I love the way you frame play as an act of rebellion against the "shoulds" of life. In a world that often tells us to be serious, responsible, and goal-oriented, choosing to play can be a radical act. It's about reclaiming our autonomy, rejecting the pressure to conform, and embracing the freedom to be silly, spontaneous, and fully ourselves. It's a way of saying, "I refuse to be defined by what I produce or achieve. I am more than that."
That dirty dirty word is always getting me. I want to play but always put it off until the shoulds are done. And honestly, the things I create are fun, but I always see them as a means to an end. I never create just for the hell of it. It all becomes work in one way or another, albeit fun work. I think the hardest part about play for me is the mind shift. It’s ok to do things for fun for nobody but yourself that won’t ever be seen by anyone else. JUST FOR FUN!
Curious if arts and crafts or reading would count? Here I go asking you to police the rules around play.. 🤦🏻♀️
Love this! And it feels very appropriate on this snowy winter day... I will try to take some inspiration from this and embrace being unproductive... at least for a few hours :)
Snowy winter days ARE perfect for goofing off, aren't they?
I hope you DO get to take a few hours for yourself, Claire. Maybe treat yourself to some of your magical hot chocolate, too. The good stuff! It may inspire you. 😉
As a game researcher I mostly agree but disagree about one thing: games :D Even though those have some structures, those can give you deeply playful experiences. Pen & Paper role-playing games are at their best joint storytelling, playing in a fictional world. Co-operative board games, geocaching, solo journaling games, vast digital sandbox games where you can roam freely, decorate houses, take pictures and get lost into...The world of games is endless and full of play.
Hello, Elisa! So nice to "meet" you. Thank you for bringing this up. I am not that familiar with the kinds of games you describe, and was thinking more of traditional board and card games, which - at my house - usually devolve into a kind of domestic war.😆
I would love to know more about the kinds of games you describe. I have heard a little bit about solo journaling games (which sound like they'd be right up my alley!), but haven't had the chance to research them yet. Can you recommend any? I'm also very intrigued by "sandbox" games (is that an industry term, or your own - I love it!) ... I would really like to try one of those. I agree that these types of "games" are certainly play in the way I think of it. Very immersive and full of new experiences and opportunities to explore and follow your curiosity. I can't wait to learn more!
Also - I have to ask - do I see Moomintrolls in your profile pic? Where are you? In my recent post (39 cozy reads for midwinter and beyond: https://suddenlyjamie.substack.com/p/39-cozy-comfort-reads-for-midwinter ), I shared that I usually read Moominland Midwinter each year at about this time. It's one of my favorites!
Hello Jamie, nice to meet you too! Sorry it took a while, been a bit overwhelmed with work lately. Good eye with the Moomins! I live in Tampere, Finland, where we have a Moomin museum <3 The pic has been taken near the entrance of it.
For solo journaling games I can recommend at least Fieldguide to Memory, The Mending and Koriko: a Magical year but you can find many games to try out from itch.io as well. Also a nice guide to solo games and co-op games is a digital newsletter called The Soloist.
A sandbox game is indeed an industry term but it usually refers to big blockbuster games with lot of action as well. It depends on your narrative preferences, gaming skills, and relationship with violent content if you will enjoy those (for example Witcher 3, Assassin's Creed series, newer Fallout games, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Horizon: Forbidden West, Red Dead Redemption 1&2). For people with less experience on digital games I can recommend The Sims series, Minecraft, newer narrative-heavy adventure games such as Life is Strange series, a genre called walking simulators with games such as Firewatch and Gone Home (exploring environment and narrative) and puzzle games such as Portal 1&2 and Sherlock Holmes games made by Frogwares. Hope these help, you can always ask more or reach out by email (elisa.wiik@tuni.fi)!
Hello, again, Elisa! Never any need to apologize for asynchronous conversations. We have to work around life's ebb and flow. 😉
Thank you so much for such a wealth of suggestions and resources. I am definitely intrigued and will be doing some exploring in the not too distant future, particularly of the solo journaling games. (The names of those alone are appealing.)
So cool that you hail from Finland! And I'm envious that you have a Moomin museum. I have found comfort in those books since I was a child. I need to search out the documentary I watched a year or so ago about Tove Jannson. It was so inspiring.
Thanks again for taking the time to respond, and for being so generous with your knowledge. I feel like I'm getting a peek at a whole new world!
Love this, Jamie. I use different art modalities in my writing workshops—sketching, clay play, music, to encourage the creative in us to emerge. It’s fun!
Exploring different forms of creative expression is one of the best ways to play. And I know you have the magic touch to get people past feeling self conscious. 💜
I love the way you frame play as an act of rebellion against the "shoulds" of life. In a world that often tells us to be serious, responsible, and goal-oriented, choosing to play can be a radical act. It's about reclaiming our autonomy, rejecting the pressure to conform, and embracing the freedom to be silly, spontaneous, and fully ourselves. It's a way of saying, "I refuse to be defined by what I produce or achieve. I am more than that."
