"What should we call this?"...the making of a Sims story
Sul sul, Simmers.
It's the holiday season, and it seems like as good a time as any to share my humble attempt at Sims storytelling with all of you.
My twelve-year-old daughter, Z, is my Sims buddy. This summer, we discovered how much we enjoy creating Simworlds and bringing them to life together. We have fun browsing the Gallery for houses and households we like. We especially enjoy creating characters in CAS and saving them to the Library, where they live until we summon them to the stage.
I tried my hand at Simlit twice before. One attempt lasted a single post; the premise behind the story didn't work as well as I'd hoped. The other began with much more promise, with main characters who seemed to have enough chemistry to sustain a good, old-fashioned love story. Then, just like that, the chemistry fizzled quicker than a cheap Spice Festival firework. So did my story.
This time, I'm taking a different approach. I've tried to type the sentence in which I describe this approach at least seven times, and I've backspaced over every single one. Let's just call it "The Making of a Sims Story." I suppose it's as much of a journal as anything else. I envision myself sharing with you some of the experiences my daughter and I have playing The Sims together as well as the events that unfold in our game. You'll meet some of the characters we've created, several of which have been with us since our first TS4 save. Some of them are based on real people; some have been inspired by characters we've found in other stories; some are our very own.
We have no idea whether our game will generate a story worth telling or not. I hope it will, because we'll have much more fun if that's the case. We might all decide it's not much fun to see exactly how the sausage is made. My use of that figure of speech elicited an "ewwwww" from Z, who is seated beside me on the sofa, wrapped up in a holiday plaid blanket.
I'm taking this step because Z and I have experienced an uncommon amount of kindness on this forum. So many virtual spaces are toxic. This one could not be more different. Simply put, it's a fun place to hang out and spend time, and a place where I'd like to settle in and do some writing.
In my next post, I'll set the stage for you. I'll introduce you to our main character, and tell you a bit about the world in which the story will take place. I hope we'll all enjoy it.
The last thing I added to this post was the title. Neither Z nor I could come up with anything to put in the Discussion Title box, and I couldn't proceed without filling it in. It turned out that when Z asked me what we should call it, she answered her own question better than I could.
@MoonlightGraham I'm looking forward to it. As I'm new to storytelling I'm sure I will pick up all kinds of knowledge and inspiration that I can use to build my story too. Thank you, and Z, for sharing this with us!?
Yay! The date is finally planned. It sounds like the perfect date. When you made that poll I kind of figured it was for this. I can't wait to see how it goes.
"SweetieWright_84;c-18095746" wrote: Yay! The date is finally planned. It sounds like the perfect date. When you made that poll I kind of figured it was for this. I can't wait to see how it goes.
@SweetieWright_84 I figured you might have put the pieces together. We decided to let the forum "play the part" of Cam's friends. I had them suggest some of the date ideas we got from the poll.
Both Cam and Angie are playable Sims in our saves. We'll be playing as Cameron during the date, since he asked her out. It's going to be a long date--in fact, the date timer might run out while they're still at the restaurant--so I hope Angie doesn't autonomously run off before it's over!
Just in case that happens, Z and I have a story line we can use. ;)
I'm pretty sure as long as they don't give up their seats, they'll stay after the counter stops. They'll leave immediately after you end the meal and pay the bill. If you want the date to be at multiple places, you'll have to ask her out on another date.
"SweetieWright_84;c-18097169" wrote: I'm pretty sure as long as they don't give up their seats, they'll stay after the counter stops. They'll leave immediately after you end the meal and pay the bill. If you want the date to be at multiple places, you'll have to ask her out on another date.
@SweetieWright_84 I don't think Cameron would have a problem with a second date. And as for Angie, we'll find out soon enough...
Cameron had Tuesday off, so that was the day he picked for his date with Angie. That worked for her, too; she had to work that morning, but she would be free by mid-afternoon. Now, all Cam had to worry about was the unpredictable Brindleton weather. A rainy day would make a walk on the beach less appealing.
