# Hosting Compiled Story Hours



## Morrus (May 28, 2002)

You can find the Story Hour web pageright here.

A couple of people have asked me about this, and I thought it would be a good idea.

If anyone wants me to host their compiled story hour (.doc, .rtf., .pdf), I'm happy to do so.  I'll put a up a web page with them all on it, so peole can download entire documents.

If you want me to do this, I'll need the following:


A compiled/edited Story Hour in .doc, .rtf or .pdf format.  Please zip it.  Alternatively, you may simply include a link to the file if you wish to host it yourself.
A 2-3 sentence intro/description
Title
Your username
The link to your Story Hour here in this forum

There is one limitation - only one update per person per month.  I don't want to be messsing around with 2-3 paragraph additions to 20 different story hours every day.  Try to make them significant updates.

You can have your story hour removed from the archive at any time should you no longer wish me to host it. 

Any questions, just shout!


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## el-remmen (May 28, 2002)

Morrus - can I just supply you with the description and the address where I host it myself?


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## Plane Sailing (May 28, 2002)

This is an excellent idea, Morrus.

You could have the Title, Username, short description and then either a link to a web page (for cases such as Nemm's) or the downloadable file (for others).


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## Kid Charlemagne (May 28, 2002)

I agree, excellent idea!  I have my first Story Hour (a complete piece, not to be added to) compiled into a .doc file right now, done to make sure nothing got lost due to the last  board changeover.  I'll be sending it to you soon...  Should we just email them to you?


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## Wulf Ratbane (May 28, 2002)

Oh, sweet, thanks Morrus!

Maybe I'll do a PDF and add some artwork...


Wulf


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## SolidSnake (May 28, 2002)

Morrus,

How long are you accepting these submissions?  Frankly, I won't be able to get this to you until later on in the summer...will it be too late by then?


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## Morrus (May 29, 2002)

Yeah, a link instead of the actual file is fine.  I'll still need the other info though.




> How long are you accepting these submissions? Frankly, I won't be able to get this to you until later on in the summer...will it be too late by then?




Indefinitely, as long as interest remains.


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## Dr Midnight (May 29, 2002)

Morrus, I have my Story Hour full compiled on my web page with pictures- which is how I like people reading it. Can the link be a link to an outside page, not just to a hosted .doc?


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## Lazybones (May 29, 2002)

Thanks Morrus, this is a great idea.  My only suggestion is that you include a copyright disclaimer of some sort on the index page to protect the writers' rights to their work (just prohibiting reselling stuff for profit, that sort of thing).  I'm not sure how the rules work in the UK but here the author just has to put a little notice on their work (see the first page of my story for an example).  

Mine is on the way!


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## Dr Midnight (May 30, 2002)

Thanks Morrus!


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## Gez (May 30, 2002)

And compiled story hour in HTML format ?


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## KidCthulhu (May 30, 2002)

What a great idea, Morrus! .  This will give me the chance to read all those story hours that were already in progress when I joined the board.


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## KidCthulhu (May 30, 2002)

I also want to know if you can include links to individual webpages.  Sagiro has his story hour on his webpage, and I can send you the link and a blurb for that.


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## Dr Midnight (May 30, 2002)

KidCthulhu- that's what Morrus let me do.


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## el-remmen (May 30, 2002)

The Story Hour Page in question

Also, Morrus - is there a way to make a note if the story hour is "complete" or "on-going"?


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## Lazybones (May 30, 2002)

(returns from checking out link)

Yay, cool page!  Thanks again, Morrus--it's been a pleasure writing my story on this site.


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## Horacio (Jun 3, 2002)

If somebody wants to put his story in html, in one of my sites I have lots of webspace, so I could host it in html format, in your own folder at my site www.dorwstar.com (that means, your story would be placed at www.drowstar.com/yournamehere or yournamehere.drowstar.com) and you could give Morrus the link to the story. 

If interested, just drop me an e-mail...


