Solace ☀️

victim of musical and choice games brainrot, they/them & he/him

[karnathewresa]

"I wanted to get to know you."

Trevelyan laughs, then bites it back as though it came out despite himself. "Oh, that's a pretty thing to say," he says. "I don't know if I was expecting that. I hope you mean it."

(Saw @hpowellsmith posted about having a horrid day so! I hope a fan art could cheer you up a bit!!)

[magicatthemasthead]

Wheat Googling #7: how do I create a *slightly* less classist naval hierarchy?

Good morning!

Over the last few weeks of googling, the crew of the ship in my game has changed massively. I had originally imagined it as being roughly the same as the crew of the Endymion (the ship on which it’s based) - about 300 people, a handful of officers, a sawbones, and a few carpenters and sailmakers. Now, I have a crew of 87, 60 of whom have to be available to crew the six watches I have invented. The remaining 27 people have to cover the full time therapist, bard, medical team of five, and all the warrant and command officers. So today’s mission is to figure out what career progression in my fictional navy actually looks like.

And I want to come up with something that allows me to think about class. In my game, I have done my best to create a world free from most forms of prejudice - there’s no sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, ageism, racism. That’s because at the moment, these things just make me feel tired. I suspect at some point I’ll want to write something that allows me to engage with some of these issues more deeply, but right now, I want to imagine a world where they just aren’t a thing. Class, though, is something I am currently thinking about a lot. It’s something I think is often overlooked in art because most of the people who work in the arts are from middle class backgrounds. In the scripted arts - film, TV, radio - where I’ve done most of my work so far, only about 8.5% of people are from working class backgrounds. That means that the vast majority of depictions of working class people you’ve seen in films, on TV, on the radio, were written, directed, and produced by middle class people having a bit of a guess. 

I want to think about class, and hidden barriers, and this feels like the right project to consider it. For one thing, class is basically integral to an Age of Sail setting, with its two distinct cultures: the upper class officers’ mess, and the much larger working class crew. For another, the modern navy has, I discovered, made a bunch of really proactive and surprisingly effective attempts to change this.

Tumblr Special this week will be about why the ROs in my game chose to become commissioned officers. Scroll to the bottom of the post for that bit!

What did the British Royal Navy do?

A British frigate in the early 1800s was highly stratified. Where you ate, where you slept, and who had to call you ‘sir’ was assertively enforced. I have tried, but I can’t improve on this brilliantly clear chart I got from Wikipedia that shows all the relative ranks.

I can’t fit all that information into the alt text, so here is a screen-reader friendly version of those parts of the chart that are relevant to this discussion.

Top: captain

Senior wardroom officers: lieutenants, captain of marines, master

Junior wardroom officers: lieutenant of marines, purser, surgeon, chaplain

Cockpit mates (officers in training): master’s mates, surgeon’s mates, midshipmen, clerk

Warrant officers: master, purser, surgeon, chaplain, gunner, boatswain, carpenter, armourer, ropemaker, caulker, master at arms, cooper, sailmaker

The chart marks the cockpit mates in green, and notes that irrespective of their nominal (mid-to-low) rank, they were considered to be officers in training, and often referred to as “young gentlemen” to emphasise the class and prospects differences between them and the other senior petty officers.

It is important to note that, technically, it was possible for any ordinary sailor to rise through the ranks from seaman to captain (see Thomas Cook for an example). But during the period of the Napoleonic Wars things got more classist, and it became increasingly hard to pass for lieutenant if you could not also “pass for a gentleman”, as they put it. That is, be from the upper classes.

What were warrant officers?

Basically, warrant officers were sailors who had been granted a warrant to perform a special job on the ship: surgery, gunnery, and carpentry are three of the big ones. And, presumably because it was pretty vital that these roles were done by people who really knew what they were doing, their warrants were granted by a vocational board. A surgeon’s warrant was appointed by the Board of Surgeons, the gunner’s by the Ordnance Board, and a ship’s carpenter had often spent years qualifying as a shipwright before going to sea. Essentially, warrant officers were a highly skilled middle rank between officers and ordinary sailors.

I completely love this fact. In a service that had inherited a rigid class system in which the small group of people actually in charge of the ship were drawn from the upper classes if not the actual aristocracy, they did at least have the sense to make sure that the level below command was made up of people who definitely knew how to do their jobs.

What does the Royal Navy do now?

