Jakkal Designs 100th Episode shirt 2021

Episode 194 – Interview with Peter Sartucci

Peter Sartucci is a Boulder, CO game writer turned author. He of the Shadow fantasy series set in Silbar – a land of wonder and magic. He has five books in the series focusing on Sir Kirin DiUmbra, the Left Hand of the king (who secretly is his twin brother). Peter talks to us about storytelling constructs he learned from gaming, world building, why to keep your first novel around, and how he approaches writing descriptive prose. Use all your senses! … Continue…Episode 194 – Interview with Peter Sartucci

Jakkal Designs 100th Episode shirt 2021

Episode 172 – Make the Adventure you want to play in: GM talk with Norman Lutes

In which we discuss how to write – and run – good role-playing games with Norman Lutes (He/him). GMing and game writing have a lot in common with good story writing. For example: Reading is to writing as playing is to GMing.
And: “What do you start with? A story? A setting?” …smacks of Plotting vs Pantsing or Game-mastering is a combination of critical path project management and storytelling in the fireside tradition or Writing a game is like writing software – spend the majority of your time planning for exceptions and errors.
And: Spoon-feeding vs. player involvement: it’s a balance or You can lead players back to the path if they go astray. But you need to have done some world-building, or at least world-stealing. Don’t forget to file off the serial numbers or If you ask your players for their characters’ backstories, don’t be surprised if they’re not interested when you fold it into the story.
Bonus: Role-playing via email: The story, backstory, player’s interests, and world-building all come together. AND it’s self-documenting! … Continue…Episode 172 – Make the Adventure you want to play in: GM talk with Norman Lutes

Jakkal Designs 100th Episode shirt 2021

Episode 127 – Interview with Aliette de Bodard

Aliette joins us from Paris, France to talk about her writing, perceptions of science and world building, and the myth and power of storytelling. As a child of French and Vietnamese descent, she grew up with influences from both worlds and uses her strong multicultural awareness in her writing. She talks to us of liminal spaces, the unspoken area between multiple cultures, as well as diasporas and other themes in her writing. … Continue…Episode 127 – Interview with Aliette de Bodard

Jakkal Designs 100th Episode shirt 2021

Episode 109 – Interview with Cassandra Lane

Cassandra started as a reporter, then went back to get her MFA in creative writing. Cassandra’s first full-length book is a non-fiction memoir called We Are Bridges, and Jeannie devoured it entirely in a day. We Are Bridges a story that ranges across three generations from Louisiana with the lynching of a great-grandfather to modern life in Los Angeles, exploring romance and race and motherhood and what they all mean together. She shares with us her practiced art of listening, how working with editors and deadlines helped, and her drive to become a writer and a storyteller. … Continue…Episode 109 – Interview with Cassandra Lane

A pencil, a ball point pen, and a quill sitting in lounge chairs drinking coffee; Title: Writers Drinking Coffee

Episode 94 – Interview with Aleksandr Voinov

Exploring topics in gay romance, and emotive expression open for men – and how reading novels outside your own experience act like empathy boxes of learning and understanding. Aleksandr’s character-driven approach to storytelling combines with research to create vivid stories and hot gay romance. They also have some excellent advice for writers on maintaining separation from a day job while avoiding misrepresentation of your identity. … Continue…Episode 94 – Interview with Aleksandr Voinov