Books, authors and more

I talked about my current writing malaise in my last post. I got some really wonderful commentary and feedback, which I truly appreciated. It had been something like 7 months since I had last posted, and to know people remembered me and cared enough to comment really made my situation seem a little more bearable.

I've fully admitted to being a book worm, a lover of words and a general nerd about reading. For a long time, I read anything I could get my hands on, and generally enjoyed it. As I got older, my taste slowly refined, and I finally figured out that I adore detective stories.

Detective stories, folks- NOT murder mysteries. I can't stand mysteries. I absolutely hate them with a burning, scathing, unbridled and relentless fury. Mysteries drive me crazy. Many of them are formulaic, and a lot of the time they try the Sherlock Holmes/Agatha Christie minute, obscure and irrelevant detail bit as a key to discovering whodunnit. I can't stand that crap.

I prefer detective stories, especially serials. Following a gumshoe along on their adventures both good and bad is like visiting an old friend and seeing what they have been up to since the last visit.

Here's a list of some of may favorite authors, with a list of their books I enjoy, and some commentary about why I like them. I'd love to hear about your favorite friends- I need SOMETHING to do.

[RPG][WOD] Introducing Blood On Fire

The old WOD game ended and a new one has begun. It's set in Savannah, GA, and it's limited to Mages and Werewolves. As the Werewolves were sitting around and creating characters, I had an idea for a character that I really liked.

The idea was fleeting and fickle. It flirted with me, coy and complicated for quite a while. It finally decided to behave, and I started working on it in earnest. While I was giddily writing this lovely little nugget down, the smoke of a more complete concept unraveled fully in my head. It wasn't just ONE character, but three.

As the idea exploded into lots more than what I imagined, it became obvious I had a pack of Werewolves in mind. Whether these Uratha are NPCs in the Savannah game, NPCs in a game I run, or just ideas I never use, they are interesting enough that I thought I'd share.

Blood On Fire is a pack of 3 Uratha in the Georgia area. Their original location was set outside of Fort Stewart, in a yet unnamed semi-rural town. I'm still undecided as to whether I'll keep them there or move them closer to Atlanta.

The pack is comprised of 2 brothers, Trey and Trav; along with Trey's former girlfriend Hilary. They are bound by more than blood; their pack becomes forged by sacrifice and fire.

I will be putting up the write ups for each one fairly soon, I hope.

The State of Darkness

I got an email recently that lamented the lack of posts regarding World of Darkness recently, specifically mentioning wanting to know what ol' Vinnie was doing.

Well, in a word: nothing.

The Austin game wrapped up a little while ago, after the ST decided it had gone pretty much as far as it could. He gave us a couple of weeks' warning so we could work on/out anything we felt needed some kind of resolution, and then we ended the game on a nice, calm note.

Austin is dark, now.

A few weeks ago, a new game emerged in Austin's place. It is run by the same ST  (and has an additional ST to boot), and is set in Savannah, GA. The game is far more limited in scope, in that there are currently only Werewolves and Mages allowed at this time.

I decided not to join at the time, but after a few sessions, I felt the urge to write creeping on me. I started working on some characters on my own time, and talked about these ideas possibly becoming NPCs in the future of the game.  The ST seemed to like the idea and asked me to send along the finished products.

I'm not finished.

My problem has been the same as with my blog--- I have a very specific idea I want to get across, and my words are totally failing in that endeavor. On my blog posts, I have been working on a specific idea for a month or more, and I still can't get it across the way I want. With the NPCs, I have a group of three, and the third one has me stuck on a specific sentence, and I can't get past it.

I'm usually able to move around an obstacle, but these writing/blogging related issues are dragging me down like so much undertow.

At the same time as the logjam in the word department, I am suddenly thinking in visual terms, deciphering colors and shapes into ideas for cards, altered art projects and other crafty type stuff.

Inked glass is one of my favorite project types 

I've been playing around with the things that are inspiring me right now, hoping that they will carry over into the words that just aren't coming at the moment.

It hasn't happened yet, but I keep hoping. I keep looking for ways to bring words to life.

State of Affairs

I am currently not playing in any games. My favorite cohort to cause trouble with and discuss ideas with is now working 12+ hours a day. I am bogged down by a lack of any real social life and not as much fun as I want.

I am, in effect, uninspired.

Writing this blog us directly related to my gaming life and what's got me excited and interested today/this week/this month.

At the moment, I'm casually working on a pack of Werewolves for a World of Darkness setting, but I'm not anywhere near done and I find myself stalling a lot.