These days, about 30% of commissioned officers in the Royal Navy started out as ratings (ordinary enlisted sailors). A pretty dramatic improvement on the 1800s. And, having looked at their brD 3 (giant book of rules), it looks to me like this figure is the result of a sincere and protracted effort to make the service more meritocratic. I especially enjoyed this line, which is about helping sailors who want to gain a commission:

b. Encouragement. Candidates are to be given every encouragement, help and advice to reach the required standards.

There are multiple schemes available for ratings at different professional stages to get onto officer training. If you are a basic rating, you can apply at any time, and you will be in competition with everyone else who applies from outside the service. If you already have a specialism and rank, you can apply to a separate scheme and, if accepted, you acquire a commissioned rank and level of seniority appropriate to your years of service - no danger of warrant officers with 15 years’ professional experience getting shoved in as Midshipmen. If you’re a Senior Command Warrant Officer, you go in as a lieutenant with three years’ seniority. 

They also have libraries aboard, and people whose job is to support the crew’s additional learning desires. The books include fiction and general interest of course, but also GCSE textbooks and books about naval leadership. This latter was followed by this comment, which I enjoyed:

Whilst the temptation may be to place books on a shelf in the Wardroom, it must be stressed that the intent is to provide access for all.

Both the intent and the temptation here are instructive, I feel.

Of course, what it says in the official guidance may not be representative of what actually happens. In particular, I think it’s significant that all paths from rating to commission require the support of your commanding officer, which could be a problem if your commanding officer is a snob. 

Still, intentions can tell you a lot. Especially because nothing about this document makes me think it is intended as a PR stunt. It is full of impenetrable acronyms and sub-paragraphs. And what can tell you even more is that 30% figure. I wonder how many other fields have 30% of all leadership roles filled by working class people. A research question for another day.

What shall I do?

I’ve settled on a system that is about halfway between the 19th century navy’s, ‘technically it’s possible to get promoted to captain’, and the modern navy’s, ‘no, seriously, we’ve put loads of work into making this actually happen’. I am going to do this by making two major changes to the way my navy works.

All officers must hold a vocational warrant in addition to their commission (I’ve never liked the idea of people being trained exclusively for ‘being in charge’ anyway).

All sailors are actively encouraged to train for a warrant, and all sailors with a warrant for a Senior Vocation are may attempt to pass for lieutenant.

The Seven Senior Vocations

The chiefs of these seven vocations mess in the wardroom. You must choose one of these if you want to pass for lieutenant.

Navigator (master)

Medico (surgeon)

Bard (in charge of knowing what to do on land, and culture and entertainment stuff)

Gunner

Carpenter

Alienist (psychiatrist)

Purser

There are eleven seats at the wardroom table. Before it can set sail, a ship must have at least one chief for each of these vocations, a bosun, and at least three lieutenants. Ideally, the lieutenants and bosun will not also be required to be the chief of their vocation, because they won’t have a lot of time to do that role alongside their other duties. But this is flexible and depends on who the captain can get at the time. If a lieutenant/bosun doesn’t end up also being the chief of their vocation, it is important that they have a competent mate to delegate a lot of the work to. 

All this should create a system that sounds meritocratic on paper, but in practice will still allow a pernicious class system to hold sway. This is largely because out of these seven professions, only two can be acquired purely through apprenticeship: carpenter and gunner. The other five require a university education. And, unlike the modern Royal Navy, my fictional navy will not fund a university degree. So if you are from a working class background, it’s scholarship or bust. And scholarships are rare. 

I’ll add a few other soft barriers too. Lieutenants’ uniforms are expensive and have to be bought from a licensed shop; if you hold a carpenter’s or gunner’s warrant, the Captains on your interview panel are likely to be more sceptical of you. And, of course, you can’t even apply without your own captain’s blessing. All this is, I think, enough to make it so that although technically all these roles are equal, the majority of commissioned officers come from middle or upper class families.

Naturally, I have made a chart…

You should be able to click on and zoom into the chart to make it more legible.

Career trajectories

My aim here is to come up with something that allows for a familiar setup for those who already like Age of Sail novels (which always have teenaged Midshipmen running around), and which is more meritocratic than the historical reality, but not as meritocratic as it might seem.

