Looks like this would have been a blast to attend. Local art fairs/art crawls are a good way to get out and meet new creatives.

It was a blast.

It was. XOXO was like the ultimate shared safe space for creative types.

This was the best conference there ever was and I miss it a lot

I'm going to recommend one specific video: https://xoxofest.com/2024/videos/cabel-sasser/ - Cabel Sasser in 2024. I promise you it is worth your time.

That was wonderful, thank you!

Any video recommendations? I've now watched the Leaf Corcoran (itch.io) one, (https://xoxofest.com/2016/videos/leaf-corcoran/), the Maciej Ceglowski (pinboard.in) one (https://xoxofest.com/2013/videos/maciej-ceglowski/), and the James Swirsky & Lisanne Pajot (Indie Game: The Movie) one (https://xoxofest.com/2012/videos/james-swirsky-lisanne-pajot...). These are making me nostalgic for the early 2010s.

Both of Darius Kazemi's, in 2014 on generative art and more broadly about how success is effectively random and how shipping things, anything, no matter how small, fuels creativity: https://xoxofest.com/2014/videos/darius-kazemi/

and 2024, about his Hometown fork of Mastodon for small, more insular groups that still wanted some, but not all, features of federation, and more broadly about what responsibilities social media should have and fulfill in society: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jy6l92bFxtQ

i regret that i had the opportunity to speak at the last xoxo but was trapped by having to speak at another conference.

Xoxo changed my life.