Your Rivers Are Wrong

It's time to close out Season 8, at long last! Join us as we tackle fan-submitted wordbuilding prompts, provided by listeners like you :D

How would you adapt to a world drowned in endless greenery? Today we tackle the challenge of navigating the realm of "The Wildsea", a setting where travel is nigh impossible except for the most innovative of explorers. Prompt: Travel gets dangerous! How do you protect what matters most?

Time is a slow and deadly killer, and the world changes even as no one is looking. Today we talk through the impact of decay on stories and settings, and why the untold stories of long-since-lost artifacts are so "steeped with stuff" to be curious about. Today's Prompt: Explorers find a rotted locale, and a single curiosity that surely isn't the problem. New social media home on...

A blur of an episode as we talk about designing games with intent, and how "ability scores" play a role in that - how do game designers convey themes and genre through the mechanical aspects of their game? Prompt: What if everyone had their highest ability score floating above their head?

Tragedy is a tale as old as time. How do we write melancholy in a satisfying and meaningful way? How far can we push tragedy before we lose the favor of the reader or audience? In this episode, we discuss what makes sadness "good" and how to use it to enhance our storytelling. Prompt: Start and end a (sad) story with the same sentence.

One of the more unhinged episodes of ours, surely - welcome back to fan prompts, where we take your one-sentence ideas and improv with them off the deep end!

Twenty contestant, one prize, and a brutal path to victory - sound familiar? The thrill and horror of a well-written "death game" resonates in a morbidly exciting way. Why are we intrigued with these type of plotlines, and what themes does it distort? What is unique about this plotline that ultimately always leads to revolution? Prompt: Create your own death game!

We've got a sleepy episode today about immortality! We're specifically focusing on the perspective of a timeless being in a world that relentless move forward without them - what values do they hold, how do they carry themselves, and how do they view their fleeting compatriots? All this and more on today's episode of Your Rivers Are Wrong c: Prompt: An immortal is no longer. Describe their first d...

What goes into a well-written dialogue? Well, it's gotta be snappy but subtle, concise but emotional, and informative but not too informative. It's complicated! Let's break down the nuances of an effective dialogue in all sorts of media, and how you can improve the conversations between multiple characters. Prompt : Write a very conclusive email!

We're back at it! Jumping into Season 8, we talk about reputation - how does it inform the reader of a world, and how does it function differently in a living, unfinished world as opposed to a published story? Finally, does a reputation drive or inhibit a character's progress? We talk Mistborn, Rebecca, and lots of other updates on ourselves in this episode! Prompt : As a guest on a talk s...

Welcome to the season finale! We celebrate the close to season 7 (finally) with four fan prompts submitted by you! Join us as we improvise the lives of failed underwater scientists, magic hat dimensions, space refugees and the perks of zombification. All this and more, tune in!

We're back with a big story! The whole episode is a prompt, with the goal to build a world for heroes to explore. We choose the tiniest of adventurers to make our world seem ever larger, and we improv a scene with what we've built! Join us on a haphazard adventure on this episode of Your Rivers Are Wrong.

You've waited your whole life for this moment, the pinnacle of justice served...but who am I, to deliver judgment? Today we talk revenge stories! Why they work, why the aftermath is so important, and what it means for characters who journey down that road. Prompt: Describe the morning after revenge.

Monsters! You know 'em, you love 'em, but why? Today we breakdown the purpose of monsters in literature, how to give meaning to form, and what makes some monsters so memorable. Prompt: Create a monster that lives in a randomly-generated setting.

Can worldbuilding and storytelling exist without each other? We dive into examples of each on its own, how they stand alone, and when they demand the presence of the other. A fun dive into truly breaking down the definition of story. Prompt: Describe a scene that involves no people.

We're cruising through our first Fan Prompts of 2024! Join us as we take on your story ideas from Youtube and Twitter.

Today! We reflect on a quote from the Grishaverse author Leigh Bardugo, and the establishing of powers in worldbuilding. How do you demonstrate setting through power dynamics, or utilize mystique to get your players invested? A complicated talk on the essence of storytelling that was very fun to dive into. Prompt: "Create a prologue that explains to us the most powerful person in the scene.&q...

Is a TTRPG really a TTRPG if you play by yourself? Today we discuss the increasingly popular solo journaling genre! A niche within a niche of tabletop games, we break down the boons and banes of a story improvised entirely on your own, and name a couple of our personal recommendations. Prompt: A journal entry of a mundane girl in a magical world.

What is it good for? Well if anything, it makes for lasting stories. Why do people write about war, and why do we connect to such tragedies? Today we're examining the literary weight that conflict brings, and the aftermath that inevitably follows. Stick around for one of our favorite prompts ever! Prompt: A slo-mo moment in an intense conflict.

You've got your players, your characters, your side-table snacks, everything's primed and ready to begin your awesome adventure. But how do you make sure it goes off without a hitch? We kick off Season 7 with our tips on a successful "Session One" for any tabletop campaign. Prompt: Now again, but notes-less!

Happy Halloween! We close out Season 6 with a fan-powered prompts episode, tackling the many monsters you all have concocted. Have a wonderful holiday and rest of the year, we will see you again in 2024!

[Audio fixed!] How do you add depth to a setting? You can outline its culture, its economy, its neighbors...but what about its timeline? Today we use the TTRPG "An Altogether Different River" by Aaron Lim to piece together a setting of our own, and act out the lives of two of its denizens. Prompt: Play as two characters within your setting!

What is the purpose of a vehicle in a story, or lack thereof? We discuss the surprising gravity of mobility, its link to authority and autonomy, and how to best make use of one in your own writings. We're close to the end, so stick around! Prompt: A genie's plan to escape its lamp.

Hello, fellow humans! Today we talk robots - how to define them, the potential of their character arcs, and why they are keystone entities in every setting they exist in. This episode gets more and more chaotic as time passes, so stay til the end! Prompt: The first day of a robot's new job!

Gasp! A old janitor was the mastermind the whole time! Who could've guessed? Well, you did, probably, if you followed the breadcrumbs! Today we discuss the highlights and challenges of setting up meaningful clues, and what it takes to establish a meaningful mystery in an improvised setting. Prompt: The villain is revealed!