Use the Work. Make Something Better.
The Lighthouse 004 | 7 July 2025
Schrodinger's Customer Service
The shining moon bear has stepped out to prepare for the coming Buck Moon, so the aging punk is running this shindig today. Buckle up.
Every creator has their version of the moment when they realize most of the questions that land in their inbox have already been answered more than once. I’ve answered them in blog posts, newsletters, FAQs, and product descriptions, and yet they return, with the same words, just different names.
You can’t please everyone, but you can try to please yourself-slash-try to feel good about your work. Schrodinger’s Customer Service, where people are both happy and unhappy until you open the box.
“Will this title come back?”
No, it’s gone. It’s not coming back unless I want it to. That’s the whole truth.
“Why don’t you revise more old books?”
Aside from a few foundational titles that explain how I approach roleplaying, I’d rather write new books than rehash old ones. There are old books I want to revise, but they’re all back-burner projects.
“You brought back that title. Why not this one?”
There are always exceptions. Just because I did it once doesn’t mean I’ll do it again. But honestly, it’s not so much the amount that people nag, it’s the way they do, that makes me keep pushing some things further back or deciding to drop them altogether.
I completely believe that George R.R. Martin has stopped writing entirely just for spite, and I think it’s a brilliant piece of performance art.
“Why do you charge for your books?”
Because I write and sell books for money. Do you work for free?
“Why did you take those books down?”
Because I didn’t like them. The same people who get upset when I treat this as a job also get upset when I make decisions for artistic reasons. Pick a lane or admit you're just picking fights.
“Aren’t you leaving money on the table by not making everything available forever?”
Yes. I know that I am. I’m not every other publisher. I’m trying to do something different. This is one example.
“I never got a chance to buy that book before you pulled it. Is that fair?”
I never got a chance to meet David Bowie before he died. Is that fair?
While I believe in all of the higher aspirations of this hobby, in bringing people together, of escapism, of creative imagination and collaboration, of literacy and storytelling, we need to have some priorities, people. At the end of the day, it’s playing make-believe, and no one’s going to die because I discontinued a sourcebook about [whatever]. Go watch the news, see what’s going on in the world, and explain to me why you think anything is fair at this moment in history.
Folk Horror
My current major efforts are toward Folk Horror. The core game, By Thorn and Tithe, is out now. There will be a Folk Horror Companion, Dramatis Personae: Folk Horror, Plot Hook Fake Book: Folk Horror, Critical Twists: Folk Horror, and maybe a couple of extras coming up in the next few weeks.
Heroic Fantasy
The core line is complete. There will always be more peripheral books, like the currently-ongoing Randomly series. I do want to revise some of the books, they need it, but they’re good as-is so those revised editions have no release dates.
The Simple Approach
All of the foundational books are available now. There won’t be more books because it doesn’t need more books. The point is to now go and build other things with the ideas and principles and philosophy contained within those books.
This Week’s Creed
We make books that are meant to be used. That means you can adapt them, share them, remix them, and build on them.
You don’t need a badge. You don’t need a license. If what you are doing is creative, respectful, and clear about where it came from, you have our support.
We aren’t building a closed system. We aren’t protecting a brand. What we publish is meant to be a foundation, something flexible enough to carry other voices. If it helps you tell a better story, use it.
If you want to stream a game using our material, you can. Post it wherever it makes sense. Just give credit and don’t present it as something you created from scratch. A name and a link are enough.
If you want to publish your own content using our system, you can. Adventures, expansions, rewrites, or entirely new settings, it’s all on the table. Just make sure the work is yours. Don’t copy our text. Don’t claim it is official. Be clear about what it is and where it came from.
We don’t offer a license or logo at the moment. That may happen in the future, but for now we keep it simple. You don’t need a contract to be honest.
Here’s what we expect: Make original work. Give credit. Don’t mislead anyone.
If you’re working in good faith, we’re glad to see it.
Use the work. Change it. Publish it. Make it yours.
We see you, and we support you.
If this issue meant something to you, forward it to someone who’d understand.
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