The easiest way to get into play is to spend some time with a 5 year old 🥰
That dirty dirty word is always getting me. I want to play but always put it off until the shoulds are done. And honestly, the things I create are fun, but I always see them as a means to an end. I never create just for the hell of it. It all becomes work in one way or another, albeit fun work. I think the hardest part about play for me is the mind shift. It’s ok to do things for fun for nobody but yourself that won’t ever be seen by anyone else. JUST FOR FUN!
Curious if arts and crafts or reading would count? Here I go asking you to police the rules around play.. 🤦🏻♀️
Keep playing ❤️ let’s walk https://open.spotify.com/episode/3XhIC1SKQrogPDjZRcfyl3?si=uQgcJWUnRiGXU-fipYcrzQ
Thank you for sharing, Paolo! And for being here. I hope your day has some play in it!
Love this! And it feels very appropriate on this snowy winter day... I will try to take some inspiration from this and embrace being unproductive... at least for a few hours :)
Snowy winter days ARE perfect for goofing off, aren't they?
I hope you DO get to take a few hours for yourself, Claire. Maybe treat yourself to some of your magical hot chocolate, too. The good stuff! It may inspire you. 😉
As a game researcher I mostly agree but disagree about one thing: games :D Even though those have some structures, those can give you deeply playful experiences. Pen & Paper role-playing games are at their best joint storytelling, playing in a fictional world. Co-operative board games, geocaching, solo journaling games, vast digital sandbox games where you can roam freely, decorate houses, take pictures and get lost into...The world of games is endless and full of play.
Hello, Elisa! So nice to "meet" you. Thank you for bringing this up. I am not that familiar with the kinds of games you describe, and was thinking more of traditional board and card games, which - at my house - usually devolve into a kind of domestic war.😆
I would love to know more about the kinds of games you describe. I have heard a little bit about solo journaling games (which sound like they'd be right up my alley!), but haven't had the chance to research them yet. Can you recommend any? I'm also very intrigued by "sandbox" games (is that an industry term, or your own - I love it!) ... I would really like to try one of those. I agree that these types of "games" are certainly play in the way I think of it. Very immersive and full of new experiences and opportunities to explore and follow your curiosity. I can't wait to learn more!
Also - I have to ask - do I see Moomintrolls in your profile pic? Where are you? In my recent post (39 cozy reads for midwinter and beyond: https://suddenlyjamie.substack.com/p/39-cozy-comfort-reads-for-midwinter ), I shared that I usually read Moominland Midwinter each year at about this time. It's one of my favorites!
Hello Jamie, nice to meet you too! Sorry it took a while, been a bit overwhelmed with work lately. Good eye with the Moomins! I live in Tampere, Finland, where we have a Moomin museum <3 The pic has been taken near the entrance of it.
For solo journaling games I can recommend at least Fieldguide to Memory, The Mending and Koriko: a Magical year but you can find many games to try out from itch.io as well. Also a nice guide to solo games and co-op games is a digital newsletter called The Soloist.
A sandbox game is indeed an industry term but it usually refers to big blockbuster games with lot of action as well. It depends on your narrative preferences, gaming skills, and relationship with violent content if you will enjoy those (for example Witcher 3, Assassin's Creed series, newer Fallout games, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Horizon: Forbidden West, Red Dead Redemption 1&2). For people with less experience on digital games I can recommend The Sims series, Minecraft, newer narrative-heavy adventure games such as Life is Strange series, a genre called walking simulators with games such as Firewatch and Gone Home (exploring environment and narrative) and puzzle games such as Portal 1&2 and Sherlock Holmes games made by Frogwares. Hope these help, you can always ask more or reach out by email (elisa.wiik@tuni.fi)!
Hello, again, Elisa! Never any need to apologize for asynchronous conversations. We have to work around life's ebb and flow. 😉
Thank you so much for such a wealth of suggestions and resources. I am definitely intrigued and will be doing some exploring in the not too distant future, particularly of the solo journaling games. (The names of those alone are appealing.)
So cool that you hail from Finland! And I'm envious that you have a Moomin museum. I have found comfort in those books since I was a child. I need to search out the documentary I watched a year or so ago about Tove Jannson. It was so inspiring.
Thanks again for taking the time to respond, and for being so generous with your knowledge. I feel like I'm getting a peek at a whole new world!
Love this, Jamie. I use different art modalities in my writing workshops—sketching, clay play, music, to encourage the creative in us to emerge. It’s fun!
Exploring different forms of creative expression is one of the best ways to play. And I know you have the magic touch to get people past feeling self conscious. 💜