The Elfish Gene - Another attack on gamers

[Sound of Azure]

[QUOTE=Kamikaze Midget]Criminey, it's a MEMIOR! Not a JOKE BOOK! [QUOTE]

I take most memoirs with the same tone as this one about as seriously as a joke book.

I probably typed that in haste, due to exasperation at the tone of the OP (not the OPer, mind). I find it tiresome to see people stress out over stuff like that, that's all.

[Kamikaze Midget]

I don't really think it's insulting. It's describing some guy's real experience with real social goons. I'm sure we ALL have had these experiences, to one degree or another. Here's a guy who's just making an honest buck out of it.

[Sound of Azure]

Yes, I agree. I don't feel demeaned or insulted by anything like this book. I just worry when some of my fellow gamers are too thin-skinned and jump up and down over trivialities.

Then again, they're not me...and it doesn't affect me at all if they want to carry on. Maybe I should relax a little, myself.

[BadMojo]

Originally Posted by Sound of Azure

Yes, I agree. I don't feel demeaned or insulted by anything like this book. I just worry when some of my fellow gamers are too thin-skinned and jump up and down over trivialities.

Don't worry about them. Just laugh at them like I do.

Maybe it's a side effect of the number of socially crippled RPG players around, but as a group we sure seem easy to offend. Just play the games, enjoy them and don't worry about what other people think. No point losing sleep about this kind of stuff.

[houndstooth]

Hello
Mark Barrowcliffe here, I wrote The Elfish Gene.
The blurb on Amazon was not written by me, in fact it was written by someone who has since left my publishers. I'm getting it changed.
My intention in writing this book wasn't to attack gamers at all. I was a gamer and still hold a great deal of affection for that period of my life, something that comes over in the book. In fact, if anyone is attacked or made fun of in The Elfish Gene then it's me. I was an idiot, I was a gamer. That doesn't mean all gamers are idiots.
It's a personal memoir about an obsessional way of playing RPGs. It makes no mention of the majority of perfectly normal gamers, just freaks like me.
Anyway, I'm not going to go into what the book is about - we should be able to get sample chapters up on websites soon so you can judge for yourselves. But please, don't think it's an attack on D&D, or on gamers. My publishers wouldn't have paid me to produce something that cliched.
Much of the book stands up for RPGs. Of course, I do give the myths that D&D leads to the occult or that it involves casting spells a good kick in the head.
Anyway, if anyone has any idea where I could post a few sample chapters I'd be grateful. I think then you'll see that this is no different in intent to a lot of comic biographies on golf, chess, football, whatever. And mods, I don't think this breaks any rules on advertising as I'm replying to an established thread. If it does, er, sorry.

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Originally Posted by houndstooth

Hello
Mark Barrowcliffe here, I wrote The Elfish Gene.
The blurb on Amazon was not written by me, in fact it was written by someone who has since left my publishers. I'm getting it changed.
My intention in writing this book wasn't to attack gamers at all. I was a gamer and still hold a great deal of affection for that period of my life, something that comes over in the book. In fact, if anyone is attacked or made fun of in The Elfish Gene then it's me. I was an idiot, I was a gamer. That doesn't mean all gamers are idiots.
It's a personal memoir about an obsessional way of playing RPGs. It makes no mention of the majority of perfectly normal gamers, just freaks like me.
Anyway, I'm not going to go into what the book is about - we should be able to get sample chapters up on websites soon so you can judge for yourselves. But please, don't think it's an attack on D&D, or on gamers. My publishers wouldn't have paid me to produce something that cliched.
Much of the book stands up for RPGs. Of course, I do give the myths that D&D leads to the occult or that it involves casting spells a good kick in the head.
Anyway, if anyone has any idea where I could post a few sample chapters I'd be grateful. I think then you'll see that this is no different in intent to a lot of comic biographies on golf, chess, football, whatever. And mods, I don't think this breaks any rules on advertising as I'm replying to an established thread. If it does, er, sorry.

Dude, don't sweat it -- we've got your back.

Welcome to EN World! You should find it a friendly place ... I wouldn't judge by the original post.

[nyrfherdr]

HEY HOUNDSTOOTH! Welcome to the boards!!!!

You should pick up D&D again. It's still fun.
Anyway, I hope the gang lets you link sample chapters somewhere here on the boards.

Game ON!

[BlackMoria]

Self-Depreciation has always been a mainstay of humor or comedy. Just go to see almost any comedy show. A book about growing up a geek and a D&D geek at that is not a threat to gamers.

