[Mkguild] FW: [TSA] Thoughts on Metamor Keep

[Uri David Akavia]

Exactly.
You start off with the first story, which explains the setting rather well.
Then you start reading each and every story. You skip stories about
characters you don't care about (hopefully, part of the stellar work
that the archive maintainer has been doing included removing
incomplete stories, which annoyed the heck out of me when I first read
them) and/or boring stories.
You keep reading as long as you have fun.

Viola - finished the problem of introducing the universe to readers.

Introducing the universe to writers is more of a problem, but can
happen in the same way. As AZ mentioned, we have the list. The website
should clearly mention the list address, also mentioning that the
universe controllers decision is final (so we don't get anyone
insisting on his character's ability to reverse the curse).
Apart from that, let people practice.
A lot of stories will be small, similar stories. Not bad, but small
(no overreaching consequences, which is a good thing) and similar (I'm
a newbie to the Keep, look at what the variable geometry has done for
me). BTW, these stories can be great as intro - just have a list of
intro stories, which new readers/writers can read to pick up what
characterizes this universe. I don't think it is necessary to have a
made-to-order intro story which explains everything.
For example, Hallan's story Drift references briefly the fact that
there was an attack in Winter. So people know it. If they want to find
out more, they can go read Winter Assault. I don't think that anyone
will be able to write an intro story covering everything about the
keep, including all the important threads.

Some stories are world changing, so you should just read them if you
want to know how the world changed.

Yours,

Uri David

On 7/31/07, Absolute Zero <supernova.wizard at gmail.com> wrote:
> I think that some of the things said during this discussion had real points
> to make, others, not so much. I think that a new 'jump in' story is fine and
> good, but I also think that its rediculous to assume that any story posted
> in MK needs to re-introduce the main plot points or characters! We have
> plenty of stories that don't re-introduce those things and they are fine,
> no. More than fine, they have been great!
>
> And another thing, this comment that MK is 'welcoming to writers but not to
> reader' is complete BS. It might, *might* be the other way around, where it
> is easier to read MK than to write. I mean, when I found the MK archive and
> saw that their was some 250+ stories, I was overjoyed! I was thinking -this
> is awsome! Look at all those stories!- Not, - Oh no! I've got to read 200
> stories to understand the new stuff? Ah man!- And I didn't even entertain
> ideas on writing in MK till I had read through about half of them.
>
> However, I also think that having stories organized by story arc is a good
> idea, that would help new writers who want to jump into the fray. I also
> think that we may want to add notes to the side of the story like that *New*
> mark (that showes stories that have been posted recently). For instance, one
> that shows which ones introduce new characters, or which character, or which
> ones are the most important to know as a new writer (These would probably be
> a lot or all of the ones that deal with/influence the Duke. As well as ones
> that greatly influence characters, or the MK world in general.)
>
> I also think that a new writer could jump into MK without reading hardly at
> all (By that I mean percentage wise, all of WA and the first handfull would
> only be about 5% of what all is in the archive)  It would be hard, true, but
> I think it could be done. Lets say that a new writer finds MK and wants to
> jump in immediately. He reads the first handful of stories, Winter Assalt,
> and the Writing Guidlines. Then he writes his story, which has a number of
> flaws, like lets say that he writes one with Muri appearing in a brief
> cameo, still at the Keep (which he isn't). He sends it into the list and...
> what happens? We bite his head off? No, 'course not. We let him know that
> Muri has left the keep and probably refer him to the story.
>
> I know this isn't something that is likely to happen, it would take someone
> who is extremely outgoing and doesn't mind being corrected. The new author
> would probably make plenty of mistakes and need a lot of guidance, but who
> here wouldn't give it to them?
>
>
> --
> May your muse smile upon you and all your creative efforts.
>
>       Absolute Zero
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