/tg/, I want to become a better GM. And by that I mean: I want to become a better writer.
Why? Well, I do consider myself a good GM. I can create a good mood, I can play memorable and diverse NPCs, even when I completely ad lib the whole thing. Really, when it comes to GMing, I'd say I'm pretty good. Not fantastic, but good. My players are happy, they fondly remember past adventures, they even recall minor NPCs because they just stuck in their minds as characters.
But I'm a horribly mediocre writer. I always have this grand vision of writing a story that gets my players thinking, a story that gets them emotionally invested, makes them question themselves. A story with genuine feeling in it. But I always fall short.
It's not that I lack creativity, it's just that I can't really nail down what makes a good story good. Basically, I've hit a wall when it comes to my writing ability concerning plots. I can do maybe one or two genres well, but I want to branch out and do more. I want to do my ideas justice by conveying them well.
What do, /tg/? Is there maybe some magical guide to writing a good, engaging story out there? I mean, I know what a story needs, I just kinda... fail at putting it into action.
Google "creative writing tips"
Your stories probably fall short because you're so invested in YOUR story that the players come second.
>>44392570
You're most likely not writing and reading enough.
Also >>44392637 this.
>Is there maybe some magical guide to writing a good, engaging story out there?
Unfortunately no. You need a certain spark that everyone has to a greater or lesser extent. To create a fantastic story that spark has to be very bright. Just like everything it's about how much work you put into it.
Reading helps, consuming media helps, and above all writing helps. Read to get an idea of what a good story is. Don't just let it pass one ear and out the other, you have to think about WHY it's a good story. Then write, try it out for yourself.
You'll be a bad to mediocre writer for the first ~50-100k word equivalent, but then you'll see measurable improvement (maybe before that if you have talent).
Well I'd write a outline first of what you want to accomplish, and when you run your players trough it ad-lib then just fill in the gaps with what actually happened. Then at the end of the year or when your group seems like they're going to fall apart at the seams print it out and get some fancy binding and show it to the group.
>>44392637
>>44392644
I wouldn't say that, but then again I'm me, so I might just be oblivious to that. However, I do always try to keep my stories flexible and give my players as much freedom as possible. So far I've not had complaints about my campaigns being railroady, so I suppose I'm doing well enough on that front.
>>44392570
Drink. No, seriously. Drink till your almost drunk then come up with ideas and write them down. Keep the buzz going as you do. Do that for as long as possible and just write page long deals. 90% will be crap but some will be pure gold. Keep the gold and redo the shit at a later date.
>>44392724
To add on to this: there's a reason I call Vodka and Coffee "Writer's Gasoline"
Writefag here; there's no one good way to... Write better, I guess. But what you DO have to do to get better is write, period. For writing by way of GMing... I got some stuff for ya in a few hours OP. Be back in about six.
>>44392570
I really like the look of this, what is this image from?
There is no perfect kung fu.
Instead, there are styles and techniques. Some are good for a given purpose, while others are a bit worse for that same purpose. Further, the rhythm and speed of one author might lend itself well to a certain kind of writing or fighting, but suck balls for another.
Try all sorts of shit until you find something that works for you. Don't try to force it, because it'll have the same effect as trying to fap immediately after you just got through fapping.
Maybe you'll get your practice by reading someone else's work and taking a crack at telling it with your own style. Maybe you'll get fucked up, like >>44392724 suggested. Maybe you'll come up with something off the wall that just werks.
No one learns to throw the perfect punch without practice, though. So fucking practice.
>>44392570
...the hell? 3 psychic dudes at a wagon shootout? Are they some kinda time-walking cheerleader squad?
>>44393502
I'd put good money on it being Wheel Of Time fanart, probably of male Aes Sedai, the proper name of which escapes me.
>My players are happy, they fondly remember past adventures, they even recall minor NPCs because they just stuck in their minds as characters.
Sounds like you're doing a good job to me.
>I always have this grand vision of writing a story that gets my players thinking, a story that gets them emotionally invested, makes them question themselves. A story with genuine feeling in it. But I always fall short.
Pic related. Also, if you can get players invested in NPCs, then take it a step further. Get them invested, then give the NPCs deeper motivations and agendas; make the PCs really think about who they want to side with.
Be warned, though. It's great that you want to do something deeper and more meaningful. But don't lose sight of the fact that the main goal is to have fun.
>>44392892
Caffeine pills. Get the ones in capsule form at target for like 10 for $5. Empty powder into drink of choice. Write like a madman and wake up the next day to sheets and sheets of material to sort and pick through.
>>44393230
Art from The Wheel of Time.
Specifically, the scene at Dumai's Wells from Lord of Chaos, the sixth book in the series.
>>44392570
Writing is a muscle. Licke all muscles, it must be trained.
Write. Write more, Keep on writing. And then Wrte some more. Yes, 90+% ofwhat you'll write will be terrible or unusable, but the remaining will serve you well.
Oh, and don't ecer throw away anything. Today's shitty idea can be the base of tomorrow's plot.
