The Green Door: Comments & Commentaries

[Badstench]

I've been receiving quite a few private messages regarding the fiction story, "Tales From Behind The Green Door".

Most of the 'well-worn' forum members know where this story originated and how it comes to be presented in this new forum.

Newer players are not familiar with the old forum, so aren't conversant with defunct players such as Blackcrowe, Dustinbag and gypsy01.

The story I am presenting is a re-writing of a roleplaying thread that included the three names above, plus oldschool, Scout1idf, Badstench, young Ned, Dooli, and Taleria.

It began, and developed an interesting storyline not much different to how the new story is presented. I have taken liberties with those stories to mesh the whole into a readable work of fiction.

I'm aware that the story seems fragmented at the moment, but if you stay with it, I guarantee you will find yourself enmeshed in a work of note.

The 'fragmented' approach has been done on purpose. Each chapter of Book 1 details the history of a member of the Table of Eight, which actually has nine members at the time of the telling of this tale. Interwoven around the stories of the individuals is an introductory tale to the Adventurers Collective.

This is important, because as the tale unfolds, you will discover that the Adventurers Collective is not all that it seems to be. This is central to the whole story.

And I made mention in the introduction that the story would not involve high drama and deeds of heroism.

I lied!

What's a story without action? What's a compelling tale without a super-villain? What's the point of a story that has no meaning?


The answer to these, and many more questions, will be made evident with the continuation of the story, which will involve high drama, my friends. In the end, it will also involve a hand-gripping, toe-grasping, tongue-curling climax that will wish you had listened to me in the first place and not started to read this story.

************************************************** ***

In the meantime, if anyone wants to message me, please do so here.

Comment on the story, remark on mistakes, point out anomolies, and help with the endeavour.

In the end, this story is about you, and if your name isn't mentioned in the telling, believe that you were present.

[thingirl]

Let me just say that I don't like the Land of Shay (Of course, I'm not supposed to, am I?;))

[Oldschool]

For folks that may have and those that may not have read the original stories on the old board, while some of the stories are carried over from the old forum there are some additions and changes or as Badstench put it in the opening post "a re-writing" - so there are reasons for everyone to read the thread.

Very entertaining Badstench or to borrow a phrase from across the pond - "jolly good show".

[Badstench]

There's been a bit of a pause and a necessary re-shuffle of the presentation... in effect, the re-write is currently undergoing a re-write.

The original stories (presented in the old forum) included additions from Doolipalally using her character, Rhia. When I sought permission from the main contributors for the okay to re-write the stories into 'publishable' form, Dooli was a bit reticent of my using Rhia. She had plans of her own for that character, but she did give me release to use those parts of the story already submitted by her.

I went ahead and started the re-writing, but always felt saddened (and a little bit guilty) when I used Dooli's contributions without Rhia being involved.

This bugged me to the point where, long into the re-writing, I asked Dooli to reconsider. Happily, she did, and gave me permission to re-introduce Rhia into the story-line... the one you're reading in this forum.

This necessitated the subtle realigning of sub-plots, and has even caused me to return to earlier passages to make small, but telling, changes. This has meant my progress with presentation here has slowed down somewhat.

I don't care about that... I'm very happy Rhia is back in the story and thank Dooli for allowing this to happen.

This is a long-winded way of saying... the current story is a 'work in progress'. I apologise for the delay, but once you get to read Rhia's part, I'm sure you'll agree the 'filling-out' of the story was worth the wait.

[Taleria]

So many reasons to rep you and I can't do it. Grrr.

This fic is fabulous, and not just because I'm in it. :p The backstories for the characters are believable and differentiate one from another nicely. I love how thorough you are in the world-building for the characters as well, never forgetting the importance of culture in who one becomes. Your dialog is also fun to read, the pacing is good, and exposition is necessary and relevant, without becoming too dragged out.

I don't mind this is a WIP. It's like another PG, but noninteractive. I'd like to thank you for taking the time to ensure that this fic is all it can be, by editing your edits.