I also recently rediscovered my affection and adoration for paper crafting and altered art; which might correspond to the lack of gaming ideas and might just be happenstance.

Many of the ideas I had in draft are boring to me now, and I wonder if I need another trip to the strip club to get my mind fired up again.....

[Weekly Words on Women] You Don't Get To

There have been a ton of comments, flagraising and posts going on around the net about feminine models and whether they marginalize women, are sexist and/or misogynistic. Most of them have been in response to my pal, who is a knucklehead extraordinaire.

What I found hardest to take was that all of these articles were written by men.  A lot of them have been "in the works" for a long time now. That sounds great until you notice the impetus for actually putting their thoughts out there is almost a 'knee-jerk' response to a post written by my friend. They responded because they were affronted by something another man wrote. 


The level of annoyed, perturbed, frustrated and just generally angsty I had over this turn of events was pretty high.


"Oh, that's sexist." "That's oppressing women." "I've been thinking about this topic for a long time and I have a lot to say about it."

for real ? -_-

You do not get to decide what is and isn't sexist.  You don't get to determine if something is "hateful to women" (because that is what misogynistic MEANS) or whether things are oppressive. You just DON'T.

You know why? Because you're NOT A WOMAN.

[Weekly Words on Women] Watching the World Turn Upside Down

As most of you know, I don't tend to get passionate about a whole lot. I try pretty hard to be even-natured and talk about things in a fairly rational way. I don't let too much rile me up, and I avoid the shenanigans you can count on from my co-author, SinSynn.

I'm going to play by some different rules for this series, which I had planned and sketched out well before last week's web explosion on gender, bias and sexism.


Over the next few weeks, I will be looking at access and control some more, along with the gaming community and how women are viewed and treated. I'll probably discuss how we got to where we are today, and ask a lot of questions. 

Last time, I talked about control and access in regards to women's sexuality. This time, - let's talk about women's rights. I'm specifically looking at the way the world is changing and how control and access is being challenged, especially via religion and politics (at least in the US).

[WOD] Austin by Night: EPIC Vinnie Recap

So, I have not blogged about Vinnie much, if at all. I have very specific thoughts and ideas for him, and I am having a difficult time deciding if I want to blog about them or keep them secret.

Vinnie IS a Vampire, but it's tough to get outside advice if I don't seek input. So, I'll give you the very best of the very best... or something. This is a recap of several sessions, boiled down to the most relevant and understandable details (as far as I can, anyway).

The Games that Shaped Me

A little while ago, Frontline Gamer put out a charge to all of us, to think about the games that have shaped us, and talk about when, where, why and so on.

Well, I can't really let that Brit have all the fun, now can I?

I told him I had a lot, and I felt a post was probably a lot more appropriate than a quick reply over on his blog. So here we are at mine, with my ever so verbose thoughts.

After the jump, of course.

The Last One

For the most part, I try to be a relaxed and laid back person. I'm not a "princess" by any real stretch of the definition, and I laugh at fart jokes just as easily as the dudes around me.

I tend to get pretty fussy about birthdays. Mine in particular. I would love a giant surprise party, or a big day of being spoiled rotten with "all the things". I also love throwing birthday parties. I think a birthday is a reason to celebrate and adore planning. Whether it's cake and ice cream or LAN parties or strippers and booze, I want your celebration to be perfect for you. I love going all out and seeing smiles on my friends and family's faces on their special day. Unfortunately, most people I love are not real fond of big birthday things.

I am very easygoing about most other holidays. I have never been one of those 'decorate for every holiday' people. I try to find meaning in the everyday,but I still value certain special days. For the past few years, Mother's Day hasn't been that huge a production at our house. We've been busy growing our kids and our business, and time for celebrations (big or small) has not been our priority.

This year, our family has really felt those choices in stresses and pressures, and the need for employees and TIME AWAY from the store has been huge. We were all kind of coming apart at the seams, some more than others. We started spending more time together as a family, and as we did so, I started to become fully cognizant of the face that my kids are growing up.

My son is 18, and while he may not be ready to move out right this minute, that time isn't too far off. I rarely get maudlin, but I'm very aware that I may not have another Mother's Day with both my kids at home, and this might be the last one.

I'm taking just a little time to acknowledge that being a mom has been important to me, and I've done the best I can. Family *IS* a priority to me, and I'm working hard to be an awesome inspiration and model to these wonderful people I've been given the privileged to raise. I've got a lot more work to do, but thinking about this time ending has me a little rough around the edges.

