Happy New Year! I got a bit of vacation finally at the turning of the year and thought I would spend some time on a creative role-playing game endeavour. Also, I thought it would be fun to blog about the creative process. Thus, I thought I’d write up an adventure scenario from scratch using the Runehammer Games Think Deck. Basically, the Think Deck is a “54 card deck you shuffle, draw, and interpret to create tabletop content” (from the description on DriveThruRPG). The deck is modelled on your standard poker deck with two jokers but is read like tarot cards. It’s quite easy to use if you read the short “how-to” guide that comes with the deck. For an adventure design session, you draw five cards and place them down as they come out of the deck (upright or reversed/inverted). For my scenario design, I drew the following five cards:

The cards I drew are defined as following, from left to right:

1. Revelation (Ten of Hearts) – This is defined as a plot twist or some other major plot point being revealed to the player characters (PCs) during the course of the adventure. Okay, so something isn’t as it seems then. The Hearts suit represents Trust, among other things, so I’ll interpret this card as misplaced trust that is revealed over the course of the adventure.
2. Allies (Eight of Diamonds) – Diamonds as a suit represents the elite. As it comes right after the Revelation, I’m going to make this group of allies actually be the foes of the scenario, working ultimately against the PCs.
3. Lesser Foe (Three of Diamonds) – Again, we see the suit representing the Elite (Diamonds). It’s a Lesser Foe so these would be minions of the elite, perhaps they come from the Allies that actually oppose the PCs.
4. Lesser Obstacle (Four of Diamonds) – Another “elite” card, this time a Lesser Obstacle. I’m starting to think that this might be some sort of power play between nobles or those who serve them with the PCs getting stuck in the middle.
5. Allies (Eight of Hearts) – I’m choosing to interpret this card as an Ally in a position of Trust. Since it came at the end of my draw for this adventure scenario, this Ally will actually help the PCs. Since Revelation was the first card I drew, I want to continue the theme. Perhaps, this Ally looks like a foe initially but is actually a friend in the end.

Already, I have the beginnings of an interesting intrigue plot.  I want this to be a low-level adventure because, in my opinion, it will be easier to run and be more interesting. I’m actually not alone in this opinion, the YouTuber, Dungeoncraft, says pretty much the same thing in this video and in others on his channel.  As I mentioned earlier, I’m starting to think this scenario is going to be some sort of power play between the elites in the town with the PCs brought in as pawns.

Looking at the draw of cards, I decided that the village would have a Reeve and a Trade Guild. These are the Allies from the cards. I decided the Lesser Foe will be a band of brigands that are disrupting travel along the road between “Village A” and “Village B” (the names for all the places and people can be figured out later), aided by a group of goblin reavers that prevent travellers from trying to move overland and avoid the road. The Trade Guild is the actual foe that seems like an ally. They have arranged for the brigands and the goblins to disrupt trade in order to discredit the administration of the Reeve. The Trade Guild hires the PCs to put an end to the brigand menace, knowing that they will find “evidence” that the Reeve is the one who organized and hired the brigands.  The reality is that the Vice-Reeve is working with the Trade Guild with the hopes of getting the Reeve’s post once he’s been discredited. The Reeve is innocent and has been distracted from dealing with the issue directly through the machinations of his deputy. On the Trade Guild side of things, the Guildmaster is actually funding and organizing this disruption but is allowing his deputy to run the day-to-day operations of this scheme. The Guildmaster wants to maintain plausible deniability.

At this juncture,  I thought I would try to create some Events that the PCs would play through:

