Category: General Discussions
Topic: Publishing your Book in DragonRealms
Author: DR-CZARRA
Posted: Mar 02, 1999 18:21:53

As mentioned earlier, the DR libraries will are now accepting autobiographies from player characters. These should be seen as roleplaying props, a means to inform other players online about your character's personality, background and experiences. These books we be entered into the second Aesmath Library, which has been basically ignored since I took over as Library Guru. (It was devoted to player books; but I see no difference between a good, accepted player book and one written by a GM.)

All previous formatting requirements still apply (62-66 characters wide, pure textfile, ASCII etc; see earlier notes for details). Here are some specific guidelines for submitting your autobiography:

Think of the biography as a short story (plotted) or character vignette (non-plotted). Either of these means it needs some time to display a good understanding of your persona-- so a minimum length should be 1000 words.

You can submit your biography in third person, acting as an outside "narrator" or in the first person (speaking from the viewpoint of "I").

Please remember to keep your autobiography in-character. Avoid references to reallife pals, television, catchphrases, etc.

In general, it's a good idea to focus on your character through their past, rather than the present, because your current set of buds and your in-game spouse could change in a month...and we won't accept later revisions ("Oh, sorry, I said my wife was Sugarteeth, but she just killed me twice and we're quits. Reedit my story and upload it again, Czarra, hmmm?")

Your biography has to make sense and fit within the Elanthian universe of DragonRealms. Your persona can not be a vampire, or descended from bird people, or derive from a Jedi Knight clan. Similarly, you can't have special powers-- so no illegitimate children of the Gods, and no abilities to sink into the earth, or appear out of a whirlwind.

Please avoid the use of jargon and accents. You're welcome to use them in the game if you wish; just don't use them in stories. They're hard to read, and few people will spend the time puzzling them out. (You can still make the narrative as formal or informal, casual or eccentric as you wish.)

I look forward to receiving your autobiographies!

Czarra