In this engaging episode, Courtney interviews JD Wiker, a seasoned RPG producer and miniature painting aficionado. JD recounts his journey from discovering Dungeons & Dragons in the late 1970s to his professional milestones with Wizards of the Coast, WizKids, and other notable RPG companies. He shares his experiences in creating RPGs like Ars Magic…

Emma Larkins, celebrated creator of "Abandon All Artichokes" and the eagerly awaited "Epilogue," takes us inside the vibrant world of board game design, discussing the pivotal role of community and collaboration in her design journey. We explore the evolution of games from simple card concepts to intricate storytelling experiences, underscoring the…

Today we're learning from the dynamic Margaret Krohn, who shares her fascinating journey from being an avid gamer to holding pivotal roles such as Director of Communications at Intrepid Games and the CMO for Roll4It. We discuss her evolution into a content creator, lifestyle adjustments, and the paths she wishes she had discovered earlier in her ca…

Get ready to roll the dice and hit the sweet spot with our guest, Andrew Davis, the genius behind Dodecadonuts - a successful venture blending the world of tabletop gaming with deliciously whimsical doughnut-shaped dice boxes. Andy reveals his journey, from his long-standing passion for gaming to the creation of a business that's as entertaining as…

HELLO!!! Y'all, I have missed you so much. I am so excited for Roll Play Grow to officially return next week. Here's an episode to chat about what's been going on lately, and what you can look forward to in the future. Love ya, my friends! Support the show Find Roll Play Grow: Show Page Patreon Discord Lightheart Adventures Website Lightheart Twitt…

Ever feel overwhelmed by managing your tabletop role-play game project? We've been there, and we've got your back! We spent this episode of Roll Play Grow diving deep into the world of project management tools. We shed light on how tools like Asana, Wrike, Notion, and Trello can help simplify your task organization, role assignment, note-taking, an…

Are you aware of the power of words and how they can subtly infiltrate a game? Noordin Ali Kadir unearths this concealed beast in today's episode, throwing light on how bias can have a profound impact on players. You'll discover how sensitivity consulting can prevent unintended consequences, ensuring a balanced and fair game design. We discuss his …

Ready to up your game in the TTRPG space? Ever wondered how project management skills could change your trajectory as a creator? We dive into the nitty-gritty of project management, starting with the basics - what a project is, who a project manager is, and the phases within a project. We've got your back on each step of this journey, demystifying …

Today, we take an exclusive tour of board game development behind the scenes with the imaginative Kyle Rowan, Design Lead at Wyrd Games. Kyle delves into his personal trajectory from gamer to game designer, detailing the evolution of his role at Wyrd Games and the life of the board game Vagrantsong. Kyle reflects on the spark that ignited Vagrantso…

Ready to build a thriving community in the tabletop role-play gaming space? Then you're in for a treat. Today, we're delving into the nitty-gritty of how to make your community members feel seen, heard, and appreciated. We're talking about highlighting community members, featuring their posts, and applauding their contributions. But more than that,…

Ever wonder what goes into designing a Tabletop Role-Playing Game (TTRPG)? In our latest chat with Ella Watts, an accomplished director, writer, and producer, we get to unravel the process behind the creation of her TTRPG, Upriver, Downriver. From her first game session, to her daunting journey of game design, Ella's story is as captivating as her …

Ready to transform your social media presence and build a thriving online community? Our latest episode is your ultimate guide to this dynamic digital landscape. We're here to help you carve out your unique space and captivate your audience by consistently delivering content that resonates. Harness the power of community engagement with practical s…

Join me as we step into the fascinating world of Double Proficiency, guided by none other than its co-founder, Anna. Prepare to be enthralled as we journey from the humble beginnings of her first book, Herbalist Primer, through its successful Kickstarter campaign, to its current status as a beloved gem in the TTRPG community. Anna candidly shares h…

Ready to stop aimlessly scrolling through social media and start building a thriving online community? This episode is for you! I am joined by my engaging new co-host, Matt Joro, and we're ready to tackle the dynamic world of social media. We'll share insights on the unpredictable algorithms, increasing ad costs, and if those age-old Twitter tactic…

You won't want to miss this jam-packed episode as we're rolling the dice again with Russell E Welch III, the mastermind DM and CEO behind D20 Tales. Russell returns to chat about how D20 Tales has grown and changed over the last year, including the added complexities of going on tour. As we pull back the curtain on the world of live touring, we can…

How many of you have thought about starting a friendly local gaming store? Well, I have a special treat for you today, because I got to chat with Andrew Youngchild, the co-founder of Lost Star Tabletop Gaming Outfitter in Gig Harbor, Washington. He and his sister, Charlie, opened up this very cool store in the heart of Gig Harbor’s shopping distric…

Jay & Grub from Possum Creek Games are back! I’m super stoked to have my first repeat guests on the show from all the way back in episode 13. If you are not familiar with Possum Creek Games, then you might have heard of a little game called Wanderhome that Kickstarted during the height of Covid. I interviewed Jay & Grub both on my blog and on this …

