Actress and writer Felicia Day has long been known within nerdom for her unapologetic embrace of geek culture -- even before nerdy became cool. Day is perhaps just as known for her gaming-based webseries The Guild and roles on shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural as she is for her love of games like World of Warcraft and Dungeons & Dragons, and she regularly streams on Twitch. Day recently performed the audiobook for Rule of Cool, a LitRPG novel by Matthew Siege.
LitRPG, and the broader genre of GameLit, has been growing in popularity, largely among self-published authors and an expanding community to die-hard fans. On Monday March 1 at 3PM PT, Day will be leading a round-table on her Twitch discussing the history and growth of GameLit along with Siege and other GameLit authors Andrew Rowe (Arcane Ascension), Ryan Rimmel (Noobtown) and Carrie Summers (Stonehaven League). In advance of the livestream, CBR was able to speak to Day regarding her experiences with GameLit, Rule of Cool and what to expect from her panel.
CBR: How were you introduced to the genre of GameLit?
Felicia Day: When Podium Audio reached out to me to narrate Rule of Cool last year. I don't narrate books in general. I've always been a bit afraid to step into that job. But the idea of "LitRPG" intrigued me. I'd seen the term bandied about before, but hadn't investigated until then. I looked into the genre, read the script and had to sign on to narrate!
Why do you think GameLit is so appealing to geeks and gamers?
It's a true "insider" form of entertainment. For people who don't know what stats are, it would be very confusing. But for anyone who's played any number of types of games, it brings to life our most loved kind of entertainment.
I imagine most people hearing about GameLit for the first time would immediately think of well-known properties like Ready Player One or Wreck It Ralph, but the genre is really being driven by independent and self-published authors. How do you think that impacts the content and the growth of the genre?
I think that there are plenty of mainstream examples of narrative meeting games, there's a whole subgenre of anime dedicated to it in fact. But I do think having indie people driving the market is going to help formalize the genre in an innovative way. It's always those first creators who pioneer and set the tone and the rules for others to later create within.
GameLit is growing at a time when narratives within video games themselves are becoming more significant -- not to mention the growing number of film and TV adaptations of games releasing and being announced. How do you see these things coexisting, and do you see a link between them?
I think Hollywood will continue to try to translate gaming worlds to other formats, with bad and good results, just like they always have. GameLit feels like the true gamers' form of entertainment, that isn't watered down to appeal to non-gamers.
What drew you to Rule of Cool?
I loved the snarky tone of the writing, the insider references and the kick ass action. The author, Matthew Siege, rewrote the main character from male to female for me, and I think that made it even more fun a book to be honest!
How does performing an audiobook compare to your other acting experiences, voice acting or otherwise?
It's definitely a marathon instead of a sprint. I learned a LOT about pacing, preserving your voice, finding different ways to USE your voice; it was a challenge, and I loved every second of it.
Rule of Cool is full of great nerdy references fans of tabletop RPGs and video games will be able to pick out. Do you have a favorite reference or joke?
There are tons of hat tips to the WOW world that I find insanely amusing. And some Pokémon references that made me snort out loud.
Where do you see GameLit fitting into the broader shift toward nerd culture entering the mainstream?
I feel GameLit is carrying the torch for hard-core geeks out there. With everything "nerdy" or "geeky" becoming mainstream, this is something insular and fresh.
Do you have a favorite work of GameLit that you view as a must-read, especially for newcomers to the genre?
I am by no means an expert in the genre, but recently I downloaded Threadbare by Andrew Sieple recently and am enjoying it with gusto.
What do you hope viewers learn from your upcoming panel?
I hope they discover a whole new genre of entertainment to love. And perhaps create in. Or both!
Rule of Cool is available now.