...to participate in a round of...well, William Berry, who suggested it to me, calls it the Drunken English Major Game...guess that's as good a title as any.

What it is, is a sort of writing roundtable. One player starts off a story - the next continues it in whatever direction they please - the next takes it off in a new direction, etc. etc.

But the challenge of the game is to maintain the story's internal details while adding your own ruffles and flourishes. In other words, you can morph the situation from a drama into a comedy into a romance into whatever...just as long as it's all part of the same story. (For a similar idea that's actually been published, check out Naked Came the Manatee, by Barry, Hiaasen et. al.)

I know we've got at least some aspiring creative types here at NitCentral. It could be a whole lot of fun for everybody!

Each entry should be somewhere between 250-1500 words and will be submitted to the Moderator of Non Sci-Fi Novels (me) for final judging. If they pass muster, I'll post them for posterity on the board's Cafe Nit.

(Oh, and one other stipulation...nobody named High Places allowed, OK?)

If you're interested let me know ASAP via this thread or my email link on the front of Non Sci-Fi Novels and I'll send along the basic rulebook. Hopefully we can get started by late next week!

Sounds interesting.

I've read some round-robin mystery stories written in England in the 20's and 30's (Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham, etc. each writing a separate chapter) and found them enjoyable if a little confusing.

I assume the rules are a little more detailed than your synopsis, since, as you say, their purpose is to ensure some kind of internal consistancy. I don't know if I have what it takes to actually contribute, but I'm willing to try. my e-mail is "under" my signature.

kerriem,

(I assume I should call you kerriem here.) I'm in.

I'm interested.

Merry

Kerriem, I'm in. I'll email you with my address.

Ok, I won't email you with my address (since your moderator link doesn't have one ).

Use sconeu at yahoo dot com

Sounds intriguing.

Count me in. I need something to jumpstart my creativity.

I think Morgan will be in too, but don't accept that as the All Final Holy Word.

Wonderful!

William suggested that this excerpt from his initial post to me might clarify the concept a bit, and I agree:

One person writes a 500 to 1500 word "bit" and the next person, has two days to continue it (etc. if more than two are playing). By the time it comes back to the first person it has gone widely from what he/she was intending. It would be good for Nit Central because all writers must beware of nits. If writer #1 establishes it is beautiful spring day and #4 has the main character walking in a blizzard writer #4 has a nit and would be out. The last writer standing gets to :P to the losers.

In college we played this game were I was writer #2. Writer #1 started off with Lovecraftian horror. (The story began with "My hand trembles as I write this.") I made it into a detective story like Chandler (the trembling was DT's) Writer #3 made a client actually be nice to the main character after I established that no good deed goes unpunished and was eliminated.

Count me in, Kerrie. My creative juices have needed a jumpstart for a while.

Me too. Sounds pretty fun.

Do we do this via email or actually post it to the site? Email works much better for me, if it makes a difference...

Email.

What I'll do is email everybody with the basic rules and order of play (which I figured to decide based on the order everyone posted in, if no-one has any objections) by Sunday night. (Merry, Mikey, and anybody else I don't have addresses for, could you send that info to me ASAP at kerriemills @ hotmail.com?

The first installment, written by W. Berry, should be posted to Non Sci-Fi Novels on Monday, whereupon Tom - the next in line - has to come up with the continuation by...I know the original game involves two days, but given that I don't know how busy all your lives are we could probably stretch that out to two-to-four days.

So Tom has until Friday to send Part II to me at the address on the rules email. I'll judge it as soon as I get it and assuming it passes have it posted next day for everybody to enjoy and study. Then Merry starts work on Part III...etc. etc.

Interesting...
Mind if I jump in? (If it's too late, I'll try the second time around, assuming there IS a second time around!)
I'll have to dust off my 'creative writing' brain cells... hmm, I think I left them around here somewhere.

Nope...player applications for the first round are being accepted up 'til Monday. I'll send you the rules email ASAP, Craig.

OK, the first segment of the story's been posted in Non Sci-Fi Novels/Cafe Nit. TomM, your turn...

Wow, William, I hope that's not autobiographical! :-)

It's not way off, but the computer and old college buddy are totally fictional.

BTW My original thought was for everyone to post in the same genre repeatedly.

I can't tell what genre that is. I can tell you what it isn't, but that's different. I guess it'll be whatever the judge says it is. (kerriem, should we call you moderator, referee, umpire, or judge?)

Hmmmm...How 'bout Lady of Literary Outputs? Potentate of Plural Postings? Grand High Receiver of Writings?

Or...why don't we just go with 'moderator'?

Well, I think I found a nit!

I would say that genre is sci-fi, as extraterrestrials and spacecraft are all common elements of sci-fi.

