[Meta] What Influences Your Story Hour Writing Style?

[el-remmen]

I have to agree with Wulf. The DM can set the "gritty tone", but it is up to the players to maintain it - to have their characters react apporpriatey to threats, horrific scenes and/or an impending sense of doom.

Personally, that is one of the ways I grade RP when I give out XP - how "believably" the PCs reacted to the situations they find themselves in.

 

[drnuncheon]

Wulf gets to play, so dialogue is easier for him. He actually has time to take notes during the game, which the DM story hour writers don't have.

I take extensive notes during the running of my games - usually when the players pause to discuss things, although occasionally I have to call a momentary pause to catch up when they aren't drinking enough or taking enough bathroom breaks.

Of course, only having two players kees things a bit more manageable as well, I suspect.

J

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

Wulf gets to play, so dialogue is easier for him. He actually has time to take notes during the game, which the DM story hour writers don't have.

Though I am still learning to do it properly. I have not only misattributed quotes from player to player, I've lifted quotes from one game to another!

It was a good one, though:

"Look, we don't run from chickens." Dan's friend Andy either has the best deadpan in the world, or he really thought he was making the most profound, earnest statement of the evening.

(They were cockatrices, see... and... aww, crap, you had to be there!)

Wulf

 

[maddman75]

Personally, I've just started and I'm simply writing down what happened. I'm suprised that I'm remembering as well as I do - the stuff I'm posting now happened like six months ago. But I can't just come in now - it wouldn't make any sense. So, right now I'm basically summarizing each adventure. As I approach more recent games and especially in Nightfang Spire, things will get more detailed.

As far as others, I see a lot of Tolkien in Posy's Diary. Its all the little details, like Posy's arch enemy when she was a little girl and the rememberances of her old teacher that make the world seem full and bright. Reminds me of Sam talking about the Shire I suppose.

I tend not to have much dialouge, mostly because I didn't know I was going to be documenting when we actually played. Again, this will change.

Oh, and obligitory story hour plug in .sig.

 

[Rune]

Wulf gets to play, so dialogue is easier for him. He actually has time to take notes during the game, which the DM story hour writers don't have.

That is true. I force one of my players to keep notes and write a story hour for the session, then I edit extensively, because I am a control freak. It works out well, except that it can (as it is, currently) delay the posting of that story hour for a very long time.

I do way too much winging in my game to take extensive notes. That's what the players are for