Don’t build stories during prep. Watch them unfold at the table. Bring the world, the situation, the quests, and the non-player characters to the table and watch and react as the characters crash into them. We don’t know what’s going to happen. Expecting the game to go a certain way is the most common mistake DMs make and have made for nearly four decades. Remember that the story unfolds at the table, and not before.
This is the lesson I remind myself of the most. It takes so much pressure off the game master (me in most cases).
Monday November 20, 2023