Timewaster's Guide Archive
General => Suggestions Box => Topic started by: The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers on September 06, 2003, 12:16:50 AM
-
I'm considering taking one of these half-arsed ideas I had in high school and doign a weekly serial.
If I did so, would you rather see
Comedic space-faring, post-apocalyptic androids?
OR
Comedic epic fantasy staring a ninja alter-ego of mine?
OR
four-color superheroes fighting against mysterious oppression, sort of a Teen Titans meets X-Men meets The Prisoner
OR
Me shut my big yap.
-
What if we did it like a camp story. You start, then someone else takes what you wrote and writes something. And so on.
Eh, Eh?
-
There's too much administration involved with that. I mean, you can do it on the forum, but what if you're writing some, and you post, only to discover that someone else posted right before you did, and so you look like a dork for not taking into account events immediately preceding your post. (like someone dies, and then you have that someone doing something that requires being alive.
So I don't want to administer a chain novel, the last three I've been in have died coming out the starting gate. if you do something on the forum, I will probably post to it, but I won't be telling anyone it's their turn.
-
We could draw straws and give that person a week to do it. Then on sunday or monday they post it, and the next person gets to it. So on and so forth.
-
Like I said, i'll probably participate if someone else runs the show (like, telling me when it's my turn). A week is a long time to wait for something, is the problem. Especially if a contributer ends up dropping the ball one week. Then you have to wait TWO weeks for a new installment. Shorter wait times, though, incline people to being more likely to drop it, so you still may end up with a long lag time. Either way has advantages and disadvantages.
One suggestion, limit the number of people to 4 or 5, or else you have to wait far too long, even if each person only has two days to take his turn.
But I was thinking of something more cohesive and consistant for my project. Are you interested in seeing that? if not, again, I'll just not do it. I'm just trying to get a feel for what types of things i should try to dedicate my energies into.
-
Ithinkit'sbest I dont comment on this since it's too lame for words.
-
Your lame dude. :P
-
Listen wanting to do something like this on the forum is cool and can be fun. It's a bad Idea to put it as a feature on main page. TWG isn't a fiction site,we cannot do everything. That'll spread us out too thin. We have limited resources.
-
Man did someone pee in your breakfast cereal today sprig?
Geez your acting like a pill.
If Eric or anyone else wants to write a serial story why should the fact that TWG hasn't done that yet bother you. Heck, Fell's published my cooking articles.
Fiction if well done can be a heck of a draw.
-
again, stop with the insults. The LAST post made more sense, but didn't really justify anything. I guess maybe I should just be glad you're not name calling though.
Once more, fine, don't like it. But either say "i don't like it" and leave it at that, or give me reasons we can discuss.
-
we shouldn't try to expand out to other places right now. We need to strengthen the area's we've allready got. Our time and energy should be spent reinforceing the gameing aspect which iswhy people come. If we start doing some fiction then we spend less time on the other stuff and we loose people. We might get a few new fiction buffs but webfiction has a bad stygma on it. SE's a goog writer but that's not going to keep people from rolling their eyes at it.
-
Thank you for that statement. Now your position makes sense. I don't agree with it, necessarily, but we don't have to agree.
Just so you know, reviews will still be coming. I have a huge pile of RPG books, card games, and board games that I'm reading rather than my normal fiction reading. I'm doing about two articles a week. and I don't intend to change that unless I run out of things to review.
-
Just a word of warning: if you do it, make sure it keeps going. Nothing looks worse than a section of the site with 2/3 artices in it.
But i would prefer a story about someone who fails to grasp the feeling and gameplay of vampire ;)
-
But i would prefer a story about someone who fails to grasp the feeling and gameplay of vampire ;)
Are you suggesting that would be autobiographical when I wrote it?
I think fiction about gamers works better as a comic. There's too much description about someone describing for prose. Though if you had some good hooks for relationships between the gamers, that would work, and you could switch between prose of the gamers and prose about the actual adventure, story within a story... I'll have to think about that. I think I'd have to understand more about the feeling and gameplay of Vampire before I could write a story about a guy who didn't understand it. I'm sure my ignorance is much more amusing to you than it is to me.
-
I find many things about you amusing SE.
But seriously, that idea of the adventure the guys play being used to explore them, and their relationships is really interesting. That... could make for a good way to show them in new lights without corny crap. Just try to avoid the usual webcomic thing of them just dressing differently... they should play usual (ie, different from themselves) characters, who in a book could be fully fleshed out and realised, so that the RPG adventure becomes a little story in its own right, but still using t to explore the players. Hum.
