[Status Report #3] MBML Chapter 2 - Episode 3 (Patreon)

Hey, everyone!

📊 Progress & Current Numbers

Lines of code: 3,426

Number of words: 16,327

Renders: 466

Animations: 2

Music & SFX: 14

About 80% of September went straight into writing. If you're wondering why the render count didn't move much, that's why. I was neck-deep in scripts, scenes, and dialogue for most of the month.

I usually have writers who handle the spicier scenes, but lately I've been taking those into my own hands too. This episode is my first crack at writing a threesome, and I'll be honest: it took longer than expected because I really wanted to get it right, but I'm genuinely happy with where it landed.

There's a scene in this update set in a place from the characters' childhood that I think might end up being a personal favorite. It's probably the most personal thing I've written for MBML, and one of the most relatable (probably). You'll know it when you see it.

As for teasing: the characters ring in the New Year this episode. It's not an enormous scene, but it's beautiful. I asked each of them a simple question (without spoiling too much, it's something along the lines of... what they think of themselves). Some of their answers genuinely messed me up to write. When you've spent years building these people from scratch, watching who they were lined up against who they are now hits really close to home. It's been a long road. They grew. I grew with them. 🥲

On the production side, I immediately went back to renders once the writing settled and knocked out around a hundred of them, plus a couple of animation bits. Nothing record-breaking, but it's a steady pace. The plan for the rest of this month and into next is to keep the render moving until everything I've written for Sky's arc is rendered out. After that, Naomi's arc is the last piece.

On a personal note, I've been actively taking my rest days seriously. Usually when I say "I'm resting," I'm still tinkering with something in the background. Adjusting a render, or maybe tweaking a dialogue line while telling myself it's not real work. I've been trying to stop that. The pressure of the game approaching its final stretch is REAL. Making sure nothing is messed up still weighs me down even when my computer is off. But I'm learning that stepping away from it for a day actually makes the work better when I come back. Revolutionary concept, right? 😂

That's it for this one. Expect a preview post next month.

As usual, take care of yourselves, and have a great one.

— NiiChan