1. Town Crier/Jobs Board indicates that there is a reward for the group of mercenaries/adventurers that investigate news of “highwaymen” plaguing the road between Village A and Village B.
2. Deputy Trade Guildmaster hires PCs to guard a shipment to Village B to determine what threat there is and drive off the bandits if possible.
3. PCs meet the bandits on the road. A fight ensues (?). After the battle or encounter, the PCs find:
   1. the surviving bandit leader says he was hired “by the Reeve”. However, deeper questioning reveals that all dealings were with the Vice-Reeve.
   2. the PCs find a forged letter from the Reeve if none of the brigands are captured and questioned.
4. PCs run into goblins either in the forest or on the road during the battle with the bandits if the PCs take too long to dispatch their foes. This adds a timer and a sense of urgency to the brigand encounter. Perhaps the goblins show up as reinforcements after one to four rounds of combat. I got the idea of using a timer to create tension in a game session also from ICRPG.
   1. Drive off goblins and their worg mounts
5. Confront the Reeve
   1. Somehow determine that the Reeve is innocent
      1. Forged letter could not have been written by the Reeve as it is dated during a period of time when the Reeve was away on business at the Baron’s keep.
      2. Only person with the means to create such a well-made forgery is the Vice-Reeve.
   2. Somehow determine that the Vice -Reeve is connected to the Trade Guild.
6. Confront the Trade Guild
7. Defeat the Deputy Guildmaster and the Vice-Reeve.
8. Reeve is grateful for the help of the PCs and will hire them again to deal with other issues. The Trade Guildmaster will throw his deputy under bus in order to distance himself from the ensuing scandal.
   1. The Trade Guild is diminished and the guildmaster vows revenge on the PCs.

Right now, the chain of events looks like a jumbled mess with more questions to be resolved than answers. At this point, I decided to follow the advice of Sly Flourish and generate a some secrets and clues. I threw together the following list from my initial list of events and from some other tidbits I decided on after using the Think Deck:

1. The Vice-Reeve wants to discredit the Reeve and take over the office.
2. The Trade Guild wants more control of Village A and local trade routes to extract more profit for the guild.
3. Goblins are present in the forest and will attack travellers moving overland and avoiding the road to avoid the bandits.
4. A band of highwaymen are robbing travellers and caravans on the road between Village A and Village B.
5. The captain of the highwaymen is a childhood friend of the Vice-Reeve.
6. The goblin reavers and the highwaymen are working together and splitting the take.
7. The Reeve is involved in a plot to overthrow the local Baron.
8. The goblins are part of a scouting vanguard, gathering intelligence for some sinister group or foe.
9. The plot to overthrow the local baron is being funded/aided by the same group that is employing the goblins for scouting.
10. One of the PCs gets a strange coin as part of a transaction with an image of a mailed fist holding a mace aloft.
11. The highwaymen have a few of these strange coins.
12. The goblins have number of these coins, as well as a bit of parchment with a coded message on it with the same image of a mailed fist holding a mace aloft.
13. Thought they are under strict orders not to, some of the highwaymen sneak into Village A to drink at the local tavern. This is likely the source of the coin that the PC received in #10.
14. The goblin reaver chieftain has a mace marked with the same symbol (a mailed fist holding a mace aloft).

Now, I have a somewhat incoherent chain of events and a nice list of clues and secrets. I don’t think I have enough clues to connect all the parts of the intrigue together yet. I’ll need to put some more thought into this and see what I can come up with. I also have a number of clues that hint at something happening in the world outside of the two villages and the road between. Those could be fun if this ever get expanded into anything bigger.

I guess that’s all for now. In the title I noted that this is the first part of a series which I hope with result in a fully fleshed-out scenario that I can play at some point. See you in the next one!

Useful Links

• Runehammer Games Think Deck (Drive-Thru RPG): https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/321761/ICRPG-THINK-DECK
• The Dungeoncraft YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@DUNGEONCRAFT1
• DungeonCraft #22: The SECOND Secret Every DM Needs to Know (Dungeoncraft – YouTube): https://youtu.be/kwPja6zbLK0
• The Runehammer YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Runehammer1
• Key Mechanics: Timers! (Runehammer – YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HcfieLbrQAc
• Sly Flourish’s The Lazy Dungeon Master: https://slyflourish.com/lazydm/
• Managing Mysteries and Plot Twists (Sly Flourish): https://slyflourish.com/managing_mysteries_and_plot_twists.html
• Secrets and Clues, the Secret Weapon of the Lazy Dungeon Master (Sly Flourish): https://slyflourish.com/sharing_secrets.html

What is Art? Yes, I’m pretty sure a lot of people have defended entire PhD dissertations on this topic but, as I said before, André Gide wrote, “Toutes choses sont dites déjà; mais comme personne n’écoute, il faut toujours recommencer. [Everything has been said before, but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again.]” so I’m going to take André’s advice and write about it anyway. I really should get that quote made up into a plaque that I can put up in my office….

