Professional GM: Possible Return

[Tav_Behemoth]

It seems like the sort of thing that's really necessary to have as part of this sort of pitch, some measure of "I really know what I'm doing; look at what I've done already"

I think that being published in the RPG field - or getting props from Piratecat (thanks, dude!) - are useful in making a pitch to existing gamers. (Note that Wik bears out my prediction upthread that Pcat is someone who could successfully make that pitch!)

The skills involved in writing for RPGs do not overlap perfectly with those involved in being a good GM, and IMO an amateur who spends 100% of their free time running games and being a player in multiple groups is likely to provide a more entertaining experience than a pro for whom some % of that time gets spent alone in front of the computer thinking about word count. What you're certain to get from someone who's published is the experience of having played with that person and seeing how their gaming relates to their writing. Which is totally awesome - I seek out such opportunities wherever I can - but appeals only to people who are already pretty hardcore.

The kinds of testimonials that you'd want for a general-audience or kid-specific pitch, like for an auction, don't have to be so specialized:

- I've been playing D&D and other RPGs for X years
- I play X times a month with Y players (perhaps with a testimonial from some of them, or someone you can contact for a reference)
- I run successful convention games, most recently at P and Q (perhaps with a testimonial from the con organizers that you show up on time, your events are full, and they get good feedback from your players)

I wouldn't overdo it with these kind of credentials - basically the qualification you need to establish for a general audience is "I know how to play D&D and show people a good time"; you want to quickly establish your geek cred, without turning anyone off by getting into too much detail that only geeks care about like lists of every RPG you've ever played.

Some other kinds of credentials that'd be useful esp for working with kids:
- Experience as a teacher, youth group leader, etc.
- Testimonials from parents / other members of your target audience
- Evidence of community involvement - active in the Scouts, a church, the PTA, whatever.

 

[Piratecat]

(Note that Wik bears out my prediction upthread that Pcat is someone who could successfully make that pitch!)

Wik, a ticket from Boston --> Vancouver costs less than $20, right? Totally worth it!

Looking at it realistically, there's not a chance I (or anyone, really) could make a living as a freelance GM. You'd spend too much time hunting for clients. The only way you could do it is to find a rich patron.

1. Be good enough that you could contract with several gaming stores to be their sponsored gaming guy. You'd have to bring in more business than you cost, though, which is tricky.

2. As #1, except you work for a game publisher and demo their products. You'd need to be a good enough GM that everyone would want to buy a game that you run.

3. Find someone filthy rich who loves to game, and talk them into paying you a salary to run it.

 

[Barastrondo]

3. Find someone filthy rich who loves to game, and talk them into paying you a salary to run it.

My wife says if she ever becomes filthy rich this can be my new job.

 

[tennyson]

I've read the first 6 pages of this thread and loved it. Duty calls and I can't get around to the remaining pages, but I have to ask:

Was it ever found out if the OP was serious, or playing a joke on everyone?

 

[Piratecat]

My wife says if she ever becomes filthy rich this can be my new job.

Sweet! See if she'll spring for an apprentice as well. You'll want someone to carry your dice.

My old college roommate effectively owns Brinks Armored Trucks; I so wish he was a gamer.

And Tennyson, not a joke as far as I know. Just someone very sincere, and maybe too optimistic.

 

[Tav_Behemoth]

Was it ever found out if the OP was serious, or playing a joke on everyone?

Since we're both New Yorkers I met with Johnny last year to share my experiences with Otherworld Excursions. I found him to be quite serious but not always realistic, which was certainly the case when I started out too.

In my experience, hunting for clients was certainly the major hurdle to doing a service for adult existing gamers. Being published helps here because it increases the likelihood that someone will seek you out instead of the other way around - I know of one case in which this happened (the fans pay him to run a regular session), although the GM in question is someone I'd consider a top ten RPG celebrity.

I agree that you'd be hard pressed to make a full-time living as a GM for adults (although this has been Becky's full-time job for kids with the Roleplay Workshop for many years). However, that's true of RPG writing as well! They're arguably equally economically infeasible; the advantage of pro GMing is that it has more to do with the actual activity of gaming, the advantage of pro writing is that the path to get there is much better established.

 

[jaerdaph]

For $50/hour + travel/lodging expenses, I will come to your house and play Clue, Battleship or Stratego with you.

 

[Wik]

Wik, a ticket from Boston --> Vancouver costs less than $20, right? Totally worth it!

Absolutely! Of course, the ferry from Vancouver to Victoria is another 20. And I'm afraid that breaks the bank.

 

[cappadochian]

excuse me but i see that a lot of people are interested in playing for money. some of you have mentioned expenses (traveling for example) that could be avoided if you would play online. maybe you have missed my post a few posts before but i have a website that makes it possible to play rpgs online speaking through a VoIP webphone that is running right on tha site and requires no installation at all, and it's almost as good as being together. i have tried it with people i don't know and i had very good experiences. do you think i may post the website link here without being banned? it's for free so i'm not selling anything. if DMs decide they can run games for money but basically to use my site is free.

i think the concept to play for money, is almost completely equal to the question to play online, because this can make things very simple, you can reach much more people through this. what do you think?

 

[buddhafrog]

Wow, I loved this thread. I almost feel like us readers/posters should donate to C_C for this thread - a thread about becoming a professional DM might earn more money than his actual DM'ing. I do hope he is well and found a steady source of income. Would love to hear an update.

[MENTION=18017]Tav_Behemoth[/MENTION]
Can you give us an update on how your DM auction gameplay went? I like that idea.

I am a professional DM of sorts. Actually I'm an ESL teacher living overseas, teaching small classes of between 2~4 students. Most of my classes consist of playing D&D. It's quite interesting and I feel fortunate. And the kids absolutely love it.