A needed boost: Fresh starts and unsteady foundations

This is not something I expected to write at any point soon but, hey, my name is Cale Michael and I am no longer employed by the company I spent over six years writing for.

That sentence, barring my name and the timeframe, is probably something you have seen pop up a lot over the last few years. Media, especially in the gaming space, has slowly degraded to the point where dozens of publications are nothing more than content mines shoveling out SEO. There are so few places to turn to for actual reporting and insight that it is better to follow sources on the mess of a platform that Twitter has become than a website you might have previously enjoyed reading from.

I can’t say I was surprised when I was informed very curtly about my contract being terminated by GAMURS Group. I had been a staff writer for going on three years and was very aware of how the focus of the website changed during that time. I was vocal about how the slow shift to focusing on SEO and constantly pivoting writers from game to game just to chase trends degraded Dot Esports’ as a publication. But there is only so much any editor or manager can do when the call to keep riding this doomed train comes from above their heads, so don’t go and give anyone still working there or at other GAMURS publications any grief.

When I was asked in October 2018 to join Dot Esports as a freelancer after interning with one of the site’s partners over the summer, I was ecstatic. I really only followed the FGC and competitive Pokémon at the time, with the occasional glance at Dota 2 after I had already stopped playing, but it was a new and exciting prospect compared to the sports coverage I was doing.

Over the next three years, I grinded my ass off. I put more time into the website than I did my social life or health because I was having so much fun writing about games I enjoyed and competitive scenes that were rich with stories to tell. I have come to regret doing that as of late, especially with how things ended. But at the time, it was worth it if I could just share a bit more about a player, game, or community.

I met some amazing people I can now call close friends. I got to interview players I only dreamed of talking to like Justin Wong and LI Joe. Hell, I even got more involved in the content space and had fun highlighting stuff through the lens of creators like PointCrow. The constant outlet to write also helped me through some very dark times during the pandemic and beyond.

Up through last year, I worked well beyond the hours asked of me to get some of these stories out. But at that point, it wasn’t just because I was passionate, it was because it was necessary. The turning point for me as a writer came at Evo 2023—and even with some interviews I did in the months leading up to it.

At Evo, I got the chance to talk to so many incredible players, developers, and creators about the games they love and the experiences that made them who they are. I can’t check exact numbers now but, outside of the articles I wrote in the wee hours of the night while sitting in that Vegas hotel room because I wanted them to have the best chance at being successful, I think a total of four pieces got published.

Early talks with the Under Night In-Birth II Sys:Celes developers right after its reveal, discussions with Arc System Works about its titles and community involvement, a slew of incredible player interviews about games like Marvel vs. Capcom, and a lovely chat with Octopimp. All are left unused or half-written on my laptop. And why is that? The endless grind.

By the time I got back from Vegas and rested up a bit, I jumped right into coverage for the 2023 Pokémon World Championships. After that, it was time for Pokémon Go Fest. And, when I finally got clear of the August content slate with a bit of time free to get back to those features, Google hit everyone with new algorithm changes and the already exhausting pace of content was now being impacted by a decline in metrics throughout September and into October.

For reference, it took me more than a month to get exclusive interviews that I adored doing with the director, producer, and composer of Street Fighter 6 out. And those are the lucky ones I managed to find time for and force out the door—even after being told to focus elsewhere. And even then, they were all published on the same day even after I asked to space them out so each piece could breathe.

The other stories got lost in the shuffle. I even had a feature nearly complete discussing the future of multiple aspects of Yu-Gi-Oh! with prominent content creator MBT shoved onto the backburner and eventually tossed away—much like my hope for reviving that beat. All because I needed to buckle down and grind out Pokémon DLC SEO while also attempting to plan Dota coverage for The International.

By the time TI23 ended on October 29, I was a few days out from my first time taking more than a week off since I joined the website. So I go on a cruise without internet access and come back two weeks later to everything being on fire, new output requirements placed on every writer, and a red mark on my name because by the end of November, I didn’t meet what corporate expected of me despite being gone for half a month. But at this point, I am rambling.

The whole reason I wanted to share this little timeline is to serve as a sort of apology and warning.

Even before things got really bad, if you wanted to get features done on top of the day-to-day SEO and news, most of the time you would need to pull extra hours. After September? Forget about it. So if I was less active in replying to your emails, if an interview didn’t turn into a story, or if I outright ghosted you—I’m sorry. Adding more to my plate just wasn’t in the cards as I strived to keep my beats alive and help other writers stay afloat.

The warning is simple, and probably something a lot of writers are very aware of. This SEO focus isn’t going anywhere. If you can manage writing endless slop every time a new game is released or trends refresh, then stick with it and get your paycheck. Try to find areas where you can express yourself in the moments between. Don’t let the machine crush what made you become a writer in the first place and don’t give these companies more than they deserve.

As for me? I had to learn the latter lesson the hard way through burnout and an eventual layoff. But I’m still not going anywhere.

I’m not sure where I will land next, or if it will even be in the industry. I don’t see a lot of sustainable ways to keep writing on a full-time basis without diving right back into the SEO mines—which I don’t plan on doing. But that is why I am launching this website.

BoosterBlogs is the name of an old blog I launched in high school for a project and kept posting on and off throughout college with some friends. I wanted to use it as a way to “boost interesting stories,” and that seems like a fitting reason to bring it back now.

I am going to post unused features, future interviews, and other projects that don’t find a home elsewhere here. I also want to get some guest posts to help spotlight other writers and creatives in a similar spot. If you want any of that, or to come back for more rambling from yours truly, then consider subscribing, sharing, and supporting my work here or through other mediums.

In the words of the hero I named this website after a decade ago: “Yesterday is the past. And tomorrow—belongs to those who claim it.”