Steve Kraus
Narrative Writer
stevekrausvo@gmail.com
Hi! I’ve been writing, telling, acting, directing, and voicing stories since I was a kid. From tearing apart worlds with a childhood Tonka truck, to creating new worlds professionally, I’m a lifelong storyteller and gamer.
As a voice actor, you’ll find me as SJ McKeen.
SETTING CARTOGRAPHY
I always wanted to know what was outside that dungeon. After some time, I came back with a planet and made all the maps.
• Continents of 40+ developed countries •
• Language and dialect maps •
• Regional, local, and adventure maps •
• Battle maps for VTT and print •
Lore & WORLD BUILDING
I create worlds with believable countries, cultures, faiths, and people of all types. Add some critters, classes, languages & lexicons, holidays, and items.
As a consultant, I’ve overseen lore on an inter-departmental basis, acting as the master of the fictional worlds we build.
Non-Linear Stories
Decades in the TTRPG space have taught me how to design adventures and levels for balanced play. In a world of open adventure, optional scenarios could lend a wonderful sense of agency over their experience.
Untimely Heroes ran as an actual play on https://twitch.tv/VoxAndQuill
Character Development
Robin Hood Origins
Renaissance Entertainment Corp
SHERIFF
Captain, who is that?
FERRET
Robert Earl of Loxley, Lord Sheriff. He be not on the
[invitee] list. Oh, and he gave us coin!
SHERIFF
Thank thee, Ferret. No floggings tonight for thee.
FERRET
Damn.
SHERIFF
Good my Lord Robert. Welcome to Sterlingshire. Tell me,
what causes have you to pay for these… people?
The Challenge
The 10-minute opening gate scene at the New York Renaissance Faire had to set the pace of the nine-hour performance day, establish major characters and their motives, and promote certain services and products.
Written in Elizabethan English to maintain an immersive atmosphere.
LIVE THEATER – COMEDY
Three Monks & A Trunk
Renaissance Entertainment Corp
BROTHER HEBEOUS
Hedonism. Debauchery. Outlandish behavior. Welcome to the faire.
(Increasingly impassioned.)
My gentle friends, no doubt thou hast come here to feast, hear song and to be merry. This is, after all, what many of us seek in life, even we humble brothers.
However, we – the Friars of the Castigating Condemnation — have discovered the truth behind these so-called revels.
The entertainment within these walls is disguised as fun BUT innocents such as thyselves are at risk for eternal damnation and therefore must be exposed!
Well, the evils exposed, not you.
The Challenge
When three monks inadvertently become what they sought to condemn, you have the standing-room-only comedy, Three Monks & A Trunk. Part script, part improv, this high-energy, manic show had to capture and keep an audition’s attention despite the busy surrounding environment of a renaissance faire.