A friend and I just finished our first game of Pulp Alley . . . and I used my "microphone" idea (passing a "mic" back and forth as initiative changed hands) to help facilitate not only keeping track of the initiative but also to facilitate "telling the story". Here is a photo of me doing so:
Anyway my friend David had an idea about it . . . particularly in multi-player games, why not reward the best "storytelling" (by consensus of the players). My idea was that they would get their choice of one point of Tip, Contact, Gear or Backup. We both thought that this would enhance creativity on the part of the participants.
Oh, and for those curious about the "mic" in the photo . . . it is made from a candlestick (and I still don't have the shape that I want), with an old-fashioned clothespin (wrapped with a bit around it to hold it firmly in the candlestick) with cardboard stuck in the clothespin and more cardboard taped around it to give it the rough shape of an old-time radio mic, then painted a charcoal color. It is far from perfect but it works.
Anyway, you might want to try the "storytelling reward" idea in your own games.
-- Jeff