Your Hosts: Mary Robinette, Dongwon, and Dan What’s this bonus episode thing? Well, for starters IT’S URGENT, because as of this writing you have just ten more days to get the promised pricing for WXR at sea in 2021. What ELSE is it? Well, this bonus episode describes the difference between workshops, retreats, and master … Continue reading BONUS EPISODE! 2021 WXR Early-Bird Announcement
Research different opportunities for master classes and workshops.
The Sin in the Steel, by Ryan Van Loan
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Well, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler Let’s talk about how players interact with the mechanics of the game, and what kinds of requirements those might put on the writers. Credits: This episode was recorded by Marshall Carr, Jr., and mastered by Alex Jackson
Pick a game you’re familiar with and design three new rules elements for it. These could be new cards for Magic, new feats or character abilities for a TTRPG, new power-ups for Super Mario, etc.
Try to think through all the ways these could be fun, and then try to find ways a player could use them to totally break a story.
Disco Elysium
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, Cassandra Khaw, Dan Well, James L. Sutter, and Howard Tayler Let’s have a discussion about scenes and set pieces, and let’s lead with this: prose writers often create longer pieces using scenes as building blocks, and in this thing writing for game design is very, very similar. Scenes and set … Continue reading 16.22: Scenes and Set Pieces
Design an encounter for a game you’ve enjoyed, hitting each of the following factors: setting, challenge, adversaries, rewards, and story development.
NOTE: Some of these details have CHANGED as of June 9th, thanks to a very cool upgrade Royal Caribbean made to our sailing. The new information is marked in bold italics, and full details are available at the registration link. Join fellow writers for an in-depth masterclass at sea on board the Royal Caribbean’s Liberty … Continue reading WXR 2021: The Writing Excuses Cruise Masterclass
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, James L. Sutter, Dan Wells, Cassandra Khaw, and Howard Tayler So, you’re the hero of your own story, and the hero gets choices, and in many ways directs the story. In our discussion of interactive fiction and writing for games, the subject of “player characters” is essential. From the array … Continue reading 16.21: Player Characters
Go through the character creation process in an RPG. Pay attention to which parts were fun, and what attracted you to the different classes, creature types, etc. Identify what makes each major character build unique and appealing.
The Dark Room https://adarkroom.doublespeakgames.com/
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, James L. Sutter, Dan Wells, Cassandra Khaw, and Howard Tayler How do you give players meaningful choices while still keeping the story within a reasonable set of boundaries? In this episode James and Cassandra lead us in a discussion of branching narratives, and the ways in which we as writers … Continue reading 16.20: Branching Narratives
Write a short “choose-your-own-adventure” story.
The Planet Mercenary RPG, created by Alan Bahr, Howard Tayler, and Sandra Tayler.
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette Kowal, James L. Sutter, Dan Wells, Cassandra Khaw, and Howard Tayler For the next eight episodes we’ll be talking about roleplaying games, and how that medium relates to writers, writing, career opportunities, and more. We’re led by James L. Sutter and Cassandra Khaw on this particular quest. In this episode we … Continue reading 16.19: Intro to Roleplaying Games
Spend some time playing a roleplaying game, either video game or tabletop. Take note of what’s fun and what’s not.
Your Hosts: Mary Robinette, Dan, Amal, and Howard Rhyming is powerful. It can signal a form, or telegraph whimsy. It can be predictable, surprising, and sometimes both. It may also be seen as childish. When, then, is it time to rhyme? Will rhyming “internally” fit? As opposed to a line-ending bit. For answers, just listen. But … Continue reading 16.17: The Time To Rhyme
Look up the limericks of Edward Lear, and use them as a model; write a limerick, paying careful attention to how the rhyme needs to match a certain rhythm.
The Forever Sea, by Joshua Phillip Johnson