TheBoy, Waylon, TheGirl and TheDude 

It's not quite over yet. I still have some awesome left in me. TheBoy, TheGirl and TheDude enjoyed going to the Hed2Hed Show a few weeks ago. I took my kids to a bar to see a metal show with their dad, for their dad's birthday. I was there for my son's first pit. I watched and laughed as he was offered a shot by the Jaeger Girls. I watched my daughter rock out, banging her fool head off. I saw both my kids look stunned at my reaction to American Head Charge (I think they thought I was going to humor TheDude. Hellz no, I wanted to see "Martin Cock" and "Mr. H.C. Banks III").

I have a few more surprises and a little more time with them- and even if it is "the last one", I'm going to enjoy this Mother's Day.

[RPG][Wonderland] Creating Opposition

I have finally decided on a system to use for Wonderland. I'm going with Risus.

After considering about 6 systems (including Savage Worlds and Mutants & Masterminds) and talking to TheDude about running something I can't "sell", I decided to do what I wanted and worked best for my game idea, and stop trying to do what I "should".

The map has been made (although it needs serious cleaning up) and the setting(s) are defined fairly well, with a lot of room to breathe and change if the soon-to-be players mess things up, confuse me, or otherwise X+1 me.

The next thing I am working on is the "opposition"- the things the players will face in the environment, and decide motivations, mannerisms and so forth for them. Because as much as this game is ultimately intended to be a "players vs. the world" sort of idea, there will be things to Deal With.

Most of what the players face will be much like themselves, but maybe with different beliefs, reasons for doing things, or understandings of the fundamental rules of the world. At some point there will be conflict; or at least I expect so given this is a game and there is an underlying want to "kill orks for beer money" in many gamers I know.

Coming up with those beliefs, values and reasons is a lot harder than coming up with "what they look like". GM's, what is your take on making opposing forces?

How do you make them, what do you consider important, all those things- please share!

[RPG] Answering the Question

So back to real blogging, mostly on RPGs, with some intermittent tabletop games and the now and then MtG posts. (And the occasional riff from SinSynn.)

A little while ago, Von posted the interesting Old Stuff Day post and I was interested in the ideas he presented here- the "Less is More" concept for game setting and even to some extent, game description.

I spoke in the comments about an idea for a game I have that is still in development. I mentioned that to me, it can't be nicely summed up in tables or mechanical descriptions; but WHY is a difficult thing to explain.

Not quite. I'm trying. 

I'll blert a little about my game idea, and then walk through the problems I'm facing, and then see if Von (or anyone else) has any comments that can get me on the right path.

The setting is pretty much this; but some major points have been changed around. Instead of "cities", the localities will in essence be islands. The distance between the islands isn't made of water; but rather made of 'void space' that takes special training to traverse.

Another chance since I last visited this idea seriously is the knowledge of other places. Rather than knowing that each place has strange but predictable behaviors, the inhabitants of the universe DON'T know very much about outside lands.

The problems- 

Describing the "void space" idea is pretty tough. I still haven't nailed down exactly how it works. I'm not sure if it's psychic, magical, mathematical; or something else.

Because I haven't decided what the void space IS yet; determining how to traverse it is equally challenging.

What if any wilderness and beasties are on each "island", and why- it seems silly, but "the stuff you encounter' seems to be the crux of both Von and Zak's commentary for gameable material and setting my setting apart. I haven't really considered that yet.

I'm still very much of the mindset that the environment alone (the voids and the inhabitants of the various islands) are treacherous enough without throwing beasts/monsters into it. But somehow that seems lame, and I'm struggling.

System is my last real issue. My concept has wild variations in theme or setting- because it changes everytime the PCs go somewhere new. A flexible system seems to want to lend itself here, but the underlying plot and it's supporting cast mean a deeper system might be needed. I'm looking at 5 different possible systems at the moment, and none of them offer everything I need. So a hybrid might be in order.

(Aside: Anyone have a Mage:The Ascension book they're willing to sell or trade? I have lots of interesting trade material....)

Trying to describe this setting in an effective fashion has me stumped. People ask me "what kind of game do you want to run?" and I have no real way to answer, because I want to run every kind of game.

So how do I answer the question?

Interview for HOP-hereticwerks

I wrote a series of articles about designing better games for House of Paincakes over the past 2 months or so. While I was working on the process and developing material for the series, I conducted a good number of interviews with various people across the internet, as well as some real life folks.


This interview was almost entirely due to a conversation I had with Porky. It was  one of those serendipitous situations where one comment brought thought to another; and ideas tumbled forth unbound; all to my surprise. 