I'm more a fic consumer than writer, but I've tried it once or twice and while I did get some nice reviews for them, ultimately I decided I couldn't handle the occasional stupid/harsh one. I say all this to support the fact that I appreciate just how much time and effort goes into writing a story in terms of continuity, drama, characterization, realism/research, and even presentation. This, along with your fun Q&A series and real life in general, must keep you pretty busy. So I also thank you for choosing to spend your time posting fics and interviews that give something irreplaceable to the forum community in the form of published works that really ought to be copyrighted. Your WIP thread is going on my subscription list and I eagerly await the next part.

[Arik]

This thread hasn't been active in a while, but I wanted to mention that so far, I enjoy the Green Door story. Thanks, Badstench!

[Badstench]

I'm glad you enjoy it, Arik.

For your benefit, and for the benefit of new players who aren't familiar with this story, the "Tales From Behind The Green Door" started life as a an interactive story that players could add to in whatever way they wanted.

The premise was for each contributor to continue the story in a linear fashion. Some players were more proliferate than others, but even passing additions by less frequent visitors were greeted with enthusiasm.

The story as presented in its current form is an amalgamation of those ideas and additions offered from whoever wanted to participate... except I've gone a step forward to present the whole as in a readble fashion, with a timeline and a linear plot.

Much of what you read in the story, I can't claim as my own. It's a joint effort.

The tale would appear quicker in its re-writing, but a few snags were hit along the way: some players disappeared (taking their characters with them), others didn't want to be included (for one reason or another) and plot subtleties changed.

I have taken great liberties with the original story to make it more 'adventurous', but the original intent was to create a story-line that was character driven, not plot driven.

There is a lot of material from the original tales that hasn't appeared in the current story... yet.

Chapter 6 is a work in progress which I hope to present soon.

[Arik]

I knew about the origins of "Green Door": I read it somewhere, I think in the roleplaying section.

Badstench, when do you estimate Chapter 6 will be posted?

[thingirl]

Does he-who-doth-not-smell-like-roses plan to "re-open the green door" so to speak once the storyline is caught up to that on the old forum?

[texlaw1992]

I only just now read through it and enjoyed it. Too bad I wasn't around when the story started. Anyway, if you need another Judge as part of the Table of Eight (Nine?), I'm your man.

[Badstench]

Thingirl asked:
Does he-who-doth-not-smell-like-roses plan to "re-open the green door" so to speak once the storyline is caught up to that on the old forum?


The short answer is "No".

Although the "Tales From Behind The Green Door" asked for a continuation of Player infusion, the story (in it's present form) was reliant on certain characters to continue. Those characters are no longer playing the game.

This doesn't mean the story can't continue, but my participation is lessened by the fact that I was origionally inspired by the originator of the story; namely, Blackcrowe.

Within the posts submitted, there is a complete story. Blackcrowe didn't give us the punch-line, but he did leave us with all the material to create a punch-line... Badstench widened his premise to flesh the story out.

In the meantime, the story includes the Player-characters; Judge Fury, Hawk, Scout and Young Ned. Adam Jadefang and Bogmuck were always ficticious, and Dragonbane was used because I simply liked the character, who is played by Arete. Jinx was played by gypst01, who hasn't been heard from in a while, and likewise Ezekiel, who was played by Dustinbag. Which brings me to Varsil Demonsoul... Varsil is the creation of Blackcrowe, who has abandoned the game for reasons unknown. But Varsil is central to the whole story, so i have kept him... and I like his character.

Taleria was a sometime contributor, and so was Rhia (Doolipalally), and we also saw Scarbrow add some content, along with characters by the name of Mordi and Mr Black.

Sometimes, the story got a little bit out-of-control, but the fact remains that the base premise was one which I saw as being... publishable.

But I would like to explain why I use different grammar to describe the table of eight.... as presented in this sentence, the table of eight refers to the table that is located in the shadowed corner of the bar in the Adventurers Collective.

The Table Of Eight is a title that pertains to the people who sit at the table of eight, and that title is a misnomer. Sometimes, there are less than eight, and sometimes there are more.

