Writers tend to be a very specific breed. We have certain things we really like, things we are comfortable and familiar with, and we like to stick to them. When we write, we aren’t just spewing words onto a bit of paper; we’re creating. Ours is a labor of love, and sometimes that can blind us. Sometimes we get caught in a loop and write the same thing, or we go out of our way to write differently and it sounds disjointed. Today we are talking about the story, the campaign, and the mind directing it all.
Don’t mind him, he’s creative
As DMs, we are often very proud of our works. And rightly so, because we are the ones running the game. Even if the game is not perfect, it is still a better effort than anyone else at the table put forth in running the game. And when it goes well, we feel a real sense of accomplishment that we put together a story and made it work.
Unfortunately, a lot of people begin to take their stories too seriously. They may lose focus that we are playing a game, or that the story is not a tangible accomplishment that you can point at for the rest of your life. This is a fun little game, not your magnum opus. Sometimes, we use DMing (or even playing) to get the emotional validation that we lack in some other area of our life.
Regardless of the exact personal reason, sometimes we DMs take our stories too seriously. We may refuse to let others deviate from it, or take it personally when people criticize a part that doesn’t speak to them.
One of the best things a DM can do is to stop taking DMing so seriously, and to relax about their campaigns. Don’t start just phoning it in, but don’t get so personally attached to the state of the world pre-game. (How could you kill farmer 173? His pregnant wife was going to be introduced in Act 7!)
Imagine if the movie Guardians of the Galaxy had taken itself seriously. It could have still been a sci-fi movie with the same characters, but no humor or self-awareness on the part of the writers at all. Imagine the movie with all of the over-the-top scenes and humor scenes entirely removed. If it had considered itself art instead of entertainment, it would have been an outright terrible movie. But they made sure not to take it seriously, and it turned into something spectacular. Keep this in mind.
What is the target audience for this work?
This is something that @Fiddleback has hammered on in episodes of potelbat, especially in the D&D 5e episodes. This is also a consideration I’ve taken to heart, and have found myself repeating to others.
Before you write, figure out who your audience is.
Is it yourself? Are you writing for you, and hoping the party will find something to enjoy? This can take the form of writing something half-baked and putting forth no real effort. You almost have no audience, except that you’re still writing for yourself so you just get it over with. Or, are you going so far off the creative ledge that your players are now playing spiritual concepts instead of characters, so that you can tell the story about how you ran a fully impressionist campaign?
Are you writing for one member of the party, and fitting the rest in? I call this Sidekick Syndrome. This can happen when you focus on a new player to give them a deeper experience, experienced players with whom you have a history and know what they want, or players who happen to be your significant other or whom you wish would become such. This can happen any time you focus on one player. This is not scene-specific, but campaign specific.
Are you writing for the party even though they want something that’s going to make you miserable to run? This can be a sign of burnout, or of a mismatched setup between DM and party. It can also come from poor communication between the members, where people are assuming what others want.
All of the previous audiences have the chance to be extremely problematic. So what’s the answer? You write for the whole group. This includes the people you’re comfortable with and uncomfortable with, your significant other, the young kid at the table, the grumpy one, and it also includes the DM. Write something everyone has a chance to enjoy. Your job is not to make them enjoy it, but to give everyone an equal chance to engage with it and find something to enjoy. And if you’re not enjoying it, you’re not going to be able to keep coming back week after week with the creative juices flowing.
Okay, now I’m intimidated
Don’t be. Remember that you’re writing so that people are going to have fun. You’re not writing so that your module will be published and everyone in gaming will know your name and call you up to chat. You’re not trying to get a job with gaming companies by proving you can DM. You’re writing so that people have fun. Perhaps there is some pressure to fit within a time frame or create a setup that’s easily accessible in the case of event-play, but the point is still to have fun.
All things must come to an end. This will be my final article writing under the Setup for Success title. Thank you for sticking with me this whole time. It has been an honor to write for the Mad Adventurers Society, and I hope to return sometime soon with a whole new outlook. Until then, look forward to all of the wonderful things that will continue to be put forth on this website. And when you play your games, remember to think about what you’re doing to cultivate the relationships you want to have.