[Old Stuff Day] Last Rites

[A blank white room fills with sound. The wall shows random flickering images while we hear a moody, melodic song – “I Walk Alone” by Oleander.]

I can’t take this anymore

[We hear a metal bell being struck.]

and I’m almost pretty sure

[We see Devon shaking hands with Chad]

I’ve been here before

[We see Chad Black vacating the World Title.]

I can’t take this any longer

[We see Randy West's hand being raised]

I won’t heal until I’m stronger

[We see Chad limping out of the arena]

strong enough to not be afraid

[We hear Chad screaming 'I'm not afraid of you!']

of what anybody thinks

[We see Sanction looking smug and the Runaway whispering 'fuck you, I hate you']

of what anybody says

[We hear the crowd chanting 'asshole']

about the way

[We see Shawn page pointing.]

about the way I am

[We see the Exemplar standing in front of an absolutely immaculate closet.]

so I’ll wait until the day

[We see a sunrise washing over the cliffs.]

when those feelings fade away

[We see Chad holding Anita during her night tremors and promising never to hurt her]

then I’ll make my break

[We see Chad cleaning out his locker.]



I can’t take this anymore

[We see Chavez leaving the Escher house.]

and I’m almost pretty sure

[We see Chavez looking for his chess piece]

I’ve been here before

[We see a black and white checkered room]

I can’t take this any longer

[We see Chad being beaten by a variety of ARMAGEDDON wrestlers and we hear a metal bell being struck]

I won’t heal until I’m stronger

[We see Chad in the hospital]

strong enough to not be afraid

[We see Chad facing RTV alone]

so I leave it up to you

[We see Anita stepping out of the car in Pennsylvania]

yeah I leave it in your hands

[We see Anita holding her stomach]

respect your wishes and your demands

[We see Chad listening to Anita]

but if it was up to me

[We see Chad's desire for redemption]

honey we’d already be back at home

[We see Chad carrying Anita over the threshold]

and living out our dreams

[We see Devon and Romona in the honeymoon car]

living out

[We see a long string of faceless hotel rooms]

everbody and everything I’ve known

[We see Chad and Arun J, Chad and Brev fighting, Professionals, Inc, Trinity, AOD, the Curse, Justice]

never taught me how to stand up on my own

[We see Sanction holding Chad up after a match]

had to learn it from the one who let me go

[We see Chad standing up after his loss to Chavez]

now I walk alone, yeah I walk alone, yeah

[We see the Exemplar, Chad Black, walk out of the cage alone.]

living blissfully

[We see Chad meeting Anita's family in Italy]

I guess you had to step away

[We see Anita in Chavez' arms]

to make me want to be

[We see Chad's face in a rage]

a bigger man, a bigger man than that

[We see Chad refuse to cheat again and again]

I need you by my side

[We see the Chad on the cot next to Anita's bed in April]

as I take it all in stride

[We see Chad walk down the runway]

I put away, I put away my pride

[We see Chad decide not to wrestle anymore]

oh I leave it up to you

[Chad steps aside for Zach, Logan, Arun, Flavio ]

yeah I leave it in your hands

[We see Chad handing Arun J a chair]

respect your wishes and your demands

[We see Chad listening to Flavio on ATV]

but if it was up to me

[We see Chad wishing it would all go away]

honey we’d already be back at home

[We see the Black home in Ireland]

and living out….

[We see Chad vowing to absolutely live]


everbody and everything I’ve known

[We see the Exemplar standing in the vault surrounded by his music and his painting]

never taught me how to stand up on my own

[We see Chad falling from the roof of the cage]

had to learn it from the one who let me go

[We see Chad overcoming his fear of water]

now I walk alone

[We see Chad walking out of the clouds of confusion]

yeah I walk alone, yeah

[We see reality hitting Chad like a brick]

I walk alone

[We see Chad smiling on his last day as a wrestler]

[The white room dissipates away and we see Chad Black sitting on a stool, facing us with a satisfied look. He is dressed in a pair of loose khakis and a blue long sleeved polo. His hazel eyes seem very focused today.]

Chad: ARMAGEDDON has been my home for a long time now. It’s not anymore, and that’s ok with me. It’s time for me to make my own home, and live my own life.

Many of you haven’t heard me speak for a long time. We’ve seen a lot of montages, we’ve had the history lessons. Some of you may wonder, what is it that made Chad Black so great?

[Chad smiles briefly, his face lighting up at some memory.]

I don’t know anymore. I know I’m not who I was then. I know things have changed. I feel confident that I’ve purged myself of the past. I’m ready to move into the future and all it holds.

