RikuKat

http://i.imgur.com/J1CVPvr.jpg

Overcoming the lows and self-doubt. I left a stable job in a well paying industry to try to make a product in a highly unstable, deeply criticized industry!

Some days it's just hard to ignore the feeling that maybe I should have kept a "normal" job.

Whew... yeah, that's a tough one. In fact, this article I wrote covers a lot about that: http://www.brokenjoysticks.net/2016/02/02/18762/

I like to think of it as a DnD race. -2 to being taken seriously, +2 to opening doors.

At game industry events, if I am next to a male friend, I will be assumed to be working with/for them. While I am a programmer, I will be assumed to be an artist. Not really any awful assumptions or behavior (only had a few "incidents"), but it gets annoying to realize how much people make assumptions about what I do because I have two X chromosomes.

If you haven't already, I would get her RPG Maker, it's a wonderful program that will allow her to build out her own RPGs. It's a little light on the programming side, but it will give her the ability to quickly build out her own worlds, which will likely feed her passion.

In general, though, just keep doing what you seem to be; show interest in what she is doing and provide support for her efforts.

There are countless games out there that are appropriate for her age! While I'm going to recommend my own (it's about a strong girl her age, afterall), I would really need to know more about her interests to give good recommendations. Oh, though I will recommend Recettear, that's one of my favorites!

Ahaha, bugs in the code is by far the most frustrating thing. I think this sums it up pretty well: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/COyNHM-XAAAwwYk.png