Twitch For Dummies

Tee Morris, an early adopter of podcasting, is no stranger to building audiences and releasing original content online. Now he adds Twitch to his online arsenal of creativity, managing his own streaming channel featuring a variety of gaming, cooking, and talk shows. Tee is co-author of Podcasting For Dummies, 4th Edition, a contributor to Making YouTube Videos, 2nd Edition (Dummies Junior), and a writer of science fiction and fantasy, including the award-winning steampunk series The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences.

• Foreword xiIntroduction 1About This Book 1How to Use This Book 2Icons Used in This Book 3Beyond the Book 4Where to Go from Here 4Part 1: Getting Your Game On 5Chapter 1: Welcome to the World of Twitch 7Creating a Twitch Account 8Press X to begin: The basics 9“New Twitch, who dis?”: Completing the Profile 11All in the details: Channel and Videos settings 13Controlling the signal: From privacy to connected third parties 16Learning at the Feet of Masters: Following and Subscribing to Twitch Channels 17Following on Twitch 18Subscribing on Twitch 19Other Twitch Resources 22Chapter 2: Turning a Console into a Streamer’s Studio 25What’s Your Preferred Platform? 26PlayStation 27Xbox 30Nonessentials That Are Essential 33Video cameras 33Audio gear 34Laptop computer or mobile device (on a stand) 35Green screen 35Virtual assistants 35Chapter 3: Making First Impressions 39Creating a Complete Twitch Channel 40Creating an Info Panel 40Deciding which Info Panels to create 42Editing and deleting Info Panels 44Streaming Off Your Console 47Setting up your PlayStation for streaming 48Setting up your Xbox for streaming 50Chapter 4: And We’re Live! (Wait, We’re LIVE?!) 55Streaming Your First Gameplay 56OMG! I’m live! What do I do now?! 57Wrapping up your stream 59Post-Show Production: What to Do After a Stream 61Take a bow: Social media shout-outs 61YouTube: Your content, on demand 62Creating a highlight 65Chapter 5: Setting Schedules and Managing Social Media 69Same Bat-Time, Same Bat-Channel: Setting Your Schedule 70From start to finish: A basic schedule 71Your own pocket of time: The length of your stream 73Consistency and Communication 75Notifications on Twitch 76Notifications on Social Media 78Notifications on Discord 80When Life Happens: Changes in the Schedule 84Chapter 6: Improving Your Stream: Being Your Own Harshest Critic 87G, PG, PG-13, or R: What’s the Rating? 88Setting the Mature Content option 90The parameters of adult content 91Popularity Versus Pleasure: What Are You Streaming? 92Streaming popular games 93Streaming games you enjoy 94Streaming retro games 96Beyond Consoles: Streaming without Video Games 98Part 2: Creating Your Broadcasting Studio 105Chapter 7: Streaming without Constraints: Streaming from a PC 107Looking under the Hood: What a PC Needs 108The computer processor 108Cooling systems 109Random access memory 111Graphics card 111Capture card 111Power supply 112Setting Up Your Console 112Making Creativity and Interactivity Happen with StreamElements and OBS 114Downloading a template from Nerd or Die 115Setting up OBS with StreamElements 117Incorporating your template 118Customizing your template 120Adding a camera to your template 122Adding a console to your template 124Setting Up Audio: Easier Said than Done 125Setting up your audio in OBS 126Using Discord as your Party Chat solution 128Chapter 8: Bells & Whistles: Nifty Add-Ons for Your Twitch Stream 131Stand By for Stream: Introduction and Intermission B-roll 132Second-in-Command: Channel Moderators 135StreamElements: Your Friendly Neighborhood Virtual Assistant 137Say it again and again: Using custom commands 138Locking it down: Spam protection 139Complete Control: The Elgato Stream Deck 142Chapter 9: All the World’s Your Stage 147Quiet on the Set: A Critical Look at Your Twitch Studio 148Couchcasting 148Streaming from the office studio 149Streaming from the set 150Twitch on the Go: Streaming from a Mobile Phone 152Setting up your mobile stream with Streamlabs 155Customizing your mobile stream on Streamlabs 157Live from the Metaverse: Streaming in Virtual Reality 160Setting up your PC for VR streaming 161Launching a VR stream 163Part 3: Levelling Up With Twitch 169Chapter 10: Let’s GOOOOO, Chat: Welcome to the Show! 171Announcing Who, What, Where: Your Show Intro 172Gittin’ Gud at Multitasking: Responding to Chat 173Checking in with Chat in real time 174Checking in with Chat at specific points 175Creating Content for Two (or More): Hosting Interviews 176Extending interview requests 177Asking really great questions 178Avoiding really bad questions 180Taking a Bow: Ending Your Stream 182Chapter 11: In between the Streams 185Meanwhile, at Penguin’s Secret Lair: Your Channel between Streams 186Why host other streamers? 