My Solo RPG Journey: An Interview with Write Firster

Sometimes you just got write first and ask questions later, and this person is a master of that.

Good day to all my readers, imaginary or otherwise! Today we got another interview for you, and it's about Write Firster, creator of the game Niv Lova which I covered previously! Let’s dive right into their mind and dig for treasure.

Let’s start with an easy question. If you would be so kind, please introduce yourself to those who might not know who you are!

I go by Write Firster, a silly name I made when I first attempted a narrative fiction blog long ago, relating to the idea of ‘Write first, ask questions later’, sort of a philosophy I have when it comes to creating things. I halfheartedly started many fiction projects but could never keep them going. I started blogging Actual Play solo-plays on substack 3-ish years ago as a way to write and motivate myself to play solo ttrpgs. It was nice to have a creative outlet and I found that slowly but consistently, I gained an audience, which was incredibly exciting. To have people out there, reading what you write is an amazing feeling that I am very thankful for.

My day job is a Special Education Teacher for 8th grade students with high-functioning autism and I love it.

Ok well now I have to ask! How did you get into Special Ed as a day job? What made you want to do that?

So, I went to college with no idea what I wanted to do. I teased with the idea of getting into programming but really enjoyed my English classes, so I went full on English Major / Film Minor. Not much you can do with that! I moved down to Boston to be with my girlfriend, tried to get teaching jobs, but couldn’t. I was a bouncer and a substitute teacher. I finally got into being a Teaching Assistant in a special education program and really enjoyed working with the students. I got my Masters in Special Ed and a special ed teaching license and have been doing it ever since.

What got you into game creation / game design?

When I first started writing my substack, I had no inkling that I would ever write my own game. It would simply be a place for my Actual Plays, some articles about solo role-playing, reviews and thoughts, etc. But then Kal Arath came along and the simple yet evocative system spoke to me. I realized I could make something with it. An idea that I’d attempted to write into a novel time and time again, but I realized maybe it didn’t have to be a novel, maybe it could be a game.

Was there any game that made you sit down and just go “I want to do this!”? Or was it more a general feeling?

Many solo games made me realize ‘I want to do this’, but Kal Arath was the one that showed me ‘I can do this’. Other solo games are a constant inspiration. I have an idea for a Long Haul 1983 hack (a fantastic solo game where you record audio as your ‘journal entries’!) where instead of a truck driver after an apocalypse, you’re a scientist sent into an Area X - type zone (looking at you “Annihilation/Southern Reach”). ECO MOFO is a recent system I played using its solo rules and was just fascinated by some of its systems, especially its travel/encounters/maps stuff. Thousand-Year-Old Vampire got me thinking about creating more of a solo journaling game rather than an RPG…The ideas keep coming!

I have never heard of Long Haul 1983, and that sounds interesting as a concept (the audio bits). What kind of ideas do you have for your hack exactly that would set it apart from the base game? Just the theme/setting? Or do you have other little ideas in that brain of yours?

So it would use the same kind of system, with cards, and Troubles, but the prompts would be different. Instead of making a phone call to the person you’re trying to get to (in Long Haul), you’d be recording an audio report of what happened to you each day, unsure if it is getting back to base or if anyone will ever hear it, as you make your way towards the center of the disturbance. One cool idea for it, is I would do a playthrough myself, have the audio files uploaded somewhere, and a couple of the prompts would be ‘finding a tape’ and playing it, so your character would hear one of my audio files from my playthrough, and then also having a place where others could upload their audio files, thus making a bigger library of audio files for new playthroughs. No idea how to do that, but it sounds really cool in my head!

I would recommend Long Haul to everyone! You can write/journal instead of recording yourself, but the recording part truly makes it unique.

What inspires you to create? What sort of books or movies or music help you create?

As stated above, other solo games are very inspirational. Seeing what others create is just wonderful. As for books, I have a wide variety of interests. I find History to be really fascinating and constant sources of inspiration. Everything from pre-history (“Guns, Germs and Steel” to ancient history “The Fate of Rome” to medieval (“Powers and Thrones”) to more recent stuff (“Mayflower” and currently reading “American Republics” about the time period between revolutionary and civil war). I also want to shout out Indigenous Continent as a great North American history, as well as Children of Ash and Elm for Viking history. Weird fiction provides countless ideas, such as “Southern Reach” series, “The Book of Elsewhere”. Grimdark fantasy such as Joe Abercrombie are great, especially when it comes to gritty combat and realistic fantasy. Wheel of Time series was a huge influence growing up, the vast amount of cultures, cities, peoples and politics in those books is tremendous. I also love Cormac McCarthy’s sparse but evocative style, especially in Blood Meridian.

As for movies, I love Blade Runner 2049 and the new Dune movies. The scope and feeling of those films are just mesmerizing to me. They make me want to make cool stuff!

