[casual_games] List introduction / questions

[Martin Grider]

Hello,

Several reasons for writing. I'm new to the list, so first of all,
"hi".  :) I'm a web developer, with lots of game ideas... so far I've
only implemented one of them, which you can find on my gamedev blog
over at http://chesstris.com/

Secondly, I'm based out of minneapolis, MN, so if anyone on here is
also in MN, and interested in getting together to talk about casual
games, I'm into the idea of starting up a local "meetup" or just
getting together to swap stories.

Finally, I'm sort of wondering if there are resources out there for
making money with flash games. (Is that even a realistic goal?) I'm
pretty new at this, but it seems like the casual game dev "scene" is
mostly geared toward downloadable games. In particular, I really liked
Paul Thelen's article "Bringing Your Game To Market", but was
conscious while I was reading it that it was perhaps mostly aimed in
that direction. I'm looking for the equivalent article about flash
game or online-game development.

Thoughts, suggestions, reading recommendations?

Thanks!
-martin grider
http://chesstris.com/