Read through the campfire story...last post 22 August, I think. And I'm wondering why no one continued the story. Perhaps I missed the post where you decided to take a break. I think you were doing a good job. In both cases you have an interesting story. You've created some interesting characters.
Anyway, I have been thinking about the concept of the RPG, the campfire story and how it works on a forum board. The biggest problem with the forum as a media for telling multiple-author stories is one of continuity. If I read post #8 and write a segment to follow it, if my segment does not appear until post #11, then confusion results.
In the same way that movies have directors, producers and writers, RPG's have 'dungeon masters' who oversee the flow of the game. To make this work, I propose the following: group writing. Each segment would begin, "Following post #8..." Then the 'game-master' or story-master would pick out the parts that work best together and post them in the Actual Story Thread. That would be story thread #9. Everyone writes their idea to follow that. (Following post #9...) The story-master edits the posts and posts thread #10. To make life easier, the job of story-master could rotate between the various authors. You need to set a 'completed by' date. The story will end on that date, regardless of how much of it has been told. (Unless everyone agrees to continue...)
Your story also has another problem: No one is actually sure what the "outside story" is. No one knows where it's going. And, yes, that's part of the game. But, because most of the poster/writers are new to the game they don't know a lot about character portrayal. This is a very tough aspect of writing. Agatha Christie has to make sure that Poirot does not do anything 'out of character' without good explanation. Same for the comic strip people writing Batman. So, I have a proposal for you:
Start with something simple, where the paradigm and the outcome are known. For example, the Book of Ruth in the Bible. Retell that story, sticking to the Biblical record, but adding to it, making it 'come alive' for your readers. This will give you some practice in character portrayal. If there are many of you, try retelling the story of Joseph. Lots of characters there.
For example: The Story of Ruth. The story-master lists the characters and who writes/plays them. S-M also makes up some extra characters to fill in the plot. Or, as it progresses, S-M announces the need for a new character. Dates need to be set: each writer/character must submit their next post by Wed @ midnight (or whatever date is agreed). Then the S-M posts the edited segment and off you go on the next round.
I think if you work on characters and follow a known plot line you'll have fun. Once you get the character idea down, then try the open plot game. I suggest this because I found both stories suffered from 'lack of direction' in that there were far too many characters and far too many plot ideas.
The character of 'Sherwin' is a great example of a fabulous character. Foster child seeking adoption, has a problem with theft, but like Robin Hood, steals to give to the poor, and is a devout believer in Jesus. A writer can't ask for a better character (can I steal him from you?) But he's one of many really good characters. I, for one, want to know what happens to him. When he is tossed in with a potential older sister, some homeless people, the mayor's son and the girl whose father recently died, her boyfriends, both of whom are named the same, it gets a bit confusing. I can't tell you how many really great ideas I have had to toss out because they ultimately do not fit the story I'm telling.
Finally, do not be afraid to do research. I've had to research the sewer system in Ancient Rome. Ugh. But make your story as real as you can. Google maps lets you look around modern cities/landscapes. It can tell you how far it is from Austin, TX to Liberal, KS. and what both places look like. Most important, write your segments in a word processor. LibreOffice is free. You'll be glad you did.
I do hope you continue. I will check in to see how it is going.
Rejoice Always!
Anyway, I have been thinking about the concept of the RPG, the campfire story and how it works on a forum board. The biggest problem with the forum as a media for telling multiple-author stories is one of continuity. If I read post #8 and write a segment to follow it, if my segment does not appear until post #11, then confusion results.
In the same way that movies have directors, producers and writers, RPG's have 'dungeon masters' who oversee the flow of the game. To make this work, I propose the following: group writing. Each segment would begin, "Following post #8..." Then the 'game-master' or story-master would pick out the parts that work best together and post them in the Actual Story Thread. That would be story thread #9. Everyone writes their idea to follow that. (Following post #9...) The story-master edits the posts and posts thread #10. To make life easier, the job of story-master could rotate between the various authors. You need to set a 'completed by' date. The story will end on that date, regardless of how much of it has been told. (Unless everyone agrees to continue...)
Your story also has another problem: No one is actually sure what the "outside story" is. No one knows where it's going. And, yes, that's part of the game. But, because most of the poster/writers are new to the game they don't know a lot about character portrayal. This is a very tough aspect of writing. Agatha Christie has to make sure that Poirot does not do anything 'out of character' without good explanation. Same for the comic strip people writing Batman. So, I have a proposal for you:
Start with something simple, where the paradigm and the outcome are known. For example, the Book of Ruth in the Bible. Retell that story, sticking to the Biblical record, but adding to it, making it 'come alive' for your readers. This will give you some practice in character portrayal. If there are many of you, try retelling the story of Joseph. Lots of characters there.
For example: The Story of Ruth. The story-master lists the characters and who writes/plays them. S-M also makes up some extra characters to fill in the plot. Or, as it progresses, S-M announces the need for a new character. Dates need to be set: each writer/character must submit their next post by Wed @ midnight (or whatever date is agreed). Then the S-M posts the edited segment and off you go on the next round.
I think if you work on characters and follow a known plot line you'll have fun. Once you get the character idea down, then try the open plot game. I suggest this because I found both stories suffered from 'lack of direction' in that there were far too many characters and far too many plot ideas.
The character of 'Sherwin' is a great example of a fabulous character. Foster child seeking adoption, has a problem with theft, but like Robin Hood, steals to give to the poor, and is a devout believer in Jesus. A writer can't ask for a better character (can I steal him from you?) But he's one of many really good characters. I, for one, want to know what happens to him. When he is tossed in with a potential older sister, some homeless people, the mayor's son and the girl whose father recently died, her boyfriends, both of whom are named the same, it gets a bit confusing. I can't tell you how many really great ideas I have had to toss out because they ultimately do not fit the story I'm telling.
Finally, do not be afraid to do research. I've had to research the sewer system in Ancient Rome. Ugh. But make your story as real as you can. Google maps lets you look around modern cities/landscapes. It can tell you how far it is from Austin, TX to Liberal, KS. and what both places look like. Most important, write your segments in a word processor. LibreOffice is free. You'll be glad you did.
I do hope you continue. I will check in to see how it is going.
Rejoice Always!
