I'm not sure if this is where this belongs. It seems to me there is a step missing between First Thoughts and Playtesting. Perhaps a Development forum could be considered? But I digress...

I tend to work best if I set deadlines for myself, but having never written an RPG before I'm not sure about the best way to break down the project and what timeframes would be realistic. I'm not looking for anything definitive. Obviously every project is going to be different. But can some of you who have been through the process before give me some idea of the process you went through? How did you approach the writing of your game? Are there things you wished you had known or that you would do differently?

Thanks in advance for any insights you can offer.

Write a rough design document.

Playtest said design document.

Incorporate playtest notes.

Playtest again.

Rewrite game.

Try to work on the game for an hour or two every day. You'll have a rough draft at some point. After you have a rough draft, you can look forward to lots more work.

I'll put my spin on Luke's advice...

1. Write a rough design document.

This should take no more than 24 hours. If it does take more, it should take no more than 48. If it does... well, you get the point. Get it done. Don't get distracted with incidentals, like laying out your book, designing your character sheet, or working on ad-copy. If you do, you'll find that you've been here in excess of 7 years, and you have not reached your design goals.

2. Playtest said design document.

Like, a fuckton. If a rule doesn't work, scrap it. If rules are missing, improvise and write down your improvisations.

3. Incorporate playtest notes.

4. Playtest again.

At some point, get someone else to playtest it. Have someone else act as facilitator/GM and you take back seat as a player. Have some other group you're not even part of run it.

5. Rewrite game.

Like, really. Don't just rewrite sections. Rewrite the whole bitch. A rewrite will make you think about how you phrase things, it will bring to light gaps in the explanations that you managed to miss.

Set timelines per phase based on what's going on in your life. Be realistic, but set them a little closer than you think is comfortable. If you work better with a timeline, it probably means you want the pressure, so don't start off a timeline with no pressure. I was being largely facetious when I said 24 hours above, but it is possible to write a functional game in 24 hours... or at least the seed of one. 3:16 was originally written in 24 hours. If that prospect appeals to you, set yourself a day when you can concentrate on nothing but writing that game.

I wrote such a game as well. Won the same contest (different month, tho') that 3:16 was written for. Writing the game was the easiest part. I got caught up in the playtesting, incorporating notes and playtesting again stage. It's really, really easy to get discouraged in this part, especially if you have a hard time getting other people interested in playtesting. If you allow this, years can and will pass before you get the gumption to try again.

Lance wrote:
**snip**

2. Playtest said design document.

Like, a fuckton. If a rule doesn't work, scrap it. If rules are missing, improvise and write down your improvisations.

**snip**

Wait, whoa stop..

Clarification: Are the rules complete as far as you can tell? Then go playtest. I didn't mean to go to playtest with something you know won't work.

On the flipside, if you're doing inside playtesting, you've got a patch for the missing stuff, and you're upfront with your playtesters about what's missing, then go nuts. Just don't go in with something that's broken, and expect the solution to magically come out in play... It might, but it might also be a complete waste of your time, and disincline your playtesters to participate in future playtests.

You don't really want my examples, personally. I'm the poster boy for how NOT to get things done. I've got three games in the works, the newest of which was started in 2005.

Lance,

Specific timelines -- 24 hours? -- and even independent playtesting aren't helpful at this point. This is an early draft design. The stages I presented are just to get you started, not to get a finished game. Getting to a finished game takes a lot more testing and rewriting.

Sock,
Don't worry about time. Just do it. It'll take as long as it takes. You can worry about time when you're working under deadlines for pay.

-L

As I said before, 24 hours was me being facetious, though it can be a nice challenge to your creative ability.

Also, I mistook your guidelines as an overall process from conception to completion, which was what I perceived he was asking for. Assuming that you're actually repeating steps 3 and 4 until you feel your game sings, then it's not a bad rough guideline for the whole process.

Sockmonkey is definitely asking for the "whole thing," but he doesn't know what he's asking for. I'm trying to focus on practical advice that'll produce something interesting without too much stress and pressure.

-L