Jonah and Tristan Fishel are two brothers writing a book together. Tristan started publishing on DM’s Guild and as a freelancer about a year ago, and they decided to write a book about proactive roleplaying. The book is called The Game Master’s Handbook of Proactive Roleplaying, and we talk about what proactive roleplaying means, their journey of w…

Matt Joro, also known as DungeonGlitch is one of those cool creators who does so many things. Matt is a DnD Influencer, Professional DM, Artist, Author, and Composer, and I wish I’d had several more hours to talk to him. We dive into how Matt has grown in the ttrpg space over the last 3 years, how he became connected with Wizards of the Coast, mark…

Beth the Bard is a writer, designer, streamer, and professional dungeon master. I first learned about Beth when she published She is the Ancient, an amazing genderbent version of Curse of Strahd, and it’s been a joy to follow her work ever since. Beth currently has a Kickstarter going for Daughters of Frankenstein, a super spooky 5e supplement that…

Cassi Mothwin shot into the ttrpg scene a couple years ago when she created her first project, What Crooked Roots, a D&D 5e folk horror supplement. Since then, she’s created two very unique games and is currently crowdfunding for a 3rd game, Tangled Blessings. Cassi didn’t plan to get into game design–it just kind of happened because of her Curse o…

Today is the day my friends! It is the Kickstarter launch day for the game that I have been project managing for a year now: Burnaway. I will spare you the explanation of the game right now because you are going to hear all about in this episode.We are talking with Geordie Morse aka Nagi, the game designer behind it all. Make sure you go to Kicksta…

Today’s episode is the second in our short series of interviews with my project team members on the upcoming indie ttrpg called Burnaway. The game is launching on Kickstarter on February 7th, and I wanted to introduce you all to some of the awesome people behind the scenes! Be sure to check out the show notes for a link to the pre-launch page on Ki…

Chris Hopper is the layout and graphic designer for Burnaway, as well as for several other ttrpgs in the indie scene. We talk about working as a freelance layout designer, working within this community, tips for working with your designers, and making your games and layouts more accessible. I learned so much from Chris, and I know y’all will too! T…

If you hang around the D&D scene, you likely have heard of Dragon Talk, the D&D podcast hosted by Greg Tito and Shelly Mazzanoble. Greg is the Senior Communications Manager of Dungeons & Dragons, and Shelly is the Senior Brand Manager of Dungeons & Dragons. We talk about what they’re up to in D&D. We talk about their show, and we talk about their u…

Joshua Simons is our guest today! Josh is a streamer, game designer, and the Community and Content Manager at Demiplane RPG. We dive into the intricacies of networking and how Josh was able to land a fulltime job in the industry. We also get a peek at his process for creating characters. Josh has appeared on so many actual play shows and always has…

Lysa is the Marketing Manager at OneBookShelf, which is the company behind sites like DM’s Guild and DriveThruRPG. And we definitely talk about what that means, what faer journey has been like throughout multiple roles in the TTRPG space. We also talk about Design Dash, a Twitch show that Lysa co-hosts and Lysa’s love for crafty endeavors and bees!…

How would you like to be a full-time, professional game master? It sounds like a dream a lot of us have in this industry, and so I am thrilled to introduce you to Donathin Frye who does just that. Donathin supports himself as a full-time Dungeon master with some additional freelance game design work, through Patreon subscriptions. He tends to run 6…

Today, I have the absolute pleasure to introduce you to Sara Thompson. Sara is most widely known for the Combat Wheelchair they created for D&D, but she is also a freelance game designer working with companies like Paizo and R Talsorian Games. We definitely talk about Sara’s game design processes, but this episode is extra special to me because we …

Kienna Shaw is our guest today. Kienna is known for doing more things than we were able to discuss in an hour, like the TTRPG Safety Toolkit, safety consulting, game design for a bunch of games on Itch.io, DM’s Guild, and a Candlekeep Mysteries adventures, and a whole lot of actual play streaming. We focus mostly on game design and safety tools in …

Our guest today is David, the player behind Kascorin and one of the podcast editors of Reckless Attack. If you are not familiar with Reckless Attack, it is one of my absolute favorite D&D Actual Play podcasts, and you should definitely go check it out. They are a really good and funny group, and their episodes are typically about an hour long. Davi…

Today’s guest is Amber TheSpaceJamber, a TTRPG editor and streamer. Amber tells us what your editor is actually thinking and looking for in your writing. We also go into depth on content strategies while building your online presence, and all about streaming. Amber has some great advice, and I know you’ll enjoy the episode as much as I did! Find Am…

Today features Indrani, an absolutely amazing and kind creator from India. She is the co-founder of Desis & Dragons, India’s largest TTRPG community. Indrani is also the creator behind Nonagon Dice, which they started because handmade dice weren’t easily accessible in India. Indrani has been doing some truly incredible work over the last year, and …

What happens when you interview an interviewer? You tend to compare notes. And that is what we do today. Our guest is Derrick, the host of the How Not to DM Podcast. If you aren’t familiar with his show, I highly recommend you go check it out. If you like my show, you’ll like his too. Derrick also interviews folks in the TTRPG space. His focus tend…

