KS on writing

[Kevin]

A few thoughts on writing fun

The August 17 issue of Entertainment Weekly had an interesting piece by Stephen King about J.K. Rowling’s latest (and last) Harry Potter book. The line that put a smile on my face was: “Mostly Rowling is just having fun, knocking herself out, and when a good writer is having fun, the audience is almost always having fun too.”

How true, how true. It was nice to see a writer such as Stephen King making such a statement, because I am constantly telling freelancers and beginning writers to relax, cut loose, trust their gut and have fun. I always emphasize the “fun” part with them, because it is absolutely true. If the writer is having fun, he or she is probably doing his best work and the reader will love the material. It may sound trite or obvious, but it’s not, especially not for the inexperienced writer. These guys and gals are worried about their story and characters, about their own writing ability, about the words they choose and about acceptance and failure. That means they start to doubt themselves, they try too hard, overwork their material, overthink every word, and kill their ideas (or at least strangle them a bit) with insecurity and their own thoughts about what they think a writer should be.

Don’t do that. All of you would-be writers out there, whether you dabble with it on-line or for your own enjoyment, or whether you hope to get published some day – don’t do that!

Cut loose, trust your gut, and have fun. Let your imagination take wing and unleash it unfettered and without worry. Don’t try to be what you imagine a writer should be (i.e., overwork it with words and colorful adjectives that actually slows the pacing and buries your ideas in hyperbole), just let it go. Write as fast as the words and ideas come to you. Get the actions and voices and ideas on paper. You can always come back to rewrite and improve it later.

When you find yourself sitting at your computer, grinning like an idiot to yourself, and thinking, “Wow this is awesome.” or “Wow, this will surprise the reader,” or “Wow, the gamers are gonna love this character,” you are on the RIGHT TRACK. Give it more steam and go, baby, go! Think like a Game Master for plot, monsters and villains. Think like a player when you’re creating O.C.C.s, weapons and powers, but ultimately, think about what YOU -- as a player -- would love, want and get excited about. You nail that, and you are on your way.

Odd as it may sound, the writing of every book is different. Some require a ton of research to capture the look and feel of a particular place, era or atmosphere. Some open up new worlds and new experiences. Some are love stories. Some are battles. Occassionally, some are burdens that seem to sit on your chest weighing you down like a 600 pound gorilla until you can find the right approach, idea or angle that makes it fall into place. Some are journeys of discovery or tests of skill. And some books are pure joy that pour out of you like flood water and practically write themselves. But all better have fun and wow factor, or they’ll fall flat.

So there you have it, the secret of Palladium’s success: A dedication to fun. A desire to create books spilling over with imagination, ideas, adventure and FUN.

Sounds simple, I know, but it’s harder than heck to pull off, especially over and over again. It takes a certain mind set and child-like glee at spinning tales, creating worlds, designing heroes and hideous monsters/villains with equal joy, and a desire to make other people smile and say, “wow,” when they read your work.

Thank you, Mr. King for making this simple and vital observation about Ms. Rowling’s wonderful books. Fun. That’s the real magic that powers Harry Potter. It’s the secret ingredient that makes a book great and role-playing games mediums for epic adventures and friendships that last a life time. Fun, imagination and joy spun out in words and built upon ideas. Fun with friends in the shared experience of an RPG adventure. Fun. The secret of good writing, good films and good games.

I love writing and game design, because I have fun with them, and I get joy bringing fun, through my game books, to others. So unleash those imaginations and hang on till the next sourcebook or RPG me and my fellow fun-spinners present for your enjoyment.

Sincerely,
Kevin Siembieda
Publisher, Writer, Artists, Spinner of Adventure and Purveyor of Fun
© Copyright August 29, 2007 Palladium Books Inc. All rights reserved.