Art is what exactly? Is what I write here something that could be considered art? I suppose in some small way the results of my creative process could be considered art in a very general sense. These words aren’t on the level of Hemingway or Zelazny (yes, really! My absolute favourite quote by a fictional character was written by him: “It is a pain in the ass waiting around for someone to try to kill you.“) but they are my words. I write here with the feeling that I’m shouting into a void. It is disheartening but also liberating as I don’t feel like I need to keep an audience happy. I am making a thing and the act of bringing it into existence is what brings me joy. I lack the skill to make anything else any better so I’ll soldier on with the meagre ability to write that I do have.

Is what I write art, though? I’m not sure I can answer that in any succinct way.  What I write requires effort on my part so one can definitely say that I have crafted something. I guess I look at my writing as something I build. A potter crafts a vessel and I write a blog post. Neither may be seen by anyone beyond a few people who have a connection to the artist. This fact doesn’t make what is created any less a work of art…at least in my opinion.

Sorry for the paucity of blog posts. I’m sure no one is actually following this blog any more. I’m still here but Life is Life.

Useful Links

• André Paul Guillaume Gide (French: [ɑ̃dʁe pɔl ɡijom ʒid]; 22 November 1869 – 19 February 1951) was a French author and winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature (in 1947). [Wikipedia Article]
• Roger Zelazny [on Goodreads]

I just read a post by Wil Wheaton, “everything under the sun is in tune” and it actually inspired me to kludge together some sort of post for my blog. I have been having a bit of  trouble putting together anything for my blog. It’s supposed to be fun but it just hasn’t been for a while. I turn over ideas for blog posts in my head but nothing seems to inspire me to flesh them out. With every idea, I was blocked by feeling like I wasn’t writing anything that hasn’t been beaten to death already. This post really isn’t any different: “Woe is me! I have not the will to write for xyz reasons.” A while back, I found out that André Gide (a French writer and Nobel Prize in Literature winner active in the early to mid 20th century) wrote, “Toutes choses sont dites déjà; mais comme personne n’écoute, il faut toujours recommencer. [Everything has been said before, but since nobody listens we have to keep going back and beginning all over again.]” If nobody is listening then that gives you a certain amount of freedom to try and fail. I guess I should just get on with it.

I’ve been going through my notes and I see that I’ve actually got a bunch of ideas that seem to be pretty good. I should start writing up one of them. Nobody is reading this so why not?

Useful Links

• Wil Wheaton’s Blog [post from 2021-05-23]: http://wilwheaton.net/2021/05/everything-under-the-sun-is-in-tune/
• André Gide (Wikipedia): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/André_Gide
• Quotes Attributed to André Gide: https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_Gide
  • From Le Traité du Narcisse (The Treatise of the Narcissus [https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Le_Trait%C3%A9_du_narcisse])
    • Also: Nothing is said that has not been said before. — Terence

I read somewhere on the internet (maybe on Twitter?) about a person who was describing how some days are harder get through for them than others. They used the analogy of preparing tea. On an easy day, it feels like it takes maybe three steps. On a more difficult day, it might take six steps. On the most difficult days when even the simplest things feel insurmountable, it could seem to take a dozen or more steps. As your mental state becomes fogged by depression or the more overwhelmed you are, the harder it is to do anything. The analogy really resonates with me.  I have days when I despair that I’ll ever complete a task. Most days I manage to power through but it can feel so difficult. Some days I start a task and it feels like it telescopes into an infinite amount of sub-tasks.

I’m not sure what the answer is to this. I’m not even sure that there is an answer. I just thought I would put this up here.

Like just about everyone else in the world, my Pathfinder group and I have had to deal with not being able to meet in person to play because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This necessity forced us to look what options we have to try to continue play online in some way.