Age 14 - 17 - Youngster: You can enlist as a rating (ordinary sailor), or if your family is wealthy or well connected, you can sign on as a Mid. In both cases, you’ll get a pretty good general seafaring education, but in the latter, you’ll get opportunities to shadow all seven chiefs, and formal lessons in the basics of all seven vocations. You’ll also be invited to dine in the wardroom sometimes, and you’ll have a different uniform. There will be an assumption on board that you are aiming for a commission. NB: the captain can promote ordinary ratings to the mids, but numbers are limited and this is discretionary.

Age 17 - 21 - Apprentice: You are encouraged to pick a vocation and train for your warrant. Most mids leave the sea for three years at this point to study for one of the upper class vocations, though all of them have to come back for a certain amount of vocational training as well. Most ordinary ratings choose gunner or carpenter if they are particularly skilled or ambitious, or one of the less challenging warrants (sailmaker, cook, armourer etc.) if not. Many are happy to remain as straightforward shiphandlers, or prioritise a purely sailorly profession such as becoming a yeo of the sheets, or a captain of a watch.

Age 21 plus: Junior warrant officer: At this point, most people who chose to study for a vocation are ready to apply for a junior warrant. I’ve based this on the older concept of a journeyman - someone who is past apprentice stage, but not yet a master. This is sufficient for any blue or green role on the chart below the row with the alienist’s mate on it. The two bottom rows don’t actually require a warrant, but are almost always filled by someone who has one.

Age 25 plus - Senior warrant officer: This stage is not essential. If you want to, you can apply to the relevant board for a senior warrant. This usually involves some kind of exam, though in the case of some of the more practical vocations this can be a practical exam, and testimonials from your captain and department head. You get more money and respect than the junior warrant officers, though your actual job might look pretty similar. This step is a requirement for holding a ‘chief’ role or above.

Age 25 plus - Lieutenant: Also not essential. If you have a warrant for one of the seven vocations, you can choose to attempt to pass for lieutenant.

Age 25 plus - Chief: Also not essential. If you hold a warrant for any vocation, you can apply to be the chief of that vocation. This is an appointment, not a rank.

I’m quite happy with this I think. Cosmetically, it will look familiar: posh teens running around in fancy uniforms, skilled working class artisans, occasional promotions from the crew. And in subtle ways the upper class will still be holding onto its advantage, not least because every aspiring lieutenant in my fictional world will have to stand in front of four captains who will be able to tell at a glance if they are ‘one of us’.

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Grace xx

PS: Which vocation would you choose? At present only three are available for players to choose in my game, but if there is a popular one not on my list, I might add it.

Next time

Having finalised the crew, next time I want to show you the diagrams I’ve drawn for the different decks of the ship - and explain why I chose the ship I did as a model.

This week’s interesting link

Sue Diamond’s PhD thesis about the difficulties of being promoted out of your class.

A really interesting, and very accessibly written, analysis of the problems you can face if you are promoted to commissioned officer rank but not of the same class as most of the people you are suddenly sharing a wardroom with.

Tumblr Special: why did the ROs decide to become commissioned officers?

Ferhan Ahmet: It genuinely never occurred to Ferhan to do anything else. I describe them in chapter one as ‘the unconscious monarch of all they survey’, and that pretty much sums it up. Their perfect self-assurance and flawless seamanship mean that since they first went to sea at 11, people have always followed their lead. Having never had their authority questioned, they have never had reason to question it themself. To Ferhan, largely unconscious of their ridiculous personal charisma, it seems like this is simply how the universe works.

Celyn Davies: Oh, actually this one is a secret! Sorry. When you meet Celyn, you might ask yourself why someone like them would ever choose the command track rather than just staying as a bard and happily investigating the natural world. And you would be right to ask that!

Ellis Evans: As regular readers will know, Ellis was motivated purely by duty. Or perhaps love would be a better word. Their parents assumed they would pass for lieutenant, and Ellis is kind to a fault. They would never have disappointed their parents by failing to do what was expected. But, being stuck in a leadership role they didn’t want, they have worked very hard to be good at it. Nothing has ever come easily to Ellis, but that just means they are excellent at conscientiously plugging away at something until they can do it.

***

Right now, the project for which I am doing most of my wheat googling is a choose your own adventure IF game I’ve been commissioned to write for Choice of Games. You can find out all about it, and play the 60K word demo, here.

Want to sign up for this newsletter? You can do that here. You can find the RSS feed here.