Some of you may ask me, how can you leave this behind? How can you ignore the history you have here? I answer them by pointing to my life now.

When I started here, I was a confused, overfocused kid bent on proving that I wasn’t a mistake. I was fresh from the seminary, having failed to attain priesthood. There was opportunity galore to exemplify, and I did so. Not long after coming here, I stood at my friend Shawn Page’s side and helped him exemplify professionalism to the rest of ARMAGEDDON. At Shawn’s side, I got closer to breaking through my rigid shell
and becoming a man. I won the US title as his strongest defender, and the man the Professionals counted on to protect them from interferences.

A lot has changed since then. I’ve had more than a few moments that made quite a few people question my sanity. [Chad laughs for a moment.] Even ARMAGEDDON’s
resident nutcase, Brev Jazed, saw me for a lunatic. I can’t say that isn’t true.

I’ve had some heated rivalries- starting with none other than Brev. I was so obsessed with trying to find redemption for my loss to him that I asked Father Pain for help. At the time, Pain and I were not at odds, and he had beaten Phoenix, a man that had defeated Brev. Pain offered me more than simple revenge- he taught me a great deal more. I never did get to face Brev again, and I was forced to move on.

Eddie came to live with me. He destroyed my house and hit on my girlfriend. He drank himself into a stupor every day, and left me to clean him up. Somehow, he
and I became friends. Somehow, I saw what he had and desired it- I wanted the freedom to live. Somehow, I saw that I wasn’t having fun.

Then, I started arguing with myself. I tried to bury myself alive. I for lack of an easier way to say it, went psychotic. I helped Eddie decimate the man that had been my best friend and then took his belt from him.

No matter what he might say, Anita was never part of that situation. The three of us had an understanding- mostly, I let her do what she wanted because I trusted
she would come back to me. Maybe I am naïve, and maybe I am pathetic, but I loved her, and that was enough for me.

After Eddie and I joined up with Willie and shook ARMAGEDDON, I had a lot of enemies. That was fine with me, I was the world champion and no one could take me
down. It all changed when Anita told me she was pregnant. In one startling moment,  all my hate vanished into a desire to be with her and to care for her.

I fought Rick Thomas, who was right about me and who I was at that time, and I defeated him. After the match, I gave the referee the belt and I was prepared to walk
out of ARMAGEDDON forever. And that’s when I met the Curse.

You probably know the rest of the history by now, but there was an event recently that a lot of you missed, mostly because it was hidden. When Pain came back and Mercy slammed Grace through a table, I couldn’t just watch. I ran from the Runaway and from God and I got brutalized. Lucius and I battled for a long time after, and it was never less than intense. When ARMAGEDDON traveled to his homeland for our European tour, he faced the man that was the Runaway. Both of them discussed their families and their lives away from ARMAGEDDON.

Anita and I had the shock of our lives when we heard the nephews ask why sisters would fight. We were already in Italy to meet her parents when we heard this. Anita met her sister, Mercy, not much later. I should note that Italian women have very short tempers, and let it be at that. Just a very short while later I was forced to fight along side the man that is in technicality my brother in law. His saving grace was that I was opposing Eddie, the man that attacked my wife.

My history here is long and twisted, but it is over. There are other people here that aspire to so much greatness, and have more promise. I’ve given you almost everything I have.

I only have one more thing to offer ARMAGEDDON. A man that I honestly and truly hated has tried to make amends for his evilness. He is acting in grace now, and trying to share light and hope. He and men with similar goals, those of defending what is right, may or may not form a coalition. Regardless, they have asked to use the name Justice.

To them and to ARMAGEDDON, I say that no permission is needed. If she needs a defender, take up her mantle and wear it. If there is still Pain and evil, crush them with the light of her power. Take the only legacy I can leave you and use it to bring hope.

I cannot help you any more than that, friends. I have my own Hope to deliver, when she feels ready to arrive. I have Destiny to attend to.

If I see you again, then I will meet it gladly. If not, then I hope you enjoyed my grace and eloquence.

[Chad stands from the stool and walks off the screen.]

SinSynn- lil' fish, big pond...plenty o' room to swim...

Hey folks, SinSynn here.


Sometimes I get a lil' intimidated by my peers.
In truth, I don't really 'feel' like they're actually my peers, and at times I feel like a small child in a room full of adults, running around annoying everyone, and knocking stuffs over.

*Strippers are wise...heed the strippers*

Loquacious can bandy words about like no one's business, conveys her own thoughts with amazing efficiency, and is somehow humble about it. How the hell is that even possible?

