat treat to show the cat how to do it, because he was being aloof as I wrote this.

Some Background

I’ve been working for myself since April of this year, and it’s been a journey. Previously working at the New York Times on the Games team, I decided to set out and see if I could use my skills as a software engineer and android developer to create some games and apps that people can enjoy. Working in a capacity where I get to decide all the processes, designs, and what features go in or don’t!

I quickly realized that I have vastly underappreciated just HOW MUCH WORK everyone does! I don’t think I’ve ever been in the “Wow, your job is easy” kind of mindset when looking at other professions, but trying to juggle it all relatively solo is a massive undertaking that I can barely pull…