Yesterday, I dropped a new weekly TTRPG community hashtag on Bluesky: #AskACreator. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Bluesky has some great hashtags like #selfpromosaturday and #wipwednesday for TTRPG creators to drop links to their products and creations, but my one gripe with those community days is that there’s not much incentive for discussion — you drop your link, you go about your business, and there’s not much follow-up.
Three months ago, I posted this on Bluesky:
It was a really fun day! I ended up asking 92 creators questions about their work before I was absolutely exhausted. Friends like Tech-Priest Neerzlu and Siix dropped into the thread to help me catch up, but we still didn’t get to everyone.
I loved how it got people talking about TTRPGs, and many of the original questions in the thread spawned their own conversation threads. But it was something that I wouldn’t be able to pull off regularly: social interaction takes spoons, and epilepsy doesn’t always leave me enough to those to go around with my weekly livestreams, blogging, newsletter, and other projects.
I still wanted to do something with the idea on a recurring basis, though, so I let it bounce around in my addled brainmeat for a while.
Kicking off the TTRPG Community #AskACreator Hashtag
Yesterday, I decided to take things in a new direction. Here’s what I posted:
Stonehomie, a creator and mapmaker for Dromaria.com, answered the call:
Stonehomie carried things forward by asking a great question of Caspi, who just finished up a successful Kickstarter for Shiny Good, a 5e item supplement and has a few other KS projects on the horizon:
Getting the hashtag off the ground
I took a few minutes that morning to head to Discord and dropped messages to some of my TTRPG community friends, asking them to tag somebody in the thread and ask them a question.
This is something I’ve done before when trying to get a new Bluesky TTRPG project rolling. Bluesky doesn’t rely on algorithms as much as other social media sites. I’ve found that sometimes it can be helpful to jump-start things by directly asking friends to get involved, either by tagging them on Bluesky or by sending them a message privately — otherwise they might not even see the post at all if it’s a busy time on their feeds!
After all, what are friends good for if you can’t badger cajole sweet-talk them into helping you with your projects?
Some of my favorite #AskACreator exchanges
You can head to yesterday’s full #AskACreator thread to see all the questions and answers from the TTRPG community, but I wanted to take a moment to highlight some of my favorite questions and answers from the thread.
The Dungeon’s Key drops great advice on TTRPG playtesting
This exchange was really great — playtesting is such a valuable aspect of the TTRPG creation process. Playtesters will always uncover weak points in your game that you never even considered, and addressing those issues before the product goes live for sale will help you release a stronger product overall.
I replied to The Dungeon’s Key asking about their best tips for TTRPG playtesting. Here’s what they had to say:
The Bearded Halfling talks historical realism in fantasy TTRPGs
The realism vs. fantasy debate is one that goes back to the beginning of the TTRPG hobby. Some say historical realism in games constrains and hinders what fantasy is capable of. Others say a strong historical basis in your games helps anchor your settings and make them feel real.
Personally, I think both sides make good points, but I liked the advice that The Bearded Halfling dropped here:
What’s next for the TTRPG #AskACreator hashtag?
I’ve already got #AskACreator threads planned for out to late August, which will be posted on my Bluesky every Monday around 11 a.m. Eastern. Look for the next one on Monday, May 26th, 2025.
I’m hoping that others will begin to host their own #AskACreator threads as well — the more people hosting these threads, the more amazing conversations about TTRPGs we can have every week.
Something I particularly like about this new hashtag is that you don’t have to be a TTRPG creator to participate. Even if you’ve never published a map, adventure, or roleplaying game supplement, you can hop into an #AskACreator thread and engage with your favorite makers of gaming goodness.
My challenge to you: host your own #AskACreator thread next Monday!
On Monday, May 26th, 2025, I’m challenging you to get involved. Post your own #AskACreator thread on your Bluesky. Here’s a simple copy-and-paste template you can use:
I’m hosting #AskACreator Monday! Tag a #TTRPG creator in the comments and ask them a question about their work!
Get the ball rolling by tagging one or more creators with your own questions.
It’s as easy as that!
Want To Learn More About the TTRPG Community on Bluesky?
I’ve written about Bluesky’s TTRPG community before. Here’s more for your reading pleasure:
- Read my TTRPG Bluesky – Everything You Need To Know post!
- Check out the Bluesky TTRPG Starter Packs Directory!
- Follow me on Bluesky!