But Cameron awoke that morning to a brilliant sky. Everything was going as planned.
After breakfast, he strolled outside to enjoy the sunshine in Sable Square. He talked to Duncan Edwards and Ryan Bellamy, two of the Brindletonians he’d gotten to know. Both Dunc and Ryan were married men, and both had young children. Both were usually quiet. Today, though, they were in the mood to talk, and so was Cameron. https://i.imgur.com/OfI0ARu.png Cameron later admitted he’d been nervous about his date from the moment he awakened. “I’m glad I ran into Ryan and Duncan. Hanging out with them got me thinking about other things, and that helped me relax.”
The two guys went on their way, and Cameron decided to walk around his neighborhood. It was far too nice to stay outside. He hadn’t walked far before he saw a woman he’d never met. She was looking at her phone with a look of bewilderment on her face.
Cam approached her with a smile. “May I help you?” he asked. She smiled back. “Oh, hello. I’m new in the neighborhood. I’m sure you couldn’t tell that, could you?” She laughed softly, and Cameron laughed too. https://i.imgur.com/J0etrpq.png “Of course not. If I had to guess, I’d say you were born here. I’m Cameron Ross. I live just over there.” He pointed in the direction of his grandparents’ house. “Hi, Cameron. I’m Mary Kate Sims. My family and I just moved here. We’re living at Cavalier Cove.”
Mary Kate was talkative and engaging, and Cameron and she hit it off immediately. He learned her husband’s name was Graham, and they had a teenage daughter, Zoe. Both Mary Kate and Graham were teachers. Zoe would be going to Buckingham High with Halle and Patrick.
By the time Cam finished his conversation with Mary Kate, it was well past noon. Cam had just enough time for a workout and a shower before his date. He decided to visit the Willow Creek gym instead of the one in his own neighborhood.
As it turned out, Cameron barely got his treadmill moving before the Willow Creek gang descended upon him. Within ten minutes, he had discussed his evening plans with Tim and Ava Horton; Tom Geiger; Summer Holiday’s dad, Brooks; and Kaleigh Rinehart-Scott.
“Rustic Sails? That’s solid,” Tim approved. “Great atmosphere.” “You won’t run into half of Willow Creek there,” Tom pointed out. “Leanna and I went on our first date there,” a proud Brooks recalled. “Angie blushed and giggled when I told her how sweet I think it is that you two are going out,” gushed Kaleigh.
As Cameron was walking out of the gym, he met Kaitlynne Blanton. She smiled the moment he saw him. “Hello, Cameron,” she said, playfully. Gee, I wonder what she’s going to talk to me about? he said to himself. Kaitlynne was one of Angie’s best friends and confidants. Kaitlynne wasted no time. “I know a sweet gal who has a date tonight, and she is OVER. THE. MOON about it.” Cameron felt himself blush. “You do, huh?” “I really do. Seriously, Cam. Angie is absolutely delighted to go out with you. She would die if she knew I told you this…but she really does like you. A lot.” https://i.imgur.com/W9eMQvi.png Kaitlynne paused, weighing her words carefully. “I don’t mean to put pressure on you to make it a Perfect Date. Really, it’s the opposite. Just relax and be yourself. Have fun. Don’t worry about trying to impress her.” She smiled sweetly and tossed him an innocent, playful wink. “You already have.”
Kaitlynne’s words had exactly the effect she’d hoped they would. By the time Cam and Angie met at the Rustic Sails Seafood Company, he was completely at ease. “All I was thinking about was how much fun I was going to have,” Cameron recalled.