A bigger threat to the image of RPGers is, well - without putting fine a point on it, it's the certain elements of the hobby who show up at conventions and basically validate the ultra-geeky, bad hygiene, wouldn't know what to do with a woman, total nerd, just visiting the planet stereotype image that the hobby has picked up over the years.
The types who really aren't representative of the hobby as a whole, yet if there is reporter around -who does he end up interviewing?

[TarionzCousin]

Originally Posted by houndstooth

Hello
Mark Barrowcliffe here, I wrote The Elfish Gene.

I think you've made a dozen or so sales because of this thread. I hope so.


...and I want a copy of Wik's Vietnam for Dummies. Funniest reply I've read in weeks.

[Agamon]

Yep, sounds like an interesting read, I'll have to pick it up.

[airwalkrr]

And yet, no one seems to have a problem with:

-I want to cast magic missile!
-Why are you casting magic missile? There's nothing to attack here.
-I'm attacking the darkness!

Everyone I know thinks that short is hilarious, and it is far from flattering. Why is this any different?

[Raloc]

Originally Posted by Ozmar

Humorous books about gamers are great... when they're actually funny. Of course you can't judge a book by its cover (esp when no cover image is available), and humor is often in the ear of the beholder, but the blurb for the book makes it sound horribly unfunny. Chalk me up as "not interested". I'll watch Mazes & Monsters again, thank you very much.

For real gamer humor, I much prefer Knights of the Dinner Table and Order of the Stick.

Later!
Ozmar the Humor Afficionado

I remember the first time I saw Mazes & Monsters (this was after I'd started playing D&D and DMing, and even then I wasn't to be swayed by anyone's BS). Anyway, I recall that I saw it listed in the guide but didn't have any information about it. So I go in thinking it's going to be a normal style movie, possibly with some RPGness about it. The first bits confirm this, then came the ENDING and I'm sitting there WTH? I think after that I went reading about the movie and associated propaganda by nutter religious zealots. Meh.

Also: KoDT is great.

Originally Posted by pogre

I have never understood why some gamers care if the game is popular or dies. I have the core rules, I have the ability to bring non-gamers into my gaming group. If WOTC ceases tomorrow we will keep playing. If the hobby dies with us, that's ok. I don't see a lot of people throwing Tali dice around these days either.*

*Unless they're playing FVLMINATA of course!

Even without any books you could recreate a semblance of rules that would work fine for D&D style roleplaying. As far as the hobby dying out, I figure any of the 20-40+ aged RPers that haven't yet had kids should do, and basically force them to play :P "If you want food, you'll roleplay, by gum!"

[S'mon]

Originally Posted by Ranes

4. I lied about there being three thoughts; Coventry is a grim place. Playing D&D to escape from it when you're stuck in your teens sounds like great advice.

I'll second that. Coventry really sucks*; a bit of escapism is entirely understandable!

*At least I thought so, moving there from the bright lights & glamour of fabulous Sheffield...

[Mark Chance]

Originally Posted by Nightfall

Let him make fun of the community. We do take ourselves too seriously at times...

Case in point:

Originally Posted by Zander

...There may be young gamers but not enough to replace the old timers like me.

The only glimmer of hope is from gamers of my generation introducing their kids, nephews and nieces to the hobby. That could be D&D's salvation. WotC should do more to target parents as DMs and kids as players instead of assuming that both DM and players will be of the same age/level of exposure to D&D.

Books such as The Elfish Gene won't help to bring teens into the fold but it won't impact kids who are too young to understand what 'uncoolness' or 'geekyness' are.

:\

[Darklone]

Originally Posted by houndstooth

Hello
Mark Barrowcliffe here, I wrote The Elfish Gene.
...
Much of the book stands up for RPGs. Of course, I do give the myths that D&D leads to the occult or that it involves casting spells a good kick in the head.

Welcome to the boards and enjoy your stay... but be careful, you might get addicted. Again.

Anyway, if anyone has any idea where I could post a few sample chapters I'd be grateful. I think then you'll see that this is no different in intent to a lot of comic biographies on golf, chess, football, whatever. And mods, I don't think this breaks any rules on advertising as I'm replying to an established thread. If it does, er, sorry.

Just post them in the storyhour section with a good header that it's about your book. People will love to read it.

PS: I am no mod, so if it's not allowed here what would surprise me... send me a cookie.