How is this a nit? Well...Kerriem is moderator of Non Sci-Fi novels. ;)

We still love ya, William.

-----
I had an honest question, though.

What are the rules regarding other Nitcentralers? For example, if I wanted to say that I had an IM conversation with...Craig? Or I said that the lovely mermaid came up from the center of the volcano and seduced Tom right there? Are we allowed to do that? Or just passing references (I got an email from Merry about the video that William sent her, for example)?

'Cause I got some ideas, but...I need to know all this ahead of time.

Oh yeah...and how closely can we micro-nit?

I found some actual errors in William's works. If our micro-nitting isn't allowed, I shall discontinue my work on his sweater ;P

Isn't there a board for groaners like that? And if there is, maybe I should post there. ;)

On to my real point...

Shucks! You beat me to it, Machiko, at least publicly. I e-mailed kerriem earlier today pointing out the irony of a (seemingly) sci-fi story being on the NON Sci-fi Novels board. Guess I should have posted it here instead! Nice to know I wasn't the only one who noticed.

What are the rules regarding other Nitcentralers?

Well...let's say that if they don't object to being mentioned, I don't mind. Just try to keep any real-life references light and non-confrontational - in short, very fictional, OK?

Oh yeah...and how closely can we micro-nit?

For game purposes, the only nits I'm really concerned about are the ones to do with inter-segment continuity.
Micro-nits - I like that term - on the other hand, can either be twisted to the next player's advantage (vide Agatha Christie: "Aha! You set yourself up as an expert in_____, but you don't even know that________! You must be the murderer!!") or cheerfully debated with the segment author here on this thread.

As for the story's genre...hey, it's up to you guys to fix that nit, right?

Ah, but these are some serious micro-nits.

For example, Carl wouldn’t knowingly send me a virus, so played the video. should be Carl wouldn’t knowingly send me a virus, so played Ithe video.

The other is that when one person continues to speak, even if it's a start of a new paragraph, you do not close quotes on the preceding paragraph (you do, however, open the new paragraph quotes)

“We have analyzed the data you so thoughtfully gave us,” he said as his clawed hand held up the disc from Voyager II, “and we are coming. HaHaHaHaHa. Do not fear us earthmen for we will not kill you. You are too valuable as slaves in the Dorax mines of Zontar. HaHaHaHaHa.”

“Oh, excuse my manners. I am called Zylax and I am a Cortation. You, however, may call me…Master. HaHaHaHaHa.”

Should be:
“We have analyzed the data you so thoughtfully gave us,” he said as his clawed hand held up the disc from Voyager II, “and we are coming.
HaHaHaHaHa. Do not fear us earthmen for we will not kill you. You are too valuable as slaves in the Dorax mines of Zontar. HaHaHaHaHa.

“Oh, excuse my manners. I am called Zylax and I am a Cortation. You, however, may call me…Master. HaHaHaHaHa.”

I'm going to go make a new convo in NSFN for this.

You're right, Machiko - as the supposed All-High Arbiter of Grammar and Spelling, I'll...erm...have to go back and fix those! Yes! Right away!

(The only thing I can actually say in my defense is that I was snatching the time to post from work this morning.)

One more moderatorial thought re: non-continuity-related nits: if a serious factual nit is discovered and the next player wishes to correct it in his segment - ie "There's no way that make of car could go that fast!", he/she may do so provided the Moderator is given an explanation ahead of time.

First,

Huh?

Machiko micro-nit away. You can’t insult me. (OK, you theoretically can if you never read my post, but to “micro-nit” you have to read it.) Since kerriem isn’t concerned about that, do you have my e-mail address?

I think there is a typo in one of your posts.

Carl wouldn’t knowingly send me a virus, so played Ithe video -- MJ

I didn't type that because I don't know what it means. (Or should I say, "I didn’t type that because don't know I what means it." [No kill I]

It's SF? A guy typing in IM with a gullible person is SF? I thought the "alien" was definitely fictional, but, OK, if you say so.

Is SF a nit in itself? (It is if the moderator says so, yes, but is it?)

Oh MJ, I'd be honored to be in your story as long as I commit no immoral acts. (Hey, I'm in politics and the character will be used against me in the court of public opinion.) If I'm in there please kill my character off in the nastiest way you can think of. (Oh my God(des) they killed Berry, again!)

I don't think that "played the video" is an error. He's obviously writing stream-of-consciousness style...

Hey, maybe my segment should be Faulknerian!

Goddess have mercy.

I did mess up.

I'm blaming it on Benn. I was yakking at him at the time.

It should be, "...so I played the video."

Time to go smack Mr Allen around.

Oh yeah. That's right. Blame me. And "Blame Canada" while you're at it. (With apologies to our Canadian Nitcentralites.)

thats right!!! always blame the canadians! its all their fault!