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As I am bored, and I have a lovely little virtual soapbox, I'm going to use it to think 'out loud'. The meat of it's under LJ-cut, because most anyone else will probably find it boring.
I love to GM. I almost like it more than I like playing, actually. I love making NPCs, world and relationship building, and figuring out new and exotic ways to make characters' lives difficult. I would probably not count myself among the best GMs, though, and here's why.
I think that there are three qualities that the best GMs have. There are others, of course, but the most important (in my opinion) are: Flexibility, Empathy, and Creativity. In that order, too.
Flexibility
This is the one that I, personally, come in the weakest. Flexibility is the knowledge that your players are going to twist your plot in ways that you never even thought of, being able to go with that, and being okay with it. A GM with an ideal amount of flexibility could smoothly turn the plot down the paths that the PCs want, without them ever knowing that s/he is basically pulling it out their ass, and enjoy it just as much as if the players decided to follow 'the script'. Flexibility, in this sense, isn't necessarily bending to whatever the players decide to do; it's just not being wedded to the plot to such a degree that the players feel railroaded.
I rank this above empathy and creativity because I think it has the most direct impact on the 'fun factor' of any gaming session. Players don't like to feel railroaded, and they don't like to feel like following their own plotlines is an imposition on the GM. And they can sense these things, even if you're trying to hide it.
Empathy
Empathy is the ability of a GM to read his players, determining their level of enjoyment without having to be explicitly told. It's also noticing when one player is being left out, or taking up too much of the spotlight, and being able to pick up on which part of the plot gets the characters excited, and what leaves them bored. An empathic GM will excel at the 'management' part of GMing, being able to keep people focused, and make sure that each character has something to do.
I think this is an underrated part of GMing, generally, but it's really important. A GM who can read the players can do a /lot/ with a less-than-brilliant storyline, just by noting what the players are interested in pursuing, and not bogging them down in things that they're bored to tears by.
Creativity
The third on the list. This could be a surprising place to find it, but that's not to say that creativity is not important. It /is/. Although a GM who's strong in the first two categories can make even a stereotyped adventure engaging and fun, it's easier to get most players interested in something that they haven't seen before. Creative GMs don't just excel at coming up with Weird Stuff, they're also good at making it work. Creativity includes consistency, and the discipline to get the most out of an idea, as well as breaking it down so that the players can understand it.
I think that creativity is one of the easiest things to pick up, although it can be one of the most difficult to tame. Everyone has a lot of really good ideas; it's the sitting down and writing everything out, statting it, and making it internally consistent that's the real problem. But, ultimately, it's a problem of practice, not ability.
Improving
I'll take them in reverse order, since as I've mentioned, flexibility is not my thing.
Improving creativity: I think the best way to do this is to practice. Make worlds for your favorite systems, make new classes or spells or religions. Write down whatever comes to mind, as soon as it comes to mind, and then go back and look it over. Try to find connections, contradictions, and plot hooks. Extrapolate from what you've written down, finding things that would affect the PCs. There's a Goddess of Ice? What kind of philosophy is she likely to pass on to her worshippers and her clerics? How do the borderlands of the places where she's honored react? Does she command her people to evangalize, or is it a mystery religion? How will PC outsiders in her lands be treated? Just by taking one detail and drawing it out logically, you can often find yourself making things that are strange, but that make sense within the game world.
Improving empathy: This can be a difficult one. /Especially/ if you do a lot of online gaming, where body language isn't apparent, and you're less likely to know your players personally. For myself, I solicit feedback. I ask my players, both in a group, and seperately, "Is there anything your character would prefer to be doing? Did /you/ enjoy the session? What kind of stuff would you like to see more of?" Badgering is not necessary, but a couple of well-placed questions can be worth gold, and it gets your players in the habit of approaching you if there's anything wrong /before/ you have to ask. For tabletop gaming, taking note of where people are sitting can help, too. Look for people who are sitting away from the main group, or near something distracting. Try and find out (gently!) if they're bored, or just reticent. Dealing with actual problem players is always more difficult. That's mostly just having direct experience on who can be pulled aside and talked to after the session, and who needs to be directly challenged during a session. It's worth noting, however, that giving in to disruptive players will ultimately cause more trouble than you're avoiding right now. Learn to put your foot down without being insulting or overly aggressive.
Improving flexibility: Eeek. Wish I knew. I over-develop. Not just backgrounds and NPCs, but plotlines, too. Worse, I have a bad tendency to feel resentful when players 'screw up' my plots by doing something bizarre. Lately, I've been deliberately leaving actual plot events very open, making sure that they're not just solvable in one way. Mostly, however, I've been trying to focus plots more around characters rather than events. I try to get with each player, find out their goals for their characters, and then make an effort to see that opportunities to achieve those goals are presented. Plot writes itself, although it tends to be less linear than I feel really comfortable with. Lots of loose threads dangling.
I love to GM. I almost like it more than I like playing, actually. I love making NPCs, world and relationship building, and figuring out new and exotic ways to make characters' lives difficult. I would probably not count myself among the best GMs, though, and here's why.
I think that there are three qualities that the best GMs have. There are others, of course, but the most important (in my opinion) are: Flexibility, Empathy, and Creativity. In that order, too.
