Category Archives: Writing

Player’s Handbook, Gamemaster’s Guide, User’s Manual

Posted on October 29, 2014 by robertpkruger

This winter quarter I’ll be teaching a class in JavaScript, and while driving around town today I mused about how I might impress my students with the power of open-source libraries. This led me to a train of geeky associations … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Games, Writing | Leave a comment

Joe Midlist, the End of an Archetype

Posted on October 16, 2014 by robertpkruger

The following is from a post I made several months ago in a Facebook group I started. I founded the ebook company ElectricStory.com and have run it for fourteen years, publishing a few top authors in fantasy and science fiction, … Continue reading →

Posted in Social Media, Writing | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Half-Baked Guide to Better D&D, Part 4: Strangers Meet in a Foreign Land

Posted on October 15, 2014 by robertpkruger

Imagination Against Literalism Yesterday, I had a typically good talk with my friend Jonathan Tweet, lead designer of the D&D 3.0 rules and co-designer of 13th Age. He’s trying to get local atheists to form a community based on science … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Games, Writing | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Half-Baked Guide to Better D&D, Part 3: Mystery & Mastery

Posted on October 9, 2014 by robertpkruger

Computer games are not roleplaying games. A computer game circumscribes the possible interactions between the players and the environment, including the monsters. As you get better at being a DM, you act less like a computer. As you get better … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Games, Monsters, Writing | Tagged | 2 Comments

The Half-Baked Guide to Better D&D, Part 2: Beginner’s Mind

Posted on October 6, 2014 by robertpkruger

Dirk the Thief has been down on his luck. He’s worried about where his next meal is coming from. He needs a score. At the local inn, a shady guy is recruiting adventurers to plunder the monster-haunted multi-level Labyrinth of … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Games, Monsters, Writing | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Half-Baked Guide to Better D&D, Part 1

Posted on October 5, 2014 by robertpkruger

The title of this series probably needs work, but I did give it more than two-seconds’ thought; I gave it ten-seconds’ thought. All guides to “better D&D” are going to be half-baked, because there are so many variables to consider: … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Games, Writing | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Craft and Art(?) of Roleplaying Games

Posted on October 4, 2014 by robertpkruger

Since I wrote my essay for Baen early this year, I’ve continued to navel-gaze about rpgs. I’m far from having exhausted the topic for myself. Here are some of the strongest conclusions about them that I’ve arrived at:

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Evo Psych, Games, Writing | Tagged | Leave a comment

Artificial Intelligence Run Amok

Posted on October 2, 2014 by robertpkruger

Just now on Facebook, one of the many science-fiction writers on my friends list asked how likely a fully conscious AI would be to copy itself and then turn on us. I’d never given it much thought until now. Here’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Evolution, Monsters, Writing | 5 Comments

“On the Nose” and the Value of Play

Posted on September 3, 2014 by robertpkruger

Lucius introduced me to the phrase “on the nose” in criticizing a passage I wrote: “In this bit where the guy’s wife is asking him questions, it’s too on-the-nose. People don’t usually talk like this, pursuing a straight-line goal. They … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Evo Psych, Games, Lucius Shepard, Writing | 4 Comments

Now You See It . . . Now You Still See It

Posted on September 2, 2014 by robertpkruger

I’ve been preoccupied the last couple of months with uprooting from the Seattle area and relocating in central Oregon, trying to build a new social network, and doing a bit of work retraining. I’ll pick up the account of my … Continue reading →

Posted in Lucius Shepard, Writing, Writing that Moves | Tagged , , | 3 Comments