This probably should have been my first blog post, but that's OK. After today, I will be posting a weekly blog entry on Mondays, but this one is special. I'll post more often as things I want you to know about come up, but every Monday will be the baseline going forward. I realized many of you may not know why I wanted to start Game On! Media and why I became a journalist in the first place. Here's the story.
I was born to be a journalist. I don't say that out of pride. I say that because it's the only profession I've wanted to do since I was a kid.
I was the one growing up that would produce "newscasts" for my siblings and parents. I created "newspapers" for them as well. When I was in middle school, I began writing movie and music reviews for the Green Bay Press-Gazette's teen section.
Writing was always my strongest subject in school. It just came naturally to me. My parents were a big reason why. My mom would bring me back a variety of books that I grew to love and get lost in. I think it was inevitable that something to do with writing would always be my passion.
I checked off all the boxes growing up: I worked on the student newspaper in high school. I joined the student newspaper in college. I worked at a small weekly newspaper before going to a slightly larger weekly newspaper before finally landing at the Las Vegas Review-Journal. I did everything from writing to photography to page design to podcasting. And you know what? Things were going well. I won awards in each of those areas. But in recent years, something kept gnawing at me.
The idea to start a journalism company had been in the back of my mind almost from the time I graduated college in 2011 (has it been that long already?!). Of course, back in those days I lacked the experience and, most importantly, the refined idea of how to make it happen. For those of you who have followed my work in recent years, you'll know I was the co-host of LAN Parties with Ryan Smith and that is when things came into focus.
I love gaming. Even more than that, I love telling stories within the gaming and esports spaces. As LAN Parties progressed, the clearer it became to me that combining my love of journalism and gaming was the ultimate professional goal.
LAN Parties lasted for more than four years. It wasn't until 2024 that Game On! Media happened. Why?
Knowing you're passionate about something is one thing. Getting the courage to step out in faith is another. My fiancé, Amanda, encouraged me for years to pursue this. Her continued support is the reason I'm here today. I couldn't do any of this without her by my side. Sometimes it's not the fear of the unknown that is the most dangerous to progress, it's comfort. I had a safety net at the Review-Journal that was hard to walk away from. I am a man of faith so I believe that sometimes, God decides you need to be pushed instead of nudged. That's what happened this year.
As some of you may know, Game On! Media had a successful Kickstarter campaign that blew away my expectations. So many of you supported the campaign and it was the first time that I realized that many of you truly trust me to create this magazine. It was a truly humbling moment and it is not something I take lightly. I wasn't sure that there would be enough people who trusted my work to support this magazine, I now feel silly that I doubted. This community is inspiring and I am eternally grateful for all of you. The final push came when I was forced to make a choice; drop the magazine and stay at the RJ or pursue the magazine but leave the RJ. The younger me would have been scared to move. I didn't hesitate this time to make the leap. Did I make the right choice? Time will tell. I do miss producing LAN Parties, it wasn't my choice to stop. But I am incredibly excited to see how Game On! Magazine grows, even as my more immediate job prospects remain cloudy.
Journalism has always been what I've wanted to do. It wasn't just my primary option, it was my only option. I had no plan b; it was journalism or bust. This magazine is the culmination of all my years of experience as an award-winning reporter, photographer and podcaster. Game On! Media exists because I want to contribute in a meaningful way to gaming journalism. I'm not a game developer. I'm not an actor. I'm not a composer or musician. This is my way to contribute to an industry that I am deeply passionate about. Every story Game On! Media produces will be my best effort to inform, educate and entertain you. This isn't just a passion project. This is THE project. This is the result of more than a decade of professional journalism experience. And I can't wait to share my work with you.
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