Digital artwork of an extensive set of brass gears and parts such as could be found on the inside of a particularly intricate clock. This is meant to invoke the idea of things working away out of sight.
Producing the Writing Alchemy Podcast every three week takes up a significant amount of time and energy. However I am working on a number of different projects in between podcast episodes. Many of these are larger projects that I will be completing and releasing over the summer. Since I am excited about these projects, I wanted to tell you a little bit about what they are and what you can look forward to.
Addressing Ableism in Tabletop Role-playing Games: This brand new article series is something that I will be working on periodically as I get inspiration. The first article, Sanity Systems, is finished and a second article on ableist monsters is underway. The goal of this series is to identify ableism in the core content of tabletop role-playing games, briefly discuss the reasons these game elements are a problem, and then focus on identifying a list of options for ways that participants can alter these games to address this ableism.
Magic Goes Awry Beta: As a game system, Magic Goes Awry is still very new. Every time I play it, I think of ways to tweak it or add to it. It is time for some significant adjustments and additions. This is the project I am currently focusing on. The biggest of these changes is that combat is going to become a set of skills. Accompanying this will be changes in many of the Fighter Class abilities, bringing its capability up to be more in line with that of other classes. There will also be some streamlining of character creation and clarification of the rules. I am excited about making this game as engaging, easy to use, and dynamic as possible and I’m happy to be implementing this set of changes.
The Owlbear Reintroduction Program: This is an adventure that I wrote for the Magic Goes Awry system. It draws inspiration from fairy tales, historic medieval culture, and nature, which is combined with elements of classic high fantasy stories in a way that subverts the classic monster slaying adventure trope. I have already run and recorded this game for the Unfamiliar Heroes podcast series. The first episode of this has just been released. Once Magic Goes Awry has been updated to the beta version I will be able to complete and release the text of this adventure.
The Crossroads Setting: Accompanying (or possibly slightly following) the release of The Owlbear Reintroduction Program Adventure will be a set of completed setting documents which give additional depth on the world and provide inspiration for those who prefer to write their own adventures. I am aiming to create a lively, wide-open world with room for diverse cultures and stories. I am drawing on folklore, history, and science to provide some quirky twists on old favorites like trolls, dwarves, and owlbears.
Five Common Harmful Representations of Disability: This is an article I am wring for the Mythcreants blog in which I combine articles from the Trope of the Week Series. This process includes some expanded sections and I am especially excited to share with you the additions I’ve made to Villainous Disability where I talk much more in-depth about the representation of mental illness.
Fairy Tales: “The Wishing Dildo Part 2” is half complete and I am continuing to work on it. I am genuinely excited about the places this story is going, the depth of the character development that is happening in this section, and the silly adventures that are going to happen along the way. Many themes just got started in Part 1 and this story will continue them in a big way.
More Crossroads Adventures: I am currently planning out two more adventures set in Crossroads (with bits and pieces of ideas for many more). The first is “The Haunted Mill,” where a group of adventurers are hired to deal with the dangerous ghost who has been haunting a small town mill. This story draws on both the wild and humorous depictions of hauntings in fairy tales and the idea of ghosts symbolizing the ongoing influence of past events. The second adventure is a school adventure set in The Adventurer’s Academy in which I aim to create wacky school adventures that are set in a supportive learning environment that does not allow bullying.
Thank you all so much for your support. I am really excited about getting all of these projects completed and out into the world!