Today’s guest is Russell E Welch the III, the DM and CEO of D20Tales, a company putting on some very high quality D&D Actual Plays. They were formerly known as Spawn of Chaos and just rebranded very recently. Russell and I get really into the weeds on casting the shows, their production process, the impact of acting philosophies, rebranding, and a …

Today’s guest is Devin Nelson, a very talented composer, musician, and game designer. We talk about how Devin quit their full-time job to pursue a career in music, composing podcasts for Actual Plays and other podcasts, game design, and about Devin’s band, Gloomy June which just went on tour. Devin is super cool, so I know y’all will love this epis…

Our guest today is Orion D. Black, the Creative Director for Dimension 20 and a game designer with publications on itch.io. Orion has had a huge impact on the TTRPG scene, and it was an absolute honor to have them on the show. We talked about how Orion went from playing D&D to designing their own indie games, to working with the incredible crew of …

It’s episode 50! It took a long time to get here, longer than it technically should for a weekly show, but we’re here. We made it, and it’s amazing. I am in a little shock about what this signifies. I’ve talked to so many amazing people in this space, and I am just so grateful to everyone who’s been a guest and to all of you for listening, tuning i…

Today we get the pleasure of hearing from Emil, one of the hosts of the DoubleDM podcast, which is a discussion show between two Dungeon Masters and the occasional guest. This show has been around for just over a year now; about the same amount of time as mine, and it was pretty cool getting to chat with another podcaster about how their show has g…

Today’s guest is Karee, the owner of Critical Hit Cookies and a cast member of the Starfinder actual Play podcast: Horizons Unknown. We talk about how Karee fell into playing Pathfinder and joining this cast, and then we move into how her cookie shop came to be. Critical Hit Cookies makes and ships some absolutely delicious cookies with a Pathfinde…

Today’s guest is Andrea Canerossi, the Managing Partner and Mini Painter for Wolfwood Gaming. She co-owns the company with her business partner, Deacon Wolfwood, who is their woodworker and resin artist. Wolfwood Gaming is still a pretty new company, but it was really interesting to hear about the their journey. Andrea and I talk about playing D&D …

Today we get the pleasure of hearing from Jay, the owner and designer behind 88Riddles. You may have seen Jay for his painted dice boxes, as part of an add-on to several Kickstarters, or maybe for his t-shirt and hoodie designs. Jay is a super talented artist who has a lot of great wisdom to share on running a plethora of online shops. If this is y…

Our guest today is DeAngelo Murillo, a writer, streamer, game designer, and activist. He founded a really cool blog and website that puts a spotlight on cosplayers and other creators called The Geek Lyfe and has continued that theme in his streamed games on Twitch. We talk about the site, his journey into content creation, his Actual Play and Chari…

Spoiler Warning: I forgot to say this in the intro, but there are some mild spoilers about Yazeba's backstory, starting at about the 25-minute mark until the 34-minute mark. I am very happy to bring you Lillie J. Harris and Mercedes Acosta, two of the writers from the upcoming, so close to launch, game Yazeba’s Bed & Breakfast. I am VERY excited ab…

Today we get the pleasure of hearing from the Dungeon Master of a still new yet increasingly popular D&D Actual Play podcast, Reckless Attack. Nathan Lurz joins me today to chat about this podcast, which was years in the making and then we pivot to chatting about social media marketing. This episode is longer than usual, but to be honest that’s par…

Today’s guest is Imani, the founder of Margaret Catter Development. Imani is an indie game developer making some truly fun and pretty niche games. I really loved diving into the stories behind a lot of these games, learning about her processes and some upcoming projects they are working on this year. Imani is a lot of fun, so I hope you enjoy liste…

If you are planning a crowd-funding campaign, thinking of planning a crowd-funding campaign, or just in search of some amazing advice about marketing your products, then you NEED to listen to this episode. Daniel Nimitz is an absolute wizard at helping Kickstarter campaigns get funded. Some examples of previous projects they were the marketing mana…

Hello & Welcome to Episode 40 of Roll Play Grow, the podcast for tabletop entrepreneurs, creators, and fans. I am Courtney Stover of Lightheart Adventures, and in this podcast, we talk to the creators behind the brands in the tabletop roleplay gaming space about who they are and how they are turning their passion for gaming into a career. Today’s g…

Today’s guest is Aster, an incredibly talented game and comic artist from Mexico City. I found Aster by looking for an artist to draw my dog, Bowser as a Ranger in a few pieces. As you may or may not know, I am working towards opening an Etsy shop soon for D&D-themed pet merch like bandanas, bowties, and collars. I decided I wanted Bowser to be my …

Today’s guest is M Veselak, a ttrpg designer and the author of Wickedness, published by Possum Creek Games. We talk about how she became a gamer at the age of 5, writing games for a LARP summer camp, how she creates zer games, what it’s like to work with Jay and Ruby at Possum Creek Games, and we get a pretty cool preview of the behind the scenes o…