The concept of a “Virtual Table Top” or VTT isn’t new but interest in it has definitely increased with all the restrictions on meeting with your friends we are all experiencing. A VTT is a basically an interface that allows you, as a Game Master, to represent everything from a battle mat, to dice rolls and sound effects. This is usually done through a web browser but can also be a stand-alone application. The most popular options are Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds. They will literally let you manage everything: character sheets, spell duration, dice-rolling, moving character markers, and playing music/sound effects.

In the end, I felt it was overkill for what we needed. By the time I became comfortable using all their tools, we would lose a lot of time that could be spent more profitably actually playing. Yes, it is possible to start with a subset of the features and build on that. However, there are costs associated with using these products too; I’d end up paying for a product I’m not fully using.

As a core requirement, what I really need is to be able to see my players and hear them. If I could manage to get mood music or sound effects into the session, that would be a bonus. After some consideration, having the battle mat was not so critical. Trying to represent it virtually meant that I’d have to use a fully-featured VTT and would run into that steep learning curve. That’s on top of building all the maps I would need to use from scratch. Playing a good-enough virtual session of Pathfinder is always going to better than waiting to have a “perfect” scenario. Thus, what we really need is a decent video conference application. In the end, I looked at four options: Zoom, Discord, Jitsi, and Google Meet.

Zoom: Security Concerns

Zoom would probably be a good option but we would be limited to a 40-minute session with their free tier, which is far too short. We could have opted for the “Pro” tier at CAD $20.00 per month but, as will be seen, a less expensive option presented itself. Also, I was concerned about the security issues that were uncovered by its widespread use (Edit: As of 2020-05-05, it appears that Zoom may have addressed some of their security issues in a Zoom 5.0 release. Time will tell if this is actually true.) I rather go with another option based on these reasons so I did not look to see if Zoom would support the ability to stream music or sound effects.

Discord: A Possible Option (But Fiddly)

Discord is another option that’s popular with many video gamers. It’s free but requires everyone to sign up for a Discord ID. Once that’s done, I would have to invite everyone to my private “server”. On this server, I would need to set up both a text chat and a video chat “channel” so that it approaches a video conferencing app’s functionality. Also, it requires some fiddling to get it set up for streaming music in that you need to create and then invite a “bot” that would stream the music for you. In my case, I tested the Groovy bot. It works but the free version doesn’t allow for things like volume control. In addition, I was only able to find bots that streamed Spotify as an online service. I use Google Play Music and, since I have most of my playlists already set up on that service, I would prefer to use it instead.

I did a small test with one of my players and the audio and video quality was surprisingly good. The music streaming also worked but the commands to control the Groovy bot don’t always work as I expect. Stopping the Spotify playlist work fine but it was impossible to restart it with the commands I was aware of. I suspect I was misunderstanding how the bot worked. As well, the volume was a bit loud when compared to the speaking voice of my test player. I would have to see what it looked like with a my full group and think about whether or not paying a monthly subscription for the premium bot would be worth it.

Jitsi: An Open-Source Video Conferencing App

Jitsi is intriguing to me as it is an open-source application. It does fulfill the very basic function of providing a video conferencing platform. However, I haven’t spent too much time looking into whether or not I can stream sound from another source within a Jitsi meeting. As of the time of me writing this blog article, the documentation is still incomplete, likely waiting for a volunteer to the project to write it. This is a solution I’ll keep an eye on as my preference is to use open-source software when I can.

Google Meet: My Current Preference

As a solution that meets my criteria and works without extra effort, Google Meet is the front-runner in my opinion. It works with Firefox though using it with Chrome give you more functionality (more on that in a bit). The video and audio quality is pretty good. However, its quality is slightly poorer than my Discord test, although that wasn’t a full test of Discord with the full group. Currently, you are required to have a G Suite subscription to access Google Meet, which costs CAD $7.80 as of writing this for the Basic tier. I have the good fortune of having a player in our group that already has a G Suite subscription and happily volunteered to set up the meetings for our gaming sessions. However, I just found out that Google Meet is now available for personal use without requiring a G Suite subscription. This only improves its position as the video conferencing solution I prefer.

