What to Do When You Just Want to Write
Written by James
June 27, 2008
Some writers are rather prolific, and they can write whole chapters on the simple act of staring at a post it note. Creative writing allows our imagination to run free and wild, and when we’re on a roll, the words often pour out.
Know when to stop. Indulgence is wonderful, but in a multi-player game, indulgence can be seen as a selfish act. Players feel forced to read paragraphs of fancy description or complex though processes that may or may not interest them. It creates the sense of an obstacle to getting down to the business of writing.
Let people have a chance to react.
If you truly feel the urge to indulge, by all means, do so. Set up a new topic in which you can run free with your writing without hampering anyone else.
In game, curb your urge. Give players enough material to work with, but recognize that everyone should have a turn to do what they love: write.
On the other hand, be tolerant of a person’s occasional need to put a little more into a scene. Understand that many times, players need to write more to either help the character work through an issue that bothers him or to help the player overcome a challenging issue.
Indulgence is a bit of a give and take where manners are concerned, but the golden rule is that with all indulgence, moderation is key.
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You could even write all you want and then edit to fit the needs of your game. If you stop too early you might miss out on something that could change the tide of your game and make it very interesting for your players.
Diane’s last blog post..BBC’s Robin Hood: Some Behind the Scenes
I’m noticing that some really good scenes have each player sometimes submitting very little each turn. There’s a more natural point by point back and forth, as with an IMed scene. It gives the each person a chance to respond to one point at a time instead of having to address several things all at once.
Nicole’s last blog post..Just Writing
@Diane: We rarely edit and that’s what keeps the twists coming because you never know what someone is going to pick up on.
@Nicole: It all depends on the scene. Sometimes a short one is good, but I find the longer ones that have more information gives the next person a lot to choose from and work with. You have to pick out the overall points, the ones that apply the most, and think of the rest as filler or atmosphere.
Personally, I don’t like receiving short responses (but don’t anyone go changing or become self-conscious about it!), for exactly the reasons I mentioned above. The more you give me to work with, the better I can make the scene for a player.