Something I posted on Twitter the other day:

Good trivia questions are part magic trick and part riddle, seasoned with a little bit of haiku.

No spice or puppy dog tails required. Got it? Good. In my next few posts I’ll talk a little about what I mean by that.

After February’s quiz, Mehal chatted with me for a minute. Then he mentioned that his team (Annyong!) had collapsed in the second half.

It's a pressure cooker! (Get it?)

Yeah, I said. The second half was harder than the first — but that’s how I like it. (OK, truth be told I don’t like teams to collapse.) I think a good quiz should get more difficult as you go along.

“Why’s that?” he asked. Which is a good question.

Apparently some hosts like to lead off with a difficult round. Players haven’t had as much beer, the theory goes, so they’re sharper.

But most games start easier and get harder as they go along — and pub quiz is a game. It’s more satisfying for players to ease in, get comfortable with the rules, and then start spraining their brains.

Compare with game shows: Jeopardy! is easier in the first half than in Double Jeopardy, and Final Jeopardy is in theory the hardest question of the show. Cash Cab starts with easier $25 questions and builds to more difficult $200 questions. And you don’t your shot at becoming a millionaire until you’ve answered 14 easier (but progressively more difficult) questions.

And at pub quiz, the first round should be easier than the last round.

At the Old Pequliar, the first round people see is actually round 4, the first picture round. They get to work on that through the entire first half. And they see round 8, the second picture round, in fifth position, at the second half.

So this is what I shoot for: Round 4 as the easiest round, round 7 (the movie round) as the hardest round, and the ones in between getting more difficult as you go.

In practice, it’s difficult to gauge things that precisely. I can make the movie round the hardest round, no sweat. And I can pull off a pretty easy picture round. But placing the other rounds exactly in order of difficulty? Tricky. (The infamous round 1 poetry round was within the last few months, after all, and that was murder. I’m still learning.) I’ve gotten better at ensuring that the first half is easier than the second half, though.

I also try to do this within individual rounds. Again, look at Jeopardy!: the easiest questions in each round are at the top of the board, and they get harder as you go down. So in an ideal pub quiz round, question 1 should be easier than question 10.

I find this especially important when it’s a high-concept round with unusual rules, like triangulation or “complete the set.” The first one or two questions, being easy, help people understand the concept and build confidence; the last couple of questions make them sweat.

(Side note: This is one of the reasons I wasn’t fond of geography as round 1. For most teams it’s one of the harder rounds.)

Escalating difficulty is less of an issue for regular teams — if you play the quiz at the same pub every week, you get a good sense of what’s asked and how hard it is and how everything works. But I think it’s vital for making sure new teams have as good a time as possible. Make it too hard too quickly and you spur walkouts, or at least inspire people to give up after one round and vow never to return.

And I find that it’s more satisfying to build up players’ confidence before you smash it.

(Offer only good if you’re coming to the Old Pequliar in Seattle for trivia tonight, Feb. 2.)

One team who sends me the correct answer to this question will win a free pitcher of beer courtesy of me, your host for the evening:

Where in Seattle does it pay to know the difference between green, yellow, orange, light blue, dark blue, and purple?

Send your answer to james [at] quizquizbangbang.com. I’ll choose one person/team with the correct answer at random and announce before the quiz.

Details on the quiz:

What you need to know:

1. Sign up starts at 7:45; first question is read at 8:00.
2. There are only two rules: Don’t cheat, and don’t be a dick.
3. The quiz is 81 questions (8 rounds, 10 questions each), and almost always features two picture rounds, an audio round, and a movie round.
4. It’s a deal: $5 for a team of up to 5 players, and just $7 for a team of 6. The bar doubles the pot, so first place usually wins about $100, and second and third place teams also get cash.
5. The team in fourth place at half time wins a free pitcher of beer.

See you tonight.

For those that don’t know, the Old Pequliar a pub in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. There’s a quiz every Tuesday night; I usually host the first Tuesday of the month.

What you need to know:

1. Sign up starts at 7:45; first question is read at 8:00.
2. There are only two rules: Don’t cheat, and don’t be a dick.
3. The quiz is 81 questions (8 rounds, 10 questions each), and almost always features two picture rounds, an audio round, and a movie round.
4. It’s a deal: $5 for a team of up to 5 players, and just $7 for a team of 6. The bar doubles the pot, so first place usually wins about $100, and second and third place teams also get cash.
5. The team in fourth place at half time wins a free pitcher of beer.

Check back here tomorrow for a question that might win you free beer ahead of time.

See you tomorrow. And don’t forget to say hi.

Because this is the 21st century, we’re on Facebook. And we’re on Twitter.

I used this photo in a picture round in my most recent quiz at the Old Pequliar:

Know who it is?

(Theme of the round: Celebrities with 2009 milestones — either got married, got divorced, or had a kid.)

Incorrect guesses from the teams who were playing that night:

• Idina Menzel
• Linda Evangelista
• Nelly Furtado
• Jennifer
• Courtney Cox
• Alicia Keys
• Janice Dickinson
• Jennifer Connelly
• Liz Phair
• Feist

Three teams correctly identified Cobie Smulders (who had a kid).

Apparently using the Asides created a separate feed. If you want to get those via RSS, here’s your link.

… in convenient, self-contained sidebar format. Look left.

I should have a new one up every day — maybe including weekends, but let’s not get all giddy without some evidence.

And coming soon: Super-sharp commentary on trivia. You know you want it.

I’ll get back to writing new questions post-haste. I’m writing a 2009-in-review-themed pub quiz that I deliver tomorrow night; after that, I plan to get back on a regular schedule.

A few changes I have in mind:

• I’m going to start including answers with the questions, rather than delaying them a day.
• I’m going to write more about trivia. Writing trivia can be an art, or at least a craft, and I want to explore what makes questions good or bad or indifferent.
• I’ll write the occasional review of trivia-themed stuff, as well — games, iPhone apps, shows, whatever.

Suggestions on any of the above are more than welcome.

TODAY’S QUESTION

[slang] What popular ’80s song took its title from a British phrase meaning to convince someone by using polysyllabic words, convoluted speech, or nonsensical explanations?

Show me the answer!

PREVIOUSLY

That question, again: What medical procedure got a boost in popularity in 2000 after being featured on a very special episode of The Today Show, a phenomenon researchers dubbed the “Couric effect”?

Answer: The Couric effect saw a significant (but temporary) increase in the  number of colonoscopies performed in the U.S., after Katie Couric underwent the procedure while millions of Today Show viewers were suddenly regretting their choice of Cap’n Crunch rather than All-Bran. Or their choice to eat breakfast at all while watching a medical procedure on TV.

TODAY’S QUESTION

[medicine] What medical procedure got a boost in popularity in 2000 after being featured on a very special episode of The Today Show, a phenomenon researchers dubbed the “Couric effect”?

PREVIOUSLY

That question, again: The original Austrian version was called “Und jetzt ist es still.” When Betty Hutton performed it, it was called “Blow a Fuse.” What was this song called when Björk covered it?

Answer: Björk’s version of this song was called “It’s Oh So Quiet” (shhh! shhh!). Rich B was right — zing boom! (True fact: Until I looked up the lyrics, I thought Björk was singing “You fall in love! Simple!” not “zing boom.”)