A bit of an introduction...

Once upon a time, I tried to do this blogging thing. It started out well, but eventually Real Life called, and I was pulled in too many directions to keep it up. But the desire to use a blog as a creative outlet has persisted, and I think it is time to try it again. At this time, I'm not promising any kind of a regular posting schedule, but I will attempt to do something at least once a week. I can also be found on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, and Tumblr (among other places).

So I'm going to blog, but what am I going to blog about? Well, drawing inspiration from a variety of people I follow, respect, and admire, this blog is going to be focused primarily on roleplaying games (RPG's). Ever since I was in elementary school, I've been interested in fantasy and science fiction. I was a very avid paperback reader, and at some point I discovered Dungeons & Dragons (the old Red Box set). Unlike others, I don't have an awesome "somebody introduced me and we played and played" story. In fact, if I recall correctly, I found my first box set on the shelf of a toy store.

Throughout the rest of school and into my early 20's, I acquired quite a bit of RPG books, not just the various incarnations of D&D, but a lot of other games as well - I've still got many old FASA games like Star Trek and Dr. Who. I had a couple friends with whom we'd occasionally try to play, but only rarely did things last more then a couple of sessions. Mostly I bought the books, read them, and put them on the shelf. Before I finished high school, I also did a lot of planning and world creation, though much of that material has been lost over the years.

Life happened, I got married, got busy with other interests. I'd still pick up the occasional RPG book, though more often then not I wouldn't have the time to read it. I moved from Minnesota to North Carolina, started a new job, and made some friends who were all interested in putting together a group. Thus in the past few years I've finally been able to participate in ongoing games. So far, we've played D&D 3.5, D&D 4, Star Wars Saga Edition (which I GM'd), Shadowrun 4, and the most recent iteration of Battletech (the war game, not the RPG). This group, which started out as nine people, has kind of fractured. Those that are left have been playing Shadowrun and Battletech lately, while I'm really interested in playing D&D 4 right now. Since we have no one to run it (I don't have the time), I started looking for a new group.

In the future, I intend to write about my experiences, what I've learned, provide advice, and perhaps even fiction pieces inspired by my gaming. Over time I really hope my writing improves, and hopefully pick up some regular readers. I'm always open to constructive criticism to help me improve. But that's all for now. If all goes according to plan, there'll be a new article up within a weeks time...