UPDATE: Announcing the winners!
The voting is over, and the favorite love interest has been chosen! First place goes to Jason Alexander for “Emily Constantine.” The voting was so close that we also awarded a prize for runner-up to Chris Nolen for “Shalenna.” Both the winners received gift certificates for RPGNow/DriveThruRPG. You can now download the PDF of all the contest entries which credits the author of each piece and names the winners.
The roving contest is moving on to another site, with a different theme, but it is always about writing for RPGs. If you would like to know more about the Warlock’s Journal or see where it has landed this month, click here.
CONTEST INFORMATION
The Warlock’s Journal is an interdimensional book that moves through the planes always seeking new information. This month it was discovered by the minions of Tabletop Adventures, and they are holding a contest for special descriptions to add to it. In keeping with our February theme of RPG romance, this contest will be to describe a possible love interest for a player character, and the prize will be $15.00 in store credit on RPGNow/DriveThru RPG.
ENTRY DETAILS
An entry should consist of the love interest’s name and physical description, how a character would meet this person (or how the person would be involved in a character’s backstory, if appropriate), a bit about the possible lover’s personality and motivations, and a quote or two to show what the person is like. (A quote could be something like the famous line attributed to Mae West: “Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?” Or, it could be something as simple as, “As you wish.”) No statistics are required, though if an author desires, stats could be included as ‘bonus material,’ not counted in the word limit for entries.
Entries should be limited to 500 words, though they need not be that long. A person can enter more than once, but each entry must be separate. Put the entry in the body of an e- mail and also be sure to include contact information; at a minimum, name and e-mail address. Send all entries to customerservice @tabletopadventures.com. Entries must be received by Thursday, February 20, 2014 before midnight, US Central Time. All entries will be presented anonymously for voting by fans, using Survey Monkey or a similar service. (Any ties will be decided by the Overlord, of course.) The winner of the fan vote will be announced by February 28, 2014, and all entries then made available as a free PDF with credit to the authors. (Entries remain the property of their authors, but participation grants permission to use entries in the free contest PDF and any annual or other compilation that may be made later.) Members of Tabletop Adventures may enter but are not eligible to win. Tabletop Adventures reserves the right to add more winning places or award Honorable Mention prizes at the Overlord’s discretion.
ROMANTIC POSSIBILITIES
A ‘love interest’ can be male or female and of any race relevant to the genre. (Unfortunately, named races specific to copyrighted settings cannot be used.) It could be someone in a character’s backstory, such as a childhood sweetheart or old flame. Or, it could be someone completely new with whom a player character could strike up a relationship. Perhaps a meeting will result in love (or lust) at first sight! Maybe a person will be put on a pedestal as an idealized first love, or maybe he or she will be the subject of a dark obsession. It could be that the ‘love interest’ is a femme fatale, and so any relationship might be short-lived…
Tabletop Adventures’ own Shards of the Heart details several possible romantic interests for fantasy characters. Contest entries need not be limited to the fantasy genre, however. A modern RPG could use a hard-hitting reporter or suave secret agent as a possible date for a hero or heroine. The pulp era could offer a tough-as-nails detective or a dashing aviatrix. In a futuristic setting, perhaps a player character might meet up with a planetary princess, or a good-hearted smuggler, or an android who is almost human. These are only a few suggestions; with some imagination, the possibilities are almost limitless.