What kind of music inspires you? Got any favorite bands or tracks that you like to use to get into the groove?

I like to find something when playing or designing that goes with the setting of the game I’m working or playing in. STALKER radio playlist when playing Niv Lova. Swords and sorcery-type stuff if playing Kal Arath. I also really like lofi stuff for just background noise as I write or work. I also lean towards synthwave-type stuff to get me into a chill mood to write.

Since you primarily self publish via Itch, how has that been? Have you found it difficult?

Publishing via Itch is fairly easy. Getting the text into a nice-looking format that reads well and looks professional all by yourself is difficult and time-intensive. Also, having to reformat everything for Print-On-Demand on Lulu takes even more time. I would say creating the content is fun but laying it out is difficult. Itch makes it pretty easy and self-explanatory though, once you have a PDF you like.

What would you say is the hardest part of self publishing for you? What do you struggle with?

Kind of answered above but my lack of experience in any kind of graphic design, art, layouts, etc. I had to start from scratch and figure these things out as I went. It’s probably why I was mostly finished with the “content” of Niv Lova months and months ago, but it only was published in July. At least now, with my experience, the supplement should be a little easier.

What was the first game you wrote?

“You are a werewolf” - I was still working on Niv Lova when the one-page rpg jam happened and I realized, I was already making a game, I could probably make something simple and easy! It uses a handful of d6 tables to set up the world, a basic system of resolution based off Cthulhu Dark, but with a cool tweak because you’re a werewolf, and a d66 “smells” table that I’m fairly proud of.

What is your favorite game that you have written?

Niv Lova. It took me years to write, became more and more ambitious over time, and I’m just so happy I finished it. I’m not great at finishing things so it’s a big deal!

What game do you wish you could go back and fix?

“You are a werewolf” - I feel like I could expand it into more of a real game, and I like the ‘unleash your inner beast’ mechanic in it. I just feel like I could do something more with it, but I’m not quite sure what.

Ok I have to ask about this werewolf game as a fan of urban fantasy. Why have you not told me, personally, about this before, and where can I find it, and why have you not gone back to fix it or update it? The SoloRPG world NEEDS more Urban Fantasy damnit!

It’s on my itch page, PWYW. I’m open to ideas for how to expand and improve it! You’re not wrong about needing more Urban Fantasy.

With that out of the way let's talk Niv Lova. I know the inspiration behind it was Stalker and Kal Arath, but why those? What about those inspired you, specifically, to make your game?

I’ve been writing and rewriting novel ideas for a setting like Stalker/Roadside Picnic for over a decade. When I read Kal Arath and played it solo, it felt like a brutal, almost rogue-like system, and just felt like something I could adapt into a survival-type apocalypse-ish setting like Stalker. So I realized maybe the idea I had for that world didn’t have to be a novel, maybe it could be a game. So I just started making it!

I know you are working on a supplement for Niv Lova. How is it coming along, and what so far is it going to include?

It has grown into a much bigger project than initially anticipated. I’d say content-wise, it’s probably 60–70% complete, then I need to format it into Canva, review it, edit it, etc. The truth is it’s not coming out anytime soon, but it will provide a ton of content. Everything from more character creation choices, to new gear, new skills, new POIs, new encounters, new mutants and NPCs, as well as a new region called ‘Zona Nole’, which is essentially the deep zone, near the Center. I’ve also rejiggered some tables (such as the gear tables) for true randomness instead of the 2d6 weighted tables, which I’ve decided I don’t like, at least in certain situations. I also included a short blurb about how to make the ‘world feel alive’ when gming or solo-ing, and included mechanics to support that, such as Faction relationships, regional events, faction events and settlement events. There’s even an optional ‘Reputation’ stat and mechanics for improving a settlement if you feel so inclined.

What is your favorite mechanic of Niv Lova, the thing you feel sets it apart from Kal Arath, other than the setting of course.

I really like the scavenge and scrounge mechanics. It pushes players to enter the ‘dungeons’ of Niv Lova (Abandoned Urban Areas) looking for decent gear. You get to choose to search for a certain piece of gear and if you’re lucky, you find it! Usually though, you end up finding a random piece of gear, which is still fun. You can also scavenge for Scrap to repair gear or craft interesting items which adds a new survival element.

How do you manage your workload? Do you have a process or is it more fly by the seat of your pants / work on whatever hits your mood?

Considering my day job, it’s way more seat of my pants/mood. Some days my job can be very intense, emotionally and physically, leaving me too tired to be creative, while other days are pretty quiet. I just work when the mood comes, trying to at least get something done every day or every other day. Some days I can write for an hour and get a lot down, other days, I might finish a d6 table that I’d been stuck on. It’s all progress!

What would you say is your best skill when writing games?

