In RPG Storytime, the Game is Like the Writers’ Room

 For my series RPG Storytime, I take stories generated out of role playing games, and I make narrated videos and podcasts out of them.  The finished videos tell the stories like audio books or radio dramas.  I tried to tape the games live, but some of my players were shy, and ultimately I’m just not good at improv, so I don’t think they would have come out very good.  I’ve also fixed some dramatic elements before telling the story, so they wind up better.

As a result, an interesting thing has come to my attention.  This method I use makes the role playing game itself the writers’ room.  Rather than the players being performers, like they are in other RPG shows, they are my fellow writers.

Promotions on Social Media

I have definitely not mastered the art of promotions, and I struggle to get people to look at my work.  I love the world we’re in where anyone can release their work to the world, but I would still love to have that advertising staff promoting my books.

Since I am self-publishing, I have to get the word out myself, and I’ve learned a few tricks to at least letting people know my work exists.

First, of course I need to post about it on the three main platforms: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.  I need to remember to put hashtags under everything so people who are surfing those subjects can find them.  However, I haven’t had much luck with those.  I don’t know if I’m doing anything wrong, but for the most part, people don’t find me with hashtags.

Where they seem to find me the most is when I share the posts on Facebook.  First, I make sure to start a page for my projects.  I post updates on those projects fairly regularly; but most importantly, I make posts that are intended to be shared.  I’ve joined a bunch of groups that have people who would be interested in them, and I share these specific posts on them.

Important note, however, when I share these onto groups.  I can’t just share them and run.  I have to say something about them that’s relevant to each group.  So as I’m sharing it, I’ll make a little statement that speaks to the people who are there.  For instance, if I’m sharing Relic Worlds with an Indiana Jones group, I’ll say that this is a series that was inspired by Indiana Jones, and the most recent book is coming out, so I thought you all might like it.

I wish there was some way to do that on Twitter and Instagram; but at least with the latter, I can share it straight from Facebook.

 

The Sudden Rise in Interest of the Starkweather/Fugate Story

I grew up surrounded by the story of the Starkweather murders; in particular Caril Fugate’s part in it.  My grandfather defended Caril when she was 14 years old.  She claimed to have been kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend Charlie Starkweather as he went on a murder spree.  All the evidence backed up her version of events, while Charlie, who said she helped him, changed his story every time he told it.  As such, my grandfather believed Caril and continued to defend her for 18 years until he got her out of prison.

What always angered me about the story was not the various opinions, it was the irrational beliefs of people based on no evidence.  They wanted Caril to be guilty, therefore they believed any rumor that claimed she was.  Most books and documentaries made her out to be the new Bonnie to Charlie’s Clyde.

I finally wrote Pro Bono in response to a lot of these claims.  (I also wrote it to honor my grandfather, whose search for the truth was a big influence on me.)  Many other people have recently learned my frustration during the Trump administration with their “alternative facts.”  This was what I grew up with.

I believe it is because of this struggle for the truth recently that there has been a renewal of interest in the Fugate story.  Now there’s a documentary series being made, another book being published, and I’ve been contacted for interviews recently.

It’s a case that’s more than 70 years old, but will probably keep coming up at times when the truth is at risk.

Current Projects

I have a tendency to overwhelm myself with projects.  The problem is that I have too many things that I want to create before I die.  In fact, I have currently have more ideas in me than I likely have life left.  So I try to get as many of them out as possible.  I’m like a sinking ship with passengers who I’m trying to put onto lifeboats before I sink into the waters of mortality.

Here is a list of the projects I have coming up later this year:

RPG Storytime podcast

Finish RPG Storytime Star Wars

Re-release Pro Bono

Release a companion piece for Pro Bono

Relic Worlds Adventures board game

Relic Worlds RPG

Relic Worlds short stories

Relic Worlds podcast

Command Combat 2^nd edition

Book about Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant

Book about my childhood with Ryan

Star Wars fan fiction

 

We’ll see at the end of the year how much I get done.

Podcast Interviews

I’ve been interviewed on several podcasts recently regarding a couple of my books.  I obviously enjoy being on these because they get the word out there about the books.  But I also just generally appreciate the world we live in now where independent hosts can run their own shows. 

House of Mystery (Two Gun Hart):

https://bit.ly/3eEsz2n

House of Mystery (Relic Worlds):

https://bit.ly/3vssgOV

Most Notorious (Two Gun Hart):

https://bit.ly/3u7nI0k

Relic Worlds Expeditions & Showdown

Relic Worlds has two miniatures games: Expeditions and Showdown.  The reason for this is because Showdown is a more popular system based on Savage Worlds, and I developed the game for them first.  However, because of the nature of the relationship, I’m locked in to whatever they do with their game.  Creating one of my own frees me up, and allows me to change things how I want them; thus Expeditions was born.

Showdown gets more publicity because the system is more well known, while Expeditions has the freedom to do some more creative things.  Plus, players can just get everything they need in one place rather than having to jump between the Savage Worlds site and Relic Worlds.

As a result, though, when I make an expansion pack for one, I have to make it for both, so it takes a little more time.  It’s one reason I haven’t done so up until now.  However, later this year I will be releasing a couple expansions:

Underworld – Crime is relative in the universe of Relic Worlds; it all depends on who you pissed off.  But some characters always live in the shadows, making a living outside of the local laws and serving no government.

Mercenaries – Hired guns and bounty hunters, these are the characters who work for whoever pays the most.  They will include characters like Dillon, who has come up recently in the series.

Relic Worlds – The RPG

While Relic Worlds has a lot of products associated with it, the one I’m most excited about right now is the role playing game that I’m developing for it.

What I’ve always loved about RPGs is the story element of it.  Players create characters to run around in the world generated by a game master.  In this case, those stories can be uploaded onto the website for everyone to read, and some will be chosen to be canon; part of the Relic Worlds universe.

I’ve been play testing the system and I think I have the mechanics down.  I’ll soon be putting it all into rulebook form, and later this year, I’ll be sending it out to the world to be play tested there.