Survey for the Women of the Redemption Woodstock LARP

Hello, LARP ladies!

This summer, as part of a general effort to get more women involved in gaming, I’m going to be part of a booth of female game designers selling independently designed and produced roleplaying games. As part of this endeavor, we’re going to publish and sell a ‘zine called RPG = Role Playing Girl with a collection of articles about women in roleplaying.

It’s been pointed out to me that our LARP group is a bit unusual in the number of active and involved female players that we have – as the gaming population at large tends to be largely male. I’ve been asked to write about my experiences as a woman with LARP, but I thought it would be much more interesting if I asked the women of LARP to speak for themselves.

So! Here’s the deal. I have a short survey comprised of a few open-ended questions. I’d really appreciate it if you took the time to fill it out. Feel free to write as much or as little as you care to. For that matter, answer the questions that appeal to you; feel free to ignore questions you don’t feel are relevant to you.

Some caveats, I may not use all of what you send me, but by sending me answers I am taking that as permission to publish your comments. Anything you say will be properly attributed, but may be edited for spelling and/or grammar.

I’m hoping that you’ll take the time to answer these questions. I’m excited about trying to get more women involved in gaming. And I’m excited to hear what you might say in answer to these questions.

RPG = Role Playing Girl Survey

1. NAME (as you would like it to appear)
2. How long have you been at LARP?
3. How did you get involved with LARP?
4. Do you think that women are discriminated against in roleplaying? If yes, why? If no, why not?
5. Is LARP more female-friendly than tabletop roleplaying? If yes, why do you feel that way?
6. Have you ever experienced discrimination by male roleplayers because of your gender? If yes, would you be willing to provide examples/anecdotes?
7. (For people who roleplay outside of LARPs) Have you ever played cross-gender characters? If so, have you encountered resistance from other players about playing male characters?
8. Have you ever felt that certain plots were expected of your character because they were female? (i.e. rape, pregnancy, etc)
9. Is there anything else you’d like to say about being a female roleplayer?

My deadline to submit the article is the beginning of April, so I need responses by the end of February so that I have time to compile answers into a finished article. Please send responses to my gmail address: anna (dot) kreider (at) gmail (dot) com.

(Also - a bonus question. We're trying to come up with a name for our booth at GenCon. If you had to come up with a name for a group of female game designers, what would YOU call it?)

Thank you!