I think I might be too ‘new’ to really even know this. I guess I might be good at seeing how other systems and ideas could be tweaked and used in my own games/settings? Also, I like providing examples. I think examples are so helpful when figuring out tricky mechanics.

What do you wish you were better at when writing games?

Honestly? Editing. Doing everything myself, I miss things. With Niv Lova, I was going back and forth between google docs and Canva, and I wasn’t super organized, so I kept having to review the documents to ensure I’d fixed everything. Even after doing that over and over, I still made mistakes! (looking at you, settlement rumor table, with no 10: entry)

Formatting as well. Getting the text to all fit in ways that are pleasing to the eye takes me a while.

Do you ever have time to play games? If so, what are some you are playing now? Any game at all.

I have a playthrough of a Niv Lova game going on my substack right now but it’s kind of taken a backseat as I work on the new supplement. I think I’m going to take a break, going back to good old Kal Arath, using Odinson’s new d666 dungeon “The Thousandfold Temple” for a spin.

Are there any designers / companies out there that impress you? Any you have not worked with but want to?

Substack is filled with them! Obviously Castle Grief (Castle Grief | Substack) who just keeps putting out great content. Odinson’s (Odinson Games | Substack) art and writing is so evocative. Whiskey, Blood and Dust (Whiskey, Blood and Dust | Substack) is making awesome combat oracles, as well as working on a wild west, Blood Meridian-style rpg that I’ve gotten to try out, can’t wait for that.

Are there any creators you specifically think people should check out, and any games you think people should try? In any capacity (creator, reviewer, designer, advice, etc)

Oh boy. Here we go.

Chris Mcdowell, of Bastionland Press makes really cool stuff including Into The Odd, Electric Bastionland and a new game called Mythic Bastionland that sounds very cool (Think Arthurian Knights and stuff, I think). https://substack.com/@bastionland

The Soloist: The Soloist - an indie RPG newsletter | Patrick Buechner | Substack puts out great newsletters about all things solo rpgs.

Solo Roleplaying Buddha | BuddhaRandom | Substack : Really cool solo rpg ideas and generally nice person

SilverNightingale’s Substack | Substack -Writes actual plays and makes great art as well as putting together community zines for Kal Arath, and creating his own zine for it as well. A fellow teacher!

Rotten Chronicles | Substack - for solo mork borg content!

RobinPlays | Substack - Active solo player here, good writing!

PTFO | SGH | Substack - PTFO is what inspired me to start writing up actual plays on substack in the first place.

MurkMail | Murkdice | Substack - Is putting out great toolkits and oracle tables, and just great rpg content in general.

The Lone Toad - Croaker RPGs Newsletter | Substack -A designer and solo-gamer who just writes great content.

Kerova | Substack -Fellow solo role-player and beginning ttrpg designer!

Graham’s Substack | Substack - That guy who made Cthulhu Dark? He’s on substack, great game designer

Fari RPGs | René-Pier Deshaies | Substack - Making great games, contributing great content and keeping much of their rulebooks and content free.

The Dragon's Den | Eric Dill | Substack - Another early substack solo role-player, who makes really cool stuff. I remember when it was just Eric, myself and Castle in Castle Grief’s discord! How far we’ve come…

Cloud Empress Newsletter | watt | Substack - Wrote the Cloud Empress Ecological Fantasy RPG, which has solo rules that I am yearning to give a try. The setting is heavily inspired by Nausicaa, which I watched recently and loved. Donates 1% of sales to charity every month.

Chaoclypse’s Substack | Substack - Makes really cool stuff around solo games! Puts out youtube reviews of playing and reviewing solo rpgs, even gave Niv Lova a shout out. Very nice guy.

Cezar Capacle talks Game Design | Substack - Has exploded onto the solo game scene and is making some very cool, very different games.

Was that too many??? I’m probably forgetting some, which I apologize!

Finally, any words of wisdom for aspiring game creators?

Don’t use AI. Don’t replace human creativity with a copy-machine. I used stock photos from Canva, edited, but I also made sure to pay for a few pieces of art to put in Niv Lova, because paying for real art from artists is so important. I don’t think I’ve even made back the money I spent on the art from sales yet, but it’s so worth it.

Also, get involved with others! There’s so many cool creators and players out there, making and playing cool shit. Subscribe, read, like, comment. Just engage with others in this hobby that we all enjoy.

Lastly, just make something. If you have an idea and you want to do it, do it. Don’t ask questions like “will anyone read/play this? Is this any good? How is this going to work…”

Be a Write Firster. Write first, ask questions later.

Where can people find your work and find you to follow what you are up to?

You can find my games on my itch page: Writefirstergames - itch.io

If you want to follow me and see what I play, write and make, subscribe on substack:

https://substack.com/@playingwithmyself

Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions Write Firster!

Till next time!