Release Day Thank-Yous
Wow. It’s honestly hard to believe that release day is finally here. After two years of the home game and two years of development, so much time, effort, and care has gone into this thing. I’m so excited to hear what you think of it.
Right now, though, I want to take a moment to thank the dozens of people who have played roles, both small and large, in bringing Ampliterra to life.
First and foremost, I want to thank Caleigh Wells. In addition to being the project’s lead editor, she was foundational as one of the original Ampliterra players and has been an unbelievable emotional support as my wife. She’s the greatest and nothing I could do would be enough to thank her.
I also need to thank the rest of the content team, Sadia Bies, James Mendez Hodes, and Matt Click. Each of you brought so much of yourselves and your creativity to this project. I’m so grateful for those contributions and I know that this is a richer world because of your involvement.
Our art team consists of Julie-Anne Muñoz, Sadia Bies, Serena Malyon, Franzilla, Kayla Marquez, Jabari Weathers, Conor Nolan, Vilm, Thomas Rey, and Karin Wittig. My favorite part of books like these is the art. I’ve always been bummed that I don’t have a whole lot of artistic ability, but seeing you bring these people and places to life that have lived in my head for years has been one of the most magical experiences of my life. The unique spin and perspective that you all brought to your illustrations made it even better than I could have imagined.
Allison Wagner was an unbelievable resource for marketing. Marketing just doesn’t come naturally to me - social media is like another language and the idea of “trends” might as well be from another planet. Having someone who could help point me in the right direction and give advice was so helpful.
The original Ampliterrans are Emma F., Evan, Ted, Emma E., Justin, Deion, Ben, Josh, Sydni, and Caleigh. Thank you for saying yes to playing these games with me. What started as a pandemic distraction turned into one of the most meaningful things I’ve gotten to do. I feel so much closer to all of you after playing together and I’m so grateful for the parts of yourself that you brought to the game. It’s a richer world because of you.
My friends Faith Pinho and Abdurrafey Khan who have listened to me go on and on about this book for literally years now. Y’all have been so supportive and the effort you’ve put into understanding this world means so much to me. Also, thank you for coming to my book talk when it was pouring rain and terrible!
Finally, to my family, Ted Frank, Stacy Frank, and Evan Frank. Thank you for believing in me and for encouraging me to pursue this project. I never would have been able to do this without you and I’m grateful for every conversation we’ve had during the highs and the lows. I appreciate you so much.
Bringing Ampliterra to life in this way truly took a village. Whether directly involved with the project or just involved with me personally, these are some of my favorite people in the world. This book wouldn’t be here without them.
And, of course, thank you to you, too! Even if you’re just skimming the site and reading this blog, I’m so grateful for your interest. I hope that you dive in and discover everything that Ampliterra has to offer.
I hope you enjoy playing with this book as much as I enjoyed making it.
Austin
