The Swing is 1 year old

[smokewolf]

The Swing will be 1 year old in December. It spent 2 years in development and I can not tell you what the last 3 years have been like for me. Since releasing The Swing, I have realised 9 other products (one of which is a D20/OGL product), written for 2 other publishers (Ronin Arts and Expeditious Retreat, great guys btw) and I can not wait to see what the next year brings.

The Swing: Reality Guide is now in it's fourth printing (albiet small print runs). I have also switched to LULU for this printing and it looks awesome (if I do say so myself).

Check it out at http://my.lulu.com/content/86990 .

Also check out the PDF form at RPGNOW: http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=2256 or (a bundle of all Swing products) http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=3013
Both of which will be at 25% until the end of the year in celebration of The Swing's first bday.

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The Swing

In 1904 the last of the Enlightened Masters, immortal beings who assisted mankind, left this world. It is now January 1st, 2000 and they have returned.

The Swing is set in the modern world, with real world agencies using real world Magick (such as Wicca and Voodoo) and real world mechanics. But reality in The Swing is a pendulum: sometimes it moves in one direction, sometimes in the other. A character's WILL can shape reality within the game world, affecting all those within. One day, reality could be filled with dragons and faeries, the next it could be lasers and computers.

The Swing uses the highly realistic Step System, which provides a high level of detail throughout the game. Character Creation is focused on defining well-rounded, believable characters. Combat is deadly, scary and dangerous, as in real life. The freeform Magick system is based on the Thelemic principles of WILL and Love, derived from Aleister Crowley's vision of Magick as "the Science and Art of causing Change to occur in conformity with Will." The system encourages players to use out-of-game "real-world" information to shape the game world.

Join the Ordo Templi Orientis, the Men in Black or another real faction in aiding mankind along its path to enlightenment and evolution. Will you invent new technology, discover new drugs and therapies, and enjoy capitalism to its fullest? Or will you choose to seek out hidden civilizations, unlock ancient secrets, and discover what resides inside all mankind?
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[Jasper]

Congradulations, Keith.

I believe that your Lulu URL is actually: http://www.lulu.com/content/86990

[smokewolf]

Thanks, I editted it to correct it. I was cutting and pasting and it caught the period for some reason.

[jknevitt]

The Swing: Reality Guide is now in it's fourth printing (albiet small print runs).

Keith,

How many were in each print run? Was it profitable?

[smokewolf]

First Print Run - 30
Second Print Run - 10
Third Print Run - 20
Fourth Print Run - Truely POD now.

First print run was horrible. Somehow I forgot to edit whole sections of it and was in a hurry to get it out there. Sold 10 and gave away the rest. The 10 were sold directly to FLGS's and allowed me to make big money on them.

Second print run was used soley to replace the FLGS copies. I did not have to but I felt it would help my image with them and the customers.

Third print run was used for GenCon, sold 15 and gave 5 out for reviews with people like Ken Hite and such. This number includes the 4 I sold to Euro, but does not count the CD's of the pdf version.


To pay for all of this I used the money generated from PDF sales. GenCon also allowed me to recoup some earlier losses as the sales were all mine to keep (Thanks Ron). While I have not made a ton of money in this endeavor, the print runs have, to this point, produced a profit, not a big one but at least it's positive.

Using LULU now, I think things will be different. I was using RPGMALL (really Express Media) and had to buy each copy myself, even though they were POD they weren't really. It was like a small print run press. LULU ended up being a $1 higher production cost but at least I am only out $50 (cost of ISBN and proof copy) rather than $200.

I have been trying to talk to IndieRevolution (???) but keep forgeting the phone call appointment and Key20 to get represented. Will see how that goes.