[unheardoracle]

Your dialogue is stiff because everyone is being too honest

Great dialogue can come from radical emotional honesty. But in most real conversations, people

dodge questions

answer indirectly

lie (badly)

change the subject

crack jokes to avoid serious answers

lie (convincingly)

say half of what they mean

tell the truth but get so anxious/angry/defensive others now think they're lying

If your dialogue feels unnatural, it might be because everyone is saying exactly what they think, or articulating their thoughts too well. Try letting characters hide things instead.

Subtext is where tension lives.

[hpowellsmith]

Question about pre-existing romances in IF

If you like romancing characters where there's already some kind of romantic feeling there in IF, what do you enjoy most about them? If they feel more special compared to romances that start onscreen, what gives them that spark for you?

And more specifically:

-do you like being in the pre-existing romance at the start of the game, or do you prefer being exes with an optional chance to get back together during the game?

-do flashback sequences feel necessary to make this romance structure feel real and fun to you?

-Bonus question: if you prefer your MC's romance to start onscreen and in the MC's present, what do you prefer about that / dislike about a pre-existing romance?

-Related adjacent bonus question 2: how do you feel about a prior non-romantic connection, ie the NPC being a friend, rival etc before the start of the game and romance beginning onscreen? Does that feel noticeably more (or less) exciting than meeting the character at the first time as your PC does?

[if-seal]

Dear IF Seal,

Holds up a salmon and a trout. Which do you like better? Actually, you know what? You can have both! 🐟🐟

So I'm dealing with something weird and could use some advice. I posted about my IF WIP project early on in the dev process and people have been so nice and receptive to it. Really engaging with the premise and the characters and the demo. And I'm really super grateful!

But here's the weird thing: all this positive attention is kind of messing with my head? Maybe almost as much as negative attention would. Definitely much more than no attention at all.

As a seal, you probably spend quite a bit of time on beaches, so you might appreciate this analogy.

It's like I went from messing around in my own sandbox to suddenly realizing there's actually an audience watching me build a sandcastle, thinking about the sandcastle, asking questions about the sandcastle, waiting for the next addition to the sandcastle.

And now I'm second-guessing whether it's going to be tall enough, have enough towers, if the moat I planned for should actually be a rampart, if it'll even meet the basic requirements for being called a "castle", maybe it won't turn out to be exactly the sandcastle everyone is expecting, maybe it'll be more like a sand-igloo after all… or worse, maybe I'm actually just making quicksand and everyone's about to slowly sink into disappointment. 😱 Then I worry all this worrying is stalling construction completely. 😮‍💨😵‍💫

The blank page just looks really different when you know other people are waiting for you to fill it.

How do you handle this? Developing a story in public? How do you keep that experimental, "let's see where this goes" energy when you've got people already invested in their own idea of what your story is and who your characters are?

And maybe the larger question is: when is the right time to start sharing an IF project?

The bigger part of me wishes I'd waited until the first draft was completely finished, but then you miss out on some great feedback that can tell you if you're on the right track, make you think about details you hadn't considered before and let you nerd out on some obscure part of the worldbuilding that'll probably never make it into the story itself. But sharing early also seems to come with its own creative costs. 🤷

TLDR: I'm just finding myself creatively paralyzed by the very encouragement that should, by all logic, be fueling me.

Anyway, I'd really appreciate any thoughts you might have on this! Sorry for the rant and sorry if this has been asked before (I can't be the only one to ever have experienced this, can I??)

Take care! Lots of love and much respect!

Dear Sandcastle-Building Friend,

O how lovely to be offered not one but two fish! Don't mind if I do!

And thank you also for your lovely letter. I know from my mailbox that there are plenty who would love to be in your position, and I hope that you sharing this shows that the sea is not always gentler on the other side, and there is potential insecurity whether one has a lot of attention, or little, or does not share their work at all.

Then I worry all this worrying is stalling construction completely. 😮‍💨😵‍💫

I think this is the key to it. It is of course hard not to think about the reception that your writing may or may not have in the future. And at the same time it is useful to think about the audience you are aiming for.

But try to focus on your ideal audience, the players who have got excited about your work and are there for the ride. Yes some people may slip off as they realise the game isn't exactly what they're after, and that is natural, but as you continue to write, the ones who do love it for what it is will stick with you.

Sometimes players construct a game in their mind that doesn't match yours, and get disappointed when they realise it doesn't match. Perhaps once you've completed your draft, you can return to this feedback and see whether you agree, and whether you might like to signpost the early game differently.

