From Idea To Empire: The Art Of IP Development

The creative process can be confusing for those starting out. It’s easy to get lost when you don’t have a conceptual model in mind that allows you to see the whole picture all the time. But there’s no need to worry, as there is a science to it all.

What I am presenting here is a fundamental framework for dealing with the creation and construction of an idea; be it an idea for a game, song, or otherwise. From working on so many productions in a wide range of media, I have found that the basic process is surprisingly similar.

The concepts that I cover are hardly new, and, if you are a specialist in your own field, you will be able to interpret them easily from your point of view. However, the way in which they are categorized, assembled, and related across disciplines in these posts should bring a new perspective and flexibility to the way you think about them.

There is a lot of ground to cover, so I will be going over each part of the framework one step at a time, constantly tying in previously covered material and finally reviewing it all to assure that you walk away with a basic comprehension of what IP development entails. From there, it’s just a matter of putting the theory into practice and modifying the framework from the lessons learned.

Mastering The Basics

Whenever I speak with budding college types, I often hear the same complaints from them concerning their courses. Something along the lines of: “My teacher’s so stupid! I hate having to do/study/read this?” Upon further inspection it is revealed that the true frustration they face has little to do with the teacher or the task alone. More often it is their own lack of understanding of the big picture and the smaller parts that make up their craft. The only error a teacher can make here is to separate the task from the craft and not emphasize exactly how what they are doing relates to the whole.

There are many untrained artist who can draw fantastically; they know well enough how to do what they do. Even though they may not have a real understanding of what they do until they study the science of art—the elements and principles of art— or distill the concepts from their own actions through examination and analysis, it is almost a given that they have a firm grasp of the basics that govern their works; be they consciously aware of it or not.

In the event that they do get around to studying their craft, they will recognize the tasks given to them by a teacher based on their previous experience and innate understanding of it.

However, this is rarely the case with students. More often the inexperienced tend to dive into the deep end of the pool without first learning to swim in shallow water. The result is a long, hard journey with what would otherwise be perfectly avoidable obstacles, forever snagging them asunder until they finally sink or return to shallower depths to master the basics.

The argument is that it forces them to learn and make mistakes— true; mistakes that are often already understood beforehand with myriad solutions available to them. What it really does is force them to waste time reinventing the invented. Sometimes it is good to do that, but not usually at the beginning stages of their development.

Focus on the basics. The initial time you put into understanding and practicing the basics will reap long-term rewards for you. Trust me on this one; I am a 50+ project veteran as far as this is concerned.

A short side note for you folks that have no clue about the basics of your craft. Pick up a beginners book at the library or Google the topic to find an overview. Then step through each topic and put it to practice until you have satisfactory comprehension. After that, move on to the next sphere of relevant topics that ties the basic elements together.

I’ll go over how to identify and define the core elements of a craft in a later post, but for now get ready to learn the basics of I.P. Development!

IPD Basics

The five basic elements of IP are:

• Conception: Generating Ideas
• Gestation: Managing Ideas
• Development: Constructing Ideas
• Presentation: Communicating Ideas
• and Examination: Studying Ideas

These are the essential areas that cover 99.9% of all IP Development work. These elements are scalable and can be used for just about anything you can think of: stories; characters; dance performances; software applications; buildings; carpets; food…whatever.

Take a moment and look at them. It’s easy to read them and see how they might relate even though you don’t have the details about them yet. Imagine each as a hierarchy of process and methods, tools, tricks, and troubles used in every craft, but given a different name. Look at them one more time. Keep their order in mind as we progress into each element and get an idea of how to they function.

The next five posts will outline each individual element in detail.

Until Then,

-Sage