Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Rick Heinz of The Secret Spider-Proof Fortress.

We recently had the chance to connect with Rick Heinz and have shared our conversation below.

Rick, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
Groggily waking up in the morning, where the eternal energy of a gigantic ball of nuclear fire (my mortal enemy) launches it’s daily attack upon my world yet again. I squint my eyes and shake my fist in futility, hoping that my plans to rid the earth of the orange inferno take fruition this day. But alas…I will be left wanting. So I retreat back into the shadows and pour myself the black elixir of life that allows me to sustain another day of radioactive beams…

and answer emails.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Greetings! I’m Rick Heinz! Founder of Storytellers Forge Studios and Author! Namely, I’ve achieved a minor amount of recognition from at least one person named Chris in Connecticut, and I create massive TTRPG universes, novels, and write sarcastic things about dead things.

Jokes aside, I’ve actually been in the Tabletop Roleplaying Games, Publishing, and Authorship since 2017. I’ve written the Seventh Age series (sarcastic urban fantasy about the end of the world), The Crow, Return of the Living Dead, and founded Storytellers Forge. A studio that focuses on making immersive TTRPG games tied to music and novel fiction.

Our first release was The Black Ballad, and now we are becoming a full publisher of novels, music, audio books, and more.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
A past and prior toxic publishing relationship. Our studio was forged from the fires and flames of robbery, IP theft, and more. We started off as young authors and found ourselves quickly embroiled in a massive controversy and had to fight like hell to preserve our identity and work to settlement and legal battles.

After that professional relationship finally (and thankfully) came to an end, I decided to create Storytellers Forge where we actually focus on creation rather than being famous. Having been through a few bad relationships (professionally) I learned exactly what not to do, and exactly the kind of person I didn’t want to be.

Even though those times were rough, the lessons I learned were valuable in where I want to end up as a person first (or cryptid / part cyborg), and a small business owner / creative second.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
When we brought our first IP to a publisher, and nearly lost everything and several years of our writing lives, I learned the hard way why certain business practices are in place. Like…legal! Contracts aren’t there for when you are on friendly terms, they are there to make a project real–and for when things go south.

I’ve been through the ringer and burned hard, several times and I’ve never stopped. Each time I learned I needed to pick up a new skill set, and I also learned the value of collaboration and reaching out for help. Learning how to navigate conversations that are difficult, isn’t something that I would have ever picked up if every single project became a stellar success.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes. There is no difference any longer. Some authors use pen names for a variety of reasons, or even on stage personas that present very differently. When I’m at conventions, I’m just me through and through.

I don’t have the time to wear multiple faces. I’m dark, sarcastic, pro-creative, and a giant big happy dude who loves metal music and coffee. In business, the Chicago Handshake still goes a long way with me. Putting on a public persona versus a private one behind the scenes is just something that seems like a poor use of my time.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If immortality were real, what would you build?
This my dear reader friends is my dream. I’ve got so many stories to write! So many places to travel! So many worlds to end! If I could become full android or a vampire knocked on my door — I’m signing up right away. With that kind of runway, I’d plan some serious epic fictions, quit the day job, and focus entirely on building a studio of creatives that shines the spotlight on them and provides new opportunities.

There just isn’t enough time!

I might also build a coffee company from scratch though, but that’s because I need to secure the most precious source of life. Oh! And a global network of anti-spider militia units to rid the world of the 8-legged alien invaders… OOH! ANNNND I would probably start up an animation studio… and…(the list goes on)

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Storytellers Forge

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