>>44393502
Motherfucking Asha'man
>>44392570
Being a better writer does not make you a better GM.
Writing a story is of limited value when the focus should be on the players and reacting to to their choices and actions, not roping them into your pre-written epic.
The most useful thing for me as a GM, by far, is that I read a fuckton of books. Having a huge mental library of characters and locations or events to draw inspiration from lets me improvise without my sessions feeling bare bones or shallow.
I don't sit down and write an adventure, I sit down and describe a setting, a place, the people in it, and when the characters meet them, they interact and respond to each other, rather than the players being the thing that sets a whole scripted event into motion.
Reading some historical adventure novels (more believable motivation, less chance a bunch of fantasy dorks recognizes your inspiration) is probably going to do more for your sessions than taking a brazillion creative writing courses.
>>44393013
Same writefag, won't be available for about 12 hours but haven't forgotten sorry m88
>>44392570
Actually, I'd personally say that branching out is the opposite of what you should do. Hone the spirit of your preferred one or two genres. Really consider how many writers are known for their diversity. Now compare that to the pool of writers that did what they did best.
>>44392570
>I want to become a better writer.
Then read, that's the best way to become a better writer, read. Read some Jack London, Zane Grey, Clarke or Tolkien. Read about adventures or Sci-Fi, hell even read some biology books about several different animals to make some awesome beasts.
Another thing to do is write snippets, or blurbs of a story, like a though or action and expand from there. Go to the Storytime threads Chronicler does every week and pick an image and write a scene about that. you have to crawl, walk and then run if you want to become a better writer.
>>44397809
Man I don't know many people that read Zane Grey anymore.
Tells a damned good western adventure.
>>44395588
Writing is not about sticking to the structure. Writing is about being able to create good elements to plaster onto your structure. Writing characters, places and general history is as bread and butter to a game master as it is to a novelist. The only real difference is that novelists can afford to be very specific because they are working with a system of defined elements, while a game master has to juggle his work around his players, and must remain non-specific and be able to do quick and dirty conversion of his material as players alter the structure of the narrative. A writer can go into loving detail about his Dread Keep. A game master must be able to relocate his Dread Keep from not!Ireland to not!Al-Andalus if his players decide to steal a ship instead of following the trail of murdered hookers.
>>44392570
How do you write gud?
Step 1. Read good writing. if unsure what this constitutes, look up literary greats. Hard to go wrong with shit that was good enough for a bunch of do-nothing English majors to argue about in the dirt and write research paper after research paper about.
Step 2. Write.
Step 3. Realize what you just wrote was shit. Continue writing.
Step 4. Repeat, Repeat, Repeat
Step 5. Everyone will tell you that your writing is good now. If you did step 3 properly, you won't believe them. Ever. As soon as you put pen to paper you will hate yourself.
Step 6. Realize every truly good writer hates their own work. Begin drinking
Step 7. Do not kill yourself. This is the most difficult step. Many writers fail at it (RIP Hemmingway)
OP here, thank you guys for all your feedback. I do read quite a bit, and mechanically, I have a fairly solid grasp of what a decent story needs. Just igniting that special spark is insanely difficult, which is why I feel like I'm standing in front of a wall right now. I have the story, I have the words, the characters, the places, I just can't make it come alive.
>>44398226
I'd say I'm at step 3 right now. Whenever I write something I consider decent, I read it again a day later and ask myself what the fuck I was thinking when I wrote this.
>>44392570
Well your writing sucks ass if your post is any indication. Adverbs are the enemy, don't trust them. There are some basic conventions of storytelling and grammar you need to familiarize yourself with before you get too invested in any serious writing. Do not Google "creative writing tips," because you will get wishy-washy self help from people who claim to be writers. There is no secret to it. Any writer you could name gives the same advice: "Read. Write." Anything beyond that is arguing details. Want to branch out into other kinds of plots? Find a writer specializing in the plot you're interested in and read everything they've ever written. Invest in short story collections and local writing groups. The former is to familiarize yourself with simple characterization and quick development, the latter is for easy pussy.
As an English teacher, it's hard for me to get excited about writing the way I did when I was in college. I teach 16-year-olds whose only exposure to literature is celebrity tweets. At 16 they know none of the parts of speech. Their writing is atrocious and it's affecting my own efforts. Before I was a teacher, I wrote technical manuals, which also affected my personal style.
You must immerse yourself in the style you wish to emulate. Do not become trapped in the self-defeating quest for originality - meet interesting people, do interesting things, and find ways to translate those moments onto the page. Good luck.
>>44398722
There is no such thing as a special spark. You're externalizing the excitement of good storytelling. The thrill you get when you read a terrific story is not the result of a "spark," and you should divest yourself from that line of thought immediately. Good things are the result of soul-crushing labor. Writing is no different.
>>44397884
I found several hardback books in an old family chest my grandfather had. Best treasure trove ever, even found a bear-claw necklace that belonged to him.
>>44392570
>/tg/, I want to become a better GM. And by that I mean: I want to become a better writer.
You have failed your players.
They do not exist to be the audience for your story.