And this is why, at the current telling of the tales, the Table Of Eight consists of nine characters.

There is a fact that hasn't come to light in the story... the number nine has deeper connotations; I have already alluded to the fact that there are nine Judges, and Irilden Southrunner runs a consortium of nine assassins. Bear of Kolnia... well, we already know who he is... no longer counts as one of the nine assassins.

(And just so you know, I'm well aware that the game had "Bear" actually called "Beargull".)


In the end, you will come to understand why the story can't continue, but this has no bearing on the fact that you can't begin your own story.

[Grymlok]

Yo! No love for big ugly Grymlok? I just read the Behind the Green Door re-write, and this thread, and not one mention. I know Ive been away for over a year, but the Green Door was my fave part of the old Forum, so it kinda hurt to be ignored. I missed Sryth and you guys here on the forum. Hopefully I'll be back full time soon.

[Badstench]

Aha! Big ol' ugly Grymlok... hard to forget one so big and so ugly.

And no, you haven't been forgotten. At the time of writing, Grymlok has not yet entered the story... a few player characters haven't (though some have had a passing mention... Mordi is one of these).

The story in its present form is more involved than the original. The plot follows, and will continue to follow, the same basic form of the old role-playing thread, but it is taking a lot longer to tell.

If I remember correctly, in the old forum, Grymlok only became active midway into the story? Regardless, don't fret... Grymlok will be required as a... if you don't know the story and don't want to have it ruined, do not read the spoiler box!
fitting replacement for Bogmuck and Dragonbane when those two meet their ends

[Young Ned]

Welcome back, Grymlok! Good to see you around again.

[Badstench]

The Pitfalls of writing

Thanks for showing interest in reading "Tales From Behind the Green Door".

I have a confession... much of what you have read to date is an ongoing work, which is my way of admitting that the presentation is constantly changing and evolving; some passages have been heavily edited, other parts deleted altogether.

What this means is… what you have read so far might actually be different now, and changes made previously will confuse your enjoyment of the story if you are reading it in linear fashion as I release new content. For example, I recently deleted a whole passage that detailed a “visitation” of evil to Judge Fury. This no longer exists. It was unnecessary to the story at its current point and didn’t need to be there.

In writing this part of the story (chapter 6), I am aware that its divergent paths lend it a certain amount of complication. This demands that I plan the course of the story very carefully to reach the place I need it to be. Any writer will tell you, the hardest part of writing a story is getting the details of the middle bit right.

Please bear with me if you are reading the story and I keep changing it; the end result will be worth the frustration… and to be honest, I have to get this right if I want to see it published.

Again, thanks for showing interest.

[Badstench]

As I type this, it is with the knowledge that I have a big part of chapter 7 ready to roll.

I just need to say this first, as words from the author...

I was gratified to receive a private message from Wetheril recently. She has the story "From Behind the Green Door" saved to her notifications, meaning that when I post something new, she gets an email saying so.

One of her comments was that she liked the way I had "paced" this story.

In my mind, the whole story to date, which goes under the title, "The Table of Eight", is actually one big introduction to the characters.

This is about to change.

I have previously said that my story is character driven, and I have written the story to explain the histories of the individuals who make up the Table of Eight.

In chapter 7, I introduce something bigger... I touch on the story as a three volume trilogy. There is information here that will be familiar to people who were members of the old forum, not least of which is the destiny of Varsil Demonsoul.

Those of you who don't know the stories in the old forum might get confused, or think that my story-telling has suddenly become disjointed.

Fear not, because I am actually writing this story with new readers in mind. One of the main features of this story is that it uses a lot of "flash-back" techniques. Indeed, if you look at Chapter 6, it ranged back and forth in time; the predicament of Judge Fury vs. the travels of Jinx and her companions are offset.

As the story continues, the timelines will converge.

But, in chapter 7, I've complicated the matter by leaping backward to explain why things are what they are. By doing this, the plot takes over in importance to the characters.

