Page 193 - World of Darkness

grand sword duel. But that encounter forges an alliance of the context of the story. For example, spirits
heroes whose like has rarely been seen since. and ghosts are very real in the World of Dark-
Storyteller-controlled characters are the ultimate ness. In our world, however, they seem to exist
paragons of conflict. What fun is it destroying a crime only in the imagination, as metaphors or dream-
empire if you never get to take on the boss himself? Would like images signifying truths we can’t grasp con-
we know the name of Elliot Ness without his rival Al sciously, but truths important to us nonetheless.
Capone? Robin Hood without the Sheriff of Nottingham? The great advantage of a Storytelling game is that
Woodward and Bernstein without Nixon? Encountering we can bring these metaphors to life, to con-
a Storyteller rival is one of the most memorable events in front them and interact with them in the guise
any story. of Storytelling characters. Moments of epiphany
To sum up, conflict — overcoming obstacles, whether come when the Muse speaks through us — a
they are people, things or even one’s own conscience spontaneous encounter with art. This is myth,
(think of Hamlet) — provides drama. metaphor come to life. The literal or imagistic
means used to convey it are just props and stage
Setting decorations.
The locales in which your stories take place are char- This doesn’t mean Storytellers should arti-
acters, too. They may not walk and talk, but they still ficially construct their stories and characters
communicate messages, whether it’s the safe vibe of a sanc- around cardboard archetypes and prefigured
tum or the bone-chilling fear of a tomb. “hero quest” templates, following some formula
The World of Darkness is our world as seen through a set forth in a screenplay-writing book. It means
gloomy and twisted lens. This perspective allows you to you should be aware of the power of myth —
mine inspiration for stories from your own neighborhood, living metaphor — to greatly enhance a story,
or to even set your stories there. You can re-imagine the to add depth through resonance with mythic
gas-station attendant as the servant of a vile, unseen mon- themes. To this end, think mythically, not liter-
ster, or the college dean as the thrall of some otherworldly ally.
horror.
There are strange legends in real life that we’ve all
heard, places around town that seem tailor-made for su-
store downtown with the creepy owner who doesn’t like How to Tell
pernatural stories. You know that old barbershop supply
customers? Some say he sells black-magic supplies in the
back — just ask him and he’ll show you. This kid went Stories
back there once, but he won’t talk about what he saw.
What’s really going on there? Now that you know the basic elements that make up
Providing an interesting and believable setting relies a story, you should know the best methods for telling one.
on balancing the real and unreal. Urban legends mixed Just as with any art or craft, Storytelling techniques are
with real places — actual houses you’ve walked past at innumerable. Everyone has his own style or methods. Here
dusk, the alley near your workplace that nobody wants to are the few of the most basic and useful ones that you
go down, the old lagoon in the woods that everyone’s afraid should be aware of.
to swim. In a sense, this is a re-enchantment of the world,
although in the World of Darkness the effect is more of- Inspiration
ten chilling and terrifying than awe-inspiring. Perhaps the most often-asked question of any writer
is, “Where do you get your ideas?” Perhaps the best an-
swer is that given by Neil Gaiman: “I make them up.” But
how exactly do you do that? Anyone has the creative
Thinking Mythically power to make up stories, but the best stories have ideas
Storytelling games are about amazing things or events that appeal to others, that communicate some-
happening to characters in interesting places, thing the audience can grasp. There are various means of
described with passion and intensity by players. finding inspiration — the creative spark — for stories that
The details of a particular villain or an ominous can enchant others. Some good sources are:
graveyard are vital to evoking a scene. But don’t • Current events and history: Read about what’s
get too caught up in the literal. Events resonate going on in the world or what happened in the past (since
on deeper levels, the levels of myth and poetry. we seem doomed to repeat history). Feel free to steal ideas
In other words, events can be metaphors for directly from actual events. Television shows about law-
powerful ideas. yers do this all the time, with stories “ripped from today’s
Storytelling allows us to make the meta- headlines,” focusing on the legal implications of various
phorical literal, to take what would otherwise social conflicts. Even if your game is set in our times, his-
be fantastic or unreal and make it seem real within

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Chapter 8- STORYTELLING