/me goes away to think about that some more
-
Yeah, you've got me thinking about that now too. Of course gaming fiction needs comedy, but that doens't mean real characters. One thought it to give each character a favorite game, or genre, but they each have characters in each of the games.... Which if done properly, would be some pretty complicated relationships just between the characters and THEIR game characters....
Yeah, I'm definitely adding that to my list of ideas.
-
This could be a really great idea for TWG fiction, since it is actually RPG related, not just random fiction. I might grab you next time i see you online... wanna try this myself.
-
Not sure when that will be. Tonight's busy. Probably tomorrow sometime.
-
I made a suggestion regarding fiction in the main 'lets discuss the TWG's progress' thread. SE, please read that and let me know what you think. Let me respond here to the idea you proffered.
We need to think very hard about this suggestion. My brother makes his points crudely at times, but he does have some valid concerns. There is an air out there that a site with fiction on it--especially fiction written with gaming themes and written by a member of the site's staff--is a sign of an amateur site.
No, I'm not saying that SE is amateur, or that his writing is bad. It's actually pretty good. I just think that we have to think seriously about the implications of including fiction on the site. I am only one person, but having worked a little bit in the field, I am much more skeptical of a site that includes amateur (meaning unpaid, written by people without serious field credentials) fiction.
I would be very wary of publishing amateur staff fiction on the site, no matter who it comes from. I just have the sense that articles imply 'We are an authority on this subject. Listen to what we have to say.' While fiction implies 'This is my story. Isn't it neat?'
The serial idea, however, does lend some more credibility to the suggestion. People are accustomed to serials in print-form nonfiction genres. If SE were serializing, it would feel more like a weekly department than a bad fanfic site. If we do include staff fiction on the site, I think this is the only serious and respectable way to go about it.
--Edit. Forgot to give my thoughs on the original post! I like the alter-ego ninja one. Whatever you write, if its comedic, it also sits far better with me. That also makes it feel more like a department offered for entertainment value, as opposed to staf fanfics. Oh, and I oppose the idea of the round-robin story. This is better left for the forum. Front-page fiction should be more professional.
-
Serial is definitely what I'm suggesting. Regular posts and all. But I'm trying to work out soem quality control. Yes, I feel I could do a good job, but we need someone willing to look it over critically first. I have some friends online who are otherwise unemployed, and I'm sure they would, but they don't have much of a feel for F/SF, so I'm not sure if they're the best ones. Anyone volunteer to read a chapter a week and give me feedback so we could do this without making it trite crud? You'd have to be as regular as me so the chapters would get posted.
-
I'm definitely not a professional, but i have a couple hundred fantasy/sci fi books i have read. I think my post count shows how active i am. Pass them over here, i'd be happy to read them.
-
maybe it might be easier, since the people who've done this a lot are all busy with other things on the site, to have several people who haven't had editing experence do this. I'd still like to have someone with experence, but you have to work with what you got.
-
Ok, I'll pass them to Entropy, see what he thinks, and we'll decide what to do from there.
Entropy, I don't have it down yet, but I think I'm agreeing with EUOL, and I'll skip on the Gamer fiction for now, it does smack of "fan fiction." Maybe at a later time when I have the idea more thought out. I think I'm going with the ninja. Except, he's not REALLY a ninja, in D&D terms, more of a rogue with some unarmed combat feats... Anyway, I'll get a few chapters done before we even think about starting it, just so we're ahead and if it takes a week and a half instead of a week to get a chapter done, we don't sacrifice regularity.
-
OK hear me out here. Lets say we combine fictoin with a new RPG setting and minature rules. Instead of haveing a bunch of unreleated stuff lets create a TWG world and then have SE and possible others write storys that take place in that world. Some of use make an RPG for the setting and other make a miunature rules for it. We'll pull a TRS. Sure other sites have house RPG, fiction or house warhammer rules. We can make one that entertwines all and realy makes something people will get intrested in.
-
Ok, i like this idea.
Even if other people have "house" games, that doesn't matter much to me. we can still have one. And if we have a better one than other people, so much the better. This fantasy story, which I'm starting to lean toward (seems to me fantasy is easier to work out than Supers, and it lends itself to mass battles).
So, I'll start a story, we can make a system that incorporates elements of it. The system can be either or both rpg and miniatures. If we're ambitious, a CCG (in fact, a CCG featuring TWG regulars would be fun, a lot like the one Fell made a long time ago about TLE). Again, in the "taking it slow" we don't need to bust it all out right away, but this is something that would be a source of content for a long time.
