Hello {{full_name | reader}}!
Welcome to my new, revamped and relaunched newsletter. You’re receiving this for two reasons! One is the you reason: because at some point you either signed up to some old newsletter of mine, or you expressed interest somewhere in hearing more about me or my projects. If that’s not true, feel free to unsubscribe, no hard feelings!
The other is the me reason: I’m endeavouring this year to work on — and release! — more personal writing projects, and I want to make sure people who want to can hear about them!
I don’t have to tell you that the world is, ah, quite the place right now. Besides all the horrors of war and genAI and disease and fascism (to which we in Canada are not immune), the videogame industry and publishing industry are both in their own shambles and the economy does not serve the vast majority of people.
And yet we must struggle on, and fight to find joy and make art and form community. So that’s what I’m going to try to do, in whatever small ways I can. I’d love to have you along for the journey.
Who am I, anyway?
It’s been a while since I’ve done a newsletter, so here’s a quick primer: I’m Lucas J.W. Johnson, and I’m a writer and game designer and producer. I run an indie videogame studio called Silverstring Media as the Studio Director, and I also write things like my debut novel The Clockwork Empire. I’m queer, and Canadian, and have played D&D since I was 8. You can find my few socials at my linktree!
Updates from the Bard’s Desk
Greenhearth Necromancer — With my awesome team at Silverstring Media I’ve been working for the last couple years on a new videogame called Greenhearth Necromancer: a witchy, semi-idle gardening game about raising a garden from the dead and dealing with grief while finding community. We’re really proud of it! We’ve yet to announce a release date but it’ll be this year, and in the meantime you can play a free demo right now. In fact, the demo is getting a big update on Monday!
Getting Back Into TTRPG Writing — Tabletop RPGs (like Dungeons & Dragons) have always been a huge part of my life, and even as a teen I tried to get some work published. Well, I recently decided that part of what I want to do going forward is get more into TTRPG writing and publishing. I just did a refresh of my website to highlight that work, and released a playful little 2-page D&D supplement inspired by Greenhearth Necromancer!
A LEGO Saga — Over the last few years I’ve also written the occasional blog post, and two of them chronicle a very fun and nostalgic saga in which my family recently unearthed all of my and my brother’s childhood Lego — and built all of it over the course of many months!
A Little Bliss
There are these big trees on the street by our apartment that are covered in moss and things, and a few even have ferns growing on them! It’s such a cool phenomenon, especially in the middle of the city.
What I’m Enjoying
We’ve all gotta find some comfort; here’s some of the things I’ve been enjoying recently, whether media, stories, or just fun social posts.
TV Show: Heated Rivalry — Yep, you’ve probably already heard about it since it’s the biggest phenomenon in Canadian and worldwide TV this winter, but gay hockey romance Heated Rivalry is a warm balm in a tough time. A great combination of heartfelt, adorable, and sexy. The scene with Shane and Rose is heartbreaking and beautiful and very real.
Videogame: Little Rocket Lab — I’ve been playing bits and pieces of lots of things recently, but Little Rocket Lab from Teenage Astronauts is a delightful little thing that’s scratched a real itch recently. It’s like Stardew Valley but with big machines and factories and conveyor belts instead of farming! Delightful story and characters and a core loop that got its claws in me for a while.
The Internet: The Genius of the Louvre Heist (Hank Green, video) — This is from a little while ago but Hank Green (author, entrepreneur, science communicator) interviewed a woman who specializes in testing security systems and it’s fascinating!
Thanks for reading! These newsletters won’t be too frequent — maybe once a month or so — but I’m excited at the prospect of more regular updates and some impetus to put out more writing and other projects. Thanks for being along for the ride!
— Lucas
Top banner art by Anna Wolff. Updates banner by Anu C.