BUT.

Right now, players making up their own hypothetical game, or their potential disappointment, is their business. It is not really something you need to think about right now. Your business is to dig back to your roots, about the concept that got you excited about sharing in the first place.

And maybe the larger question is: when is the right time to start sharing an IF project?

I know for certain that people think about this question a great deal. I would invite you to take a look at the IF Seal archive for more questions and answers on this one.

For this situation, though: personally I do enjoy sharing WIPs, and getting a sense of what is landing well with players and where I can improve things. It does make me nervous to share, but at the same time I would rather share something incomplete that is easier to edit than something I made in total isolation that might be harder to change.

But everyone is different, so perhaps next time around you might like to write a larger proportion of your game before you share it. Or for this WIP, it might be more comfortable to, for example, write Chapter 4 and 5 by yourself, then share Chapter 4 once you are on Chapter 6. (This would give an extra bonus of having more distance from the first draft of Chapter 4 once others are looking at it, so your vision may have more clarity.) If sharing early has bumped your confidence maybe taking some time writing offline will help.

Or perhaps you might like to write something in solitude, then share it down the line.

It is your job to think about what you love about your game, and what you want to build from it. You will make a brilliant castle! It will not be a castle that everyone will love, because that is impossible, but I am sure that some will. Build your castle, not what you think someone else wants. There will be plenty of people who think it will turn out to be one thing, then it is another, and they did not even realise that was what they wanted until it happened.

Best of luck with your writing, and congratulations on the excitement that players have about your work!

[ailelie]

The Lamplighters Guild: Update

Chapter 4a (~41k) has been added to the demo!

This addition covers a single, long day -- the anniversary of the MC's parents' deaths.

While this is part of chapter 4, 4a could easily stand alone as its own chapter.

Over the course of the day, the MC honors their parents, checks out a grave, talks with their estranged younger brother, and deals with being the leader of a guild. The penultimate scene is the memorial dinner, which the MC can share with one of the romantic options.

Each RO route is different, sharing only sharing the overall architecture and what the MC chooses to share.

I'm really pleased with this addition, and I hope y'all like it, too.

The next big addition probably won't come until this winter. I will release the rest of chapter 4 all at once, which I won't do until I've gotten a good chunk of chapter 5 written.

As a reminder....

The Lamplighters Guild is an interactive fiction story in which you work to solve the mystery of your parents' murder while also running the least-loved guild in the city and fighting monsters that only those who have been hurt by them can perceive.

Your romantic options are:

Elian (same calling as MC), your long-time best friend who has been keeping secrets.

Nothia (she/her), your rival who carries more than her fair share of responsibility.

Ostric (he/him), your estranged brother's best friend who has crushed on you since before he knew what a crush was.

Kian (ne/nem), your friend who is now drowning in grief, guilt, and alcohol.

Luvia (she/her), an over-the-top partygirl and potential old flame who is far more than she seems.

and

Frey (he/him), the socially awkward city archivist who kicked the whole story off by leaving a copied guard report on your front step.

[if-seal]

Dear IF Seal,

Holds up a salmon and a trout. Which do you like better? Actually, you know what? You can have both! 🐟🐟

So I'm dealing with something weird and could use some advice. I posted about my IF WIP project early on in the dev process and people have been so nice and receptive to it. Really engaging with the premise and the characters and the demo. And I'm really super grateful!

But here's the weird thing: all this positive attention is kind of messing with my head? Maybe almost as much as negative attention would. Definitely much more than no attention at all.

As a seal, you probably spend quite a bit of time on beaches, so you might appreciate this analogy.

It's like I went from messing around in my own sandbox to suddenly realizing there's actually an audience watching me build a sandcastle, thinking about the sandcastle, asking questions about the sandcastle, waiting for the next addition to the sandcastle.

And now I'm second-guessing whether it's going to be tall enough, have enough towers, if the moat I planned for should actually be a rampart, if it'll even meet the basic requirements for being called a "castle", maybe it won't turn out to be exactly the sandcastle everyone is expecting, maybe it'll be more like a sand-igloo after all… or worse, maybe I'm actually just making quicksand and everyone's about to slowly sink into disappointment. 😱 Then I worry all this worrying is stalling construction completely. 😮‍💨😵‍💫

The blank page just looks really different when you know other people are waiting for you to fill it.

