Re: [DL] adventure writing tips/help?

[Ross Coburn <coburn@sympatico.ca>]

s at neko@evolove.net wrote:

> Hello everyone,
> 
> just wondering if anyone had any sites which have resources on how to write
> adventures. Structure, drama and so forth. I have a few ideas but I can
> never get them fleshed out satisfactorily.

Well, I usually work with the ol' W5 in mind:

Who is involved in the adventure,
What is happening,
Where is it happening,
When did/does it happen,
Why did/does it happen (and what can the posse do about it?)

Then I flesh it out from there.

One thing I try to remember is that adventures are not often linear; players
have an uncanny knack for missing the blatantly obvious, but picking up on
the incredibly subtle, to say nothing of charging off after red herrings
(real or imagined) at the drop of a stetson.  I try to make everything cause
and effect, in short.

Then, for longer stories, there's the good ol' Three Act Play to consider
for structure, which has worked since the ancient Greeks, if not before, and
still sells just about every novel or blockbuster out there:

Act 1: We set the scene and introduce the characters, as well as get some
kind of sympathy for them from our audience.  We establish the situation.

Act 2: Things look really bleak for Our Hero(es), as he/they get squeezed
into a really tight spot.

Act 3: The hero(es) rally, and all is saved or wrapped up.

This is a gross simplification, of course, but I find that it works just
fine.


-- 
Ross Coburn
coburn@sympatico.ca