It also means that I have "invented" a history of Tysa... at least, the history that reaches back about 50 years. Because of this, I have to state categorically that the histories I write are my own invention... it has nothing to do with the game or the ideas of the Gamemaster.

It's true that I have used the content of the game to "flesh-out" the content of my story, for which I must acknowledge the Gamemaster.

I don't take full credit for the story for two reasons: 1) It is set in a world created by the Gamemaster. As such, my writing was made easier, because the setting was already there. And 2) much of the content was actually inspired by other forum members. I have taken their ideas and incorporated them into my story.

Regardless... those are the acknowledgements done with.

As I said earlier, the tales told from behind the green door are about to gather momentum and enter a new dimension.

Are you up for the ride?

Because, believe me when I tell you... there will be highs and there will be lows, but if a can draw just one gasp from you before this book is finished, then I will consider my job done.

*************

I would also like to acknowledge feedback received from Young Ned. He commented that my use of italics in the passages that detailed the histories of the individual members of the Table of Eight were an annoyance. His comment was that italics are difficult to focus on.

Young Ned, I heard you and investigated ways of presenting those passages without using italics. I tried different fonts and looked at presenting the script in 'bulk' format. None of the options appealed to me.

If someone has a better idea, I am open to suggestions.

[Young Ned]

Young Ned, I heard you and investigated ways of presenting those passages without using italics. I tried different fonts and looked at presenting the script in 'bulk' format. None of the options appealed to me.

Thanks for trying! I appreciate your responsiveness to feedback.

[Oldschool]

Confounded rep limiter. Reps coming your way Badstench for the latest installments in the "The Green Door".

A definite page turner scroller.

[Badstench]

I would, again, like to profer my thanks to those of you who are keeping up with the "Green Door" story.

I imagine it would look a daunting read to start given it's sheer size and length, so I'm not overly surprised if new players pass it by.

I am specifically intending this message for those people who were the instigators of the original story in the old forum, or who are actively reading this new incarnation of it. Information that follows won't make much sense to newer readers.

You will know from the old forum that I have barely scraped the tip of the amount of material included by Blackcrowe, Oldschool, Dooli, Young Ned, Scout, et al, and from this, you can deduce that I have a long way to go with the story.

However, much of the enjoyability I'm getting from the re-write comes from the "new" material I am inventing. As aknowledgement, I must assume responsibility for those 'new' inventions, and apologise if you, or anyone, doesn't particularly like some of my portrayals of certain characters and non-player characters.

Towit... Dooli - Rhia is about to take centre stage in a way that might be repugnant to you, but please bear with me. Her role is critical to the culmination of the first book, The Table of Eight, and I promise you will not be disappointed with the outcome.

Smilarly, my merging of Bounty Hunter and Thofyra into one person might seem a bit far-fetched. I hope I am doing the Player, Bounty Hunter, justice with this portrayal.

When I last updated this thread, I mentioned that the plot of the overall story is starting to come forward ahead of the introductory chapters that detail personalities. Because of this, Chapters 7 and 8 have become monstrously long... easily two or three times longer than anything previous.

These are the chapters that lay the basis for the main plot and the future books. As a comparison, I am reminded of the chapter in The Lord of the Rings, "A Counsel at Rivendell" (I think that's what it was called). That chapter was one of the longest in the whole book, and performed much the same service as chapters 7 and 8 in this story.

I am aware of getting rather top-heavy with conversations between characters, which can bog a story down if they seem inconsequential or frivolous. Recently, I mentioned to Oldschool that everything included in this story has a meaning, whether or not it appears so.

I don't do 'inconsequential'!

Even the separate tales of each member of the Table of Eight will eventually be revealed as having relevance to the main story-line.

Anyway, I hope you're enjoying it so far and that I can continue to deliver a quality read.

Now, I've got a rare winter's day of brilliant sunshine, blue sky and no wind... so I'm off to a street-side cafe to enjoy a mug of hammertongue.

