Interview with the author of the gamebook Druhá Země

Despite its niche nature, the Czech gamebook scene is surprisingly diverse. Among the authors, you'll find writers just getting to know the genre of interactive books. Others focus exclusively on children's literature. The largest share, however, consists of long fantasy sagas in the style of 80s and 90s classics.

Eva Lassler, known by her artistic pseudonym Ronne [pronounced: Rony], came to writing gamebooks quite recently. She knew interactive books from childhood, when she accidentally borrowed a gamebook from the library instead of classic fantasy fiction. She only started paying closer attention to this specific genre thanks to her husband, whose gamebook collection contains over a hundred books and is still growing.

Your first printed work was published in 2021 and was classic fiction. The short story Bitva o nebe and the final chapter Sanguis Carbo are part of the anthology Karbonové město: Sanguis Carbo. A year later, however, your first gamebook was released – Hrdinové Domoviny: Dáma z Agor-Nhat. What caused that change?

My desire to try something that hadn't been done here before – by which I mean creating a gamebook for an original Czech RPG (which didn't have one yet).

I've been working with the people around Dračí Hlídka for years. I always wanted to write a story set in Domovina (the Dračí Hlídka RPG world), but I knew similar projects were already in the works, being handled by much more experienced authors. I wanted to create something new and unconventional.

At one of the online meetings of the patrol team, we discussed how to support the "training" of new storytellers – Dungeon Masters. There are dozens of enthusiasts who would love to play the Hlídka but don't have a DM. That's when I realized a gamebook is the ideal project for those who want to play but have no one to play with. The book is your DM. I immediately got the green light for my idea.

So, from an author's perspective, the gamebook was a completely new thing for you. How did you prepare for writing it?

I played through several volumes of Lone Wolf to get used to the style and way of storytelling. I added Jonathan Green's gamebooks to that and exchanged a few emails with Pavel Tomcsányi. I read through a number of foreign websites about the rules of interactive book creation. I also discussed the writing a lot with my husband, who has played through dozens of gamebooks. I asked about mechanics, what he enjoyed, and what he didn't like at all. The rest just crystallized over time.

Looking back at Dáma z Agor-Nhat now, I see heaps of beginner mistakes. That book was created in two months. Two! I still don't understand how it all managed to fly out of me so quickly. Unfortunately, it came at the cost of minor ailments that I try to avoid today.

For example?

Copying identical links. The option to keep giving the player the choice not to participate in the game and close the book.

To this day, I am proud that Dáma offers the possibility to "win" on a personal level – not necessarily uncovering the entire plot, but still living a good life in the hero's shoes. Such options are supposedly not entirely common. I don't use that approach in Druhá Země anymore, though. A reader buys a gamebook because they want to play and win. That fulfills the essence of the "game" part. The flourishes are nice, but they aren't always appropriate.

So what are the main differences between Dáma z Agor-Nhat and the gamebook Druhá Země?

I guess the most obvious difference is that it's primarily sci-fi. I love sci-fi, I love Philip K. Dick, Douglas Adams, and Star Trek. The mechanics are built on my own requirements for simplicity.

The combat system is binary and simple – either you take a hit or you don't. The same goes for the opponent. One or zero. I don't enjoy complex calculations. I think the game administration is more intuitive. If you get an upgrade, you just check it off. The game can then ask you: "Do you have this?" And the answer is again very easy – yes or no. Other options stem from that.

Dáma z Agor-Nhat has mechanics built on the rules of Hlídka. It teaches new players what to expect if they eventually find that DM. For experienced players, it's easy to adapt to the game mechanics because they are almost identical.

Druhá Země has completely new mechanics. The reader's attention plays a big role. I tried not to rely on chance, so you don't need dice. You follow your instincts. You can be calculating, sensitive, or aggressive in the game. Every such decision changes how the characters in the book perceive you. Each of them likes something a little different. An important mechanic in Druhá Země is the companion principle. I was largely inspired by the MMO RPG Star Wars: The Old Republic in this regard.

You once mentioned that you consider Druhá Země a "computer game in a book". Is the connection to Star Wars: The Old Republic the reason?

More like one of the reasons. Druhá Země was also partially created based on a scene that took place in the Stargate SG-1 series in the episode Entity (S04E20). It's the part of the episode where Daniel debates with Jack and Teal'c about whether the decisions they have made so far were correct. I quote Daniel:

"Okay, look. I know your first instinct is to protect. It's your job, it's what you do, but… no matter what happens, no matter how it turns out, Sam didn't make a mistake when she tried to communicate with it."

I've always enjoyed the relationship between Jack and Daniel. They are completely different, but they respect and deeply admire each other, even though their moral values are on opposite ends of the spectrum. The relationship between the game avatar Sam and the second male protagonist is in many ways similar, and I really enjoy exploring it. Duty versus conscience. Honor versus compassion. They can often learn something from each other, but just as often they would rather punch each other in the nose.

At the time I heard this series line again after years, I had the first concept for the sequel to Dáma z Agor-Nhat written out. One of the characters who was supposed to appear there was a certain Samuel Kena. Originally, he was supposed to be some ordinary petty thief, but that name felt so strong, so full of potential, that I felt Sammy needed his own lead role. His own story that he could live. That's why Druhá Země was created.

It's a combination of my old notes for a sci-fi short story I wrote back in elementary school. The need to breathe life into a character who I felt deserved it. Furthermore, there was a desire to transfer some of my favorite mechanics from SWTOR into a book. And also a great love for adventure films like Indiana Jones, The Mummy, or the Uncharted game series.

Druhá Země combines all of this. And why do I think it's a computer game in a book? Probably because of the more reader-demanding passages that should resemble cut-scenes.

In classics like Lone Wolf or Fighting Fantasy books, you perceive the character more as a medium. They have no name, often not even a visual, they don't have long conversations with NPCs, and they certainly don't have a predetermined personality.

Full-fledged characters are usually the asset of computer games. You usually can't influence who Joel Miller (The Last Of Us) kills or lets live. Whether Nathan Drake (Uncharted) will lie to his wife or not. Whether Arthur Morgan (Red Dead Redemption II.) will save a companion, even though they did something incredibly stupid. Their steps are predetermined, and you have to go through them. You control the character's avatar, and you don't have to agree with their motives at all! But you respect them because there is something else that forces you to play.

In my case, it was a huge risk. And I actually don't know yet if it paid off – I'm still waiting for more extensive reviews.

What do you hope readers will take away from your gamebook?

I hope they enjoy it. That above all. That they experience a complex adventure based on an emotional experience – drama is conflict – that is the mantra of all writers. Fights, puzzles, and ciphers are more of a supplementary element.

In the role of Sam, you are playing for your role in society. For how your surroundings will perceive you. Some decisions have a big impact on the game. Or as one of my proofreaders summarized the gamebook: "A thrilling plot, believable characters with their own stories, and betrayals at every turn."

He was probably right about that. Druhá Země isn't just about getting from point A to point B and getting the coolest sword and the mythical cloak of invisibility along the way. From my perspective, it's mainly about personal development, friendship, trust, and the ability to follow your inner voice.

It would make me very happy if the reader enjoys the gamebook, because Sam still has a lot ahead of him, and it will be my honor to continue telling his story.

In conclusion, I would like to thank the godparents of the book, who are Petra Slováková and Robin and Janča from Fantasy_scifi_svět, and of course the publisher Mytago for their trust and the opportunity to share my new gamebook endeavor and, in a way, an experiment with the readers.

author Karel Krajča