I was asked the hardest question in an email, a while ago, and then I had to answer, and now that I go back to it, looking at it, it sounds very much unlike me. Why is that? Why does your own speech of the past sound so alien a bit later?
From: Juhana Pettersson
To: Olle Jonsson
Subject: Re: Interview yes!
So, Olle, why do you do roleplaying games?
OK, I do role-playing games because I get to **tell the beginning** of stories, I get to **do the talking**, and **pull people into “my trip”**. When the feedback effect of the players’ minds starts churning **I get electrified** by the creative momentum. The **pliancy of the material**, the “softness of the wares” so to speak, is the main thing with role-playing games, to me. This softness allows for real-time editing of the story in very direct ways, which in turn allows for **the exploration of limits in the players** – how far can we take this?
Something like that.
What kind of a question is that, anyway?
Many of the things I love (writing, world-building) can be amplified in a satisfying way by collaboration, and others (improvisation, performance) are impossible without it. Since roleplaying combines all these, it is an enjoyable and efficient way to scratch these various itches. Plus I like being the boss.