Hello everybody!

My name is Jeremy, and my life is in transition.

About a year ago, I quit my software engineering job in Cali and moved to Shanghai, China to teach. I love programming, and my prior job was comfortable- it was just too comfortable for this point in my life. I'm young enough to still crave adventure and exotic locations, and my girlfriend was just finishing up her master's degree so it seemed like a great time to take a risk and have some fun. Now that fun is just about over and we're getting ready to come home.

I've always worked on hobby projects, most of which have been game prototypes. I started my current project a few months before leaving for China, and I envisioned it as a way to keep my programming skills fresh while I was no longer doing it professionally. As my return to the States started creeping up, I began soul searching about what I want to do with myself. I originally chose to study Computer Engineering because programming was the one thing that could keep me up all night that I could imagine paying the bills (I didn't think playing computer games would be a viable career). In a similar situation now, I've made a similar choice. I figure that if making games can keep me busy and happy for hours on end, I should try to do it professionally.

Meanwhile, my hobby project has grown more and more polished. My immediate goal is to continue developing that project while getting it more visibility (by setting up a website). I don't have any professional game industry experience, so, with the economy the way it is, job openings are few and far between. Add to that the fact that I'm applying from the People's Republic of China, and you've got the perfect recipe for second guessing yourself and anxiety. I have a few months after I get home that I'll be able to focus on job searching and continuing to develop my game. I want to have a realistic plan in place when I get there, so my effort can be efficiently focused.

I hope that by diving into a community like this one, I'll be able to find some support from people who have already been through something similar. I also want to learn about the paths some of you have taken to get to a point where you can support yourselves and your families doing what you love. I look forward to learning from and sharing with all of you.

Cheers,
Jeremy

P.S. My game is a 2D platformer that attempts to mix the elements that I love from the Mario and Zelda games. You play Abraham Lincoln, and you manipulate objects in the world using your extraordinary beard. You are saved from assassination by a time traveler who shows up at ford's theater to warn you of your impending doom. Unfortunately, afterwards you learn that his meddling has thrown off the intended course of history and it is up to you to fix things (by solving puzzles and killing mutants and robots of course). The working title is Honest Abraham in A Beard for the Ages.