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## Plane Sailing (Jun 4, 2002)

*Indication of storyhour success...*

I was unable to access the storyhour page!



> HTTP 403.9 - Access Forbidden: Too many users are connected
> Internet Information Services




There's a whole lotta people with a whole lotta catchin up to do!

Cheers!


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## Gez (Jun 4, 2002)

Somewhat OT:

Hey, Horacio, I know you can read French, so could you tell me what you think of my Northern Journey ? I don't think I'll need hosting (free.fr is kind enough to provide nigh unlimited space), but I'd like to get your opinion on my style - since if I were to write storyhours here you would probably be one of my very few readers  ...


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## Horacio (Jun 5, 2002)

Gez said:
			
		

> *Somewhat OT:
> 
> Hey, Horacio, I know you can read French, so could you tell me what you think of my Northern Journey ? I don't think I'll need hosting (free.fr is kind enough to provide nigh unlimited space), but I'd like to get your opinion on my style - since if I were to write storyhours here you would probably be one of my very few readers  ... *




I like it! Write Story Hour now!


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## Gez (Jun 5, 2002)

Thanks !

I'll try to write one during the vacation. For now, I've just corrected typos and added some comments from Arn.


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## kibbitz (Jun 5, 2002)

*Query regarding Out of the Frying Pan II pt 1*

Just wondering but it doesn't match the thread in terms of content, ie, the doc ends it Session 21 and the thread ends further. This is not an error, yes? Just checking. Anyway, excellent stuff, nemerle... hope to read more once i get back to cable.


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## el-remmen (Jun 5, 2002)

Kibbitz, could you re-phrase the problem?  I don't get what you are saying. . .

Are you saying that Book II Part II is not up to date with the htread on the boards?  If so, yes. .. I have not updated the .doc versions yet. . .

If you mean that Book II does not seem to continue with the story of those in Book I - that is just how the story goes - it will all become clear. . . 

If you mean that Book II Part I in .doc form and Book II Part I in the thread are not the same, that jsut might be the case - but they should be complete nonetheless. . .


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## kibbitz (Jun 5, 2002)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> *Kibbitz, could you re-phrase the problem?  I don't get what you are saying. . .
> 
> Are you saying that Book II Part II is not up to date with the htread on the boards?  If so, yes. .. I have not updated the .doc versions yet. . .
> 
> ...




Sorry if I confuse you, nemmerle (and sorry for missing one 'm' in your name as well). Seem to be doing a lot of that these days  Anyway, the file is complete. What I mean is that Pt I of Book 2 in .doc ends at Session 21  while it goes on for much longer in the thread. As for Book 2 Pt 2, there does not seem to be a file available  for d/l anyway. Hope this clears it up...


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## el-remmen (Jun 5, 2002)

Yes, the .doc files are broken up differently than the threads.

As for Book II Part II - the download should now be working - I had to change the file name to make it match what Morrus put up


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## kibbitz (Jun 5, 2002)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> *Yes, the .doc files are broken up differently than the threads.
> 
> As for Book II Part II - the download should now be working - I had to change the file name to make it match what Morrus put up  *




Gah, guess I was so impatient that I actually saved the html from the story links as text fiales... couldn't wait for cable, you see  Da*n it, lookie here it what you did... now I'm addicted  But seriously, really good stuff. Don't like the use of Egyptian gods  (I find it jars me back to reality too easily), but I'm still hooked... better quit now tho', praise and further feedback belongs in another thread 

EDIT: Hmm, looks ike I spoke too soon. Book II Pt II is fine, though it looks like Book II Pt I needs updating. Guess d/ling those html was the right thing to do, though I must say that saving it as text does result in a few irritating side-effects...


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## Plane Sailing (Jun 6, 2002)

Morrus, there is a problem...

I can't access any of the storyhours which are hosted in the StoryHours directory on ENworld. Access to files on other servers is fine, but not the ones stored locally (e.g. posy.zip)

Could you look into this?