:D

[Oldschool]

For anyone that may as Badstench says look at the thread length and think it's too long and pass it by....

Take an introductory run through or pop in somewhere for a peek. I don't think you'll be disappointed.

I just recently finished the previous installment and I'm holding off on the current one. I like to wait till it's late so that I'm unlikely to get interrupted.

Good stuff Badstench.

[spencer]

I agree. I did not participate in the previous thread on the old forum that serves as the basis for this story, but it is a great read and when I first started reading, I broke it up over several days and it was not that difficult at all.

[spencer]

I loved the latest twist, Badstench. Again, I would encourage everyone to take the time to read this story. It is very, very good!!

[Oldschool]

A BIG and RESOUNDING DITTO to that Spencer. :)

Good job Badstench.

[spencer]

Well, I would say that this one is a real page-turner, but, well you get the idea...it is very good. I await the next installment.

[Oldschool]

Well I've been holding off but should have some uninterrupted time tonight. After all - like a fine wine, it should be savored.

[Badstench]

I've had a revelation, imparted to me by Spencer (though he didn't know it at the time).

It has always been my intention to mesh a previous story... the one narrated by Mathias Squib... with the Tales From Behind The Green Door.

Indeed, the second book of this series has already been titled, "Here Be Dragons", and has been progressing at the same rate as "The Table of Eight".

However, The title of the whole story required changing, because (as Spencer didn't quite say) it's uninspiring.

I came to see that "Tales From Behind the Green Door" was restrictive and often inaccurate, and it holds no meaning to anyone not familiar with the game of Sryth.

Therefore, I have changed the title to "Judgement Day". From a marketing point of view, it has a bit more 'oomph' to it and greater appeal, and from an editorial point of view, it relates directly to the subject matter, ie: The Judges.

Regardless, the title has no bearing on the content of the story, which will continue as time permits. When I win the New Zealand lotto (ha!), I will turn myself into a self-indulged writer full time. ;)

[texlaw1992]

While I believe "judgement" is an alternative spelling, as a lawyer I have to say the title should be "Judgment Day."

[Doolipalally]

While I believe "judgement" is an alternative spelling, as a lawyer I have to say the title should be "Judgment Day."

Regional differences again. The US spells it 'judgment', the UK, NZ, Australia, Canada etc use 'judgement'.

Round here you have to get used to things like this! :)

[Oldschool]

Love the latest additions Badstench.

And................ nar nar..... Rhia's got a 'boyfriend'. :p;)

[Badstench]

From the recent Answers from the GM...
Judge Fury: It behoves me to ask a question of my own concerning stories set in Sryth. What is your opinion of other people... say, someone in this very audience... writing a story set in your world if the story attracted interest from a publisher?

Without going into details, would you be willing to work with the hypothetical author to satisfy both yours and his (or her) creative endeavours?

As Sryth is a copyrighted and trademarked work, I’m not able to allow outside publication of materials related to it -- materials that use the world, its name, etc -- as I’m obligated to maintain the integrity of the copyrighted material.

Okie dokie... that makes "Judgement Day" an even longer work in progress as I re-adapt everything back to my own world.

I wasn't too surprised at the GM's verdict on this, but a few questions still need to be asked...

Texlaw - you might be able to help here.

Obviously, I'm going to change any and all place and personal names invented by the GM (among a few other things). How do I stand with the use of Players' character names?

I don't remember seeing any legal gobbledegook that bound character names to the copyright of Sryth/Epic. For example, if Judge Fury has been a part of the Sryth game for a given time, does the creation become the property of the game's owner or does it remain the property of the Player (me)?

Regardless, the story in the forum will continue to be told in Sryth for the benefit of the readers here... it will make more sense that way... but additions will probably be presented with longer waiting times between each.

[texlaw1992]

As I've said before, I'm not an IP (intellectual property) lawyer, but I can't see any problem with using character names. It is possible to get a copyright or trademark for your own name (prisoners love doing that and then suing the State for copyright infringement every time they file a pleading). In the absence of anyone actually getting a copyright or trademark for their Sryth character's name, I don't think you have anything to worry about, especially since virtually everyone used in your stories appears to have consented either implicitly or explicitly.

