What I Learned from Visual;Conference 2019
Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2019 10:57 pm
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of attending the amazing Visual;Conference for the first time, where an astounding 18 VN devs spoke on various topics relevant to producing VNs. I found myself with a wealth of resources, links, and new ideas after the event, so I thought I'd summarize them here! (Both so that everyone can see them, and because it will help me sort them out in my own head 
)
If you weren't able to attend (or even if you were and are just looking for more VN;Conf content), check out their official YouTube channel. I've heard that the talks from this year will be posted there soon!
Disclaimer: I'm sure that I missed a ton of super awesome ideas and resources, especially because I had to step away for a few talks, so feel free to respond and add things that you learned!
Story Grids: Story Grids allow you to plan out your whole story in advance, and to make sure that you're balancing how much screen time each character and idea gets. Essentially, you make a spreadsheet with the scenes or parts of your story on the left (breaking things down fairly small), and the subplots, character arcs, and themes at the top. Then, you can fill in the necessary boxes to work out when and how these subjects will be discussed throughout your story/scene. It's not so much about filling out every square as it is making sure to have a balance between your topics. Check out this link for a large and detailed example. It's not for a VN, but the same ideas apply.
Communicating with Composers: Check out this article by FulminisIctus, one of the presenters, on how to communicate your musical ideas to your composer. I found it to be really interesting -- it can be difficult for the musically uninitiated like myself to describe what they want.
presskit(): A tool for quickly making press pages. Super helpful for those looking for media coverage! Check it out here.
RenPy Multi-Launcher and VN Reading Rooms: In August 2018, VN;Conf presenter Ayu (of Sakevisual) and RenPy Tom hosted a VN reading room at Animefest. Here's the article that Tom wrote about the experience. It's a great read, and it also includes instructions for using the Multi-Launcher that Tom created for the event. I have a feeling it has interesting applications in addition to reading rooms, but I haven't come up with anything just yet - if you have any ideas, let me know!
Kickstarter Statistics Analysis: If you're getting ready to launch a Kickstarter for your game, be sure to read this article by VN;Conf presenter pentagonbuddy. It has a lot of interesting information about Kickstarters and the industry in general.
Otome Statistics Analysis: A must-read for any otome dev in early stages of production! Lots of interesting stats about what players prefer and their demographics.
Miscellaneous: Check out this thread that presenter quillyquill posted; it has a number of resources I haven't mentioned here. There's also a copy of the Watercress Constitution that was shared after the conference - it's an interesting read if you're a director looking to expand or restructure your team.
Discord Servers: Here are several discord servers about VN development! Some of them I already knew about, but there's something for everyone in this list.
RenPy Discord: A great place to get programming help, share your progress, and meet other devs.
Devtalk+: A server for networking all year round, and great for getting feedback and advice.
r/visualnovels: General discussion about VNs and a good place to meet and interact with fans of VNs in general.
Patreon Creator Academy: Info and advice for people running Patreons, for VNs and otherwise.
Otome VN Development: For the discussion of all things Otome games. There's also a Girls' Love/Yuri version and a Boys' Love/Yaoi version.
That's about all I can think of right now! I'll update this post if I remember any other good resources. Feel free to add your own resources!
)If you weren't able to attend (or even if you were and are just looking for more VN;Conf content), check out their official YouTube channel. I've heard that the talks from this year will be posted there soon!
Disclaimer: I'm sure that I missed a ton of super awesome ideas and resources, especially because I had to step away for a few talks, so feel free to respond and add things that you learned!
Story Grids: Story Grids allow you to plan out your whole story in advance, and to make sure that you're balancing how much screen time each character and idea gets. Essentially, you make a spreadsheet with the scenes or parts of your story on the left (breaking things down fairly small), and the subplots, character arcs, and themes at the top. Then, you can fill in the necessary boxes to work out when and how these subjects will be discussed throughout your story/scene. It's not so much about filling out every square as it is making sure to have a balance between your topics. Check out this link for a large and detailed example. It's not for a VN, but the same ideas apply.
Communicating with Composers: Check out this article by FulminisIctus, one of the presenters, on how to communicate your musical ideas to your composer. I found it to be really interesting -- it can be difficult for the musically uninitiated like myself to describe what they want.
presskit(): A tool for quickly making press pages. Super helpful for those looking for media coverage! Check it out here.
RenPy Multi-Launcher and VN Reading Rooms: In August 2018, VN;Conf presenter Ayu (of Sakevisual) and RenPy Tom hosted a VN reading room at Animefest. Here's the article that Tom wrote about the experience. It's a great read, and it also includes instructions for using the Multi-Launcher that Tom created for the event. I have a feeling it has interesting applications in addition to reading rooms, but I haven't come up with anything just yet - if you have any ideas, let me know!
Kickstarter Statistics Analysis: If you're getting ready to launch a Kickstarter for your game, be sure to read this article by VN;Conf presenter pentagonbuddy. It has a lot of interesting information about Kickstarters and the industry in general.
Otome Statistics Analysis: A must-read for any otome dev in early stages of production! Lots of interesting stats about what players prefer and their demographics.
Miscellaneous: Check out this thread that presenter quillyquill posted; it has a number of resources I haven't mentioned here. There's also a copy of the Watercress Constitution that was shared after the conference - it's an interesting read if you're a director looking to expand or restructure your team.
Discord Servers: Here are several discord servers about VN development! Some of them I already knew about, but there's something for everyone in this list.
RenPy Discord: A great place to get programming help, share your progress, and meet other devs.
Devtalk+: A server for networking all year round, and great for getting feedback and advice.
r/visualnovels: General discussion about VNs and a good place to meet and interact with fans of VNs in general.
Patreon Creator Academy: Info and advice for people running Patreons, for VNs and otherwise.
Otome VN Development: For the discussion of all things Otome games. There's also a Girls' Love/Yuri version and a Boys' Love/Yaoi version.
That's about all I can think of right now! I'll update this post if I remember any other good resources. Feel free to add your own resources!
