Some of my favorite stories have been ruined because they’ve gone on too long. Even stories I’ve been lukewarm about have taken a turn for the abysmal when more story has been tacked on when it wasn’t needed. It’s so common that it’s been dubbed “Sequelitis” by the Tropers. It’s informed some of the decisions… Continue reading Story's End
Tag: warcraft
The Fine Art of the Catherd
I’ve been in therapy quite a bit in my adult life. You’re shocked. I can tell. One of the most effective pieces of advice I was given by a therapist involved dealing with the internal mechanisms of my brain. Specifically, the phenomenon she called “racing thoughts.” Basically, if a notion came into my head or… Continue reading The Fine Art of the Catherd
Checkered Flags Ahead
It’s important to have goals, in just about everything you do. The somewhat tricky part is that not everything will have defined goals laid out for you. The deadlines of a dayjob, the billing dates of utilities, the expiration on a gallon of milk – these give us tangible goals. Other goals aren’t usually as… Continue reading Checkered Flags Ahead
Remembering Why I Play
My wife’s paladin: All this and brains, too. I have a tendency to take my games seriously. Like James T. Kirk, I don’t like to lose. I tend to find being on the wrong side of a die roll or an enemy stratagem to be very frustrating. But rather than taking the opportunity to learn… Continue reading Remembering Why I Play
Azeroth is my Gym
Why don’t you come with me, little girl, on a magic carpet dragon ride? I’m going to let you in on a little secret. With a few exceptions, I’m not entirely focused on World of Warcraft when I’m playing it. The aforementioned exception is the dungeons & raids. I stay focused in there. Mostly because… Continue reading Azeroth is my Gym
Never Fear Starting Over
As more buzz, news and rumors emerge regarding Cataclysm (including some very interesting coverage by The Escapist), a thought has occurred to me. It was only reinforced by the experience I had over the weekend into last night that will become public some time in the next 24-48 hours, to say nothing of writing “The… Continue reading Never Fear Starting Over
Professionals Have Standards
I’m getting old. There used to be a time when I let things slide. Mediocrity would slip right by me and I wouldn’t even notice. Or maybe I’d wave at it. My point is, I didn’t have standards. What I did was good, regardless of how good it actually was. Looking back, I shouldn’t have… Continue reading Professionals Have Standards
Exploring Inspiration
We get inspiration from a variety of places. It might not even be intentional. We catch sight of something, hear a snippet of conversation or music, and suddenly our mind is off on an unexpected tangent. Inspiration runs away with our concentration, laughs at our attempts to focus and taunts us with ideas and dreams… Continue reading Exploring Inspiration
Warcraft RPers: You're Doing It Wrong.
I’ve touched on this briefly in this post and must once again point you fine folks in the direction of Warcraft Sues to give you an idea of what the hell I’m talking about. I’m going to rant a bit, and that means there’ll be some naughty words. Consider the cut below the metaphorical covering… Continue reading Warcraft RPers: You're Doing It Wrong.
Mind the Lore
So Blizzard’s having this contest and I wrote something for it. Given that this is a piece of fiction written within an established universe it is, in essence, a work of fan fiction. Now there’s a lot of fan fiction, from the drabbles that put Harry Potter in bed with Draco Malfoy to the novels… Continue reading Mind the Lore