Lauby somehow manages to come across as wise, yet pulls off wry humor and charm with a self-deprecating wink. That's my dude right there, and if anybody ever breathes a bad word about him anywhere, I swear I'll attack like a pit bull on crack.

I devour every word Dethtron writes with relish, and his rapier-like wit and ability to lay out a scathing insult and somehow come away smelling like a rose is da awesome.
I'll admit that I have a writer's crush on him. He's just so damn funny.

How can I NOT love Von? He's simultaneously incredibly smart and smug, and so very British (from my perspective), but it's hard to not laugh at this pompous knucklehead when he shows up wearing something crazy on his head. Curse his beard...even his beard is smug, I swear.

I can tell you straight away that I've patterned much of my 'internet personality' after Brent.
I suppose I subconsciously created 'the Hamster' as a sort of foil for myself in the way he has 'Not-Brent' lurking about with the infamous green marker.
Reading his posts taught me the value of being reasonable and tolerant, and has served me well.

GMort says things that need saying, is unapologetic about it, and strikes me as the kinda guy who would gleefully throw stones in his own glass house if it suited his mood.
If only I could have a lil' bit of that 'don't give a damn-ness.'

That's just the HoP writers, there are many more wonderful folks who do what we do, and inspire me.
Frontline Gamer, Sorrowshard, the guys at the Back 40k, James S from Warp Signal, Panzar from Whelp Slayer (Who has like, the greatest website banner ever, IMO), Kirby (the Mighty Pink One) and Abuse Puppy from 3++, and my boy Purgatus from Best Overall, of course...

A compliment from Porky over at Porky's Expanse! had my head all swollen for days. I couldn't wear a hat, in fact, and it's wintertime...

That's just the tip of the iceberg, as far as the links in my favorites are concerned.

The trick, I suppose, if there is such a thing as 'tricks' when it comes to blogging, is not to be just another voice amongst the din, but to blaze your own path. I find it odd that I could somehow be considered an 'authority' on anything involving our hobby, for clearly in my mind, I'm not.
I did nothing to deserve being 'elevated' above my fellow gamers, and I'll probably go to my grave having NO IDEA why Lauby decided to pluck me from the ranks of overly vocal commenters out there in our hobby blog-o-sphere.


All I know is I wanna take the ball he handed me and run with it, as fast and as far as I can.

In real life, I'm a hyper-active crazy person. If you think I'm a lil' nutty when you read my vaguely coherent posts, you can just multiply the random wackiness by ten, and you'll have an idea why people have a hard time living with me.
Writing regularly has proven to be an excellent mental 'strain relief' valve, and I'm sure my erstwhile family is grateful for the time I spend clacking away on my keyboard, as they are afforded a bit of peace and quiet while I do so.


I often wonder if some of the things I do in my posts strike people as odd- slang terms, catch phrases, tiny animals living in my head, and always putting my name in the title of my posts, for example....
Each and every one of these idiosyncrasies was a calculated decision on my part, though- an attempt to separate, to differentiate myself from  writers who are often flat out better than me.


It's a truly bizarre turn of events that's seen me reach this side of the velvet rope (eesh- horrible metaphor), but here I am.
There have been many helping hands along the way, beginning with a comment from Lauby over at Strictly Average asking me to e-mail him, which led to...all of this.

Imagine my slight embarrassment when I arrived at the House of Paincakes in time for the HoP Idol competition, to watch well-established bloggers duke it out over a position that was somehow, through some act of truly divine comedy...gifted to me.
Go friggin' figure.

I have nothing of value to offer anyone out here but the words I type, and the value of those is dubious at best. However, it is my sincere hope that I can connect with the tolerant folks who click on the link that brings them to my head, and we can have that time together, and maybe share a laugh, or something.
I genuinely believe there's a niche here for me, and I'll carve it out with my keyboard and a Hamster.
:)

To all of my friends out there- thank you SO MUCH for putting up with me, and sharing this time.
That means YOU, specifically.
*Xenos Hugs*

Until next time, folks- exit with catchphrase (cuz dat's how I do)!

-SinSynn

"I Roll to Disbelieve"

I said this somewhere pretty "normal" the other day and the person I said it to not only "got it", but they laughed as well. It struck me as just a little odd and made me wonder- has being a geek transcended our culture that much?

Is this a sarcastic remark or a social commentary on the state of gaming-indoctrinatedness our culture has become?

