Jackpot

Tossing a hand up to the top of the car, he uses the bit of leverage to climb out.. only to slam the door shut. Eddie turns and crouches down between car and motorcycle, shielded from plain view for those brief moments it took him to unbolster the sawed off shotgun he'd kept right above the drive chain. Down upon his haunches still, he turns and reaches up to the door handle, yanking the heavy Impala door open once again as he climbs back inside. The shotgun is shoved under the seat for the time being. Yet the very sight of it causes Becky to blanch a bit.. moreso when he turns to face her. Eddie draws his switchblade out again and the blade magically springs from its sheath. He holds it just under her jaw. He tells the other broad, Lara, "Drive, Baby Doll."

Becky has a sudden Epiphany.. and not the good kind either. "Are you.. are you going to kill me, Eddie?"

"No," he leans close, whispering into Becky's ear. The feel of it makes her close her eyes and simply pray he is telling the truth. But then again, truth is relative. Edward Quist will not outright kill her. Yet Becky will die of natural causes before the night is through. For at some point between Mac's Truckstop World and wherever it is they are headed.. Rebecca Davis will bake under the hot Nevada sun as temperatures soar into the triple digits inside the trunk of her own late model Chevy Impala. It is only after they burn rubber skid marks from parking lot to interstate frontage road.. and well out of view of gawking onlookers peeking out the diner window and perhaps laughing to themselves about what a crazy fucked up world it was when people flaunted their alternate threesome lifestyles right out in public -- only in Las Vegas, of course -- that Eddie deeply kissed the knocked-up bitch.

--------------------

For the rest of this story and more exciting threads just like it -- check out the forums in Ugly Vegas!

The Vale of the Enclave -- Join Us!

From an era predating time and recorded history comes the tale of the Enclave -- a distinct phratry among the ordinary folk whose settlements stretched from sea to sea along the continental landmass known as The Vale. Typically those numbered among the Enclave society received their inherent membership by blood, passage rites from parent to child among the tribe's elders -- although it was not unknown for one born completely outside the congregation to find his or herself duly sworn into their ranks.

Consisting of powerful sorcerers, apothecaries, mages, fortune tellers & seers, alchemists, and necromancers, this once powerful council eventually broke apart into two distinct factions after centuries of bitter feuding and disagreements -- those of Warlocks, and those the Druids. They remain to this day inextricably woven together at the core, yet the bitterest of enemies over fundamental precepts regarding the distinction of sexes and the worship of deities. Neither side will give an inch toward truce. Neither will admit to any wrong-doing or treachery. And neither will accept the other as any part of the true Enclave.

Over the centuries, each group has both risen to power and been defeated time and again. The last war saw the entire city of Faltha obliterated under the curse of the Black Plague, and all the remained had been burnt to the ground in offering to the Druid goddess Shalindr'a. More than a thousand souls in this Warlock stronghold perished in less than a week. The result of which shifted the tide of rulership into the hands of Druids.


For more than half a century now, the ordinary citizens of the Vale must comply with Druid precepts and law. They must participate in the bi-annual lottery at each equinox wherein a pilgrimage must be made to the southern regions of the Vale below the barren summits of Wyvern's Spine -- the legendary lair of dragons. It is there, under Druid law, that they must sacrifice a virgin girl from among them, to appease the dragons until the next equinox. Failure to comply results in swift and terrifying punishment.

Prophecy declared that a Warlock would rise, like the mythical phoenix from the burning ashes, bringing with him the defeat of Druid tyranny. In their desire to squash what may well be true, the Druids unleashed a horrifying disease upon the Warlock stronghold, in hope of solidifying their own strength and supremacy throughout the Vale. For decades they have awaited, both Druid and ordinary Citizen alike -- to see whether the prophecy had been true.

The Vale Of The Enclave is accepting fantasy writers!
Interested?

Contact Warrick Erebus for story entry and questions.

Or browse the Vale Of The Enclave website.

AvP Euphoria -- Join Us!

Dtai'k-dte sa-de nav'g-kon dtain'aun bpide.

"The Fight begun would not end until the end." ~Old Yautja saying.

The mining satellite, U-4EA (referred to with no small amount of tongue-in-cheek as Euphoria) is a carbunkle on the butt crack of the universe. A decade ago, when an ore vein hidden deep within the planet's core did not pan out to the magnitude they'd hoped, the Weyland-Yutani Corporation turned the remote satellite into a refuse pile where cast-off employees can go and remain available for future uses, both good and bad.

U-4EA, a loser's last stand will stand as battle ground between the two most deadly species in the universe. Predators & Xenomorphs. AVP -- Euphoria.

| STORY PREMISE | SETTING | CAST | APPLY | STORYTELLER'S TRIQUETRA |

More Tall Tales

In the previous post we did go over the different role playing and writing styles, and the categories that folks often get pigeon-holed into. The intent here is not to knock personal preferences, as most of you have already noticed by now that the vast majority of online role players will fall into Group-A -- preferring the chit-chatty relationship settings over the action/adventure stories. And that's fine if that's the sort of role play that makes you happy. But for the small percentage of folks who've grown a little bored with the chit-chatty relationship settings that turn out to be the same basic scene day after day.. rest assured that there are others like you, and you're not alone.

You want thrills. You want action. You want thickly woven plots that keep you on the edge of your seat. Suspense. You want characters who keep you guessing. Villains and swashbuckling pirates. You want excitement and...

Danger!

