Introspective
(faint sound of singing in background, and a small light being clicked on.)
...shake yo' groove thang, baby, shake yo' groove thang, yea yea...
(fade into a brisk Spring morning, -7 degrees outside, with a chance of freezing rain throughout the day. Somewhere, a dog barks. A baby fiddles with the buttons on the television six feet away, as the host takes a long pull of his first coffee, cracks his knuckles, and stares groggy-eyed at the halcyon glow of the monitor.)
Morning, kids. Welcome again to Spec's Friday Dance-stravaganza. Today we're going to examine some of your most common questions surrounding the host of our show, yours truly. Later, we'll get back into the normal swing of things, with the usual book and art updates.
Our first few questions come over the Hotmail wire.
Dear Spec:
Your daughter is the most beautiful animal in the universe... are you also as gorgeous, or does Winnie's awesomeness come from her mother's side of the family?
Thanks,
(Name Withheld)
Good question. First, let me say that you're right about Winnie. She is, as you say, made of awesome. As for her looks, I must tell you that the curly hair that you see comes from me, as does her complexion -- so yes, I'm cute, too. The eyes and smile come from her mother, though. Thanks for writing.
Dear Spec:
Are you a writer, or an artist, or an all-round creative type, or what the hell?
Thanks,
Ed
Well, Ed, I think all of us here in the Great Digital Expanse are all of those things, in some measure. As for me, I like to think of myself as an "imagineer". I get an idea, and express it in the best medium required. Sometimes it's a book, or a photograph, or a painting, or a cartoon. I dabble in everything, so I don't pigeonhole my talent. Thanks for asking, I appreciate it.
Dear Spec:
What's the deal with the ranting? Are you that mean to people in real life? Because if you are, how are you not in a body cast a lot of the time?
Angry Joe
Good heavens, no. I couldn't possibly say to people the things I say here. I rant in my journal because I spend a lot of time observing how truly stupid a lot of people are, and it makes me feel disappointed that they aren't as astute as they should be -- but I usually swallow my anger until I can vent it safely. Truth be known, I'm trying really hard to avoid ranting in my LJ as often as I did previously, because it's getting to the point where I'm starting to become known for that, rather than anything else. "Angry Bastard" isn't the kind of thing I want at the top of my digital resume.
Dear Spec:
Do you still work on Wraith stuff, despite recent events? If so, what's next on the agenda? If not, do you miss it?
Frothing Zombie #32
I do miss it, quite a bit actually. When you pour so much of yourself into something, and then the end product of what you've done is put in chains and locked away, it's more than just a disappointment -- it's a note from the creators of the game that your effort, time and affection for their game is the equivalent of iron sulfide -- it's shiny and pretty, but ultimately not worth anything to them.
As for future Wraith work, I'd like to do a completely different game that deals with ghosts in a "world of darkness"... but it wouldn't be Wraith. Too many of the game's concepts and ideas would have to be gutted and rebuilt from the ground up... so I think I'd rather just stay here as a repository of advice, with maybe the odd essay here and there.
We're running out of time, so I'll read two more questions before signing off.
Dear Spec:
What the hell is GREY, and what's next, when that's done?
Drooling Fanboy
GREY is an rpg about aliens. It's a standalone game, in that it doesn't have any little books that supplement it. Instead, it's probably going to be part of something I call a "cluster project"; rather than a core book with a pile of little supplements, there are a number of 'core books' that act as cross-supplements to each other, but stand on their own if you want to run them by themselves. Unlike the World of Darkness 1.0 stuff, you're not getting a mixed message that says both "crossover is discouraged" and "crossover is possible". There is no crossover with these books -- it's all one place, where the level of detail you want depends on how many books you carry, and you're always getting a complete picture of the world, without any rules conflict.
Also, GREY and the other books will explore variations on the 'dieselpunk' genre, which I can't really go into here. If you want to have exclusive coverage of my thinking on all of this crazy game stuff, specs_attic is where it all happens, in random bits and snippets.
Dear Spec:
What the hell with the "Day XX"? How long have you been on the patch, exactly, and how many days do you have left?
Surgeon General
Officially, today is Day 55. I have fifteen days left before I don't have to wear these itchy little bastards anymore, and I'm proud of myself for not cheating in all of the time that's passed.
Thanks to everyone for writing, and thanks to our readers for joining me today.
Next week we'll take an in-depth tour of the inside of my refrigerator, and find out once and for all exactly what the hell is in that covered plastic container that I've been so afraid to open.