Will Wheaton and George Takei (and to some extent, William Shatner) have brought out a fairly popular and almost ubiquitous familiarity with that which is nerdy. (Check your Facebook and Twitter feeds- they are likely full of reposts/retweets of these guys' materials.)

Is this a good thing? Am I over estimating the impact of 'geek chic'?

Didn't Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World rock the theaters last year?

I'm having a hard time dismissing the fact that being a dork is not as bad as it used to be.

Ancillary to this thought is the "+1".  While we do have Google+ and Facebook that have helped these ideas along, the premise of adding a level is pretty intrinsic to games and gamers. But I hear and see "+1" all over the place- even on 'normal' websites- career advice blogs, cooking blogs, and dating sites.

Geeks have even come into sitcoms. I mean, damn near everyone knows who Sheldon Cooper is, and Stan Lee is some sort of pop culture hero...

I don't know what happened, but somewhere along the line I stopped being so "out there" and became mainstream... or

I roll to disbelieve

Because it's relevant

Many of you may know that I'm writing a series on Intelligent Design over at HOP.  

I'm interviewing various folks, talking about the various aspects of design and their takes on them. In doing so, I've checked out a lot of awesome work that I want to share. 

Before I quoted a single person, shared a single image, or used a single comment, I asked permission. Mostly because I am nice; but because I don't want to infringe on anyone's copyrights. Why? Well, because it's the *^%$ law. Wanna see more about this?  Check out the utterly awesome article written by Lauby here. 

I hope you enjoy this article- it's well written and well researched. Plus, it's by Lauby; so it's double awesome. 

[Whimsy] Before the Grammar Gets Me

[Welcome to a bona fide rant. I don't really do it often, but this one's been on my mind for a while.]

Punctuate properly, please! (Among other things.)

For most of my adult life, I've worked with words in some fashion or another. I've held positions that used communication in some form or another throughout my entire career. I've done it all in person conversations, over-the-phone work, written materials, sales, marketing, journalism, proofreading, information management and much more. 

My name might be a clue that I LIKE words. 

I work with them because they are important to me, and so is the functional expression of ideas and concepts. I strongly believe in using language properly when possible.

I've recently begun working on some really fascinating projects with some very smart people. These folks are well-educated and make a killing in their fields. I do understand at some level that their fields aren't language, and perhaps language isn't as precious to them as I hold it; but there's a certain level of disregard that is driving me insane. 

Learning to use a comma and a period are things one does in early elementary school, and are not difficult concepts to master. Others' failure to use these important tools in written correspondence is one of my largest frustrations. They are "serious business" . They tell others to take a small break, or to STOP. They give you power! They let you tell other people what to do. 

I cannot grasp the concept of being a fully functional professional person without the ability to punctuate or properly match tenses. For you math geeks, it's probably a lot like the idea of not being able to add more triple digits without a calculator. I find it infuriating and more than a little insane-making when I read a post or article with awful spelling, no quotation marks, terrible run-ons and no real structure. 

SPELL CHECK. How much work is it to add a period in between thoughts? Why is "start a new paragraph for every new idea" so hard to handle? 

Understandably run-on sentences occur a mite more than ideal; it can be challenging for you to separate ideas when thoughts are coming a mile a minute. I try to forgive those as I've been guilty, too. I'm also very fond of the em dash and I'll give a guy a pass on that one. I cannot for even a moment "get" the total disregard for quotation marks I see nearly everywhere. 

I know.  There are a few tricky situations for those funny "commas in the sky", but for the most part; it is simple. Person A says something. It is then repeated for others to hear. Person A's comments go in quotations. 

Don't even get me started on "you're" and "your". I will go positively mental over this one. I'm honestly willing to forgive most other homonyms, because they really are not always intuitive. But FFS, "you're" makes it OBVIOUS it is a combination of two words! It's a contraction. It means YOU ARE. Saying "your" (a single word, meaning "it belongs to you") when you mean "you're" (two words, "you are") just makes me want to kill babies, or kittens.  

I could get a lot more specific, but I'll leave it at this: If you're not sure or get strange replies regularly; get help.

If you need some help, check out the following: (They are free!)

www.whitesmoke.com 

http://www.cws.illinois.edu/workshop/writers/

http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Writing/

http://wmjasco.blogspot.com/

And use a period! 

Better Late Than Never

I knew it was coming... I just forgot to announce it and all that stuff.

My blog is officially 1 year old- 2 weeks ago.

I've been on kind of a slowdown for a little, and didn't feel good about celebrating the fact that I haven't blogged terribly consistently lately...

but who cares? It's my blog and I've been talking about games and all of the things that amuse me here for over a year now!