Though Google Meet works well enough on Firefox, my default browser, if you use Chrome you gain the ability to cast video and sound from another tab. I tested this and it works without any extra set-up or configuring on my part. Because I’m basically streaming a tab from Chrome, I can use Google Play Music, Spotify, or any other music streaming service I want. This also allows me to use sound effects from my Battlebards service. The flexibility of streaming any audio I can play from a Chrome tab is great. The only drawback is that my players are then stuck looking at my Chrome tab which isn’t ideal.

Workarounds for Other Requirements

The other, arguably more important, requirement is being able to share files with my players during a session. Often, I want the players to be able to see a portion of a map handout, or some other picture. I would rather do this at the moment when it is relevant, conserving the element of surprise. I didn’t find a direct way to do this on either Zoom or Discord, though I didn’t spend much time looking for this functionality. Google Meet allows you to share files prior to the start of the meeting but not during, which isn’t what I want. In the end I worked around this need by using our Signal group to send everyone files during the game. I have the desktop app installed and so it’s very easy to attach a file to our chat and have it available to all the players. I used this with great success during my last session with my players.

Conclusion: An Example of KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid)

The journey to get to a virtual tabletop solution that works for my group is one that embraces the philosophy of Keep It Simple, Stupid (KISS). Roll20 and Fantasy Grounds can turn your virtual game session into something akin to a video game. However, most of these features are very much in the camp of “nice to have”. The effort required to set up and run a session on one of these platforms is quite large. While it would look absolutely beautiful, it just isn’t necessary to support my game and the fun (I hope) my players are having. A combination of Google Meet and Signal fulfills all the core requirements to deliver my game to my players. Soon, Google Meet will be free for use and I will be able to set up my own video conference meetings. However, even if I didn’t have a player in my group willing and able to provide such a platform, the cost for a month of the basic G Suite subscription is such that it’s less than the cost of snacks for one session for the whole group. With Google Meet and Signal, I cover off my core requirements (simple video conferencing and on-the-fly file sharing), as well as a significant optional requirement (the ability to stream music or sound effects within a meeting). Of note, there is an additional unexpected effect of running a virtual tabletop game…

Conclusion (Part 2): More Role-Playing Game Nights

We are playing more often than we ever have since the implementation of strict social distancing rules and the closing of businesses deemed non-essential. Of course, this isn’t just because we’re now playing online. Many of the activities that my players and I were involved in have either been cancelled or also moved online. Everyone’s schedule has become less congested. Having a virtual tabletop means we can still meet up to play but with the advantage of not having to gather in one place for a face-to-face session. Arrangements don’t have to be made for those players with children or who travel  a distance from home to come play. The next result is that we have played every week like clockwork for the last six weeks. Considering that we were lucky to get together to play every four to six weeks prior to COVID-19, this last run of game sessions has been amazing. Even once the restrictions are lifted, this method of gathering will still be a very viable option to allow us to play when we can’t get together.

Useful Links

• Roll20: Online virtual tabletop for pen and paper RPGs and board games: https://www.roll20.net/
• Fantasy Grounds: https://www.fantasygrounds.com/home/home.php
• Zoom: https://zoom.us/
• Zoom 5.0 Release: https://zoom.us/docs/en-us/zoom-v5-0.html
• Overview of Zoom 5.0 features (YouTube – dottotech): https://youtu.be/JRMxIyIgRio
• Zoom Pricing: https://zoom.us/pricing
• FAQ on Zoom Security Issues (Citizen Lab): https://citizenlab.ca/2020/04/faq-on-zoom-security-issues/
• Discord: https://discord.com/
• Discord (software) [Wikipedia]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discord_(software)
• Groovy Bot: https://groovy.bot/
• Groovy – Premium: https://groovy.bot/premium
• Groovy – Commands: https://groovy.bot/commands
• Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/
• G Suite: Collaboration & Productivity Apps for Business: https://gsuite.google.com/
• G Suite Pricing: https://gsuite.google.com/pricing.html
• G Suite Tier Comparison: https://gsuite.google.com/compare-editions/
• “Google Meet premium video meetings—free for everyone” (Google press release): https://blog.google/products/meet/bringing-google-meet-to-more-people
• G Suite – Collaboration & Productivity Apps for Business: https://gsuite.google.com/
• Sharing Audio in Meet – Update Alert: https://youtu.be/tDRJ1SdcmF0
• How to share files and attachments in Google Meet: https://youtu.be/uQp0D9kL1Qs
• BattleBards – Audio and Tools for Tabletop RPGs: https://battlebards.com/#/home
• Jitsi: an open-source video conferencing app: https://jitsi.org/
• Jitsi Documentation on Github: https://github.com/jitsi/jitsi-meet/blob/master/doc/README.md
• Signal, the encrypted messaging app: https://signal.org/
• Signal >> Download Signal: https://signal.org/download/
• KISS Principle (Wikipedia): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KISS_principle

