As of now, it has been 7 months since my last video (the one where I rank/review MCU movies) and 8 months since the last video that I was really, really proud of (the Pokemon Battle Revolution review). Instead of posting a million tweets or an update video that I will end up deleting later, I'm just going to write this and try to make it as easy to read as possible.
I'm an online student and my school runs its courses pretty much year-round. I get a week off in the Spring, a week off in late August, a week for Christmas, and a week off for New Years and that's it. Four weeks off for a year of school. I have been at this school since October of 2017. Fortunately, since I have been in and out of other schools since 2011 (I know), I will be graduating with a bachelor's degree in creative writing with a screenplay focus in March 2020.
I've also been looking for a new place to live. I still haven't confirmed one but I've been working on that. My lease ends at the end of this month. That's another factor.
My mental health has been better since I last posted about it. That said, my life is stressful anyway. Depression is a factor but I think trying to balance all of this stuff out without extreme burnout is next to impossible. I felt burnout symptoms up until the eighth week of this past term of school. It has helped put into perspective what I want to do with videos from now on. Whether or not I actually will do any of this is another story.
I am kind of leaning toward not doing heavily analytical videos anymore. I'm not sure. If I can do them in a way where I can still show off writing skills/voice then I will. I want to do more Gumflap-style videos, specifically like the Pokemon Battle Revolution video but not as long-winded. If I don't use capture footage, I can upload these videos to Newgrounds and that's one of the main points I want to make with this post.
YouTube is a cesspool so I want to try my hand with Newgrounds. To do so, I have to make new kinds of videos. Newgrounds's rules bypass a lot of the technical issues that, along with bad management, make YouTube a cesspool but with that positive notion comes a demand for more attention to what you are putting in your videos. There is only one video on my channel right now that could technically pass Newgrounds's regulations: the 2017 mental health video. I kind of don't want that to be the only thing on my Newgrounds page though. So I don't know what my new videos will look like. Well, I know what they will physically look like but I don't know how they will play out, what their topics are, whether or not they are more sketch than a review or vice versa.
The videos help me in real life. I get stuff off of my chest so I don't rant to other people about what I like and dislike about things they don't care as much about. I don't want to stop making videos because I don't want to stop writing. I think if there is one main point to take away from this post, it's that I don't want to make videos from stress or some fictitious, self-deprecating obligation. I want to make videos from pure inspiration and a persistent, very real desire to make other people happy.
In terms of making content more regularly, I also want to make let's plays. I want to make channel art before I publicly post a video there though. I think the channel will just be called "Randomrings Let's Plays". I have set up a lot of stuff to get that to work but my friends and I just have not recorded anything with that in mind yet. We have been talking about it for sure.
Don't expect a boon of content from me over the next 4-8 months. I want to make more portfolio things that are entertaining and not just "this game is stupid" or "this movie is pretty good". Like last time I did this, here's a list of what I want to release independently. I'm sure I will update more as time goes on. In general, I need to narrow down my focuses so I can release things more regularly without driving myself mad. Anyway, list:
Gumflap - videos where I take a topic, most likely a video game or video-game-related concept and talk about it with a little, sketchy cartoon man.
Late to the Party - I talk about TV shows and movies for a bit. Not sure if I will make a Newgrounds-friendly version of this or not.
Randomrings Blog - I guess I'm still doing this for some reason.
Webcomic - I have been working on a big webcomic series for a while and still have not storyboarded anything. I have been thinking about putting out something lighter and less plot-heavy, whether in comic form or in video form, until that gets done.
Lexi Karma - I'm still working on music. I was having technical difficulties for a while but everything is back up and running now. I still have no idea when I'm releasing the second Lexi Karma project. I wanted it to come out in 2017 or 2018 and it is long overdue.
Thanks for understanding.
