Stories you don’t just watch ~ you live inside them.
Starleaf; Stories is a collaborative storytelling studio—bringing together tabletop roleplay, performance, and narrative design to create experiences shaped in real time.
We build stories with you, not for you.
~ Starleaf; Stories ~
More than a game.
More than a performance.
Stories you don’t just watch—you live inside them
Some stories are told.
Some are performed.
And some are built in the moment ~
with the people inside them.
Starleaf; Stories is a collaborative storytelling practice shaped through tabletop roleplay, performance, and narrative design.
We don’t create stories for you.
We create the conditions where stories can emerge ~ with you.
A shared practice, held in motion
A practice shaped in real time
Most of what we do has never been recorded cleanly.
It has happened in living rooms, at convention tables, in libraries, classrooms, event halls, and quiet corners where a story decided to take root and grow.
Some of it has made its way online.
Much of it hasn’t.
That’s part of the nature of this work.
Stories are lived first.
Documented second—if they choose to be.
How it unfolds
We don’t begin with rules.
We begin with questions.
What kind of story are you drawn to?
What kind of experience do you want to have?
What should be held gently—or left untouched?
From there, something begins to take shape.
A world.
A tone.
A thread to follow.
And then we step into it together.
There is structure—but it isn’t rigid.
There is direction—but it isn’t forced.
The story responds.
To you.
To the group.
To the moment.
Inside the story
You might find yourself laughing at something completely unexpected.
You might find yourself quiet, waiting for the right moment to speak.
You might make a choice that shifts everything.
Time moves differently here.
Moments stretch.
Details matter.
And when the session ends, something usually remains—
not just the story, but what it revealed.
The people holding the storyStarleaf; Stories is not a solo practice.
It is held through two complementary roles.
Jo
Arellanes
Narrative Direction & Performance
Gaylan Lewallen
Structure &
Live Support
Jo works within the story itself—guiding tone, shaping flow, and holding emotional pacing as it unfolds.Their approach is adaptive and responsive, grounded in attention to what is happening beneath the surface of the narrative.
Gaylan holds the structure around the experience—maintaining stability, supporting the environment, and ensuring the story has space to move without strain.
His presence allows the work to remain open without becoming unstable.
Together
One moves within the story.
One holds the space around it.
Between those roles, something becomes possible:
A story that can shift, stretch, and respond;
without losing its foundation.
Who this is for:You don’t need experience.
You don’t need to know how it works.
You don’t need to have a character prepared.You only need curiosity.
Some people come to play.
Some come to explore.
Some come to understand something they couldn’t reach directly.
All of those are valid places to begin.
Begin where you are:
You don’t need the right words.
You don’t need a plan.
You just need to start.
We’ll meet you there.
PAST✧STORIES
Stories that have already been lived
Most of what we’ve created exists in memory first.
In shared space.
In moments that could not have been predicted.
In stories shaped by the people inside them.
Some lasted a single session.
Some unfolded over months.
Some continue—somewhere else.
We’ve gathered a few fragments here.
Tales from the Corner Coven
A familiar city, just slightly shifted.
When night falls, a quiet network of magical guardians—bodega cats—emerge to protect the spaces people depend on most.
Playful on the surface.
Protective at its core.
Girl by Moonlight — At the Brink of the Abyss
A world already breaking.
Pilots standing against extinction.
A story about transformation, sacrifice, and whether anything can be rebuilt.
Gnomesteaders
Small figures in a vast world.
A group of gnomish heroes tasked with leading their people toward a future that may or may not exist.
A story about rebuilding after loss.
Honey Heist
A simple premise.
You are a bear.
You are wearing a hat.
You are attempting to steal honey.
Everything else is uncertain.
Cyberpunk 2185: The Seacrest Run
A job that should have been straightforward.
Too many people are watching.
Too many people want what’s being carried.
And something about the job isn’t what it seems.
Steel Hearts
Created for war.
Changed by something unexpected.
Once you realize what you’ve become, there’s no returning to what you were.
✧
Some stories end.Some continue.Some stay with the people
who lived them.
LIVE✧STORIES
When the story is shared beyond the table
Some stories remain within the group that creates them.
Others open outward.
Live storytelling shifts the experience.
The story still responds in real time—but now it is also witnessed.
This requires a different kind of attention.
Not performance instead of collaboration—
but collaboration that can be seen.
We work with indie groups, stream teams, and creative collectives to support:✧ character-driven storytelling across sessions✧ narrative continuity in live environments✧ pacing that considers both players and audience✧ presence within shared digital space
Universes Contained Within
| Selected Collaborations |
|---|
| Untold Stories Project |
| Masks and Mayhem |
| NOVI Studio |
| Adventure Quest - live action learning for 15 years |
| Paizo Organized Play ~ Great Plains Lodge |
✧
Live stories move differently.
They ask for presence,
~ adaptability, and trust ~
between players, performers, and those watching.
THE✧STORYTELLERS
The structure behind the story
Starleaf; Stories is built as a shared practice.
Two different approaches.
One collaborative system.
—————~ Jo ~—————Story moves from the inside out.
Jo works within the narrative ~ guiding tone, holding emotional pacing, and shaping how the story responds in real time.
Their focus is on what is unfolding beneath the surface ~ where tension builds, where space is needed, and where something unexpected is trying to emerge.
—————~Gaylan~—————
Every story needs something to stand on.
Gaylan supports the structure around the experience ~ holding the environment steady, maintaining clarity, and ensuring the story can move without collapsing under its own weight.
—————~Together~—————
The work exists between these roles.
One guiding movement.
One holding form.
This balance allows the story to remain open, responsive, and stable at the same time.
We work with indie groups, stream teams, and creative collectives to support:✧ character-driven storytelling across sessions✧ narrative continuity in live environments✧ pacing that considers both players and audience✧ presence within shared digital space
THE✧STORYTELLERS
Start where you are
Most people think they need to prepare something first.You don’t.
You can come with:
✧ a clear idea
✧ a rough direction
✧ or nothing at allAll of these are valid.We begin with conversation.
We ask a few questions.
We listen.
We shape the experience together.Nothing is locked too early.
Nothing is rushed forward.
Just want to follow to story logs by email? Sign up here:
Starleaf;
You don’t need to know what happens next.
You just need to take the first step.Send a note & start a conversation.
Every story is shared.
Even the ones we think we carry alone.
Always on the move physically
Always available digtally
~ * ~
Begin the story
Contact Us For More Information