How do you handle this? Developing a story in public? How do you keep that experimental, "let's see where this goes" energy when you've got people already invested in their own idea of what your story is and who your characters are?

And maybe the larger question is: when is the right time to start sharing an IF project?

The bigger part of me wishes I'd waited until the first draft was completely finished, but then you miss out on some great feedback that can tell you if you're on the right track, make you think about details you hadn't considered before and let you nerd out on some obscure part of the worldbuilding that'll probably never make it into the story itself. But sharing early also seems to come with its own creative costs. 🤷

TLDR: I'm just finding myself creatively paralyzed by the very encouragement that should, by all logic, be fueling me.

Anyway, I'd really appreciate any thoughts you might have on this! Sorry for the rant and sorry if this has been asked before (I can't be the only one to ever have experienced this, can I??)

Take care! Lots of love and much respect!

Dear Sandcastle-Building Friend,

O how lovely to be offered not one but two fish! Don't mind if I do!

And thank you also for your lovely letter. I know from my mailbox that there are plenty who would love to be in your position, and I hope that you sharing this shows that the sea is not always gentler on the other side, and there is potential insecurity whether one has a lot of attention, or little, or does not share their work at all.

Then I worry all this worrying is stalling construction completely. 😮‍💨😵‍💫

I think this is the key to it. It is of course hard not to think about the reception that your writing may or may not have in the future. And at the same time it is useful to think about the audience you are aiming for.

But try to focus on your ideal audience, the players who have got excited about your work and are there for the ride. Yes some people may slip off as they realise the game isn't exactly what they're after, and that is natural, but as you continue to write, the ones who do love it for what it is will stick with you.

Sometimes players construct a game in their mind that doesn't match yours, and get disappointed when they realise it doesn't match. Perhaps once you've completed your draft, you can return to this feedback and see whether you agree, and whether you might like to signpost the early game differently.

BUT.

Right now, players making up their own hypothetical game, or their potential disappointment, is their business. It is not really something you need to think about right now. Your business is to dig back to your roots, about the concept that got you excited about sharing in the first place.

And maybe the larger question is: when is the right time to start sharing an IF project?

I know for certain that people think about this question a great deal. I would invite you to take a look at the IF Seal archive for more questions and answers on this one.

For this situation, though: personally I do enjoy sharing WIPs, and getting a sense of what is landing well with players and where I can improve things. It does make me nervous to share, but at the same time I would rather share something incomplete that is easier to edit than something I made in total isolation that might be harder to change.

But everyone is different, so perhaps next time around you might like to write a larger proportion of your game before you share it. Or for this WIP, it might be more comfortable to, for example, write Chapter 4 and 5 by yourself, then share Chapter 4 once you are on Chapter 6. (This would give an extra bonus of having more distance from the first draft of Chapter 4 once others are looking at it, so your vision may have more clarity.) If sharing early has bumped your confidence maybe taking some time writing offline will help.

Or perhaps you might like to write something in solitude, then share it down the line.

It is your job to think about what you love about your game, and what you want to build from it. You will make a brilliant castle! It will not be a castle that everyone will love, because that is impossible, but I am sure that some will. Build your castle, not what you think someone else wants. There will be plenty of people who think it will turn out to be one thing, then it is another, and they did not even realise that was what they wanted until it happened.

Best of luck with your writing, and congratulations on the excitement that players have about your work!

[choiceofgames]

Free expansion for “Spire, Surge, and Sea!”

Unlock the secrets of Gigantea! Today, we are thrilled to release a major, free expansion to Spire, Surge, and Sea, the Nebula Award Finalist post-apocalyptic science fantasy novel by Stewart C. Baker.

Today’s update to Spire, Surge, and Sea is available at no additional charge. To celebrate, both of Stewart’s Nebula Finalist games are on sale for 40% off until July 30!

Spire, Surge, and Sea (40% off): The King lies. The gods live. In humanity’s last city, floating in a worldwide seascape, will you tear it all down to protect your own memories?

The Bread Must Rise (40% off): In this magical baking contest, you’ll team up with the Queen Undying to bake your rivals into an early grave—or out of the grave, with necromancy!

Whether you are a returning voyager or braving the Worldsea for the very first time, there has never been a better time to play Spire, Surge, and Sea.

What’s New in the Free Update?

New Minigames in Chapter Five: Try your hand at one of four brand-new minigames to get closer to the game’s NPCs and discover what life is really like on Gigantea.

