My usual writing style does not lend itself easily to quick idea generation. Up to this point, my process has been to latch onto a single idea and steadily polish it over the course of 10-15 years until it’s a) virtually unrecognisable, and b) actually good. But with the Write Your First Adventure course, I’ve been presented with a new challenge: to write, package and publish an idea that doesn’t have a decade of previous versions hanging off it, and is concise enough that a total stranger could pick it up and engage with it.
My initial idea was one I was quite excited about, but quickly turned out to be all flash and no substance. Having taken the weekend to reflect on it, I realised that a good adventure needs more than just an intriguing hook and a cool boss monster, and went back to the drawing board to try a new brainstorming method.
What was that method, you ask? I put my Spotify playlist on shuffle, and I wrote an adventure concept for each of the first 10 songs that came on. Not all of them were very good, which is always the way (and also kind of the point) with brainstorming, but I think I’ve got some solid concepts that I’m ready to run with. It’s a lot of work to get there, but satisfying as hell when you finally nail down an idea and see it forming in front of you.
And I’m delighted to announce that I have now started to write what will be my First Published Adventure, tentatively titled: “Dust to Dust”. It’s a little different from what I’m used to, but it’s proving to be an exciting challenge and I’m really looking forward to seeing what people think.
C.Rowland Writes 