“It stung like a violent wind that our memories depend / On a faulty camera in our minds” (What Sarah Said – Death Cab for Cuties)

My memory is and (infuriatingly) isn’t very detailed when recalling things from my childhood. For example, I will remember many details about teachers and other people from my childhood, like what they looked like or something they said or did, but not their names. I can visualize places and people in my mind in great detail. I can recall all sorts of trivia about them but I can’t remember a previous address or a person’s name. I wonder if all my memories will become these vague impressions as I get older. It scares me a bit that all my experiences will eventually be distilled down to a vague and hazy recollection that may or may not reflect what actually happened. This assumes that I don’t develop any issues with Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia. Having my mind fail is a great fear of mine.

However, you have to acknowledge that memory is subjective and can be faulty for most people. According to Wikipedia, Confabulation is defined as “…a memory error defined as the production of fabricated, distorted, or misinterpreted memories about oneself or the world.” Confabulation happens more frequently, I suspect, than anyone is willing to admit. The human brain has never able to accurately record past events. It rewrites memories that are painful to our egos or that are not in line with our internal worldview. Because our memories are intertwined with our emotions, certain aspects of memories are amplified or even exaggerated, depending on how they make you feel. Human memory isn’t like a video recording or a computer file; it isn’t a flawless record of an event in our past. It’s our biased interpretation of an experience and the objective truth of it is lost to time. Certain aspects of an event that are more charged with emotion for us will be better recalled but this recollection will warp the rest of our memory of an event. We’ll often paint ourselves in a better light or overly fixate on something hurtful that happened. Our memory is flawed and subject to the interpretation of our emotions.

What does this mean for our experiences and our recollection of these experiences? We have to accept and take into account that we don’t remember things as they actually were. We remember things as we want to remember them.

Useful Links

• Death Cab for Cutie – What Sarah Said (Lyrics – Genius Lyrics): https://genius.com/Death-cab-for-cutie-what-sarah-said-lyrics
• Confabulation (Wikipedia): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confabulation
• “Unreliable Memory – Why memory’s unreliable, and what we can do about it.” (Article – Psychology Today): https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hidden-motives/201203/unreliable-memory
• Memory Error (Wikipedia): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memory_error
• “False Memories” (Article – Psychology Today): https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/false-memories
• “What You Need to Remember About Your Memory – Human memory doesn’t work the way you think it does—and that could be a problem.” (Article – Psychology Today): https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/about-thinking/202001/what-you-need-remember-about-your-memory
• “Why Your Memory is Far Better Than You Think … and why most of us mistakenly believe it’s weak.” (Article – Psychology Today): https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/defining-memories/201405/why-your-memory-is-far-better-you-think

This is just a quick post to call out that it’s International Women’s Day today (2020-03-08). If you have special women and girls in your life today, wish them well. Also, today and every day, support them in any way you can by giving them the space to be who they want to be and to be heard. Personally, I am very thankful to all the indomitable, indefatigable, and strong women (young and old) dear to me in my life who make the lives of those around them better just by being who they are. I am truly blessed to have them in my life.

Thank you to all of you!

Useful Links

• International Women’s Day (Wikipedia)
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Women’s_Day

Maybe it’s happened to you, you’re at the grocery store or the park
and suddenly you have the Best. Blog. Idea. Ever. You have to remember
it but you’re not in front of your computer right now. What do you
do? You try to commit it to memory until you get home. However, by
the time you get back to your keyboard the idea is gone. It happens to
me all the time and it used to drive me crazy.

