Meet Daniel Lessin | Board Game Designer and Author

We had the good fortune of connecting with Daniel Lessin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Daniel, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The initial plan behind Black Labrador Creations was actually to LLC-ize my own bookstore. A science fiction/fantasy/gaming bookstore to delight the denizens of Northfield, Minnesota as a way to give back to the community after the top notch education I was provided at Carleton College in Modern European (1453 to present (at the time)) history. It was a great deal of fun, as I got to meet all sorts of wonderful people from exciting backgrounds very different from my suburban New Jersey origin, and not only did I not do poorly in my efforts to make money, but I got to spread the word of the wonders of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Gaming. Absolutely wonderful! My only issue is that I enjoyed the products so much, alongside the people, that I began to wish, over time, that I could have a crack at designing my own game or writing a book or two. Indeed, I wondered if maybe I could compose a piece – an alternate history, but a feasible one of how the American War of Independence could go if the British/German/Native alliance triumphed, a cause I had championed for many years after a great deal of independent study following 5th grade and leading up to this day, with numerous years of reenactment thrown in.
So, after ensuring my old store, “The Quill and Blade Books and Board Games” was replaced by another store down the street, Black Labrador Creations then changed gears to find ways to make learning history fun. And indeed, what is more fun, more exhilarating, than learning about many perspectives and stories of the same conflict? That was the goal of “Defending the Colonies: A Novel of Alternate American History”
(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09XVP4YFH?notRedirectToSDP=1&ref_=dbs_mng_calw_0&storeType=ebooks)
– a valiant attempt to show a historically feasible (though obviously not spot on) perspective of the Crown Forces, as well as other, usually glossed over demographics. This trend continues in the sequel, “The Southern Campaign: A Novel of Alternate American History”
(https://www.amazon.com/Southern-Campaign-Alternate-American-History-ebook/dp/B0B92NKV1F)
through telling the life and times of a well-intentioned, slightly blundering, British engineering officer.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Black Labrador Creations is a company that focuses on essentially the design and artwork of a variety of different media, focusing mostly on many roleplaying games, card games, and board games. as well as the occasional novella. I do the Design and Mechanics work, while Jason Grossman plays point for the Art and Business Realm. Though many of our works have a historical basis, as our company was initially founded around my interest in such matters, there is a growing effort toward the science fictional, fantastical, and even crossovers of these two with the aforementioned historical matters. We work in phases (I call them Galumphs), having just finished a galumph of American War of Independence media in which we finished two books and a board game (some of which I had been working on for about a decade!). We are now very excited to do some board game work and book writing based around World War One Aviation!

As for getting to this point, It took a great deal of teamwork, Jason has been an invaluable ally, and one of the greatest ways to overcome the difficulties I’ve faced in this business was through seeking the advice of this fine gentleman, who, while maybe not a designer or a mechanic, is an amazingly thoughtful and methodical character, who has been in the arts business for years and is very experienced. Between the two of us, and our various allies we could call in (for there is no harm in calling in allies), we could overcome every foe we’ve met so far!

Here are some lessons I learned along the way with my projects:
Play your loves, passions, and strengths, so that it is less likely you burn out! Also? Treat your employees with the love you would show yourself, and respect and appreciate their works, expertise and devotion to the team. Finally? You do not have to know everything about everything. Know the superficials of everything, focus on your strengths, and lovingly delegate the rest amid your experts! Finally, it is also important to remember that entrepreneurship is HEART. All in all, it is, without a doubt, the art of spreading the love of what you appreciate, yourself, in life. In a charismatic, friendly, and admittedly ambitious and enterprising way, you must sally forth and express your love of your product.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Unfortunately, if by “the area,” you mean Dallas, I fear this will be my first time to the city, as I am from Saint Paul, Minnesota! 🙂 That being said, I would love to be a guest to someone in the area sometime, and if we could focus on some exciting cuisine, above all maybe Barbecue, Indian, Japanese, and Korean (who also have good barbecue! We could compare and contrast), that would be delightful! 🙂
Also? Sci Fi/Fantasy/Gaming Stores! Always fun, as are parks! Gotta love Nature, and as a re-budding ornithologist, I need to get back in the game!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
The Black Labrador Creations LLC artists, both for books and board games, Jason Grossman and Carl Duff, have taught me many lessons in leadership and have provided beautiful works to decorate the books and board games we made together. Jason has also taken a formidable hand in using contacts and knowledge of the Convention Scene.

Intellectual Property Lawyer Alexander Farrell, for not only keeping matters legit, but for playtesting many of the products with me. And for being comical and jocular as heck to lighten the serious matters!

CPA Eric Rosenthal, for being constantly on call and the first to the field with financial matters, as well as for being my first hired assistant and with me to the end.

My long list of well-wishing, yet highly critical, open-minded and very honest beta readers and beta-testers

My friend Amber Johnson and her Pomeranian dog, Mabel, as well as my own late Labrador Retriever dog, Sir Watson LeBeau, for working very hard to assist me in filming game advertisements and tutorials, as well as (in Watson and Mabel’s case) for being the best mascots anyone can ask for!

Website: https://blacklabradorcreations.squarespace.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blacklabradorcreationsllc/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-h-lessin-9a4b6299/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/labrador_llc

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlackLabradorCreationsLLC/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dS9bY6h6bQ

Image Credits
Jason Grossman