i might be over-committing again
Over the past two days, I've begun brainstorming a couple of web-related projects I want to make. The first is a Star-Trek-themed collaborative zine. The other is an information-sharing webring. Both of these are not-small commitments on their own. Together? They might be... a little much. But I like both of them! Good ideas don't come my way very often, so I'm keen to act on them when they do.
The number one thing that scares me about both of them is that they rely on other people. I'm no experienced project manager, just a penniless indie creator driven by my passions. I know from participating in projects of a similar scale that they often just fizzle out. People get busy; other concerns take precedence. I'm also not perfect: I tend to hyperfixate on an idea then drop it when I get bored. When I come up with these big projects, I envision myself as someone who can commit to a goal long-term. Is that a delusion? Possibly. Maybe. Probably. But I have to believe I can turn that bad habit around. And I'll never prove I'm anyone else if I never take on a big project ever again.
My idea for now is to do as much work on these projects as I can on my own. If I can build the webring and zine up to a place where I have already done all I can, I think it will be easier to forgive myself if they don't work out. Besides, I think other people respect when you have already put in a lot of work before asking them to do the same. If I really look back on the projects I've helped out with in the past, the death sentence was often the team lead burning out.
But this does mean a lot of building in near-isolation. I have to worry about my own motivation to continue. This is also scary to me.
Only time will tell if it all works out as planned.