Incidentally, I think TWIG would be a good name for the system.
-
I just re-read that and I realized you suggested stories based in the system, and I suggested system based on the stories.
I guess it doesn't matter which way we go. Anyone care which direction it starts? And who's working on the system?
-
What does TWIG stand for?
Anyway if we are going to do this we should set up the groups each with one head peron that would be resposible for his area. People can be in multiple groups but the heads have to be different and make sure they get what their suppose to do done. The first thing is world creation, which would take a while. And once that's done we can start others.
-
It dosen't bother me which way it starts. I think if we plan some thigns before we start you'll have a more consistent world. Ie you write something then the game comes out and the opposite is in it since it plays well.
-
TWIG is Time Waster's I (generic vowel sound) Guide
I just thought it sounded need. If we want to be l33t we could do TW(i)G. Or we could have a completely different name. I like the idea, but I'm not attached to it.
Ok, different heads makes sense. I'll volunteer to head a committee on world building (until we get to fiction writing stage, at which time I'll start writing more than developing I think). Who wants in with me?
If we're going to do this, maybe we should start a forum in the "Alternate Realities" section. Although we can choose a name first.
-
How about The TimeWasters Galaxy?
-
I'm in. I think we should ask EUOL too, since he's done this several times for his novels. I've seen one of them, it's seveal hundred pages on everything you can imagine.
Also we should see if 42 would be gracious enough to be our map maker, weither he's in the commity or not.
Also should we limit it, or just say x number of people are the heads and anyone else in the forums can voice their oppions but the heads have final say.
-
I'll be in for that. I'm kinda useless, but i can do tabletop and RPG systems just fine. And proofreading is easy.
-
Universal Time Wasters Game
or
Universal Time Wasters System
-
It implies SF, but that's my only complaint/comment
-
I'm thinking SE,EUOL,Fell and one or two more as head creators then the rest of us give feedback and ideas/suggestions. This would just be world creation right now.
We don't have to have a decent name right now.
-
UTWG is nice, but it's multisyllabic.
-
well, as soon as one of those people agree to do world creation, I'll start discussing it with them.
I already have some ideas.
-
Well I'm willing to be one of those extra people, soley on the fact it was my idea. But if there are others (Jeffe, Entropy) who realy want to do it I don't have a problem not being in the design commity.
-
Did I hear people discussing game design? That's a sure of way of pulling me out fo the woodwork.
I think TWIG stands for "Time Waster's Is a Game."
Anyway, this sounds like a very intriguing idea. What do you want me to do?
-
Well, so far, you and I are the only volunteers. I'll try to drop you a line from work, it's easier to converse by email than by forum, and I'm leaving now. I'll CC my personal address to, so I'll have that.
-
Money would be good.
-
Fell, for starters, we want you on the world design committee. I'll email you from work when I do Sprig
-
I want in!!! Gotta bring in the new storybook im writing....
-
TWIG=TimeWasteing
-
TWIG
Time Wasters Internet Games
-
Two Wombats In Germany
-
I think I sense a poll in the making, if that ever gets fixed...
-
Tage will, I'm guessing.
-
Touche Words, Iconic Ghast
-
Too weird, I glom.
-
are you at work or home Eric?
-
Work, of course.
-
Incidentally, the main setting design committee is chosen. Fell, Sprig, Jeffe and I will be be the main members. We'll find a way to communicate our progress. Once we decide on a world and/or system name, I think we'll be making a forum in the Alternate Realities section. Nuff Said.
-
Sorry--some of us have day jobs that don't involve spending our time posting on TWG.
I like the idea (since it was kind of one I was interested in doing a while ago.) A few suggestions:
1) SE is a good one to be in charge, since he knows a great deal about role-playing games. If he's going to be the one writing the fiction, might I suggest that he have final say on world design? Personally, I think it would be better to adapt the game from a good fiction world than try and make good fiction from a game world. (But I'm probably biased in this area.)
2) I really like the name TWIG. It's nifty. As for what it means, I like SE's first suggestion. Time Wasters (Insert random vowel sound) Guide. TW(i)G. So, the random vowel sound stands for 'Insert random vowel sound.' Like I said, nifty.
3) I'm willing to help out, but I'd prefer just in a referential way. I've never been good at collabrative world or storybuilding--I'm too deeply-seated in my own traditions, and am accustomed to complete control over my worlds. I wouldn't mind giving suggestions, however.
-
Ok, since we've been coming up with acronyms, I think we should just call it TW(i)G. Unless someone doesn't like that, Fell can go ahead and make our forum.