Interview 25 – James Lowder
by Dan Repperger
* (0:28) Introducing James. How little we used to know about the names associated with the games we played.
* (2:50) Johann must ask the hard-hitting questions.
* (6:02) The degree of freedom RPG fiction writers have in shaping their own work. The distinction between good prose and good game writing.
* (10:50) Writing shared world fiction. The joy of working in collaboration with other people, while suffering a loss of ownership and control.
* (14:29) Zeb Cook’s robots.
* (16:04) Creator rights in roleplaying games.
* (27:03) Is gaming fiction typically worse than other forms of fiction? And if so, why?
* (35:54) The book Jim just finished editing, Beyond the Wall, and how it illustrates his view of an editor’s role.
* (41:15) What Jim has coming up, including some script work on the Hack/Slash comic book. You can also follow his work via his website. While not mentioned during the episode, Jim was a puppeteer for the comedy musical, Misfit Heights.
* (42:48) Comparing San Diego Comic-Con to Gen Con, in terms of size, scope, purpose, and culture.
Hosts: Dan, Johann, Pat, Wayne
Guests: James Lowder
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
The D&D “30 Years of Adventure” book gives the origin of the Giant Space Hamsters:
Jim Holloway drew the gnomish sidewheeler, with the huge paddlewheels on the sides.
Jeff Grubb, noting that there’s nothing for them to churn in the void of space, declared loudly that they must be giant hamsterwheels.
Roger E. Moore overheard, and it became official