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The Briar Society – May 2022 Update!
Hey Briars!
Below is a quick video I just filmed with some updates on the forum, the society, and the rest of the year!
I’m trying out an editing software called Descript that automatically gets rids of filler words like uhs and ums, which, hilariously chopped me to pieces because I’m 75% uhs and ums, BUT it also automatically transcribes video as well so if you don’t want to watch, you can skim the hastily posted transcription below!
Also, because I was more focused on “done” vs. “perfect” the sound is a little wonky and blown out in places, I think because I set the mic too close to my face. Apologies! 2021 me would’ve scrapped the video and re-recorded, but not 2022 me!
Automatic Transcription:
I think I’m recording. Yes, it says I’m recording. Hello? Hello, briars. I hope this is recording. You’ll only be seeing the one that does get recorded. So this is a me problem. I just wanted to specifically follow up with all of you. I’ve I’ve posted a few updates on the forum about the, the migration of the forum to a new platform and I realize that I haven’t hold on, I’m getting, I’m getting comfortable. I realized that I haven’t specifically updated all of you and I’m, I feel bad that I haven’t done that. And I wanted to specifically check in via video and let you know that the current platform for the forum discourse turns out does not play well with other software.
And what was supposed to have happened in March is now hopefully going to happen on Tuesday. We have tested the migration a bunch of times, and there have always been significant problems either. Obvious ones immediately, whenever the migration is finished, which takes about nine hours every time, or we find out later, oh, these replies aren’t connected to these topics or all the usernames are messed up or half of the posts are gone and we don’t know why they disappeared, et cetera.
And I’m working with a developer on this. So this isn’t just me, thankfully, but I wanted to give you an update because my hope was, two things: my hope was that I would start creating some low key new content for 2022 for you. Once the forum was migrated and we were on the new platform, a fresh start. And then unfortunately that got delayed and delayed and delayed.
And so now we’re in the middle of may, unfortunately, and I wanted to apologize for that. I did. I hope. I think I was clear enough that I was taking this year, not this year off, but taking this year or two to give a little less content so that I could kind of reinvent everything and figure out how I can give a hundred percent and not like 240% and burn out like I did last year.
So. I’m rambling. Cause I did not plan this at all. Other than to say, I’m going to check in with you and find out how you’re doing and make sure you’re all okay. And that I’m being as clear as possible. So couple of things I couldn’t just immediately start creating content while I knew the forum was being delayed because there was kind of a pipeline of things.
And if I’m giving my all to the forum migration in this book, I couldn’t also give my all to the, the new content and pile all that on. That’s what I have done in the past. And that is what is nearly killed me a couple of times. So I hope you understand. And not that you can’t understand. I hope you understand, and that I am making any sense at all because y’all are the smart ones.
So I know you get it, but am I making sense what I’m asking? So I just wanted to follow up about that to let you know that there is content coming. I have a plan, a little story I’ve planned for this. I also want to let you know that these current subscriptions to the Briar Society are going to expire at the end of this year. All of them.
Because the Briar Society will exist next year and it will kind of be the promise of what I wanted the Briar Society to be. But I want everyone to go in fresh and with a clean slate. And I don’t want any of you. Accidentally paying for something. Maybe you’re not using a God knows. I have so many charges that come in every month that I just forgot.
I didn’t know. I had like premium Hulu for five years until a week ago. So I don’t want you paying for stuff you don’t need and stuff that I have not been providing. And so those are going to expire at the end of the year. And if you want to, re-up and join there’ll be ample opportunity to do that next year.
And we’ll be doing a lot of the things I’ve talked about in other videos, like a new kind of interactive storytelling that I’m, I’m really excited about. And all of the perks and things that come along with the Briar Society. So having said that, what I want to say about the delays that have happened this year is I did say that the content was going to be limited and shorter, more intimate and less massive puzzle, world shattering kind of content. But I did want to get it to you, and since it’s been delayed, what I would like to do is refund everyone the the cost of when the Briar Society would normally kind of be in story session, which is February, March, April, and now. So let’s say I will start the content in June at some point.
So I’m going to refund everyone four months. And of course, if you don’t want to continue on or, or you would like to unsubscribe or pause, please absolutely do that. Just know that like the past four months, I’m also going to refund you for and I hope you’re all doing well. I miss you all. I’m feeling so much healthier and I have learned a lot, not just in taking a break, but really spending time to sort of figure out what I want to do, how I can do it in a healthy way.
Oh, I haven’t shown my tattoo to any of you. Yeah, this, I also did this, this wasn’t like a midlife crisis thing. I’m not quite, well, I guess I’m midlife. Yeah, God knows. I’m not going to live to 90. Yeah, but this is something I’ve been dreaming about for a long time, so it’s not quite, and it’s got lots of Ackerly Green kind of stuff, all that anyway.
I’m feeling really good. I’m feeling great about the book I’m working on now. I’m feeling really great about the ideas I have for next year and turning the books that I published, the interactive experiences, making them one in the same that I talked about in the last video, so that people don’t either have a live experience or read a recap book.
The book is this eternal experience and the Briar Society enrollment allows you to interact with each other. While interacting with characters and sort of solve these things and unlock them together. And then later people who joined will be able to see your discussions. So it’s the best of both worlds.
I hope. And I’m still working on that. So I don’t want to talk about that too much, cause I don’t know. I don’t know. I know a lot of things, but I’m not sure about that. I’m not sure exactly what it’s going to be. I have a lot of ideas right now. And that’s been nice. Cause last year I was plumb clean out ideas and and this year is feeling a lot better, properly medicated, in therapy, taking some rest, exploring a creative writing project I’m excited about, and looking forward to spending more time with all of you, especially when the new forum is migrated over to and revealed next week. If there’s going to be a lot of bugs, there’s going to be a lot of issues. There’s going to be everyone figuring out how to learn, how to use it. And I’m here for that. I’m here for you. It’s just right now, I’ve been on the backend trying to make all this happen.
So I hope you’re all well, please message me, email me, if you have any questions. And I’ll get, I’m gonna roll those. I’m gonna start it over the weekend, but probably next week, I’ll roll out those refunds. And if I run into an issue I’ll message you to find out where I can, what billing information I could send the refund to.
So I hope you’re all. Well, I care so much about you and have been thinking about you a lot. And I I’m sorry I haven’t been in as much communication, but it wasn’t like it was last year whenever I dropped off the face of the earth, because I thought I was dying. This year I’ve just really put my head down and figured out how I want to do all of this and how we’re going to go on this journey together.
And I think I have some good ideas and yeah, I hope you’re well, I hope 2022 isn’t quite so crazy. I know it’s nuts out there right now, but I’m, you know, thinking about all of you has, has, has kept me hanging on a lot of times and actually I’ll talk about that later. There are times I’ve gone back to the form and re-read old posts because the things you’ve said and shared continue to inspire me. And and it means a lot that you who have stuck around and stuck with me and who are supporting me, knowing that I couldn’t give my all um, for a while. And yeah, I’m looking forward to to reconnecting and spending this year together. I hope you’re well, bye.
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2 Replies
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That feeling when you wave back at the pre-recorded video.
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It makes it feel more like CJB is in the room hanging out, only kind of weird because it didn’t have any uhs or ums.
Also, @CJB my auditory processing disorder really appreciated having the transcript to follow along to
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