First post, first game!

[Kwalish Kid]

Don't shy away from being upfront with your players. Tell them that you have some ideas with how the story should go and that you want them to be as free as possible with their input. You might also want to note that, as a beginner, you may have to limit their options because of what you're able to handle. Things will definitely improve over time.

You also want to clear up the issue of the tone and style of the game early. You don't want any surprises in the form of players taking the game into a place darker than everyone is comfortable with. Similarly, you don't want players ticked off because things are more flippant than they thought it would be.

 

[Henry]

Welcome to the forums, Stormsparrow, and good luck! It's great advice that I've seen given so far.

 

[Scribble]

Storm: Welcome to D&D!

Sounds like you're on a pretty good track so far. I think part of the fun of D&D is learning what works through play, so some tiops I have?

1. Never stop being open to change. Especialy as a DM, I think it's important to never get so stuck in your ways that you never try something different.

2. Don't be afraid to mess up. All of us mess up, but it's just a game with friends. If you screw up, note it, and fix it later.

3. Remember it's all in fun, so so are rules arguments. People argue about rules at the table. It happens. Everyone tries to minimize it, but I still say sometimes those are the times you remember because in the end, it's a game, and we finally remember how silly the argument was to begin with. (My best man and I still to this day talk about an argument we had about wether tht spectre really could have "punched" through his characters chest to kill him...)

4. Don't be afraid of going with your gut. DM's sometimes have to improvise. (DM's have to improvise a LOT actually.) Go with your gut. Sounds like you're a creative person, so don't be afraid to use that creativity at the table. Even when it comes to rules. If you can't remember the specifics of soemthing, go with what works right now. Again you can always fix things later.

D&D I think is one of the most creative group activities out there. I like to think of it like a group of wriers coming togetehr and tellign a story.

As the DM you get to mainly set the tone of the work, the basic plot, and you get to think up actions for the bad guys and the bacground cast members.

The players get to think up what the heros would say or do.

The dice are the silent partner that don't make any suggestions, but ultimately tell the other authors if their idea is accepted or not.

Have fun!

 

[Ulrick]

Pre-made adventures often take an experienced DM to handle from what I have heard. Inexperienced DM's often have issues with the "big picture", if they haven't made it by themselves.

Besides, as someone else said, the best gaming comes from making your own stuff.

Go for it.

PS: Link to Ray Winninger's most excellent advice on DM'ing and building worlds/campaigns

Welcome to ENWORLD and Being a DM!

Here's another plug for Ray Winniger's articles!

Back when I first started DMing, I exclusively created my own adventures simply because I found modules somewhat intimidating to run (but I was also 10 years old). I also was really into world building, and had specific sites and places that I wanted the players to go to--and often times I tried to force them to go there because I didn't want my efforts wasted.

One piece of advice that I've seen repeated over the years in various articles and books is: "Start small."

The classic example of this is having a small village, with some ruins nearby. You'll see this in Winniger's article and elsewhere.

Another piece of good advice comes from Stephen King that applies to both creative writing and DMing: "Read a lot, and write a lot."

The more you read, the more ideas will get deposited in your brain's "compost heap" and who knows when they'll come to fruition. And the more you write adventures and DM, the better you'll get at both.

Oh yeah, and make sure you and you're players are having fun! For advice on how to do this, consult the 4e DMG--which, IMO, contains the best advice out there for running a fun D&D session.

 

[I'm A Banana]

DMing is essentially about two questions:

#1: "What do you do?" Ask the players this ALL THE TIME.

#2: "What happens?" This is where you respond to whatever the characters do. Once your response is over, ask them the first question again.

Repeat ad nauseum. And good luck! Running an adventure you made is, IMO, always more fun that running something someone else did.

 

[Wormwood]

Before I put the effort in, however, I'd like to know if it is practical/feasible for a first time DM to start his career by making his own adventure? Am I getting myself in over my head?

Welcome!

Making up your own adventures in D&D is a fairly straightforward process; you should have no trouble coming up with fun and balanced encounters using just your DMG and Monster Manual. The DMG's advice is really excellent, and I seriously recommend reading it thoroughly before you start.

In addition to the excellent advice upthread, you'll find spot-on tips on *running* your game in this discussion.

 

[DrunkonDuty]

And another big welcome, Stormsparrow.

I'm with all the other posters with saying that writing your own stuff is a great way to go, for all the reasons cited above. One reason I didn't notice in the above was that writing your own adventures is fun in and of itself. And as a creative writer I'm sure you'll enjoy doing it.

cheers,
Glen