Roawenwood: Design & Craft

Hi hi.  I know I haven’t written yet this year and I should have.  Things of course during the holiday weeks were crazy.  I think I spent more time offline than on.  The last new thing I released was the outdoor shower, which I think is really cool but time of the year… hehe most things are winter related so I don’t expect a whole lot are really that interested in a shower for the outdoors.  Brrr….

I have some things I’m working on but really the big thing that has me bouncing right out of my chair is that I finally redid the spot over at the Gorean Merchant Isles.  I rent and have properties all over the place trying different things.  Well I’ve had a spot at what used to be Hunter’s Cove, and is now just called the Gorean Merchant Isles for a long long time.  I picked up a little bit extra land and ripped out the build to start over.

I’m absolutely loving the feel of it.  It’s really so very me.  The cutest and down to earth little buildings.  It has me rather inspired.  I’ve been tempted to pitch a lil tent along the back corner under some of the pines but I haven’t.  I’m thinking of possibly doing something over there.  I didn’t get a weekly special this week because of real life stuff…. though the Gorean Grid Hunt is supposed to start at midnight tonite so I’ll be sending out a notice of a sort anyhow due to that.

I guess we’ll see what I come up with.  Just saying a little hi… talk to ya’ll soon.

I’m just peeking in and leaving a little note in between all the gift giving and cooking.

Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope the day and the holidays have been wonderful for you all.

With much love,

Sear

You know I love giving back to my groupies, customers, doing things.  I like taking the time to listen, I like creating and being able to take ideas people have then making for them what they saw… for the most part with very positive results.

I love doing the hunts, and the fun events.  Love doing my discounts.  It isn’t just about the making of the money it is the give and take.  The creative process, the meeting good folks and I know today I’m being all sappy but I just had to because I had one of those “moments” that I adore so much being a shop owner in SL.

Someone came to me leaving me a message while I was on a very long phone call asking if they could maybe have a modify version of the little toy train I made for holiday decorating.  It is a cute little thing… *digs through to find a picture*  Ahh, there it is…. *uploads and attaches*  It’s cuter in world.

Anyhow, they wanted to be able to use it on their sim as part of their holiday display but wanted it bigger.  I’m one of those sorts where if you ask I’ll probably go ahead and give you a modify version.  Sometimes I don’t have time and sometimes I don’t want to change it.   Sometimes it is just as simple as asking, you never know.  This was a quick, tick tick of a couple check boxes… no big deal but I got so much back from just doing that lil bit of something for someone.

The obvious excitement and happiness that end up showing through the brief communication between us was palpable.  I got to sit back, smiling at my screen the warm fuzzies of the holiday spirit all wrapped up around me with really something so simple and they were off to go decorate their home… excited, happy, and bright eyed exclaiming how I had made their day.

These are the things I really enjoy about owning a store in SL… and one reason why I do what I do.

I’m a bit somber today and have a lot on my mind.  Over the past couple of weeks a good friend of mine has had to combat  thieves on more than one occasion stealing his hard work, and his designs, making copies of them with copybot or whatever they decided to use.  The latest has his buildings set out as free to copy, and no I’m not going to name the sim… but I walked the area looking to see if anything of mine was there while talking to him.

This is at least the third sim that I’ve run across with this type of thing in the last week or so.  Role-play areas being built, set up, and then opened up with tons of stolen content as if somehow they are not going to be caught or the items recognized.  They even have rentals; market stalls trying to bring in the very creators they are stealing from to help support their sim!  It astounds me beyond all measure that folks really don’t think that it will be seen or is it that they -know- that it will be seen… they just don’t care.

I’m not angry, not outright… I know there are a lot of people who think this is just a game.  I know there are a lot of people who will get whatever they can from others without giving anything back.  I know that people see the price tag on a build and try to find ways to cheat the system.

But knowing it, and seeing it over and over kind of takes something from you.  I’m not angry… I’m very sad, and frustrated.  I keep hearing how freebies are killing our markets but at least freebies… honest to goodness decent freebies are someones creation, someone’s work.  It isn’t like there isn’t a whole lot of really good things to use on a tight budget but it takes some effort.  I am instead watching over the course of a couple of weeks the disheartening wearing down of a creator who I think is very talented.  I love what is put out and look forward to seeing where they will go with things…. but I’m watching him lose that spark.  The spark that I used to see coming from him when he talked about a new build, or a new creation being replaced by a bitter outlook along with the feeling that sooner or later… what’s the point.  To be a creator you have to have a certain level of creativity but also a desire to put yourself out there.  To extend yourself and let other people see into you a little bit.  At least some of us do.

I’m watching that spark die in someone and it saddens me more than I can get across to all of you.  This is the real casualty in content theft.  The money and all… you hate to lose it, you hate to feel robbed but the thing that tears at me the most is seeing a part of someone I care for die slowly and not be able to do a damn thing about it.

It might just be prims.

But there’s a hell of a lot more to it than that.

In my frustration I know that those who understand what I’m saying would be the last ones to take that from us… I know that the people who need to understand it never will.  I feel quite powerless at the moment and rather disheartened myself.

I started typing a plea… to think about what you might be doing to someone elses SL experience before doing something like this but I know that those people don’t care and only worry about their own.  To spend hours or days on creations, working on things, trying to come up with new things, trying to come up with exciting ways to get them out there… so other people can enjoy themselves… these are things that I found exciting and is what made my SL enjoyable.

But you begin to question why….  I don’t want the spark that I have to die.  I am trying to jealously guard it and keep it safe.

Copiers need to be held accountable.  Thieves need to be held responsible.

Please.

Ahhhhhh hello my friends, the stress that can be the holidays is beginning to let loose its grip.  The build up to Christmas and all can sometimes end up making us feel more stress than we should.  A few deep breaths really is all that I ever need and it all is worth it.  I do love the holidays, sometimes I get a little overwhelmed by them but this year they were really quite beautiful.

I hope everyone has had a wonderful holiday season.  Roawenwood has a lot of new plans and things coming up for the next year and I wish you all the best.  I’d like to think you will be along for the journey so here’s to it!

**grins and winks turning to make her way back into the shadowy depths of her workshop**