Angie had followed Kaitlynne’s fashion advice, choosing a dress her friend called “casual-flirty-cute.” It was a warm night, so Angie pulled her long brown hair back from her pretty face. “I actually thought I looked cute,” she bashfully admitted. “Kait said I did. And Cam did, too.” She giggled as she remembered the way she’d caught him off guard. “She looked gorgeous,” was Cameron’s assessment. “I told her she looked cute. As soon as I said it, I wondered if she realized I meant it as a compliment.”
The host seated them at a table on the deck, overlooking the Bay. A waiter, who told them his name was Ethan, took their order. Angie chose Trout Meunière and Cam picked Lobster Tortellini. They both chose the Chef’s Special drink, some Calming Chamomile tea. Tim would have approved; Cameron was “going big.” https://i.imgur.com/K4xjDAQ.png Cameron figured he might see some of his neighborhood friends at the restaurant, and he was right. Randall and Chandler Nelson were seated at the table nearest them. Mike and Kate McGuire had the table across the patio. Randall saw Cam and Angie first. “Whoa, look who’s there, Chan. It’s Cameron Ross. Wonder who he’s with?” he asked his wife. “Let’s go meet her.” “Don’t you dare,” Chandler advised. “Let them have a quiet evening together.”
“This is absolutely perfect,” Angie mused. Cameron smiled. “Thanks, Angie. I’m glad you’re having fun…you are, aren’t you?” She giggled softly. “Of course I am.” She paused for a moment. “This is…my first real date.” Cam looked surprised. “I thought you went to Prom our senior year, with a guy from out of town.” “I did…but the guy I was with is the son of a woman my mom worked with. She set us up because neither of us was going to go to our Proms otherwise. It wasn’t really a date,” she admitted. “High school dating is way, way overrated,” Cameron said. “There’s too much drama most of the time.” “You’re making me really glad I missed out on it.”
Angie looked out over the Bay, watching a sailboat pass silently through the harbor. The sound of the water, lapping gently against the wharf, was soothing. The lights from the houses across the harbor twinkled on the Bay like starlight. “You like Brindleton Bay, don’t you?” she asked him. “I really do. It took some getting used to. I really missed everybody in Willow Creek. I was going home, like, every day.” “I know,” Angie admitted, and then she blushed. https://i.imgur.com/6kftnmF.png The longer they talked, the more comfortable they felt. Cameron flirted with Angie a little bit–seeing how she would react. To his delight–and somewhat to his surprise–Angie flirted right back. That’s a side of Angie I’ve never seen, he thought to himself.But I like it… https://i.imgur.com/4a8cs0a.png Angie felt different tonight: as confident in a social setting as she was in a classroom or a medical office. She was not only intelligent, but Kaitlynne and Cameron were right: She was super cute. She was the kind of girl any guy would be thrilled to have dinner with, and for the first time in her life, Angie felt like that girl. https://i.imgur.com/Up7AnfK.png “I’m getting hungry,” Cameron admitted. “They’re taking their time with our food, aren’t they?” “Good things are worth waiting for.” Angie smiled, her eyes sparkling. Just then, Ethan arrived with their food. He balanced the tray on one hand like a boss waiter should. And then he dropped the tray. The plates crashed to the deck, startling the other diners. “Oh, PLUMBOB ON A STICK!” Ethan exclaimed. He turned to apologize…and stepped directly in the mess he'd just made. https://i.imgur.com/yN8u0Ga.png Ethan mumbled three more apologies before he scrambled back to the kitchen to inform the chef he would need a second order. “It was no big deal,” Cameron remembered with a twinkle in his eye. “It gave us more time to talk.” By the time their food arrived, Willow Petersen and her mother had sat down near them. They’d come in for a late-night dessert. Willow caught Cameron’s eye and smiled. https://i.imgur.com/mASInGC.png “I am so hungry,” Angie admitted as she dug into her meal. All Cam could do was nod, because his mouth was already full of tortellini. “We barely talked during our meal,” Cameron remembered. “We’d been talking the whole time, though…so it didn’t feel awkward.”
