Closing Thoughts – Escape into Fantasy
Over the past few months – but especially these past few weeks – I have spoken to several friends and family members who are feeling down. They can’t point to anything specific and say things like: “Everything just seems bad – uncertain – ugly – hopeless.”
I understand, because I had been feeling that way myself lately, and I couldn’t point to anything specific either. I was just blah. Is it something in the zeitgeist? The political atmosphere? The summer heat? I didn’t know. I just wanted to stop feeling that way. I wanted to feel uplifted and happy.
What pulled me out of my doldrums was a sequence of events. I had a series of uplifting calls from people telling me how much they loved me and my work. A couple of people were fans but complete strangers. Several were friends I hadn’t heard from in quite a while so it was a pleasant surprise. But I still felt blah, and now I was angry with myself because such sincere and kind words didn’t seem to do much to lift me out of my doldrums. What’s wrong with me, I pondered. Had I become jaded? Was I suffering from depression? Or what? In reality, those calls meant the world to me, but those positive emotions were still being held down by the blahs.
I hesitantly bought an expensive art book featuring the work of Steve Ditko’s Spider-Man comic books from the 1960s. I made this impulsive decision based entirely on the cover, the promise of what awaited inside, and the desire to do something nice for myself. Ditko is a comic book legend on the level of Jack Kirby and his work was a big influence on my own art and development as an artist and storyteller. Lost in my despondent and angry mood, however, I spent the entire drive home beating myself up for spending so much money on a stupid book that’s probably not even worth it. I even thought about turning around and taking it back for a refund before I took it out of the box and cellophane wrapper. The damn book weighs a ton and made a loud thud when I plopped it down on the kitchen table, where I continued to further debate with myself about returning it.
Finally, I took the book out of the box and carried the massive tome to the couch, laid it down in the middle of the sofa, and carefully cut and peeled away the cellophane. The book is so large (the original comic book page size which was quite large in those days) and heavy (quality paper), that it filled an entire spot where a person would sit. I knelt down in front of the couch and opened the book to a random page. That’s when the sun shined through the window blinds and the angels began to sing.
The book was beautiful. The artwork was magnificent. The visual flow and artistry and storytelling combined to create one incredible masterwork after another. I know this will sound silly, but I could feel my heart swelling just like the Grinch’s on Christmas morning in Whoville. My blahs evaporated with every turn of the page. I spent two hours on my knees studying every panel and brush stroke. I let myself be swept away to a wondrous happy place that, somehow, I had almost forgotten. All of a sudden, as my heart soared and my mind cleared, ideas for RPG books and adventures began to form in my head. The blahs were gone and I was back.
Don’t you forget that our hobbies and the people and things that we love, inspire us, and bring us joy, are always there for us. They hold the power to make the blahs and hopelessness disappear and restore joyful and a happier perspective.
We role-playing gamers are doubly fortunate because the very design of RPGs is to inspire and create an escape into joyous, heroic adventure. They inspire our imaginations even when we just read the book or flip through the illustrations, let alone when we create a character and dive into a game. That was the gist of the calls from my friends and fans earlier that week: “Thank you, Kevin, for publishing RPGs that have inspired us as writers, artists, and gamers, and have brought us so much joy. We love them and we love you.” How beautiful is that? I am humbled and delighted.
So draw upon your RPG resources right there on your bookshelves and on your computers. Reread your favorite books as well as the ones you don’t fully remember because there are probably things that will spark your imagination and lift your spirits. Try new RPG settings especially when there are big sales. Take advantage of sales from Palladium Books like the Mutant and Monstrous Worlds Sale taking place this weekend and certainly the Mutants and Ninjas Bundle of Holding. For less than $30 you can get 21 PDF books worth nearly $300, and even if you aren’t into the setting or mutants, ninjas, mystical martial artists, or spies, you know the artwork and reading about the characters, villains, gear, powers, and world will give you ideas for whatever game setting you are into. Mine these sales and books for ideas and escape to a joyful place of adventure. A place that can chase away the blahs whenever you need them to do so. Stay frosty and game on.
– Kevin Siembieda, Game Designer, Writer, Friend
