Regular RTD rules, except for a few things.
Actions
Actions, instead of being acted by seperate characters, are all done by one character. So remember: all actions affect the same character! Don't screw over your fellow players and respect their decisions.
Elements
Elements are the integral parts of a story, required for it to work. Every story you write has these, with meters indicating how well it is done: a story with 100 Fun, 70 Character and 10 Plot is probably a really cool thrillride with fun characters that doesn't do anything too surprising, while a story with 100 Plot, 40 Fun, and 20 Character is probably a relatively fun story with an utterly amazing twist that suffers a lack of interesting characters.
Fun
Fun is how exciting, funny, terrifying, and cool a story is. This usually appeals to the baser emotions (Happiness, fear, humor) but that doesn't mean it's puerile. Used for Scenes, as every bit in story needs a basic direction. Gets the most use in the genres of action, horror, and fantasy.
Characters
Character is how charming, intriguing, likable, and intelligent the characters in the story are. This generally requires an eye for character traits, good dialog, and a certain type of wit. Used for Characters, as why should you be interested in the characters if they aren't interesting? Gets the most use in drama, romance, and comedy.
Plot
Plot is how complex, surprising, interesting, and shocking a storyline is. This is respected by critics, but you don't have to please them all the time so don't feel this is essential. Used for Storylines, as the story requires surprising twists and themes that ring true. Gets the most use in sci-fi, mysteries, and thrillers.
Writing The Book
With elements in hand, here's how writing the book actually works. A book is measured on various numerical strengths. These are where the three elements are used. Joan's skills add a base to this: if Joan has a Character skill of 3, she will start out with 15 Character Points. How do you increase them? Well, you increase them individually by creating parts in a story. Parts are Scenes, Character Building, and High Concepts. They are created by describing the Part (Which takes a day of thinking about said part), followed by me rolling for effectiveness.
1: It really doesn't work. In fact, the work almost suffers for it. 5 points is detracted from the element used in it.
2: It just doesn't fit. The part isn't created.
3: The part doesn't work as well as you thought. 5 points is added to the element used in it.
4: The part fulfills it's purpose. 10 points is added to the element used in it.
5: The part works perfectly. 20 points is added to the element used in it.
6: OH GOD. How did you even do something this awful? 10 points is detracted from the element used in this. I mean, Jesus Christ.
Here are the types of Part you can use.
Scenes (Used for the element of Fun) are cool moments in a story. Generally, these are impressive fights, terrifying sections, or funny jokes. These get listed in the Crowning Moment of [INSERT HERE] pages of TV Tropes.
Character Building (Used for the element of Character) adds to characters and makes you think of them in a different way. Generally, these are establishing character moments, interesting conversations, and character development. How important is this? Well, notice how Vaas from Far Cry 3 has about 20 minutes of screentime and isn't even the main villain, yet everyone loves him?
High Concepts (Used for the element of Plot) are integral parts of the story that aren't direct like Scenes. Generally, these are sudden revelations, philosophical ideas, and concepts that make your head spin. When people talk about your book, they will probably describe it "Hey, it's that book with the people who X and that thing that Ys".
Writing Speed & Problems
Writing is a process that takes time. At the start, you can only write 5 pages at most a day. Even then, it's variable. When you're actively writing, a 1d5 is rolled. The result is the amount of pages you write for the day. Of course, sometimes problems come up. Every turn spent writing, a roll is made. If that fails, you get a Problem and you can't continue. Problems stop you in your tracks and force you to think your way out. These can be plot holes, but just as often they are situations where you feel like you have dead-ended yourself. For example, many writers have trouble figuring out how their characters dispose of a body without being caught. There are three ways of dealing with a problem.
1: Come up with an explanation. This takes up a day, and you the player have to supply the solution for the problem in your post. When you supply the solution, a roll is made. If it succeeds, the story continues. If it doesn't, you are still stuck.
2: Scrap pages. If you are really trapped, you can scrap the pages that led up to this problem. This means that a random number of pages are removed from your story. Of course, depending on the problem's severity, you could end up having to get rid of the whole story.
3: Pull a solution out of your ass. Give a handwave and continue as if the problem never happened. This is the easy way out, but will subtract from one of your element meters for your story (As it's either out-of-character, a really crap pay-off for a suspenseful scene, or makes such little sense that it takes you out of the story entirely).
Finishing It
When you finish a story (Reach the amount of pages needed), then all the element meters are added up. The result is Overall Quality. The Overall Quality is how good the novel is in general: the editor will demand a minimum amount of overall quality or he will not pay you for the novel. If you do meet it, then you get paid. Simple as that, right?
This is an RTD about writing a novel. You play as one of the mental personae (Called muses, essentially the adult version of an imaginary friend) of a struggling, young ghostwriter desperately trying to make end's meat. This is essentially Everyone Is John crossed with the film Adaptation. Essentially, everyone is controlling the same character. Expect a roleplay-heavy experience with some creative writing. Five people should be good for now!
Name: What is the name of the muse? Can be absurd, simple, or mundane. It just has to be appropriate for the muse in question.
Psych Profile: Give us a description of the character, in appearance and in personality. Do state what the Muse is taking the form of: is it her visualization of an aspect of Joan, a character she came up with that stuck around for a long time, or someone she knew that had a very large emotional impact on her?
Favorite Aspect of Writing: Choose either Character (Writing characters and dialog), Plot (Writing storylines and plot twists), or Fun (Writing funny scenes and awesome events). This will increase Joan's skill with that by 1.
Favorite Genre: Choose your favorite genre of writing. Writing in this genre will get you a +1 to actions within it. These do not stack with other players.
Author
Topic: The Muses of Joan Bentson: Today Is The Last Day Of Your Previous Life (Read 2197 times)