Something I learned about myself

Back a few months ago, I put one of my goals for the year was to regularly write a serial story.  The idea was to update the story every other week.  The last time I updated it was February 6th.

I sat down multiple times to update it, but I had zero motivation to do so, and the reason why is what I learned about myself. 

I do not dislike writing creatively and I do enjoy it to a degree.  However, I can not really say that I like it a lot either.  Given the limited amount of time I have in a week to do "fun" stuff I would rather play a board game, play a video game or read much more than I want to write.  What I discovered is that I LOVE to create a story, but I do not care a whole lot about actually writing the story. 

You see, I already knew what was going to happen to Dirk Sullivan.  A couple of the details may be foggy, but for the most part I know how the Death Blossom story is going to end.  I had a ton of fun crafting that story in my head.  However, the actual process of putting the story onto paper is kind of tedious.  I know that is part of the writing process, and just like an athlete pushes through the pain in training to get to the finished project, a writer is suppose to push through the tedium to get to the finished project.  I don't want to do that though.  The finished project is not worth it to me.  

That being said, I still love to create stories, and what I have realized (especially as I prepare for Gen Con) is the best venue for me to create stories is Role Playing Games.  As a RPG gamemaster I get to create the backbone of a story.  I craft the story, and then work collaboratively with the players to feel in the details of the story.  The last time I actively played a RPG was back in college, but after I get through the craziness of the summer I am going to seriously look into the possibility of getting back into it.  I have no idea how to go about doing this, but it is worth giving a shot.  I do enjoy creating stories, and I do not want to give up on that. 


For those who really are curious, here is a brief synopsis of how the rest of the Dirk Sullivan story goes.  Dirk discovers that Eddie the Rottweiler is working with philanthropist William Newhouse to abduct and transport homeless transients out of the city.  Dirk discovers these people are being shipped to Brazil, and he flies his plane down there to discover what is going on.  In Brazil he follows Newhouse's trail into the amazon and discovers some of the homeless people he watch get abducted.  Only these people are now mindless husks trying to kill him.  If you read the story thus far, you know why they are mindless husks is because they have been infected by a genetically modified fungus.  Yes, they are plant zombies.  You really should not be surprised that I was ultimately writing a zombie story.  Anyway, Newhouse captures Dirk and explains that he is looking for the key to life beyond death, to immortality.  Newhouse then tries to infect Dirk with the fungus, but he escapes.  How he escapes this is the one major detail I never worked out.  Anyway, Dirk then fights Newhouse and defeats him.  In the process of the fight, Newhouse gets infected with his own fungus.  Dirk creates an explosion to destroy Newhouse's fungus facility and escapes on a boat into the Amazon.  The story ends by revealing  a zombified Newhouse survived the explosion and wonders into the rain forest, his immortality achieved. 

Gen Con Events :)

Gen Con is one of the highlights of my year.  Along with open gaming and a huge dealer hall, one of the big draws of Gen Con is getting to play in events.  These events allow me to compete (such as last year's Race for the Galaxy Tournament where I finished second) and play games I would not normally get to play (like miniatures and RPGs). 

Back in January, I posted a list of things I want to do this year, and that  list is off to a great start.  One of the things on that list was run events at Gen Con, and I am going to be able to do that because the events I submitted were approved!

So if you are going to Gen Con this year, you should play in at least one of my events.  I am running a Pulp fiction super hero Role playing game and a Wild West miniatures game.  If you are not going to Gen Con, then sometime between now and August, you should play one of these two games with me so that I can practice running them.

Here are the descriptions of  what I am running: 

Event Title: Showdown at High Noon
Game ID: HMN1118329 (Historical Miniatures)

Start Time: Thursday @ 6 PM
Duration: 3 Hours
System: Tombstones n' Tumbleweeds, 1st Edition
Description:
In the old and lawless wild west, adventure is never far. A gang of bandits has ridden into town for a stick up at the State Bank. At the same time the local sheriff has rounded up a posse to go huntin'. The outlaws and lawmen emerge in the streets at the same time as the clock strikes noon. Which side will you choose? This game will use Disposable Miniatures from Precis Intermedia.


Event Title: The Society of Crimefighters
Game ID: RPG1118331 (role playing game)

Start Time: Sunday @ 11 AM
Duration: 4 hours
System: Two Fisted Tales, Revised
Description:
It is 1938, and the Society of Crime Fighters is doing what it can to fight for justice and be a beacon of light in a dark time. However, when the Society finds out about a crisis on a secret government Zeppelin, their skills will be tested as they get dragged into a plot that takes them to the heart of Nazi Germany! This game of high action and adventure evokes the feelings of pulp fiction and golden age super heroes.

Game Tournament

Last year, Abigail and I played through all of our games.  In the middle of that process, she had the idea of doing a tournament and that is what we did this year.  Last night, we finished the first round.  It took us a 2 1/2 months to play through 64 games. 

I already wrote out the results.  It took a long time so I would greatly appreciate it if you would follow the link  Thanks! 
One Couples Personal Geek Madness-round-1