Regards


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## Morrus (Jun 11, 2002)

What sort of problem are you having specifically? File Not Found?  Too Many Users?  It all seems to be correct to me.


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## Plane Sailing (Jun 11, 2002)

Sorry Morrus, I should have been more precise.

HTTP 404 - File not found
Internet Information Services

when I attempt to use the link on the storyhours page to access:

http://www.enworld.org/StoryHours/Posy.zip or http://www.enworld.org/StoryHours/Kid.zip for example.

Regards,


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## Kid Charlemagne (Jun 11, 2002)

I'm having the same problem, and so is at least one of my players who tried to download a couple of story hours.


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## Morrus (Jun 11, 2002)

Odd.  The links say "d20reviews.com" for me, not "enworld.org".  Perhaps you're looking at a cached version of the page from just before I started rearranging things on the servers?

I've uploaded the page again just in case, though.


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## Dr Midnight (Jun 11, 2002)

Morrus, do we need to state  "The best of the best from those listed below: Out of the Frying Pan and Sagiro's Story Hour. And if Piratecat and Wulf Ratbane send theirs along, they will join them!"?

I mean, no one's denying that they're the most successful story hours, but we're all struggling to do our best. It sucks for us "Brand X" manufacturers when you've got the most popular story hours named as "the best", which is stating an absolute in a matter of taste.


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## Horacio (Jun 11, 2002)

Dr Midnight said:
			
		

> *Morrus, do we need to state  "The best of the best from those listed below: Out of the Frying Pan and Sagiro's Story Hour. And if Piratecat and Wulf Ratbane send theirs along, they will join them!"?
> 
> I mean, no one's denying that they're the most successful story hours, but we're all struggling to do our best. It sucks for us "Brand X" manufacturers when you've got the most popular story hours named as "the best", which is stating an absolute in a matter of taste. *




You all know I love Nemmerle's, Sagiro's, Piratekitty's and Wulf's Story Hours, but here Doc is right, that phrase is unfair...


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## Jodo Kast (Jun 11, 2002)

I also was struck by that introduction as being a little odd.  Nothing against the Big 4, heck, we all know and love 'em.  But if I were new to the Story Hour forum and came across this, I'd be likely to just check out the recommended ones and avoid the others.  I don't have a dog in the compilation hunt (yet), but there's my two credits.


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## Kid Charlemagne (Jun 11, 2002)

OK, refreshing the page now did the trick. 

As for the "best of best" comment, I'm ambivalent.  They _are_ among the best, but I'm not sure that the intro should necessarily plug them as such.  They've got enough advantages as it is!


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## Lazybones (Jun 11, 2002)

Ah, we all know PC has an intern or something hitting "refresh" all day to get that page count up so high.  That's the only explanation I can think of for that ungodly 95,000+ views.  

[turns green]


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## Wulf Ratbane (Jun 11, 2002)

Kid Charlemagne said:
			
		

> *As for the "best of best" comment, I'm ambivalent.  They are among the best, but I'm not sure that the intro should necessarily plug them as such.  They've got enough advantages as it is!*




Huh. Didn't even notice that bit.

It's nice to be considered "up there," sure. And it would be nice to have the extra traffic come my way-- save me the trouble of shamelessly plugging the story in the General forum (which I still have to do-- it ain't all gravy).

But appreciated though it may be by me, I can't say that I _need_ the bump from Morrus; there's no sense disgruntling anybody over it.


Wulf


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## el-remmen (Jun 12, 2002)

I was pleasantly surprised to see it - but I am more surprised to say the mine is among the most popular - from the number of  page views/reader posts I wouldn't think so. . .

Instead of having "the Man" recommend our story hours - perhaps we can go back to the idea of a "reviews page" like for d20 products where people can post reviews and ratings if they like.


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## Plane Sailing (Jun 12, 2002)

Morrus said:
			
		

> *
> 
> I've uploaded the page again just in case, though. *




Thanks Morrus, everything is working fine now.