When Angie and Cameron finished their meal, they were the last two diners at their table. “I had thought we’d go for a walk after dinner, but…it’s getting really late,” Cameron said, a bit sheepishly. “I’m sorry…” “Shhhh. This has been just perfect,” Angie reassured him. “I have to work tomorrow morning, so I really need to get home soon, anyway.” https://i.imgur.com/sRen5Ex.png Ethan the waiter cautiously approached their table, apologizing several more times for dropping their food and making them wait so long. “It was really no problem,” Cameron assured him again. “We weren’t in a hurry.” “It’s our first date,” Angie added, and her cheeks turned the color of her dress. The clumsy waiter stammered again. “Oh, plum…I’m…” “It’s all good,” Cam interrupted. “It’s a great story.”
Cam and Angie got up from their chairs. They had taken two or three steps when Cameron turned, and his eyes met Angie’s. And, then… https://i.imgur.com/QX9JG6w.png “He kissed me first,” Angie recalled later. “He surprised me a little bit, but it was a nice surprise.” “She definitely kissed me back,” Cameron remembered. Ethan kept it classy and turned away, but he smiled and, best of all, he had nothing in his hands that he could possibly have dropped to ruin the moment.
Their kiss was soft and sweet. It left both of them smiling. “Was that…” Cameron began. “Shhhh. Just perfect.”
"SweetieWright_84;c-18099709" wrote: "Plumbob on a stick!" I love it. I may have to steal that the next time I drop something or want to shout forbidden words.
The date was nicely written. Angie looked adorable in her dress. Another great chapter. Well done. :)
@SweetieWright_84 Please feel free! Ethan's exclamation started out as simply "PLUMBOB!" and stayed that way until my final look at the chapter. I don't know what inspired me to add the stick, but I'm glad I did. I have no idea where it came from. Z has already said it once, too. :smile:
Ethan the Waiter actually dropped Cam and Angie's meal TWICE during the course of the evening, and he walked through it both times.
Every female Sim who plays more than a very minor role in the story has a variety of outfits for every occasion, thanks to Z. Angie is a playable Sim, and we've played her several times, but we let her choose her own outfit for her date. She would have certainly looked to her stylish bestie Kaitlynne for date night advice.
Thanks so much for your comments, and thanks for sticking with the story!
The spoiled daughters of a wealthy executive--whom it was said had acquired much of his wealth by dubious means--and his trophy wife, the Atwood sisters grew up with the best of everything. And, after their parents passed away, they inherited a huge estate which guaranteed their lifestyle would continue without interruption. Leah was a talented artist and Moriah an accomplished violinist, but neither sister put their talents to any good use. Instead, they spent piles of Simoleons in pursuit of fun. https://i.imgur.com/x7WIUJe.png The Atwood girls considered people as playthings. They were both incorrigible flirts, especially Moriah. Now well into Adulthood, neither sister had ever settled down into a relationship. "I might marry one day," mused Leah, "but I'll have to find someone richer than me first. If I do, I doubt anything else will matter."
Moriah and Leah shared a posh apartment in the Landgraab building, a highrise in the exclusive Uptown district of San Myshuno. It was rumored they didn't pay a Simoleon for it--more than a passing resemblance to the notorious Nancy Landgraab led some to conclude the girls were products of a long-running affair between Nancy and their father. Leah, a blonde, was nearly a spitting image of Madame Landgraab.
The Atwood sisters didn't leave the city often. But one evening, jaded by night after night of clubbing, they decided to see if Brindleton Bay's sunsets were as glorious as they'd been told. Neither of them had any idea when the sun set, so they arrived in the seaside district long before they needed to. They decided to walk around the village before they headed for the beach, and found themselves in Sable Square.