Now, having said that:

Lancelot (c) 2010 Texlaw1992 all rights reserved (lol).

[Young Ned]

Lancelot (c) 2010 Texlaw1992 all rights reserved (lol).

Uh, isn't "Lancelot" in the public domain? That name was first published in Sir Thomas Malory's Morte d'Arthur about 500 years ago... ;)

[texlaw1992]

I'm copyrighting the name as it's used for a Sryth character. I agree that I can't copyright the use of "Lancelot" for all purposes.

This is why prisoner's claims of copyright infringement never succeed. Once you're named in a lawsuit (civil or criminal), the person's name is in the public domain and they can't sue for damages for the use of their name in pleadings.

[Badstench]

In the case of 'Lancelot', I agree the name is open for general use, as are names like 'Hawk' and 'Snake', etc. These are not so much names as epithets attached to people.

And let's face it, there have been so many books written that have 'Hawks' and 'Ravens'... these types of names are common and open for use.

I was more worried about names adopted by Players that originated elsewhere. For example, I have always been uncomfortable about using the name 'Varsil Demonsoul'. Was this Blackcrowe's invention or did it exist from the mind of another person... an author? If so, I've never read those books.

Mind you, if Blackcrowe invented Varsil... more Kudos to him... what a great name!

[Young Ned]

I seem to recall you asking me for permission to use Young Ned in your story a long time ago, so if you did that for Varsil as well then I don't see any problem.

I tried Googling for Varsil Demonsoul. Google keeps trying to change it into a search for Varsil Demon Soul instead, which finds more hits. Even doing it that way, though, just about all the hits are from various web forums, either by users named Varsil (which could be Blackcrowe himself for all we know) or as a reference within their posts, and there aren't more than 20 or 30 hits altogether. There is at least one reference to the Demon Varsil, which is interesting, and there are enough hits on the name Varsil to make me think it may have come from somewhere other than Blackcrowe's mind.

There were only 3 hits total on Varsil Demonsoul, though, and all were from Sryth forums. So that much is almost certainly Blackcrowe's creation.

[Oldschool]

Badstench since you're going to edit the original Green Door stuff I don't know if this is the appropriate thread, it needs to be renamed or a new Judgement Day Commentaries created.


Regardless I want to say BRAVO for a helluva introduction. And a rep's on the way when allowed - fantastic job my friend.

[Badstench]

Sorry Oldschool... I decided that a retelling of the story was too much work.

I want to continue the "Green Door" story to fruition.

And add short stories in the meantime.

I've just re-read the whole story... it took me three hours to complete and had me asking in the end.... "what now?"

I'm going to finish the "Table of Eight" if it kills me. It deserves a conclusion.

The stuff about Gliese 851 has been deleted.... and moved to the "general chat" board.

[Oldschool]

That's all right - although I was enjoying the "new" stuff the main thing is your posting your fiction. You have 'mad' skills my friend. :)

[Badstench]

I've been attacking this story of late... and got nowhere.

The amount of material I've written then deleted then ressurrected and changed before binning the whole lot might amaze you.

Finally, I stepped back and stood aside... and realised i'd gone away from the premise of the origins of the "Tales From Behind the Green Door"... which was to have fun.

I need to get back to that space. And I need to do it in a way that will continue the story.

I'm back on track and writing again...

It helped to see old forum members reappear - Blackcrowe and Dustinbag - their characters being Varsil Demonsoul and Ezekiel respectively. I am infused by their presence.

And it dawned on me... I've been so busy trying to explain how Rhia got to be the person she is that I didn't realize I'd already achieved that.

I was tsuck... in a rut.. because I was merely repeating myself.

Having realised that, I can discard the reams of stuff I've written quite happily and get on with telling the story.

Coming soon.

[Young Ned]

Yes, having fun is the important part!

Glad to hear you've resolved some issues. Looking forward to the coming story. :)