187Selecting other streamers 189Twitch on Demand: Past Broadcasts 192Past broadcasts on Twitch 193Past broadcasts on YouTube 194Highlight Reels, Revisited 195Creating highlight reels with iMovie 196Leveling up: video editing with HitFilm Express 200Chapter 12: From Hobby to Side Hustle to Full-Time Job? 207Semi-Pro: The Affiliate Streamer 209Expressing yourself: Emotes 210Patrons of the Arts: Subscribers 215Expressing your loyalty: Subscriber badges 216A penny for your thoughts: Bits 217Skipping the intermediary: the Tip 218Achievement Unlocked: Partnership 219Why become a Twitch Partner? 220The checklist for a Twitch Partner 221Show Me the Money: Revenue Opportunities 222This Twitch stream is sponsored by 222Affiliate programs: Working together 223So, Chat, let me tell you about this amazing product from 223Show me your swag! 224Don’t Quit Your Day Job Just Yet 224Part 4: Beyond the Console 227Chapter 13: Building Your Twitch Community 229Check Me Out Now: Publicizing Your Stream 230Twitter 230TikTok 231Instagram 234Hover 236YouTube 239Creating a social media strategy 241Who Is “The Fam” and Why Do They Matter? 241Oh hai, Mark: Talking to Chat 242The Fam includes other streamers too 243The Community Board: Discord 244Setting up channels 244Share with the class: Talking to your Chat 246Family Matters: The Unseen Community Members 247The significant other 248When your kids want to stream 249Chapter 14: Twitch Etiquette 251Don’t Let the Door Hit You on the Way Out: Bad Behavior on Twitch 252Yo, check out my stream 252Hey, Streamer! Hey! Listen! Pay attention to ME! 253Well, I support this stream, so you owe me 254They See Me Trollin’ and Hatin’ 255You just earned a timeout, kiddo: Muting trolls in stream 256Hate raids 259Not-So-Merry Melodies: Twitch, the RIAA, and the DMCA 262What the DMCA is 263When the DMCA leveled up 264The simple (but complicated) relationship between the RIAA and Twitch 264Where to find stream-safe music 265Positive Impressions: Putting your best foot forward on Twitch 266Chapter 15: Game Over: Twitch Outside of Gaming 269Game On: The Rise of Esports 269NASA TV: Going Live in the Sky 272The Food of Love on Twitch: Music 273Harping on a passion: Meadow Fox 273Sing a song: Ashley Abbink and Camila Knight 274The Sounds of Serenity: ASMR 276Phasmo for Real: Old Spirits Investigations Live 277Gaming for Good: Charity Streaming 279Remembering rule 1: Charity streaming is not about you! 279Setting up a Tiltify profile 280Doing a little prep before you get started 284Part 5: The Part of Tens 287Chapter 16: Ten (or More) Life Lessons from Twitch 289Twitch Enabled Me to Take Center Stage 290Twitch Opened the World to Me 290Twitch Helped Me Realize I Am Not Alone 290Success Is Waiting for You If You’re Willing to Work for It 291Twitch Encourages Me to Look for Improvement 291You Always Have Someone Watching Your Back 291Twitch Can Surprise You in the Best of Ways 292One Life Lesson from Twitch 292It’s a Glimpse of How Good We Can Be 293Twitch Took My Education and Leveled It Up 293Twitch Restored My Faith in People 293To Thine Own Self Be True 294Twitch Doesn’t Believe in a Comfort Zone, and That’s a Good Thing 294Twitch Opened Doors I Didn’t Know Existed 294There Are a Lot of Good People in the World — Connect with Them 295Twitch Taught Me the Power of Community 295If You Have Something to Share, You Have to Make It Happen 296Twitch Proves the Power of Paying It Forward 296Chapter 17: Ten Final Thoughts from a TeeMonster on Twitch 297Five Lessons from Five Years 297Grow at your own pace 298Don’t let life pass you by 298Stream fearlessly 299Make yourself your stream’s top priority 300Stream because you love it 300Five Goals for the Streams to Come 301Don’t define yourself by analytics 301A good mantra to focus on: My stream is a fun place to be 302Remember, there’s no silver bullet to success 303To thine own self be true 304Partnership is not the endgame 304Index 307