It is imperative that you surround yourself with players who want exactly the same. That is NOT to say you want to be involved with power-mongers who try to win in every scene. Affectionately known as the God-moders, these are the ones whose characters will frequently possess mind-reading skills, supersonic hearing, and x-ray vision. They will try to kill off your character in a single sentence, but their characters are always immune to any sort of counter attack.

Instead, you want to look for and surround yourself with one or more players who possess no mental baggage or trust issues. Because in order to have high style, collaborative fiction storytelling, you've got to be able to trust as well as be trusted. It's never about winning afterall. It's about leaving a scene after an hours-long writing session with a smile on your face, knowing you moved the other player(s).

Have you moved anyone with your storytelling lately?

Join us on The Storyteller's TriQuetra!

Tall Tales

Best-selling novelist Stephen King was once quoted in Publisher's Weekly as saying, "Don't give them what they want -- give them what you want." By most online role playing game standards, Stephen would be labeled a God-Moder.

There seems a general consensus of late in the online role play gaming forums as to what constitutes good and worthy storytelling, where lines are drawn right down the middle. You go to Group-A if you prefer a character-based story, and Group-B if you prefer a plot-based story, where you're likely to be labeled as a God-Moder, too.

(Note: In response to thread on RPG-Directory's discussion forum thread Roleplay Talk)

Time to drag out the old college Holt Handbook and the Smartin's (pet name given to St. Martin's Guide to Writing), as well as the Guide to Writing In The Disciplines, and the latest edition of The Writer's Handbook. Folks, there is no such thing in any writer's manual that divides written stories into plot-driven stories and character-driven stories. Writing always has, and always will be divided into two classical categories from which a myriad of genres arise -- Fiction and Non-Fiction.

A fiction story must be driven by a plot AND characters. To remain interesting, it must have an amazing plot and exceptional characters. The rules have not changed in this. Nor will they.

Fiction writing that lacks any sort of plot and deals only with characters jabbering in a restaurant in one scene, then jabbering in a living room in the next scene, and a little romance tossed in for extra measure -- is not a story at all. It's a soap opera. And what you very often get online isn't even truly fiction in this type of writing element. It tends to cross over into the real thoughts and feelings of the person behind the monitor.

Don't get me wrong. I love a good true story just as much as the next guy. But even true stories and non-fiction instruction manuals endeavor to make a point by the time you reach the end. If they didn't, and they just rambled on endlessly, no one would read them. And every publisher in their right mind would be issuing the pink slip of death.

Oh but hey.. in a virtual world of pointless writing no one can ever be erroneously accused or (gasp!) guilty of God-Moding. Hmmm. Sounds like another article in the works.

Join us on The Storyteller's TriQuetra!

The Storyteller's TriQuetra -- Join Us!

The Storyteller’s TriQuetra is a unique and innovative
writer’s community, created to engage storytellers from
all walks of life and offer a chance to indulge in their craft.

While roleplay games spring up and fade off, TriQuetra
gives serious writers a place to grow and a diverse platter
of 'verses to select from. We also promise to keep the
light on. TriQuetra is a multi-dimensional platform that
includes both play-by-post roleplay, chat rooms, and
play by post forums plus much more!

................................

Become a Member
You're not going to find a better place to grow your
characters, spin your storylines, and immerse yourself
in the world of exquisite graphic making. A role player's
haven comparable to TriQuetra isn't out there. Click Here
to get your very own Storyteller's account. It's Free!

................................

TriQuetra 'Verses

Create a 'Verse
Interested in creating a haven devoted especially to your
storytelling skill? The 'Verse are TriQuetra's chat room
and forum-based storylines and while any member is
welcome to join a current 'Verse, some of us won't be
satisfied unless we have our own turf. Click here for
details on starting your own 'Verse on TriQuetra.

................................

Building All New Worlds

Good things only get better over time. Fine wine. Ripe cheese. Artists -- whether they be musician, painter, writer -- they seem to mellow and actually improve with age. The same might be said of longevity in the world of interactive storytelling where the group of writers and players have grown comfortable and close-knit over long periods of time. At least in an ideal world.

Sadly, for the vast majority of subscribers to internet role playing venues, the opposite is often true and over time you begin to realize you're surrounded by a lot of really miserable and obnoxious people who love to spread their disease around. Or the chronic underachievers who've never improved their ability to even write a coherent sentence. Makes you often wonder what it is about a text-based medium that attracts the illiterate.

So there I was, taking a personal assessment after twelve long years dedicated to a particular site with their own ftp storage, user-friendly chat rooms, nifty little profiles to manipulate with my own html creations, etc. But all around me were the same, disgruntled people, who year after year and year had never much improved their storytelling ability, their grammar, or their general outlook on why we even log in to the internet at all.

That's when a friend and I got together and began hunting search engines and toplists for other places where we might join a role play community and search for people who were like us. You know, the kind who want to write great stories and have lots of fun doing it.

Well, we searched and searched. And we finally joined one we thought looked pretty cool. Lots of member names listed, and a nicely written creed on the front page regarding a genuine love for great writers and storytellers. That was us! And my friend and I made the plunge.. leaving our old site of more than a decade behind.

On the new site we wrote for months. We wrote our hearts out. And though we got several pats on the back for writing in a style they'd never seen before, less than a handful bothered to come write with us. On top of that, I realized that much of the community there was not so very different from the one we'd left. A lot due to mere complacency and a lack of interest on the part of the staff. And a few people who were.. well.. a bit obnoxious and rude.

So, there we were back to square one again. Should we leave and look for a new site? Or..

How about we just create our own site! With chat rooms and forums and everything! It was the million dollar question, really -- what would you do differently if you had your own site?

Here's what we did! The Storyteller's Triquetra