We welcome special guest Micah Joel to the Round Table this week to talk Lit RPG and gamified fiction. If you aren’t familiar with this rising genre, join us as we quiz Micah about the writer’s role getting the reader into the game!

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What is LitRPG anyway? Where does all the confusion come from? And how important are those game mechanics? What are some of the genre conventions within LitRPG? And how do you interweave a story in with such a rigid set of game rules? What kind of stories can be a vehicle for LitRPG?

You can find Micah at 8bitnovel.com

What we talked about:

What is Lit RPG and how long has it been around? (2:35)

What is required in a Lit RPG? What are some of the themes? (3:35)

What is the difference between the characters participating in a separate game versus Lit RPG? (5:28)

Is the story the game? Or is the game part of the story? (6:55)

Board games versus Electronic games within Lit RPG. (8:03)

What are the genre conventions within Lit RPG? (9:14)

What kind of game mechanics do you need? (10:00)

The challenge of Lit RPG – why does the game exist? (11:30)

How do you deal with weaving in the game mechanics? (11:55)

How much of a gaming background should a writer have before they write? (15:52)

How do you consider structure of your story differently because of the game mechanics? (17:14)

How do you make a really compelling story without abandoning the game? (19:20)

How does Lit RPG compare to science fiction or fantasy? (21:10)

LINKS

Things we mentioned:

Ready Player One by Earnest Cline
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Stranger Things 
Space Invaders
Pacman
The Legend of Zelda 
Tron 
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
Brandon Sanderson
LitRPG Podcast 

Have thoughts, questions, other examples? Join the conversation at the Story Works Writers Facebook group.