Blog Session Zero - An Introduction

Welcome to The Novel Game Master. I'm a sci-fi and fantasy author who happens to love running and playing in tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs). As an author, I spend a lot of time thinking about plot, narrative arcs, characters, and other elements of fiction. As a game master (GM), I think a lot about how to create fun and memorable stories with my players. My goal with this blog is to create a space where I can experiment with ideas and approaches to bring the two together.

TTRPGs are not novels, films, or video games and are a very different storytelling medium from traditional media because the story happens collaboratively, live, at the table. But some of the tools and techniques from the author’s toolbox can be leveraged at the gaming table to create a more fun and engaging narrative experience. This blog will focus on testing those tools and techniques at the table, as well as approaches that are unique to TTRPGs, such as emergent storytelling or node-based scenario design.

And because TTRPGs are so different from traditional storytelling media, there are a number of pitfalls and story traps that can arise, such as the tyranny of plot. This blog will explore these topics and ways of solving for them.

In addition to practical tools and techniques, I like to think about philosophical concepts in gaming, such as considering different storytelling approaches through the lens of cultures of play like the OSR or neo-trad, or examining the roles that rules and rulings play in the space of TTRPGs and how shared expectations shape our creativity.

This blog will include topics on Dungeons & Dragons, because so many GMs start there and because there is a rich vein of storytelling culture in D&D, but will also examine many other games and different cultures of play. And learning new games can help us bring a fresh lens and new ideas to our old favorites.

The history of TTRPGs is a dialogue between different tables and different games, sharing ideas, reframing game mechanics in new circumstances, testing, discarding, and iterating. The best ideas on this blog I probably swiped from someone else, so you will often find here links to other great blogs, games, and videos. 

This blog will also include tools you can use at the table: NPCs, random tables, plot hooks, campaign ideas, and more, freshly plucked from my brain and deposited into yours like some reverse intellect devourer.

I hope you'll accompany me on this journey through strange and distant lands as we experiment with new ways of telling stories together. Follow the blog to get updates when new posts are released, and join the discussion by commenting below, joining my Discord (coming soon), connecting with me on BlueSky, or sharing one of my posts with your adventuring party. 

Finally, if you’re interested in learning about my fiction, check out my author website at shannonrampe.com. Sign up there for a free book and to hear updates about my writing and publishing.

Thanks for reading. Until next time, roll for complication!