*Phew*

That was a tough month. Due to job situations I had to bring my three-year old son into the shop with me for four weeks. Now that his care has been sorted out I can get back to normal, with one major drawback. I really miss him. I've not been without Bruce for a month and now the shop is empty and quiet. What am I gonna do?

*sniff*

Anyway, apologies to all those (insane) people who follow my blog for not posting in a long while. I'm still here, Farsight Games and Hard Sixes is still going and things are pretty good. The shop is still establishing itself but I've come to realise something in the two-and-a-half months we've been open - it's insanely difficult to get new blood into the hobby.

I've run some demos for the yonger generation (10-14 years old) with the intention of getting them hooked but the attention span is not there. They simply do not want to invest the time into playing a game where there's a learning curve involved when they can simply turn on a computer or slap a disc into a console and get into the action straight away. How do you compete with that?

Well, I'm relying on the schools and colleges. There's a local college which does not have an established club, so I've given the players who attend the place some discount cards and told them if they create one and get new or exisiting players in I'll help support it. Last week I had a visit from a primary school teacher and her son and he's interested in the games, so I said that if they want to sort out an after-school trip to the shop I'll run some games for them for a couple of hours. There's also a local Comprehensive School (oh, sorry - we call them High Schools now, don't we?) but I'm finding that a lot more difficult to convince that tabletop gaming is a good idea, most likely because they're a bit older and a bit more established in the computer/console genre. I'm hoping to be surprised.

There's not a lot else I can do. I've had an advertisement go out in the local papers regarding the shop and the hobby, so I'm still waiting for feedback on that. I really want to get new players in to keep the hobby going. Don't get me wrong, my reasons aren't completely altruistic; I also need the customer base!

ADDITIONAL

Lichfield's ORC is being ressurected and we're looking to recruit. Games will take place at a yet to be determined location in Lichfield, Staffs on Thursday nights from 7:00 to 10:00. Any game accepted, but primarily our focus will be on tabeltop RPGs. Initial costs are looking at around £1.50 to £2.00 for members, +£1.00 for non-members. It will be a non-profit organisation, of course, and any monies left over will be spent on games decided on by club member vote.

We're also looking at a possible one-day convention next year at the Guild Hall in Lichfield, but these details are yet to be finalised.

Members of any clubs are be entitled to 10% discounts instore at Hard Sixes in Sutton Coldfield - www.hardsixes.moonfruit.com - with extra discounts and offers for members of LORC.

If you're interested then please register at our forum by going through the gateway site www.lorc.moonfruit.com. The more people who can make it the more chance I have of getting this club off the gorund.

Cheers!