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Part Time Level Design

April 30, 2009
Category: Productivity & Goal Setting

The following is a section from my book 'Streamlined Level Design'.

Part Time Level Design [PTLD] is the concept I came up with when you have to work a full time job, as your primary source of income. Basically you don't have much time to dedicate on a side project but you would still love to create levels.

With the following technique you are going to be able to learn a new skill, or design a new map and model a 3d environment. Whichever one you decide to do, it is possible to work on your maps on a side.

You can have your cake and eat it too.

You could have between 14-21 hours per week of designing you can put into your creation.

This revolves around 30 days.

Everyday.

It's what it takes to develop a new habit.

The single key to achieving PTLD is this: Create a ritual around blocked off daily time; specific amount of time every single day of working on your map.

So where do you get extra 14-21 hours per week? How do you exactly go about acquiring these 21 hours in your week to dedicate to level design?

It is a very simple formula.

Here it is.

1 hour in the morning, 1 hour at night and 1 hour in the middle of the day.

One hour in the morning when you wake up and last hour at night before you go to sleep. You wake up an hour early and go to bed one hour later.

First and last hours of the day should be non-negotiable and you should try to implement a success ritual, a habit structured around it. If you do this every day for 30 days, it will become a habit.

Automatic.

Third hour in the middle of the day is highly recommended but even if you only get to the first and last hour of each day, it is good enough. You can spend an extra hour or two on the weekend.

So if you only do one hour in the morning and an hour at night, you will acquire 14 hours of highly productive work per week. 56 hours per month, which in 30 days you can create an amazing custom map and release it while having other obligations.

If you begin to implement this tomorrow morning, or even tonight for next 30 days and using some of the principles on this website, in 30 days you will release a map.

I go more into detail in 'Streamlined Level Design' about Part Time Level Design. It also comes with a  Part Time Level Design: 56/84 Hours pdf worksheets. You can find out more about the book here.

Comments are Closed. Please Join & Discuss this post in the World of Level Design Forums Comments AlexG 05 May 2009, 14:27 Thats awesome Kayleigh, happy I could help. I am very excited to see yours Kayleigh and Keith's website. Can't wait. Kayleigh 05 May 2009, 05:14 Keith - my portfolio site is nothing to look at for now I'm afraid. But when I get back to my map and get the images posted I'll definitely let you guys know for feedback! The similar blog for Game Design I'll most likely incorporate into the one to help aspiring game developers. Again, when that's up and running I'll send you guys the link. Alex - Thanks for the advice about approaching designers/artists. I recently got in touch with a producer to ask her advice and she gave me permission to edit her response into an informative post for my Game Design site. Thanks again! keithg 04 May 2009, 03:47 Ahh, I have to still recommend Rhapsody of Fire and Dream Theater. Rhapsody reminds me if Lord of the Rings was rock and roll, Dream Theater is fun too. Okay, off to read your new post! AlexG 04 May 2009, 02:43 Keith! I've never been a metal fan. (The above sentence sound really strange now.) I've tried, my good friend is into it and I really tried man. Just wasn't my cup of tea. I will check out "Random other bands" when I get a chance. If I had to pick one or two ideal bands I would say my it would be ArminVanBurren and Bjork. Weird but goooood. Oh yeah and Russian Pop/Rap :) PS. I will be sending you the book soon. Before this thursday. keithgarry 03 May 2009, 03:45 Hi Kayleigh! Yeah, a lot of us take the environment we work in for granted because much of it has already been thought out for us. Take for instance the corporate office workplace. All of it has already been figured out to ensure maximum productivity. Also, take for instance, the common house. The space has been set up for us to move through, areas made to "keep us moving" like hallways or stairways, or areas meant specifically for chatting, or resting, etc. Anyway, I'm still in the process of getting my site up, but if you and mr. mat would like to share I'd love to check them out. ------- Alex, Not too sure if you are into this sort of thing, but I know of some decent metal bands worth checking out. <a href= "http://www.myspace.com/asbloodrunsblack"> As Blood Runs Black </a> <a href= "www.myspace.com/allshallperish"> All Shall Perish> </a> <a href= "www.myspace.com/thefaceless">The Faceless</a> <a href= "www.myspace.com/windsofplague">Winds of Plague</a> <a href= "www.myspace.com/whitechapel">Whitechapel</a> <a href= "www.myspace.com/dreamtheater">Dream Theater</a> <a href= "www.myspace.com/rhapsodyoffireband">Rhapsody of Fire></a> ------------------- Random other bands ------------------ Electric Light Orchestra Boards of Canada Rush Evol Intent Kayleigh 01 May 2009, 05:54 Thanks alot Alex! I'll keep you posted! I can't make it up in the mornings for that first hour, but I do put in an hour at lunch and two after work so I guess it averages out with me. Keith - good advice, not something that many people have thought about but definitely something that game developers and programmers have! Nice one! keith 30 Apr 2009, 15:53 Ooo people! Alex I've been having trouble with my eyes becoming too tired too quickly, so I wanted to share this quick tip. 1. Fully exposed(or direct casting) lightbulbs are terrible on the eye. 2. Lamps that are within view (or too close) could potentially be too bright. 3. My computer desk overlooks the other half of the room. This creates unnecessary sight, and ultimately ends up with eye strain after so long. I solved this by creating a cubical with bulletin boards. Those bulletin boards are useful too! 4. I ended up using warm(red) colors for my workspace. I even changed my monitor settings from bright cold(blue) colors to darker warmer colors. All of these things work well. Never would have thought of such a thing if it weren't for level design and constant lighting tests in hammer, hah! AlexG 30 Apr 2009, 14:15 Thanks guys, Keith: Agreed. Another thing about skill building implementation I've been doing is to set up a personal project and have certain goals to meet after it is done. This way I produce something at the same time focusing on learning a skill. Matt: I've been impressed at the work you've been putting out Matt. I know you go to school and yet I keep seeing you producing new maps, and updating your site. Keep at it man, I can see your skills are already improving. Kayleigh: hey Kayleigh, For interviews: I always keep an eye out for inspirational websites, artists who are doing amazing work and those I am inspired by. I usually then try to connect with them by sending an email and letting them know that their work has inspired me in some way and if they could do an interview over email with me. I then email them the questions. I also usually just email artists that I learned from or got inspired by and just tell them I enjoyed their work and thank you. I tend to write both. One I write what I know, what I learned and what I am learning and mainly what I feel passionate about at thesame time I write what others may want to know and learn. So it is a balance. I want my readers to learn from what I am writting and not just me expressing myself without some sort of a lesson for others. Short answer: I balance between the two. Thanks Kayleigh and let me know about your website when its up and if I can help you with any other questions. I'll do my best to answer them. sarge mat 30 Apr 2009, 10:57 I make sure I do a certain number of hours each day, less on a college day. But I need to work out a better structure for it. I think during the week I will start getting up earlier so I can do work in the morning before I head out. Kayleigh 30 Apr 2009, 05:53 Hey Alex, How do you get these interviews with designers? I only ask because I wanted to start a similar site but focusing on Game design. Do you write articles that you think will be useful to others or you feel that the information would have been useful to know before the start of the project in hindsight. Good luck on your Unreal Entry, the concept art looks great already. Keith 30 Apr 2009, 03:37 Good stuff. There's no excuse to put off skill building. This strategy is excellent. Powered by Scriptsmill Comments Script