I have mentioned before that I have been the defacto session writer for our group at Dragons Keep Roleplay Club for some time now. It takes up a good portion of my weekend but here are a few reasons why I do it.
5 Reasons Why I Write Session Reports
1. It Engages Me - Yes, that's right, if I am scribbling notes througout the game I am completely focussed on what is happening at the table. I've been roleplaying on and off for 40 years and it's easy to become blase and become distracted by the joking, camaraderie and snacking that usually fills up at least 50% of the game.
2. It Helps the GM - Most sessions begin with a recap of what happened in the previous week. I have witnessed several instances of the GM logging onto the last session and skimming through their own game and pulling out the salient points. It helps their worldbuilding consistency as there's always a reference to NPCs we have interacted with (especially those created on the fly). It helps them to remember the important details of who said what and to whom.
When I am the GM the session report is formed from my game notes and I get the players to read the report before we start the next session. That way I don't have to do as much of a recap to the previous session and we start playing faster.
3. It Helps Players - Real-life happens and it is a more common occurence as we get older that we have to forgoe our game night to deal with other priorities. Having a session blog helps missing players to pick up where they left and still feel like a valued member of the group.
4. Player Engagement - Players like to read about their exploits every week. I know of at least one player in our group who loves to see their quotes in print. They know that they can always send me an update or an amendment if they want to highlight something or heaven forbid if I got it wrong
5. Free Content for my Blog - A selfish reason, I know, but it hardly makes me a monster. I love the fact that I have weeks worth of sessions on my blog which I reminisce about in my dotage. I've also published session reports on RPGGeek, so if you are a member send me a gamebuddy request.
Why Don't You?
It's surprisingly easy, why don't you have a go yourself, you just might like it. If you are already blogging your sessions, stick a link in the comments below as I would love to share them with my readers.
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| The Scribe, by George Cattermole - Art UK |
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