Leah and Moriah were somewhat impressed by the houses they saw there. "I thought people lived in shacks out here," Moriah admitted. "Not in this neighborhood," concluded Leah. "Look at this one." Leah pointed to a Dutch Colonial-style home with a red front door. https://i.imgur.com/deWmF9j.png "Not bad," Moriah said. "Not bad at all. I wonder who lives here?" "Whoever it is, they're not poor." "Let's take a closer look, shall we?" "Moriah, that's terrible...isn't it?" Leah giggled. "As if that ever stopped us!" Moriah winked. "Let's see what it's like in back."
The sisters went in the front gate and made their way around the right side of the house. When they saw the backyard, with a beautiful pool and a lovely outdoor dining area, they were even more impressed. Moriah had an especially good eye for design. "This is very nice. Whoever lives here has very good taste. I wonder who they are?" https://i.imgur.com/lHcKaSn.png At that moment, the answer to Moriah's question was sitting at a table at the Rustic Sails Seafood Company, enjoying his first date with his crush.
Leah spotted the bar Mason Ross had built into the cabana. "Ooooh, look here! I'm a bit thirsty. I wonder if they'd mind if we treated ourselves to a drink?" Moriah smiled wickedly. "You're becoming almost as outrageous as I am. Make us a drink, why don't you?" "I don't know how to mix a drink, Sis." "Neither do I. People always buy them for us." The spoiled blonde heiress found a bottle of wine. "I think I can manage this," she decided. Leah poured them each a glass of Granite Falls Grappo Blanco, from a bottle Dr. Ross had received as a retirement present. https://i.imgur.com/BVBpFX8.png "What are we going to say if the people who live here come outside and catch us?" Leah inquired. "That's easy. We'll invite them to our party, of course." https://i.imgur.com/dFWLUGJ.png By the time the Atwoods finished their wine (Moriah threw away her empty glass) it was too late to watch the sunset from the beach. They didn't care, however; they had more fun snooping around and being outrageous.
Neither of the sisters felt like going home, so it was off once again to the Fountainview Nightclub for more drinking, dancing, and flirting. Leah, the more active of the two, had the urge to play some ping-pong, while Moriah scanned the club for handsome men or pretty women to flirt with. She spotted two promising targets: a good-looking fellow with black hair and hazel eyes and his friend, a boyishly handsome dude with a jaunty cap. Moriah sashayed over to them, and soon she had thoroughly bewitched them both.
The dark-haired man, Paul Welch, interested her most, until his buddy mentioned he was an aspiring Doctor. That piece of information turned Moriah's head immediately. "And what did you say your name was, darling?" "Victor. Victor Heiser." https://i.imgur.com/dmkPpa4.png A newly interested Moriah began to talk about her day. "My sister and I spent the day in Brindleton Bay." "I have a friend who lives there," Victor pointed out. Paul nodded. "Isn't that where Cameron Ross lives?" "That's right," confirmed Victor. "He's got a really nice place with a pool and a bar out back." Moriah was definitely interested now. "Has he? That sounds very nice..." "Yeah, it is. It's his grandparents' place, but Cam is living there, keeping an eye on it for them." https://i.imgur.com/TRlIHCw.png "Lovely." Moriah's agile mind was piecing together all the facts she had just learned. "Excuse me, gentlemen," she said, with a dazzling smile. "You've been...wonderful company."
Moriah quickly found her sister. "You won't believe what I just heard," she said, and then she filled Leah in on the details of the conversation she'd had with Victor. https://i.imgur.com/LOFVdOq.png "So it's a young guy, house-sitting for his geezer grandparents?" Leah asked. "Exactly!" Leah paused for a moment. "But why does this all matter?" "At the very least, it's a place to hang out by the pool and have a man wait on us hand and foot," Moriah explained. "Oooh, kinda like a pool boy!" "Yes!" "That DOES sound like a good way to spend the summer!" Leah was definitely on board with this. https://i.imgur.com/Deo6y16.png Leah was the more intelligent sister, but Moriah was far more calculating. And this time she was several steps ahead of Leah. But it might turn out to be even more than that...
