Dreams of Adventure

Bryce at tenfootpole.org has some new reviews up.  I mention this, not because all of the adventures are good, but because the reviews are entertaining to read in their own right.  Language warning, though.  

Maize and Monsters (Swords and Wizardry)

Zaratazarat's Manse (OSE)

Down and Out in a Schleswig Sanitarium (Mork Borg)

Tower to the Abyss (5e)

The Laboratory of Melifex the Mad (DCC)

I'm sharing these because I have a dream to self-publish adventures.  When that dream reaches fruition is unknown, but if it does, I want it reviewed by Bryce.

Mostly, I want to dodge the pitfalls that he colorfully describes.  Adventures for sale are NOT literature, but tools for others to use, like a textbook.  But a good, useful textbook.

I suspect we've all encountered terrible textbooks in our educations.  Especially teacher-made textbooks and study guides.  Published adventures, regardless of genre or ruleset, should follow the same model of easy use for whomever picks it up.  That is how I want to write.

From Bryce's comments, adventure layout and basic contents should be a snap.

12-size font that is readable, not artsy.  Times New Roman or Sans Serif, maybe.

Two columns.

Evocative, terse writing that shows and not tells.

Good use of bold, italics, bullets, and white space.

Clear, usable maps that match the key.

Pertinent artwork.More pages spent on the adventure proper than the rest of stuff combined.

Ample treasure if writing for a game that uses GP=XP as a design choice.

Appendices at the end for new magic, new monsters, and in-game history and lore that has no bearing on the adventure at hand.

That all looks doable, if only because I can follow a checklist like a boss.  My only issue will be coming up with something clever that is at least somewhat original, but certainly usable.

This Dungeon Checklist from Goblin Punch provides some adventure-design guidance, but in the end, a decent adventure still depends on its writer.

If you enjoy buying pdfs and prints of adventures, either to use straight-up or to mine for ideas, I strongly recommend Bryce's reviews before buying.  His favorites, the best, and the no regerts categories have all taken my money in the past.