Flexibility
This is the one that I, personally, come in the weakest. Flexibility is the knowledge that your players are going to twist your plot in ways that you never even thought of, being able to go with that, and being okay with it. A GM with an ideal amount of flexibility could smoothly turn the plot down the paths that the PCs want, without them ever knowing that s/he is basically pulling it out their ass, and enjoy it just as much as if the players decided to follow 'the script'. Flexibility, in this sense, isn't necessarily bending to whatever the players decide to do; it's just not being wedded to the plot to such a degree that the players feel railroaded.
I rank this above empathy and creativity because I think it has the most direct impact on the 'fun factor' of any gaming session. Players don't like to feel railroaded, and they don't like to feel like following their own plotlines is an imposition on the GM. And they can sense these things, even if you're trying to hide it.
Empathy
Empathy is the ability of a GM to read his players, determining their level of enjoyment without having to be explicitly told. It's also noticing when one player is being left out, or taking up too much of the spotlight, and being able to pick up on which part of the plot gets the characters excited, and what leaves them bored. An empathic GM will excel at the 'management' part of GMing, being able to keep people focused, and make sure that each character has something to do.
I think this is an underrated part of GMing, generally, but it's really important. A GM who can read the players can do a /lot/ with a less-than-brilliant storyline, just by noting what the players are interested in pursuing, and not bogging them down in things that they're bored to tears by.
Creativity
The third on the list. This could be a surprising place to find it, but that's not to say that creativity is not important. It /is/. Although a GM who's strong in the first two categories can make even a stereotyped adventure engaging and fun, it's easier to get most players interested in something that they haven't seen before. Creative GMs don't just excel at coming up with Weird Stuff, they're also good at making it work. Creativity includes consistency, and the discipline to get the most out of an idea, as well as breaking it down so that the players can understand it.
I think that creativity is one of the easiest things to pick up, although it can be one of the most difficult to tame. Everyone has a lot of really good ideas; it's the sitting down and writing everything out, statting it, and making it internally consistent that's the real problem. But, ultimately, it's a problem of practice, not ability.
Improving
I'll take them in reverse order, since as I've mentioned, flexibility is not my thing.
Improving creativity: I think the best way to do this is to practice. Make worlds for your favorite systems, make new classes or spells or religions. Write down whatever comes to mind, as soon as it comes to mind, and then go back and look it over. Try to find connections, contradictions, and plot hooks. Extrapolate from what you've written down, finding things that would affect the PCs. There's a Goddess of Ice? What kind of philosophy is she likely to pass on to her worshippers and her clerics? How do the borderlands of the places where she's honored react? Does she command her people to evangalize, or is it a mystery religion? How will PC outsiders in her lands be treated? Just by taking one detail and drawing it out logically, you can often find yourself making things that are strange, but that make sense within the game world.
Improving empathy: This can be a difficult one. /Especially/ if you do a lot of online gaming, where body language isn't apparent, and you're less likely to know your players personally. For myself, I solicit feedback. I ask my players, both in a group, and seperately, "Is there anything your character would prefer to be doing? Did /you/ enjoy the session? What kind of stuff would you like to see more of?" Badgering is not necessary, but a couple of well-placed questions can be worth gold, and it gets your players in the habit of approaching you if there's anything wrong /before/ you have to ask. For tabletop gaming, taking note of where people are sitting can help, too. Look for people who are sitting away from the main group, or near something distracting. Try and find out (gently!) if they're bored, or just reticent. Dealing with actual problem players is always more difficult. That's mostly just having direct experience on who can be pulled aside and talked to after the session, and who needs to be directly challenged during a session. It's worth noting, however, that giving in to disruptive players will ultimately cause more trouble than you're avoiding right now. Learn to put your foot down without being insulting or overly aggressive.
Improving flexibility: Eeek. Wish I knew. I over-develop. Not just backgrounds and NPCs, but plotlines, too. Worse, I have a bad tendency to feel resentful when players 'screw up' my plots by doing something bizarre. Lately, I've been deliberately leaving actual plot events very open, making sure that they're not just solvable in one way. Mostly, however, I've been trying to focus plots more around characters rather than events. I try to get with each player, find out their goals for their characters, and then make an effort to see that opportunities to achieve those goals are presented. Plot writes itself, although it tends to be less linear than I feel really comfortable with. Lots of loose threads dangling.
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From:
no subject
My 2 bezants: Flexibility can be improved through creativity. If you have the world sufficiently overdeveloped, your PCs can switch gears on you and you can follow along, since, okay, so they're going to a different city; you have that city written up too...
On the other hand, empathy has always been my weakest point, and I have NO idea how to improve that, either in person or online.
Just my .2
From:
no subject
Improving empathy online is /tough/. Text is not as useful a media for carrying emotional information as someone being there in person is. On the other hand, people are more likely to be willing to tell you when they think you're screwing up.
I've found that it really does help to ask questions, and not in a challenging or defensive way. Like if you notice a player not really getting involved, glance over their sheet, then bring it up after a session, "I notice that your character seems to be geared towards politics; mind if I throw a little of that your way over the next couple of weeks?" Once you get into the habit of asking those kinds of things, and the players realize that you're serious, some of them will generally start coming to you on their own. At least, in my experience.
From:
no subject
Ahhh, improv GMing. The way that I do it, I come up with a situation, NPCs (I am best at NPCs, I think...) and their motivations, and then I release the PCs into it. The motivations of the NPCs provide a "if not stopped" timetable, and presto! Instant plot!
So, to some extent, I'm pulling it all from thin air. Come up with NPCs (I can do this pretty fast, and I think they tend to be interesting) on the fly, and hey -- I'm set.
I'm also lucky. The SSO players generate plot. I still need to throw Plot at them, though.