suggestions for starting a new group

[Tor Erickson]

I tried sitting them down and very a VERY preliminary discussion of what people wanted, but it broke down quickly.  There was a lot of shrugging, a lot of vague language, a lot of saying they don't know, and a lot of saying they trust me.  About all they would willingly get pinned down on is that some level of violence, combat, and action is desired, and this should be balanced against "time to roleplay too."

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Hi Nick,

I found this to be my experience as well when initiating conversation about role-playing preferences with new groups of players.  Even people who say they want to role-play will clam up or play "subservient" (like your players saying they trust you to do whatever) when asked why they want to role-play or what kind of game they're interested in.  I think it's a combination of group dynamics at work (saying "this is what I really want to do" in front of a group of people can be risky business; you never know how they'll respond) and also that they're just tough questions.  I mean, think about when somebody asks you, cold, "what kind of music do you like?"  The typical response is to draw a blank, even when you clearly have musical preferences.  

Anyway, it's interesting to hear you say that because it's something I come up against again and again.  And might have to confront it very soon as I try to start up a local narrativist gaming group.

Tor