ALWAYS POSTED A WEEK EARLIER ON PATREON

Podcast Updates

This past week I had a couple of fun interviews.  On Tuesday, I chatted with the awarding-winning Author S Lee Manning!  She is an author based out of here in Vermont who writes some fun international spy thrillers.

On Thursday I had fun interviewing the talented creative team of I Am the First: Issue 1 of a Gay Superhero Origin Story, Jeremy Flagg, and Amanda Kahl!  This was Amanda’s third appearance on the show.  It was such a fun and easy-paced conversation.

Project Updates

I have my Dad Joke book all written out.  Now I am going to do some arranging of jokes to try to match them up as much as possible to the page background artwork.  I wanted to have at least 500 jokes in the first volume and now I have that. 

I am also thinking about breaking out the jokes into chapters/categories.

I also used some spare time to learn more about the FATE game system. I like some things about the Apocalypse World game system, but really prefer the Fate System as a whole.  I am now asking myself would it work if I used the Fate System, but put it in as an Apocalypse World playbook setup? Also, having predetermined skills and aspects like the Apocalypse World system instead of how FATE allows players to freely come up with skills?

What I’m reading

This past week I did some more reading of open-source gaming systems and after doing some research on the Apocalypse World game system, I decided to learn more about another game system, FATE.

On the surface, the similarities between both systems are player-driven and are heavy into creating consensus in telling a story.

Where the FATE system has strength is in its simple dice system of plus and minus and allowing the player to build their character, allowing them to fully understand who their character is at the beginning of the game.

Basically, the FATE system creates a generic platform to allow friends to tell a story together with minimal systems to learn.  It is not genre-specific and players have a bit more agency with the game narrative.

Personal Updates

Still plugging away at the weight loss adventure.  The scale says I am at 197 lbs.  four more pounds until I hit my 30 lbs milestone!  I have also kept myself distracted with playing World of Warcraft and rebuilding Lego sets.

Also, this past week, more chores and last-minute projects are done around the house before the snow starts to fall.  The little ones helped me plant some tulip and daffodil bulbs in the front yard.  I also brought in the patio furniture to the shed, along with (much to the dismay of the kids) the swings from the playground set.

Another big project I finally tackled was cleaning out the garage so the wife can park the minivan inside it during the winter.