The Royalty in the Other Castles | Executive Summary Presentation and Speech

*Speech Below Break*

The world of contemporary nerd culture has gone through many changes in its short lifetime. Once a subculture looked down upon as antisocial and strange, the view of the subculture has since shifted. Now, it holds a high place in our mainstream culture. From lame to fame, the words "nerd" and "geek" have shifted from monikers of ridicule to titles of pride. Once afraid of being perceived as a nerd, people now don outfits under the fashion fad of “geek chic.”

Yet, not all is mega mushrooms and purple rupees. Despite the facelift the subculture has gotten, it’s inner workings have yet to catch up. The once famous “boys club” still thumbs its nose at the world. And the door of the subculture is plastered with a sign saying “No Girls Allowed.” While there are those who simply shrug and say that it’s boys being boys, the level of gender inequality goes far beyond basic playground exclusion and ridicule.

Morals based in bigotry and prejudice are still widely prevalent in contemporary nerd culture. Instances of harassment, threats, and both physical and verbal attacks are daily happenings. These heinous parts of this subculture often are targeted toward female nerds. Female nerds are shut down and silenced, often told that their opinions don’t matter because of their sex. They are harassed and slandered when participating in nerd culture events, called “whores” and “bitches” if they ignore their harassers.

And nerds of different sexualities and gender identities aren’t left out of the fray. Hateful words such as “faggot” and “freak” are slung towards anyone who doesn’t fit right in with the population’s majority.

There are those members who turn a blind eye to these situations, stating that it’s commonplace. But, there are those who have had enough. They have tried to bring about change through traditional methods, but with little success. For every step forward, they take two steps back. And it’s the reactions and retaliations enacted by the subculture’s primarily white, heterosexual male population that put them there.

But, what I'm here to offer is a different type of solution. One that is disguised by a popular media form in nerd culture much like the Trojan Horse of the past: an online comic.

The online comic The Royalty in the Other Castles is a comic that is updated twice a month. Its story follows four roommates throughout their daily journeys in the world of nerd culture. The scenarios will range in seriousness from incidents of assault and harassment to overdramatic fandom drama. The characters will span multiple spectrums of identity, not only in Nerd Culture, but also on the sexuality and gender identity spectrums. There will be humor in the comic, but there also will be times of stoicism, keeping the tone of the comic balanced.

Through this media lens, the audience is allowed a raw, honest window into what it’s really like to be a nerd that doesn’t fit into the standard population type. Nothing will be held back. I plan on shocking the audience with this comic. And it’s through this raw lens that the story will help incite change.

The overall plot of The Royalty in the Other Castles follows the daily lives of four roommates: Anne, Morrigan, Murphy, and Pat.

After months of looking for an apartment near campus, Anne and her two friends Pat and Murphy are close to giving up their search. It's not until Anne's older sister Morrigan gives her a call saying that she found an apartment for a decent price that can house all four of them. Although hesitant, Anne agrees. And Anne, Murphy, and Pat move into the apartment.

Although the four roommates come from different backgrounds, they relate to each other in two ways: through their nerd identity and their treatment in the culture. Scenarios ranging from discrimination and harassment to fandom drama and academic stress are some of the more prevalent situations they will go through. There will be ups and downs, but all around humor as Anne, Morrigan, Murphy, and Pat realize that being a nerd is harder than it seems.

The primary topic looked at in The Royalty in the Other Castles is gender politics and nerd culture. I want to focus on this topic because it has gained the most recognition in the public eye with such events as GamerGate. Due to its popularity, I think it’s a good jumping off point for the comic’s topic. Yet, even though gender politics and nerd culture is a primary topic in the comic, the treatment and behaviors toward nerds of different gender identities and sexualities will be touched on as well. Representing these other spectrums will help show that it's not only female nerds who wear a target on their back

The overall theme of the comic will be serious, the comic allowing the audience a raw, honest lens to look into this aspect of nerd culture. But there will be times of humor. Even though the topics are supposed to incite change and conversation, it’s important to keep the comic entertaining.

Every world is a stage, and each of us are players. In The Royalty in the Other Castles, the players come from different backgrounds. Yet, they all are connected through their participation in nerd culture and their attendance to NYU. They create a diverse group that spans the different spectrums of gender, sexuality, and nerd culture.

And let me briefly introduce them to you.