The best thing to do, of course, is to write that idea down. In
James Joyce’s seminal book, Ulysses, one of the main characters,
Stephen Dedalus, comes up with an idea for a poem while strolling on
the beach. He struggles but succeeds in capturing his inspiration. By
locating a letter in his pocket he was supposed to give to the editor
of one of the local Dublin newspapers and pencil nub he “borrowed”
from the city library, he then records the idea before it was lost
(see Ulysses, Chapter 3: Proteus). While I don’t recommend using scrap
off of a letter you were supposed to deliver on someone’s behalf, the
low-tech idea of keeping a pencil and notebook in one’s pocket for
this type of occasion is a good one and easy to implement. My issue
with this method is that I actually have to remember to pack up a
notebook and pen. Also, the notebook needs to be the right size. If
it’s too big it’ll be too hard to bring it with. If it’s too small,
writing will be a real chore. I really like the Moleskin notebooks or
a nice wirebound Rhodia notebook. That being said, I don’t always have
a notebook handy.

The method I use most often is the Evernote app on my phone (in fact,
I started this post on Evernote!). I almost always have my phone with
me so it’s always ready to capture an idea on the fly. That’s my
preferred app but there are literally hundreds of note-taking apps for
smartphones (including the default ones that come pre-installed on
your phone, like the Notes app on the iPhone or Google’s Keep for
Android). They are a good choice because you don’t need to bring
anything additional with you and taking a note is a quick as a click
of a few buttons on a device you already have with you.

Another method that I’ve considered is recording a voice memo on a
recording app on your phone. The idea has been knocking around my head
for decades, since I read Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. In
that book, a character named Gordon Way leaves voicemails on his
secretary’s answering machine whenever he gets an idea he wants to
capture. I believe his poor secretary was meant to transcribe all his
rambling messages. This brings up a key point if you want to employ
this method: be succinct. You don’t want to wade through a
three-minute-long stream of consciousness voice memo from yourself
later when you want to actually write down the idea. As well, the
drawback of a voice memo is that you have transcribe the idea to the
written word. It’s another step and I can see that being a giant pain
in the ass.

Well, I hope that one (or more) of these ideas might be useful to
someone. Capturing inspiration and ideas when you’re otherwise
occupied is important. Some of your best thinking can happen when
you’re focused on something else. Ideas percolate through your
subconsciousness and then bubble up when you least expect it. You have
to catch them before they fade away.

Useful Links

• Ulysses by James Joyce on Project Gutenberg
  • https://www.gutenberg.org/files/4300/4300-h/4300-h.htm
• Spark Notes : Ulysses: Stephen Dedalus
  • https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/ulysses/character/stephen-dedalus/
• Shmoop Editorial Team. “Stephen Dedalus Timeline in Ulysses.” Shmoop University, Inc. Last modified November 11, 2008. Accessed February 23, 2020.
  • https://www.shmoop.com/ulysses-joyce/stephen-dedalus-timeline.html 
• Moleskin Notebooks (Canadian site)
  • https://ca.moleskine.com/notebooks
• Rhodia Notebooks (official website)
  • https://rhodiapads.com/
• Rhodia’s Wirebound Notepads and Notebooks
  • https://rhodiapads.com/collections_spiral_pads.php
• Evernote’s Home Page
  • https://evernote.com/
• Notes App for iPhone (Support Page)
  • https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT205773
• Google’s Keep for Android
  • https://keep.google.com/u/0/
• Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency (Wikipedia entry)
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dirk_Gently’s_Holistic_Detective_Agency

Figure 1: Attribution: Unknown [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

I found the above meme while wandering the Internet. To be honest, I have implemented a lot of what they speak about in this Popular Science article. I tend to go to bed and get up at the same time every day, whether of not it’s the weekend or not. Doing this and making sure I’m in bed earlier during the week has really improved my alertness. I’ve been tracking my sleep using a fitbit and this has helped me get into a better sleep routine. I’m now finding that I’m better able to handle stress and deal with my kids. It’s not perfect but I feel like I’m doing better.

So far so good…I haven’t had too many days where I envy the screaming rooster.