Why won't anyone RP with me? 15 Reasons.
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This may be reposted elsewhere, if this header is kept intact. (c)Marian Murdoch aka "wildmaven",
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Sometimes it is hard to see the reason people are reluctant to RP with you. Even veterans of RPing can find themselves faced with this question. Below are several reasons.

1. Did you create a thread that no other character can reasonably find a way to get their character involved in it? This frequently happens when characters are in a thread in their room. Why would someone come visit your character there, especially if your character is new? Room threads only really work if you have pre-arranged with another character to write a thread there.

2. Are you constantly whining or complaining in the chat box or off-topic threads? If you don't look like fun, people are more likely to stay away.

3. Do you frequently write walls of text in RPs, but, when you look at it, all the other character has to reply to was your character saying, "fine"?

4. Speaking of walls of text, take a look at your writing style. If you are writing really long paragraphs, most people will skip ahead. Break it up a bit with some dialog. The eye hates long paragraphs. Take a look at how novels are written and you'll seldom see such walls of text.

5. Do you frequently post and then disappear for a week? Why would someone want to start a thread with you?

6. Is your character always sad? Yes, every character will have moments of sadness or other emotions, but if the only emotion your character has shown is sadness or grumpiness, there is no depth. Even if you're writing in a high school RP, there needs to be more to your character than bad emotions.

7. Do you constantly make mistakes about what has happened previously? If you are going to enter a thread, it is important to know where the other players are standing, what they are doing. I've been in RPs were one of my characters had a blaster wound to his leg, but when the doctor came in, it suddenly changed it to a minor flesh wound of the abdomen. Who wants to RP with someone who can't even keep something like that straight? Know what is happening.

8. Do you take things too personally? Remember, these are characters. If someone's character is mad at your character, that doesn't mean that character's writer is mad at you. You don't think Luke Skywalker's actor got mad at Darth Vader's actor for cutting off the character's hand, do you? Same goes for writing in an RP. It's not personal.

9. Have you shown a preference for only writing with certain people? Avoid a cliquish attitude and RP with many different characters.

10. Is your character only around when something romantic happens? Romance is fun to write, but gets old quickly. Show more depth to your character. Even the most romantic couples still have lives that take place outside of the love affair. Don't make your character into a bad romance novel heroine.

11. Are you overly descriptive? Some literary embellishment is great. However, we do not want to read that "her eyelashes were as fine as mink, long and supple, able to seduce with a single blink of the eye." I mean, come on!

12. Do you write bad dialog? When writing something that your character is saying, ask yourself if someone in real life would have said it that way. When was the last time you heard someone saying, "I lust for you, my angel." (ok... probably in a bad vampire book, but let's get real) If you're not sure about a line, say it out loud.

13. Do you think faster than your fingers can type? This can produce text such as, "he wanted to see if she could then he went to her and oh her eyes were like limpid pools of water was what he wanted." Er... yeah.

14. Spell check spell check spell check! We all make mistakes. However, if your post is filled with bad spelling and grammar errors, who is going to want to wade through that?

15. Do you step on threads? This can happen if there is an established thread going on and you suddenly come in and change the dynamic. Heck, I've done this on more than one occasion out of excitement. It is best to ask first if the other parties mind you joining, even if the Tag says "any", especially if you don't personally know the other writer well. This can eliminate hard feelings. As an "any" thread gets going, 'thread stomping' is more likely to happen than if you had joined right at the start. Once momentum gets going, it is probably a good idea to ask first.

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A Guide to Role Playing by wildmaven (Marian Murdoch):

1. Perfect characters are boring. Make your character unique. Everyone has flaws, so create some for your character.

2. Don't make your character invincible or always save the day. This is no fun for the other members and is a good way to freeze a storyline.

3. If your character isn't included in a current plot, don't just hang around complaining you're bored. Do something! PM another character who is also idle and get together.

4. Don't start storylines alone, hoping someone will join you. These never go well.

5. If you see a storyline already going on, PM those involved and ask if they would mind if you jumped in. Of course, if a title of a thread says (open) or the original poster has tagged it to "Any", feel free to jump in without asking.

6. Don't describe everything about your character in your first post. Leave some mystery.

7. Always leave openings for the other person. This is essential to keeping a plotline going.

8. Don't just repeat everything that just happened. Write your characters responses to it, yes, but don't recap everything.

9. Always stay in the character of your creation. Don't suddenly make them something their applications didn't outline.

10. Stay within your character's culture/literacy/etc., unless there's a really good reason for them to fall out of it.

11. Don't create a major plot which can affect everyone without discussing it with an admin first. They have plans for this journey.

12. When creating a character, ask yourself if this character is self-limiting. Will there be opportunities for good interaction with the other crew? Or will this character be sitting around, waiting for something to happen most of the time. This can happen when you create a character with a very specialized job.

13. Read the other threads. It helps you keep an eye on what's going on, and will be helpful when you interact with other characters.

14. If you are going to be off for a while, write your character out of the scene. It's not fair to the other players if your character all of a sudden drops out of a major plotline.

15. Before deciding to create a new character, ask yourself if you've devoted enough time on your current character. Have you taken the time to develop them, played them well, and had good interactions with other characters. If not, how do you expect to do so with your new character?