Cheers


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## Wulf Ratbane (Jun 12, 2002)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> *Instead of having "the Man" recommend our story hours - perhaps we can go back to the idea of a "reviews page" like for d20 products where people can post reviews and ratings if they like. *




I had thought that was a good idea as well. I am not averse to criticism and competition.

God, I hope not, anyway. Story Hour is the least of my concerns these days...


Wulf


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## Dr Midnight (Jun 12, 2002)

nemmerle said:
			
		

> *Instead of having "the Man" recommend our story hours - perhaps we can go back to the idea of a "reviews page" like for d20 products where people can post reviews and ratings if they like. *




I think that's a great idea.


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## Horacio (Jun 12, 2002)

Me, as resident Story Hour addict, too


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## Jodo Kast (Jun 12, 2002)

I concur.


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## Gez (Jun 13, 2002)

Why not ? Several people have already inserted a poll in their story hour thread (like Posy's the one and only true Best story hour... she's just too cute), so this show there's a demand for rating !


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## Lars Frehse (Jul 3, 2002)

I am comparitively new with my story hour, but I don't like the idea of a ranking.
After all, everybody who is writing one here is investing a lot of time, work and love into it. Now, if there were ratings, some people would get better ratings then others, and those who wouldn't rank so well would be disappointed.
I know I would be.
The danger with a ranking system like it is suggested here is, that for many, it would feel like a popularity contest. And since there are losers in every contest, that means that there would be losers here, as well.
Now, I know how gratifying writing my own story hour turned out to be for me. I would bet, that for a lot of you who are writing your own, it feels the same way. There is a certain feeling of achievement and you are turning your fleeting joys of the gaming table into something that lasts.
I wouldn't want anybody who is doing this labor of love to be told that he sucks- and a low ranking would say just that much. And for everyone with a low ranking, a small place of happiness would be shattered.

But, I think an election of the top three would be fun. Each reader and writer here would have one vote and could vote for his favorite three story hours and send his vote to Morrus. (Or one of the admins. Whoever would do the job, really.) Then, Morrus would only post the top three, and no one would be hurt, because everybody who doesn't make it to the top could think:"Damn, that must mean I am on spot nr. 4!"


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## Plane Sailing (Jul 4, 2002)

I agree with Lars. I don't think a ranking would be helpful, and it could even be discouraging. Everyone can see at a glance which are the top stories by their large following and number of views after all! (perhaps the storyhour download page could dynamically display the current number of views for each storyhour )

Generally though, I'd say no. I remember when these boards first opened in the current format their was a star ranking that could be applied, but it was quickly turned off - too demoralising for those of us that don't get good rankings!

Cheers


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## Wulf Ratbane (Jul 4, 2002)

Lars Frehse said:
			
		

> *The danger with a ranking system like it is suggested here is, that for many, it would feel like a popularity contest. And since there are losers in every contest, that means that there would be losers here, as well.*




http://penguinppc.org/~hollis/personal/bergeron.shtml


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## Lars Frehse (Jul 4, 2002)

Reminds me off "Sirens of Titan". Is it a part of it? I only remember this "Malachy" religion which forced people to burden themselves so that they are equal.
Listen, I don't want to fight about this. In fact, in general, I am tired of fighting. All I am saying is that a ranking system in here would hurt feelings. Of course, some story hours are better than others, I am not denying this. I am not demanding good writers to write badly.
All I am saying is that if a ranking system is introduced, people will get hurt.
And I don't like people getting hurt.


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## Wulf Ratbane (Jul 4, 2002)

Actually, I agree with you; if you scroll back a ways you'll see that.

Your rationale on the matter struck a chord with me, today of all days. 

But I have to say, writing is not an exercise for those with fragile egos. The act of writing is deeply personal, sure, but submitting it to outside eyes and facing up to rejection is part of the process. This isn't the forum to put that to the test, I agree, this is a friendly place-- but sooner or later they'll simply have to _get over it_.