(sound of a light being clicked off, and a door closing.)
...shake yo' groove thang, baby, shake yo' groove thang, yea yea...
(fade into a brisk Spring morning, -7 degrees outside, with a chance of freezing rain throughout the day. Somewhere, a dog barks. A baby fiddles with the buttons on the television six feet away, as the host takes a long pull of his first coffee, cracks his knuckles, and stares groggy-eyed at the halcyon glow of the monitor.)
Morning, kids. Welcome again to Spec's Friday Dance-stravaganza. Today we're going to examine some of your most common questions surrounding the host of our show, yours truly. Later, we'll get back into the normal swing of things, with the usual book and art updates.
Our first few questions come over the Hotmail wire.
Dear Spec:
Your daughter is the most beautiful animal in the universe... are you also as gorgeous, or does Winnie's awesomeness come from her mother's side of the family?
Thanks,
(Name Withheld)
Good question. First, let me say that you're right about Winnie. She is, as you say, made of awesome. As for her looks, I must tell you that the curly hair that you see comes from me, as does her complexion -- so yes, I'm cute, too. The eyes and smile come from her mother, though. Thanks for writing.
Dear Spec:
Are you a writer, or an artist, or an all-round creative type, or what the hell?
Thanks,
Ed
Well, Ed, I think all of us here in the Great Digital Expanse are all of those things, in some measure. As for me, I like to think of myself as an "imagineer". I get an idea, and express it in the best medium required. Sometimes it's a book, or a photograph, or a painting, or a cartoon. I dabble in everything, so I don't pigeonhole my talent. Thanks for asking, I appreciate it.
Dear Spec:
What's the deal with the ranting? Are you that mean to people in real life? Because if you are, how are you not in a body cast a lot of the time?
Angry Joe
Good heavens, no. I couldn't possibly say to people the things I say here. I rant in my journal because I spend a lot of time observing how truly stupid a lot of people are, and it makes me feel disappointed that they aren't as astute as they should be -- but I usually swallow my anger until I can vent it safely. Truth be known, I'm trying really hard to avoid ranting in my LJ as often as I did previously, because it's getting to the point where I'm starting to become known for that, rather than anything else. "Angry Bastard" isn't the kind of thing I want at the top of my digital resume.
Dear Spec:
Do you still work on Wraith stuff, despite recent events? If so, what's next on the agenda? If not, do you miss it?
Frothing Zombie #32
I do miss it, quite a bit actually. When you pour so much of yourself into something, and then the end product of what you've done is put in chains and locked away, it's more than just a disappointment -- it's a note from the creators of the game that your effort, time and affection for their game is the equivalent of iron sulfide -- it's shiny and pretty, but ultimately not worth anything to them.
As for future Wraith work, I'd like to do a completely different game that deals with ghosts in a "world of darkness"... but it wouldn't be Wraith. Too many of the game's concepts and ideas would have to be gutted and rebuilt from the ground up... so I think I'd rather just stay here as a repository of advice, with maybe the odd essay here and there.
We're running out of time, so I'll read two more questions before signing off.
Dear Spec:
What the hell is GREY, and what's next, when that's done?
Drooling Fanboy
GREY is an rpg about aliens. It's a standalone game, in that it doesn't have any little books that supplement it. Instead, it's probably going to be part of something I call a "cluster project"; rather than a core book with a pile of little supplements, there are a number of 'core books' that act as cross-supplements to each other, but stand on their own if you want to run them by themselves. Unlike the World of Darkness 1.0 stuff, you're not getting a mixed message that says both "crossover is discouraged" and "crossover is possible". There is no crossover with these books -- it's all one place, where the level of detail you want depends on how many books you carry, and you're always getting a complete picture of the world, without any rules conflict.
Also, GREY and the other books will explore variations on the 'dieselpunk' genre, which I can't really go into here. If you want to have exclusive coverage of my thinking on all of this crazy game stuff, specs_attic is where it all happens, in random bits and snippets.
Dear Spec:
What the hell with the "Day XX"? How long have you been on the patch, exactly, and how many days do you have left?
Surgeon General
Officially, today is Day 55. I have fifteen days left before I don't have to wear these itchy little bastards anymore, and I'm proud of myself for not cheating in all of the time that's passed.
Thanks to everyone for writing, and thanks to our readers for joining me today.
Next week we'll take an in-depth tour of the inside of my refrigerator, and find out once and for all exactly what the hell is in that covered plastic container that I've been so afraid to open.
(sound of a light being clicked off, and a door closing.)