Dreaming of Twilight - How To Write In An RP

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Dec 31, 2009, 9:03am

Dreaming of Twilight :: General :: The Roll Playing Academy :: Tutorials :: How To Write In An RP

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Topic: How To Write In An RP (Read 530 times)

Madison
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How To Write In An RP
« Thread Started on Jul 31, 2007, 11:20pm »

1. Make sure that your writing is clear, concise, and in proper English.

Remember Grammar: no one wants to spend ten minutes staring at your post and trying to figure out what you might have been trying to say. Put periods at the ends of all your sentences, question marks after questions, and use commas every once in a while. Remember all those painful things you tried to ignore in English class. It doesn't hurt to cut and paste your post into Microsoft Word or another word processing program and use Spell Check on it before you post. That will also check your grammar.
Spelling: Spelling might not count for much in Instant Message conversations or the cbox, but it does in RPs. If the people you're working with don't know what you're saying, then they can't exactly reply to you. There's even a spell checker built into the post box...clicking it isn't too hard. Keep in mind that spell check won't recognize some names and words taken from the series.
Spit It Out: Don't always chose length over quality. If you know you don't have much to say, elaborate on your character's thoughts. But never repeat old information with new words just to take up space. It's monotonous and hard to respond to.

2. Stay in character.

Canon Characters: whenever you're going to do anything--talk, move, think--make sure that you consider the original author's intentions. If it's not something that Stephanie Meyer would have written, then it shouldn't happen in the RP! A character that's usually grumpy and unhelpful in the series should never save kittens from trees and walk little old ladies across the street in RPs. Make sure that you stay as true to your character as you possibly can!
Original Characters: keep your plot line clean and as canon as possible. It's alright to do something creative when you make up a new character--have them be the long-lost sister of so-and-so's mother-in-law or whatnot--but keep it real. A background story that's too complicated to follow isn't something anyone wants to get involved in. As a courtesy to your fellow RPers, make sure that you're not introducing new creatures, places, events, or scientific concepts to the RP in your background story. We want you to be interesting, but that doesn't mean that you need to be the Queen of the Werewolves, the sole heir of a dying race that alone can combat the Shadow Beings, the only true witch born within the last thousand years, et cetera. If Stephanie Meyer wouldn't write it, then neither should you.
God Modding: your posts should only be YOUR actions. Thus, if you find yourself describing the dialog, actions, or thoughts of any character other than the one you applied for and had approved, you're in the wrong. God modding is a serious offense that can result in warnings from admins and mods, and ultimately your removal from the site. Don't make it your job to police god-modding either, though. If you're in a pinch and you can't see any way to respond to an RP than to include the actions of another character, it's alright to ask their writer permission to god them in your post. Just don't make it a habit--believe it or not, it is possible to complete an entire RP without godding at all.

3. Have a goal in mind.

One-liners: these discourage people from writing with you, and often make them angry. A lot of work can go into a post. Make sure that you respect other people enough to put an equal amount of work back in.
Plot: it's alright to contact other writers and plan ahead. Every RP that you write, every post you submit to the site, should have some sort of goal in mind. If it's breaking up with your character's girlfriend, fighting with your brother, or even just wasting the afternoon until dad gets home, then so be it. But if you start an RP without a goal in mind, it can taper off and your fellow writers can lose interest in it. If your posts don't contain anything new to move the plot forward, neither will anyone else's.

« Last Edit: Aug 20, 2007, 12:40pm by Madison »

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