A Frozen Expedition in Chapter Six: Set sail to a mysterious island in the far, frozen reaches of the Worldsea. Uncover tantalizing clues about the King’s former life and secure critical help for your final confrontation.

In-Game Hint System: Worried about making a wrong move at a crucial moment? Toggle the new hint system to see exactly which stat is tested in each choice—or take out the guesswork entirely and view the exact score you need to succeed.

More Immersive Roleplay: We’ve expanded action and choice outcomes throughout the entire book for a more reactive, deeply personal player experience.

[hpowellsmith]

Did Royal Affairs get mentioned somewhere or something? I've been having so many asks about it recently and it's super lovely, but I'm curious why people seem to have suddenly started playing it again!

I guess it might be because I wasn't so active for a bit. Maybe people saw me turn up again and were like "I HAVE to tell Harris about Royal Affairs!"

which is also utterly wonderful, please never stop!

[hpowellsmith]

OK so let's see...

What's your favourite Royal Affairs romance?

Asher

Beaumont

Dominique

Hyacinthe

Javi

Trevelyan

Beaumont/Trevelyan triad

Dominique/Javi triad

Beaumont/Dominique V

Dominique/Trevelyan V

Voting ended onJul 24

[hpowellsmith]

I voted on it myself guessing which would be the least popular, and I was wrong! (at least at this moment, who knows what it'll look like when the poll ends)

[if-seal]

Hello, IF Seal, I have a question!

I really want to write an IF about this... Sci-Fi alien race I created. I'm a Linguist student and I made a whole language for this alien race with different types of dialects and accents and exceptions to the rules and everything just for fun. The alien race even has different physical regional variations. It's been a passion project/hobby for about a year or 2 now. So, to uh be quite honest, I just want to make a medium where I can share my little project.

The only thing is... I'm worried people won't want to read it. I mean, you'd play solely as this one alien race no one knows Anything about... And I'm also worried it'd be too... bland for readers. I also have the player character be set as human only (for right now), but I do want to provide them the option to play as my alien race, in case they're curious, but I can't seem to figure out a plot that would make both of those options possible.

I don't plan on any like magic fights or rebellions or super cool science stuff... It's literally just... a human exploring a planet that they have some knowledge about but not a whole lot and just... immersing themselves into a foreign environment and just... living and learning.

A lot of popular IFs I see and read all seem to be very actiony adventure orientated so I'm a bit nervous no one will want to read my story because it's like minimal romance, practically 0 epic cool fights and technology and magic, and just... vibes.

I'm also worried about choices being a problem. Obviously an IF needs choices, but I don't want them to feel arbitrary or just shoved in there just to have it. Since it's not a super action heavy super "important"/"world saving" plot, I feel like there won't be many choice options available or the readers will feel like the choices don't matter to the story.

Dear Linguistic Friend,

If it helps to hear it, this seal thinks your alien species and your conlang ideas sound like a lot of fun and I am sure that plenty of readers would think the same. It is easy at the early pre-writing stages of a project to get in our heads and wonder if the idea is any good... but to know how it will feel to write, you'll need to make a leap of faith.

And I think you may be ready to give it a try! You have done lots of preparation and you like the idea of exploring a planet, learning more about the species that lives there. So what I would say is: try writing something small in the setting, it doesn't have to be a pivotal moment or even something that ends up going into the finished game, but getting a feel for your MC and for the kinds of things you want them to do will improve your confidence by a great deal.

My instinct, which you are of course free to take or leave, is that it may be more manageable to start out with a human MC, figure out the storyline for them, and then perhaps move into an alien MC once you are feeling great about the game. That way is less risk of overloading yourself and you can zero in with laser focus on what you love about the game and setting.

Which leads to the next part of your question! If you love your game, and when you're talking about it and writing it you focus on showing off that love, players will have fun with it. There is space for contemplative, introspective, "quiet" games that do not have world-destroying stakes.

I would suggest having a think about the choices you want to offer the player, however. Choices do not have to vastly branch the plot (or involve perilous stakes) to be impactful. What is important to the MC regardless of player choice? What could the player define as something that's important to the MC? What feelings might they have about their situation, surroundings, or goals and so on? I made another post on this topic recently so this may be a useful one to have a look at.

Best of luck with your alien story, Linguistics Friend. Try writing something that you feel excited about, and the confidence will come!

[chrysanthemumgames]

Hey everyone!

