The Finding of the Way (Part 1)
Guys. I'm writing from Wayfinder.
I figured since I actually have internet this week, I'd take the opportunity to do a day-by-day blogging of how a game actually comes about. Yes, I'm running my third game this week :D
HOWEVER. This time is different. I'm running it at Unison (one of the Wayfinder day camps) which means that instead of dealing with a large cast of older people I know, I'm dealing with a smaller cast of younger kids I don't know (I do know most of the staff I'm working with though, and at least half of them are people I've known for several years). Still, the general principles of game-running remain basically the same.
Yesterday was spent mainly being driven around to places: first a bus to Kingston, then a car to Finale to hang out with the main Wayfinder peoples for an hour or so, then to dinner, then to the Wayfinder office to get my casting questionnaires and other important things printed out (I had all the main things printed out, but some things needed copies), then to Todd's house (the guy I'm lodging with this week, since Unison people aren't allowed to lodge at Finale this year for some reason).
Then today happened. The kids behaved about how I expected: being about 9-12-year-olds, they were mostly cooperative but took longer to settle down and didn't always listen to directions. On the other hand, being Story Head (PAID POSITION, FUCK YEAH) and not a workshop teacher, I don't have to spend that much time worrying about handling them. I expect this is going to change drastically on Wednesday when the night game is actually run. For today, I only needed their attention at the very end of the day when I did Story Intro (explaining the world they'd be playing in and handing out casting questionnaires). Tomorrow's going to be the same, since I won't be announcing casting until the very end of the day again (not my scheduling decision, but I'm not complaining). To be honest, the kids didn't seem particularly enthusiastic about my game The Pygmalion Dollhouse, which actually doesn't surprise me, considering how little the Story Intro reveals and how not-action-packed (and how!) the teaser was. Also, I'd never intended this to be a game for this particular audience. But oh well, we'll see how it goes when the actual game is run. At least my fellow staffers appreciate it.
To be continued...
I figured since I actually have internet this week, I'd take the opportunity to do a day-by-day blogging of how a game actually comes about. Yes, I'm running my third game this week :D
HOWEVER. This time is different. I'm running it at Unison (one of the Wayfinder day camps) which means that instead of dealing with a large cast of older people I know, I'm dealing with a smaller cast of younger kids I don't know (I do know most of the staff I'm working with though, and at least half of them are people I've known for several years). Still, the general principles of game-running remain basically the same.
Yesterday was spent mainly being driven around to places: first a bus to Kingston, then a car to Finale to hang out with the main Wayfinder peoples for an hour or so, then to dinner, then to the Wayfinder office to get my casting questionnaires and other important things printed out (I had all the main things printed out, but some things needed copies), then to Todd's house (the guy I'm lodging with this week, since Unison people aren't allowed to lodge at Finale this year for some reason).
Then today happened. The kids behaved about how I expected: being about 9-12-year-olds, they were mostly cooperative but took longer to settle down and didn't always listen to directions. On the other hand, being Story Head (PAID POSITION, FUCK YEAH) and not a workshop teacher, I don't have to spend that much time worrying about handling them. I expect this is going to change drastically on Wednesday when the night game is actually run. For today, I only needed their attention at the very end of the day when I did Story Intro (explaining the world they'd be playing in and handing out casting questionnaires). Tomorrow's going to be the same, since I won't be announcing casting until the very end of the day again (not my scheduling decision, but I'm not complaining). To be honest, the kids didn't seem particularly enthusiastic about my game The Pygmalion Dollhouse, which actually doesn't surprise me, considering how little the Story Intro reveals and how not-action-packed (and how!) the teaser was. Also, I'd never intended this to be a game for this particular audience. But oh well, we'll see how it goes when the actual game is run. At least my fellow staffers appreciate it.
To be continued...