While I'm not really a very experienced Storyteller, I do have a couple of tips
that people have told me (after I begged and pleaded to know their secrets :)

1.  Focus.  If a game is held in a place with a lot of distraction, it will
	practically impossible to create any type of sustainable mood.  The
	same goes for places where people can just "wander by" to see what's
	happening, and they inevitably ask questions and just generally
	pester you.  Also, its best to play in a room where everything is
	there for the game, and everything not there for the game is tucked
	away.  Then the imagination will focus on the game-things, not on
	some cool magazine you have lying around.  The same goes with other
	activities in the room:  you are there to _play a good game_, not to
	discuss this TV show or knit socks (unless its in character).  Save
	those for breaks.

2.  Focus II.  One of the tips a friend of mine gave me that I haven't had a
	chance to actually put into practice yet is the idea that if you have
	something that the players can focus their attention on, something
	that either symbolically, metaphorically, or actually has to do with
	the game, it can help to keep them in the spirit of it.  Basically,
	it's giving the players' imaginations a little boost by giving them
	something "real" they can hold on to.

3.  Consistency.  In playing NPC's, handling where things are, who did what,
	how things work, etc., consistency is important so as to not shatter
	the illusion.  My memory is not that great, so I tend to have reams
	of notes with me.  This allows a player to try to have his character
	anticipate something, for dramatic effect. (This one comes from the 
	ST's Handbook, a great read, BTW.)

4.  Knowledge and Description.  Be as prepared as possible.  Be prepared to 
	give details to a player about any situation.  In a dramatic getaway 
	or chase, little things like a tossed away magazine can be used for 
	irony or contrast.  Throw lots of these little things in there 
	everywhere, some players may grasp at them, some won't.  But if the 
	situation isn't there, it makes it harder to be dramatic.

5.  Acting.  Encourage both yourself and your players to act out the situations
	and state of your character.  How many werewolf players do you know that
	will whimper when they are hurt badly, as a Garou might?  Or howl in 
	pain or cry or scream?  (Just not too loud;  the neighbors might get
	ansy.)  Growl.  Mumble.  Whatever your character might say, say it,
	don't go "Well, Mike says X."  Call the other player's by their
	character's names.  Refer to the NPC's by name if you can.  If you can
	do an accent appropriate to the character, do so.  (I have played
	a Russian with an authoritative and menacing slant to his accent, and
	a worry-wort, "poufter" English Ventrue, and in both I found the
	accents helped me get into character easily.  At one point, I played
	both characters in the game, and switched between the mindsets by 
	switching accents.  It was a little confusing tho'. :)

6.  Background and Personality.  If a character has just arrived out of the 
	blue, off the turnip truck, with no past and little more than a bunch
	of stats, how can you expect to dramatically play that person's 
	characteristics?  Encourage your players to write reams of background
	notes.  Can't write?  Fine, dictate it to a tape recorder.  Don't
	have a tape recorder.  Fine, sit down with the player yourself and 
	be a human recorder.  For my first character, I talked to my storyteller
	off and on for a total of about 20 hours!  _And_ I had some written
	background.  By the end of that, I knew the motives of the character,
	and new of his sensitivies and strengths.  Encourage your players to 
	think about the little "quirks" that the character has.

	One of the things I'd advocate is the idea first, then the "stats".
	In other words, present me with a full character description, and
	we'll work out the "numbers" from that.  This way, you can assign
	more virtues or flaws if you find it necessary, give a few extra points
	here and there if necessary, and generally match the stats to the idea.
	This also allows you to veto powergamers easier, IMHO.

	For example:  I had a player decide to play a "Fox Mulder as a Mage on
	the Run" kinda character.  He was due to make Director of Special
	Affairs in the FBI, but he didn't have the appropriate points.  I 
	looked at his sheet:  for a standardly trained operative, he had no
	points in Investigation or Firearms.  I gave him a two in each.

7.  Enthusiasm.  If you don't have it, your player's aren't either.  Like a 
	trained actor, you have to put your personal life out of your mind,
	play the characters and perform the best you can.  And don't expect
	any less of your characters, and let them know.


Well, these are just a few thoughts off the top of my head (as a second cup
of coffee runs through my blood..)

If you have any more, or any problems, by all means, post away!  I for one 
enjoy discussions on the nature of "How to Storytell", especially advice from
those who know better than me (practically everyone, I suspect!)

Mark (mark.kilfoil@nrc.ca)
(The Encaffeinated One)