Wulf


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## Lars Frehse (Jul 4, 2002)

Wulf, you are right, I guess.
Still, since I don't see the point in anyone being disappointed, I think we can well do without a ranking system.


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## Piratecat (Jul 7, 2002)

Lazybones said:
			
		

> *Ah, we all know PC has an intern or something hitting "refresh" all day to get that page count up so high.  That's the only explanation I can think of for that ungodly 95,000+ views.  *




Don't be ridiculous. It's a macro.

I hadn't noticed that either. I'm not a big fan of ranking systems in general (and in fact, that's why we turned them off in this forum first.)

I've asked Morrus to remove the line.  The problem with using views as an indicator of popularity is that it doesn't necessarily recognize the vast number of _superb_ story hours that not everyone has discovered yet.  Mine may get greater recognition because I'm an admin, but I'm certainly not the best writer on the boards.


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## Morrus (Jul 8, 2002)

I'll tell you what - I'll compromise.  I'll change the wording to "my personal favourites" (which is what it reflects) and move it to below the list of Story Hours - but I'm reserving my right to offer an opinion; it's no different really to my "The best of the best" sections on the links and electronic aids pages.


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## Wulf Ratbane (Jul 8, 2002)

Morrus said:
			
		

> *I'll tell you what - I'll compromise.  I'll change the wording to "my personal favourites" (which is what it reflects)*




I had no idea you were even reading.


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## arwink (Jul 25, 2002)

On the plus side - without Morrus' recommendations, I probably wouldn't have come here.  I clicked on the link by accident when it was news.  I gave it a quick glance since it was there, but it was actually having two or three pointed out as being a good example of what the story-hour thing was all about that really tempted me to check a few out.  Ordinarilly, I just glance at what's there and figure i'll come back later, if and when I have the time to find the threads and stories I like.  

This time, I lost about two days of my life trying to catch up with Piratecat's storyhour.  Still working my way through the others.


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## Enkhidu (Jul 25, 2002)

arwink said:
			
		

> *On the plus side - without Morrus' recommendations, I probably wouldn't have come here.  I clicked on the link by accident when it was news.  I gave it a quick glance since it was there, but it was actually having two or three pointed out as being a good example of what the story-hour thing was all about that really tempted me to check a few out.  Ordinarilly, I just glance at what's there and figure i'll come back later, if and when I have the time to find the threads and stories I like.
> 
> This time, I lost about two days of my life trying to catch up with Piratecat's storyhour.  Still working my way through the others. *




Hey arwink!

If you're new to this UBB thing, then try QUOTEing this post, and look at the link that I am posting below. Just copy the text, and add it to your sig!

The Seventeen Branded Story Hour 

See?

Hope it helps...

Edited because I can't spell to save my life...


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## arwink (Jul 25, 2002)

Excellent.  Thanks


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## Ferret (Aug 27, 2002)

Are all these just campaigns writen down?


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## Piratecat (Aug 27, 2002)

Most of them are, Ferret. Some are non-campaign original fantasy fiction (and are labeled as such). Some stick pretty closely to what happens in-game, and some utilize of artistic license. 

I think people like them because the good ones are veritable gold mines of sneaky campaign ideas to steal - err, borrow. Really fun reads, too.


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## ForceUser (Aug 27, 2002)

I guess I'm the artistic license-type writer. I take the events that occur in my game and write them up as though they were a fantasy novel; other guys write it play-by-play. I do try to keep the dialogue and place descriptions close to how it was said/described in-game though. I mostly like to embellish the combats, adding a twirl here and a grunt there for dramatic effect. DM's prerogative


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## Ferret (Aug 27, 2002)

Excellent.


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## (contact) (Aug 28, 2002)

> Lars said:
> Listen, I don't want to fight about this. In fact, in general, I am tired of fighting.




You need a better conditioning regimen, my friend.    Fly me out to Germany, and I'll train you for six weeks, and we'll get you in fighting shape!

