When a Storyteller Fails
Thursday -- April 17th, 2014
Author: Bruce
Confession: I believe the position of storyteller is not unlike that of a priest, not necessarily a Christian priest, more like a shaman, perhaps. Like a shaman, a storyteller evolves into his position because he or she has the desire to do something for his social group (friends, family, co-workers, etc). The shaman wears many hats and so does the storyteller; ideally, the storyteller is a completely impartial arbiter with the passion and will to spin fantasy from moonlight and spider-silk. One of the most misunderstood facets of being a storyteller is that it is a position of trust. Players turn to the storyteller to adjudicate disagreements, to accept the player's fantasy without overt judgement, and to a greater or lesser degree, to influence the players emotions. These are just some of the responsibilities of being a storyteller and do not touch upon the skills or temperament necessary to balance a game and bring about a sense of wonder leading to the suspension of disbelief.
However, sometimes storytellers fail in one fashion or another. Sometimes its obvious, like showing a greater degree of leniency to a particular player and sometimes it isn't, as in the case of a storyteller who loses touch with what it is exactly the players really want. When that happens, the storyteller may or may not be aware of the failure; but the player always is aware, if only on a subconscious level. Ultimately, that can breed resentment, anger, a sense of betrayal and or broken trust. There are two circumstances when it is particularly easy to lose touch with the players, when the storyteller is new to the group or when the storyteller has been with the group so long that he or she can no longer see the forest for the trees, so to speak. Of course, new storytellers or new to a particular group can often be molded by the group to fit their desires, if not, the group gets another new storyteller and starts the process all over. In the case of a storyteller who has been with a group too long and has lost sight of the balance of needs between the story, the storyteller and the group, well that can be a very difficult situation because the storyteller has devoted years to the game and may feel a sense of entitlement or lack of empathy with his or her group. Ideally, when the old storyteller realizes what has happened, he or she either sits down with the group for a pow-wow, if you will or that storyteller hangs up the hat and turns over the fantasy that still has value to another storyteller to carry on the tradition.
It was recently brought to my attention that as a storyteller, I had failed a player, perhaps more than one, but one is enough. Storytellers by definition must have certain skills, they need not be particularly skilled, but all storytellers have the same basic skills. One of those skills is empathy, the ability to empathize with a real person or not-so-real-person like a character from a book, movie or television series.
I've been waiting to respond to make sure you had said what you wanted to say.
By the criteria you cite, every storyteller fails with every story. Nothing can be perfect for everyone. If I did not enjoy playing, I wouldn't play. Yes, Morgan would prefer a quiet life, and I would prefer to fight less and talk more, but by no means am I on the "dissatisfied" side of the scale overall. My failing over the years is that I have been unable to express a desire for an adjustment to the overall emphasis of the stories I play through without making it seem like a demand for complete overhaul.
Mostly, I think my flirtations with burnout stem from this: I, and thus my character, do not fight for the sake of fighting, or being the best fighter, or any other internal motivation. Neither is the intellectual knowledge that the "bad guys" are "bad" enough to justify the emotional effort involved. I fight to protect the things I care about, and the things I've struggled to build. When it has been years since I've interacted with anything worth fighting for, I forget that anything IS worth it. I need stories that aren't about another villain who is older, more powerful, more subtle and terrifying than the last one to make the real villains stand out.
As a storyteller, I can see the problems. Little stories can interest only one player at a time. I truly enjoyed creating and running Belogradchick, but when Morgan (and his childe) joined Bruce, it was time to upgrade to a larger setting with larger characters and larger problems. It's these medium-sized stories that I have trouble with as a Storyteller. Epic stories involving overwhelming odds and world-shattering opponents are comparatively easy for me to get my mind around.
-Jamie
