As a student librarian, I figured it’d be good to also include a book list of a series of books on tabletop design. It’s in alphabetical order by publisher/author, so they’re not in any particular order. I recommend giving any of these a look.

The links are to their respective purchasing locations.

Amagi Games

• Dungeons For Tabletop Roleplaying
• Fundamentals of Tabletop Roleplaying
• Mechanisms For Tabletop Roleplaying
• Mechanisms For Tabletop Roleplaying, Set 2
• Situations For Tabletop Roleplaying
• Situations For Tabletop Roleplaying, Set 2
• Stakes For Tabletop Roleplaying

Aron Christensen

• My Guide to RPG Storytelling
• My Storytelling Guide Companion
• Loaded Dice: Collected Advice on Running & Playing

Cumberland Games & Diversions

• Big List of RPG Plots

Engine Publishing*

• Focal Point: The Complete Game Master’s Guide to Running Extraordinary Sessions
• Never Unprepared: The Complete Game Master’s Guide to Session Prep
• Odyssey: The Complete Game Master’s Guide to Campaign Management
• Unframed: The Art of Improvisation for Game Masters

*note: Engine Publishing does have its own website where you can purchase physical copies. Highly recommended.

Graham Walmsley

• Play Unsafe

John Wick

• Play Dirty

Kobold Press

• Kobold Guide to Combat
• Kobold Guide to Game Design
• Kobold Guide to Gamemastering
• Kobold Guide to Magic 
• Kobold Guide to Plots & Campaigns

Matt Davis

• The No-Prep Gamemaster

Plot Points Publishing

• Encounter Theory

Portal Games

• Play Smart

Sly Flourish

• The Lazy Dungeon Master
• Return of the Lazy Dungeon Master

Shelly Mazzanoble

• Confessions of a Part-Time Sorceress
• Everything I need to Know I Learned From Dungeons & Dragons

Think Different

• Structured Free Association Story Plot Method 2.0

Yaruki Zero Games

• Entanglements
• Yaruki Zero: Collected Thoughts on Role-Playing Games

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—Non-Tabletop Booklist

• The Art of Language Invention by David J. Peterson
• The Anatomy of Story by John Truby
• Metamodernity by Lene Rachel Anderson
• Death by Todd May
• A Decent Life: Morality for the Rest of Us by Todd May

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—Reading List

The following I haven’t read so I can’t exactly recommend JUST yet, but maybe you want to give em a read?

James D’Amato

• The Ultimate RPG: Character Backstory Guide
• The Ultimate RPG: Gameplay Guide

Monte Cook

• Your Best Game Ever

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—Buy List

Moreso for me, here’s just a list of stuff I’m planning on picking up in the near future.

• Lancer RPG (I want the physical copy)
• Damn the Man, Save the Music
• Big Eyes Small Mouth 4th Edition (When it’s out)
• Cortex Prime (Whenever that’s out)
• Tears of a Machine

not-TTRPG Buy List

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