-----

I really think as writers and artists of any sort, we should not define what we do by how it is received (or ignored).  That is not only an ego trap, but a good way to get your feelings hurt, and your motivation discouraged.

Paul Newman, for example, has never even _seen_ Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.  He doesn't watch his movies, or read his reviews.  Why?  Because the final product is peripheral to him.  _It doesn't matter to his craft what anyone thinks about his work_.  The important part is the _act_ of creation, and it's in that moment that the artist's focus and attitude determine the success of the work.  Having the voices of reviewers (positive or negative) in your head can undermine that process and weaken what you are doing.

(The above is not an argument against reviews, just an argument against their value to the creator of the reviewed material.)

Personally, I write my story logs because I have fun doing it, and because I realize how great it is that these campaigns are going to be preserved for the future.

Sharing them with other gamers is an added bonus, but not the point.  

I can understand wanting to be protective of the feelings of others, and I sympathize with that-- but at the same time I want to point out that if you are feeling neglected or unappreciated because no one comments or your views are low, you are probably mis-motivated, and may want to look more closely at _why_ you do what you do.

Just my 2 cents.  I'm a painter and pixel-pusher IRL, so I think about these things quite a bit.



-----

My story hours are logs of in-game happenings, as accurate as I can make them, which is probably 80% or so.  My players assure me that I capture the spirit of the scenes, if not their form.

I think one of the fun aspects of playing D&D is playing with and within the D&D conventions, and I want my logs to reflect that, so in my logs you will generally see things like spell names, and things like hit points mentioned from time to time.


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## Lars Frehse (Aug 28, 2002)

Contact, now that is an offer! I will be ready whenever you can make it!

My storyhour is based closely on my campaign, and one chapter represents one session. Unfortunately, I have to shorten it quite a bit in order to keep track- if I would write down everything that occurs during a session, it would probably be three times as big, and since I am rather lazy, it is usually a short transcript of the events. The way it is now, I write about ten pages per session. (Which sometimes takes quite some time: After all, English is not my mothertongue.).

Also, I am adding things in the story hour from time to time, like that extra grunt during a combat or other atmospheric elements which are sometimes rather mundane during the actual campaign. (I can not simply write: And than, the Paladin hit the Orc for eight points of damage... )

Sometimes I forget things while writing a storyhour, too, like the one time when the druid tried to act against Chardun's will during the Serpent Amphora. It is a rather important moment, and it tells a lot about Ben, but at the time, I forgot to mention it. But I think I will make a revised version of my story hour, in which I will add the things I forgot back when I wrote it for the first time.

All in all, I estimate that my storyhour is a 75% accurate account of what goes on in my campaign.


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## Ruined (Sep 17, 2002)

This might be a good place instead of starting a new thread.  I'm wanting to start reading Sepulchrave's story hour, but I'd like to start at the beginning.  I see the Rape of Morne, and both parts of the Heretic of Wyre, but there's apparently a part before that. Does anyone know where I can hunt this down?   I also see Lady Despina's Virtue, but I believe that's a seperate game, correct?  

Unfortunately, it's not archived here.  I have sent the author an email, but no response after a while. He must have a life  *gasp, the horror*.  Heh heh.


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## Horacio (Sep 17, 2002)

Lady Destina's virtue is indeed the first part of the story. Well, the first posted part.


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## Ruined (Sep 17, 2002)

Thanks, Horacio. Yeah, I just saw someone inserted the links in the current thread.  Look before you post, I suppose.  *grin*


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## Horacio (Sep 17, 2002)

Don't worry. And about your OWN story hour...?


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## Ruined (Sep 17, 2002)

I'm running solo introductory sessions for four players. One down, one tonight. I've written up half of the first session for our Cleric, and the rest will come soon. Once I have some material stored, I'll start posting, so I can try to adhere to a regular schedule. It's looking very promising, though.


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## Morrus (Sep 19, 2002)

*New system for posting archived Story Hours!*

Ooops - this should have been in a new thread!


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