I'm debating a couple of thoughts, elements, ideas and so on for y'all... Maybe having a laptop and wireless will help me get writing again.

Be Well,

'Lo

[RPG] Self-Expression

Sorry I'm late- yesterday was TheDude's birthday and I spent the day spoiling him rotten.
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For me, self-expression is the ultimate reason I play RPG’s. The free-flowing stream of ideas, concepts, and strategies really get my creative juices flowing.  I love that the potential for drama, hubris, loyalty and humor are exponential. Working in tandem with other like-minded geeks to cause imaginary lives, choices, consequences and resolutions is only part of the joy for me.  It’s the spark of myself that gets pushed, imbued, and transformed into those conceptualized worlds, combined with my special brand of expression that lights me right up.

Everyone has their own special “brand” of expression. Several of my friends are artists, and their character s do not come to life until they’ve made a sketch or drawing.  Some paint miniatures to convey their creative spark, while others are truly gifted actors and simply “living” as their characters in game is their mien. I’ve got a friend who draws maps, and has for a long time; well before geomorphing was cool. 

The cool thing is that self expression is so personal. Each and every one of us that plays or runs games has a different way of bringing our creativity, ingenuity and representation into our game worlds and characters.  I truly admire my friends and their talents and ways of bringing their ideas across. I adore checking out the drawings, the miniatures, the maps and watching those immersive players. It’s a fun kick to see what others use; their enjoyment is pleasure for me.

My personal expression is through words. I love playing with them, their meanings, their syntax, and their variations. I truly enjoy finding new ways to say something and love searching the depths of nuance and inference. 

I’ve discovered that I am a much better writer than a roleplayer, in comparison. I contrast my sessions as Eile to my write-ups or my Hedge Tales and see a drastic and dynamic difference between them.  I’ve accepted the chasm, but I strive to utilize language more effectively while playing so that I can grow and improve in game.

Language is my source and field of expression in life as well. If you don’t believe that “Loquacious” fits me, you have not spent a lot of time around me. I love to talk. I like to talk to dang near anyone. I enjoy the art of conversation, learning about people, and sharing myself with them. I adore a good jaw, and have been known to sit down just to explore words with someone.

There are plenty of times when words are my shield. There are also numerous times when words are my foundry, forging my emotions as I work through my vocabulary. I have found more than once that I’m not exactly sure how something makes me feel; but through talking and expressing myself in language, I find names for whatever’s on my mind.

Taking that away from me limits my self-expression, and generally frustrates me.  While I know I talk a lot, and often don’t say things directly, that’s who I am. If you don’t like it, or want to curtail it in some way, it’s probably going to cause some sort of issue.

I don’t infringe on others’ expression, and I can’t say that having mine refrained is something I relish. I mean, self-expression is the ultimate reason I play RPG’s, and it’s a core component of my personality.

I'd love to hear about yours, and how you find your true self in the game.

[Weekly Whimsy] Whammy

edit/update: WOW!!!!! What a Whammy for ME! Ron over at FTW announced a some-what comeback....

Check It Out

[Welcome to Weekly Whimsy! Why write when words have withdrawn...]

“Remember when it used to go like this…” Lauryn Hill, That Thing

Today is a day of  strange liberation. 

 It’s certainly got a sense of melancholy and some serious nostalgia, but it’s very freeing too. Why?

I’ve decided not to write any more Weekly Whimsy posts.

I looked at my posting history, and I have 24 of those babies put out there for your viewing pleasure. I loved writing each and every one. I loved coming up with the cool themes, the great alliterations, the ingenious ways to touch on a variety of topics most gamer dudes would never encounter or examine seriously. I loved crafting those compositions, finding the appropriate pictures and touching those of you that read in some way.

I don’t like being tied to it. I don’t like the forced and less-than natural feeling some of the posts had (to me). I don’t like how many Sunday mornings I got up early to write rather than hanging out with TheDude. Some weeks I was ahead of the game and had my stuff done before I went to bed Saturday, but most of the time I was winging it early in the am.

Don’t despair… I’m not giving up the writing overall- it just won’t be scheduled for every Sunday anymore. I’ll post whatever, whenever; truly the essence of whimsy. You can’t put a timeframe on inspiration, and so I won’t. I’ll just write when the mood strikes me and you can enjoy it when it comes.

I love writing, and I plan to continue bringing great content. I just need to do it on my own schedule, so that I can enjoy my husband, my kids, my dog, my store, my community, my gaming and my friends in a way that works for me.


Be Well,


‘Lo