Anne Carey is a 21-year-old undergrad Theatrical Studies major at NYU. She is a cissex female, meaning that she identifies with her biological sex. And she is cisgender, meaning that she identifies with the correlating spectrum on the heteronormative gender spectrum. She is heterosexual. Her nerd culture affiliations are: casual gamer, fangirl, and cosplayer - a subculture she has been a part of since she was 16 years old. She is the younger sister of Morrigan Carey.

Morrigan Carey is 26-years-old. She is a cissex female and Genderqueer, meaning that she doesn’t identify with the heteronormative spectrum of gender. She is bisexual. She got her Bachelors of Arts in both Computer Sciences with a Focus in Game Design and Graphic Design. And she is currently working on her Masters in Sciences in Computer Sciences at NYU. Her nerd culture affiliations are: Professional League of Legends player and Game Designer. She is the older sister of Anne Carey.

Murphy Quinn is a 22-years-old heterosexual undergrad Fine Arts and Theatrical Studies double major. He is a Trans*Male - FtM - meaning that he is transitioning to become male. He is Gender Fluid, also meaning that his gender identity fluctuates along the gender spectrum. His nerd culture affiliations are: fanboy, comic book artist, and comic book writer.

Pat Flynn is 20-years-old and is a cissex Male. He is Agender, meaning that he identifies with no gender identity at all. He is a pansexual undergrad Communications major at NYU. His nerd culture affiliations are: fanboy, casual gamer, and cosplayer - a subculture he has been a part of since he was 18 years old.

Now that you’ve met the stars of this comic, let’s meet the people who bring them to life.

The Royalty in the Other Castles is a small time project that does not require a village to make happen. The staff will be small, giving it a chance to blossom and grow as the popularity of the comic does.

To start off, there will be a small group of three or four people who will be the artists and writers to create the content for each web comic strip. Along with that, there will be handful of editors, web designers, and social media operators. This will help manage the website where the comic strip will be posted as well as keep the operations going.

It’s all well and good to dream big about a project such as this, but the project can’t go further than a thought unless there is funding.

After doing research, I believe that it would be best to do most of our fundraising through a Kickstarter account. Even though Kickstarter works best for people who already have an audience, I think that a combination of social media outreach and publicity as well as a compelling Kickstarter page will help us gain the funds needed to get us going.

The money that is raised will go towards equipment, software, and web hosting for the comic’s production. We hope to raise the money through fun, interactive ways that include the audience of the comic. The fundraising will also double as a way to gain a larger audience, promoting the comic along the way. One of the ways I’ve thought of is a Charity Livestream Sketch Show where the artists sketch out some fun and interesting fan art for the comic. The participants in the Livestream would have to option to donate to the comic’s production. The price would be up to them, but the minimum would be a dollar. Another idea would be to host interviews with popular nerd culture journalism media, promoting the production and pushing people toward the Kickstarter page.

In the end, it will be a combination of the promotion events and the fundraising that will help bring this production to life.

Unlike most media productions, the timeline for The Royalty in the Other Castles is different. The main portion of the timeline will have to do with the ongoing production of the comic. However, there are some milestones that need to be met before we get to the final part of the production. Because of this, I have decided to divide the timeline into three parts.

The first part of the timeline will be funding the project. Looking back at past endeavours, I expect that this part of the timeline will take about a year and a half. This will allow for an appropriate amount of time for the funds to be raised and for enough exposure for the project to take place.

The next part of the timeline will be to set up the production space and get everything that is necessary. This portion of the production will take around two months. It will allow us to purchase and set up the equipment, software, and studio space before work is started on the first strip.

The final portion of the timeline is the largest section. This portion has to do with the creation and updating of the comic strip’s content.

The comic will be updated twice a month. This will allow for the content creators to produce the update as well as for the editors and production crew to make any necessary changes. It is important to have this editing period due to the topics discussed in the comic.

In the end, the overall goals of the project are simple ones: to raise awareness, change minds, and incite change. Through The Royalty in the Other Castles, I want show the world a first hand look at what it’s like to be the one with the target on their back through a raw and honest lens. To be afraid to walk around a convention floor because of harassment. To need to lie about your sexuality so you don’t get verbally attacked while playing video games online. To see what it’s like to be silenced in a conversation because of your sex or gender identity. The Royalty in the Other Castles offers that chance all while making clever nerd culture references along the way. By keeping the balance between lighthearted entertainment and serious discussion, the entertainment allows for the audience to want to read the comic further rather than get bored with the soap box it could become.