Remember when I said this?

Well… here you go.

Art by @/kissmedevil

Diaspora is finally in the publication queue at Hosted Games! For those of you who aren’t familiar with this game, it’s a project I started with my friend Vince about… ten years ago. At the time, it was my first interactive fiction, and in some very important ways, it still is. Most of the writing on it was done from 2016-2021 or so, but the last parts ended up taking us much, much longer than they should have.

Regardless, though, it’s now finished, and to those of you who’ve been around a while and waited so patiently for this project, thank you. It means the world that you’ve believed in us for so long, and we’re so happy that you’ll soon finally be able to play the complete game, which will be a lot like you might remember, but with some edits that will hopefully improve the quality of the experience. It’s certainly an ‘early work’ in a lot of ways, but there are things about it that I’m very proud of, too.

You can wishlist Diaspora on Steam here, which would be a big help, and if you’d like to learn a little more about the game, I’ve added some information to my pinned post, or you can check out the ancient forum thread here, or our (now largely defunct, but perhaps good for a browse) tumblr blog for the game here. Currently, the release date is set to 6 August (2026), and I don't expect that to change, but I won't call it certain until it's actually happened.

[fir-fireweed]

Hi, Fir! What are some other works of interactive fiction you enjoy and would recommend for fans of Viatica and Cantata? :D

::cracks knuckles::

Alright, I love this ask! Ok, so these are some of my favorite IFs and ones I continually return to. I greatly enjoy character dynamics, so if you like that aspect in my works, you may like these. 😁

I need to lead with A Tale of Crowns @ataleofcrowns one of the first IFs I ever read and one of the biggest inspirations for me to write my own. Every character is unique—I could romance each and every one. I love all the interactions and dialogue, and the story is unique and incredibly well written.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a certain slutty waist. 😏 It should come as no surprise that God Cursed @wings-of-ink is one of my faves. Every character, from the ROs to our dads, is incredibly well fleshed out and a joy to read. Highly recommend!

Stygian Sun: Total Eclipse @stygiansun-totaleclipse grabs you in a chokehold from the very beginning and doesn’t let go. The characters and their interactions are unforgettable, as is the story itself.

Softly, Opulent @softlyopulent-if is another chokehold, sucker punch to the gut IF 😭 but so, so good! It just had a rewrite, I believe.

The Abyssal Song @ri-writes-if is another good one with wonderful characters. Every RO is delicious! The amount of branching within each route is extensive, almost like several stories in one. I recommend multiple playthroughs!

Arcadie: Second Born @sofia-d-asb is also one of the first IFs I ever read and one that inspired me greatly.

The entire Crème de la Crème series by @hpowellsmith is excellent, but my absolute favorite of theirs is Royal Affairs.

The Lonely Shore @thelonelyshore-if is another excellent read. I am not a fan of horror but I absolutely love this IF, so that should be testament to how good it is!

College Tennis Origin Story @collegetennisoriginstory has so many good ROs it’s difficult to choose! If you’re drawn to the childhood friend ROs, I highly recommend Sam’s route!

When Life Gives You Lemons @when-life-gives-you-lemons-if is an absolutely lovely read. The romance and spice in this is so good, but it’s also genuinely such a cozy story to read.

Their Majesties’ Pleasure @leiatalon is another great blend of comfy and spice!

Fields of Asphodel @chrysanthemumgames is a lovely read with beautiful characters. If you’re looking for a comfy, feel good read, this is the one.

And if you’re looking for a fun adventure with unique and memorable characters and loads of customization, Party of Four @partyof4game is it!

I know as soon as I hit “post” I’m going to remember a dozen IFs I’ve forgotten to mention. 😭

[ithacantrickster]

do you have a young odypen or Telemachus design?

my young odypen upon ye

[ithacantrickster]

Heatwave on Ithaca ☀️

[setheverman]

don’t worry, you’re still in the “early life” part of your wikipedia page

[marxistbarbie-deactivated202109]

[muck-raker-deactivated20181222]

#this is the positive version of this post #it is friendly and brings luck

[ithacantrickster]

Comms open for the summer ⛱️🍉

3 slots per 2 weeks (then I’ll open new slots!), hmu if you’re interested <3 first come first served

Status: 1/3 taken

[sodapanque]

"Athena appears invisible to others, holding Achilles by his blond hair, preventing him from killing Agamemnon after a dispute over Briseis"