In an effort to improve my GMing, I have recently acquired the book Sorcerer & Sword, specifically for the chapter entitled "Anatomy of Authored Role-Playing". I feel I've got the gist of it, but there is one passage I'm a bit foggy on.

In the section "Structure & Goals", I've followed the discussion thus far:

-The Player is the primary author of the story being told via the game.
-The GM's job is to facilitate the player's authorship.
-Each session of play must be, to some degree, a self contained unit of drama.
-In order to do his job (facilitating authorship), the GM must do two things:
    1. Present conflicts (dramatic set ups) that are relevent to the characters and
      interesting to the players.
    2. "Develop an amazing fantasy setting."

It's that demand to "develop an amazing fantasy setting" which I find vague. I can interprett the language of the essay up to that point, and the idea of presenting engaging conflicts is built up to well until this statement, but the "amazing setting idea" is very subjective within the context of the essay. The passage goes on to define the "amazing setting" as a setting that is "intense" and something that "gets [the players] going", which unfortunately are both as subjective as the opening statement.

In the context of the greater S&S supplement, I have interpretted this to mean that an "amazing setting" is one that is interesting to the players, offers the oppurtunities to present conflicts which are relevent to the characters (it facilitates the GM's job) and which reacts dynamically to the decisions the character make in response to those conflicts.

Have I read this correctly, or is my interpretation off?

Yes, you pretty much have it correct.  The way I see it, it's the player's responsibility to provide "amazing characters" and the GM's job to develop an "amazing setting" where "amazing" means engaging to all members of the group.  The two colliding creates an "amazing situation" which when resolved is an "amazing story."

Jesse

Hello,

That phrase in Chapter 7 is intended to be a kind of hyperlink back to the contents of Chapters 2 and 3. When reading that one sentence in Chapter 7, for that phrase you are asking about, you are supposed to to flip back to Chapters 2 and 3 in your mind, summarizing all the emotional intellectual content it had for you in one second.

Yes, of course it's subjective, although I prefer the term "personal." You were expected to build its specific and personal content for yourself upon reading those two chapters, originally.

Best,
Ron

Thank you for your replies.

Ron wrote:
That phrase in Chapter 7 is intended to be a kind of hyperlink back to the contents of Chapters 2 and 3. When reading that one sentence in Chapter 7, for that phrase you are asking about, you are supposed to to flip back to Chapters 2 and 3 in your mind, summarizing all the emotional intellectual content it had for you in one second.

Yes, of course it's subjective, although I prefer the term "personal." You were expected to build its specific and personal content for yourself upon reading those two chapters, originally.