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- Joined
- Feb 4, 2023
Actually open.
WELL, HI
I'm blackchapel. I used to be whitechapel. For all intensive porpoises, you can just call me chap. I'm a guy in my mid-thirties. I live in the Southern United States, but I hope you won't hold that against me. I'm basically what you get if David Lynch (but not as unrepentantly cool), Cormac McCarthy (but not as enthrallingly brilliant), and that dumb hipster that lives down the street from you (spot on, really) had a baby. I've been doing this whole roleplaying thing for way longer than I thought I would and way longer than I care to admit. Funny how that works out, huh? Most of what I write is somewhere between high concept and a weird-ass fever dream. If you really wanted to pigeonhole me, I guess I fall under the 'advanced lit' umbrella of roleplaying, but I think that's a pretty dumb term, don't you?
I'm a sweetheart, basically.
I'm particular. Picky, I mean. Persnickety, even. That's especially true when it comes to one on one roleplays. I decided a long time ago that the best course of action was to just lean all the way into it. That being said, I think it's only fair to let prospective writing partners know exactly what they're getting themselves into before they start prospecting too hard. Expectations are important, right? So! Gathered below, you're going to find all sorts of bits and pieces that will most likely dictate whether or not we'd make for a good match. As I'm sure you can imagine, this part is a bit boring. Bear with me, okay?
WRITING WITH STRANGERS
- When seeking new writing partners, chemistry is pretty much everything to me. If we're not cut from the same cloth, we should at least be manufactured in the same textile factory.
- Plotting and planning is a requirement. I'm not the type to dive right into writing with someone new without having a long discussion about our story, our characters, and where we'd like to see the whole thing go. If you're looking for something quick and painless, I'm probably not your guy.
- This may also be a good place to point out that I only write Male characters paired with Female characters. That includes Trans Females as well.
STYLE IS ETERNAL
- I write in Third Person Omniscient or Limited by default.
- The grand majority of my posts tend to be multiple paragraphs and range anywhere between 500 to 3k words in length. I'm a wordy bitch.
- I only really write in public threads. I like to have an audience.
- My availability and posting rate can be all over the place. You'll likely get a post or two out of me a week and that's being generous.
- Along those same lines, real life always comes first. No exceptions.
SMUTTER BUTTER
Wanna hear something funny? I've been on BMR for over two years and I haven't written a single bit of actual smut. That has to be some kind of record, right?
It's not that I'm against sex happening in the story. It's not even that I don't like writing sex scenes. It's just that... story comes first, okay? And if any sexy bits do happen, they have to be every bit as integral to the story as everything else. Easy, right?
WRITING SAMPLES
Oh right, you're probably curious what my writing is like. Unfortunately, I don't have many examples on this account, but you can find quite a bit on my old whitechapel alias both here and here. Alternatively, if you'd rather not dig through all my old posts, you can find a small collection of samples on a Google doc located here. Enjoy!
Collaborative storytelling and all that entails. Cormac McCarthy. David Foster Wallace. Kurt Vonnegut. Tom Waits. Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Radiohead. David Bowie. David Lynch. A whole lot of Davids, apparently. Stanley Kubrick. Classic country music. Elevated horror. Science fiction. Magical realism. Metafiction. Breaking the fourth wall until it turns to dust. Surreal little ideas that only get more surreal with time. A good story that has a point, a purpose, and a meaning behind it. Petite women. Redheads, just like every other man on the planet. Butts, of course. Rough stuff. Characters that are going through some shit. Stories about grief and failure and the human condition. Coffee. Dumb jokes. Music and movie recommendations.
THINGS I DON'T LIKE
Slices of life with no strings attached. Anime. Canon/Fandoms. Superheroes of all shapes and sizes. Anything to do with rape or non-con. Anyone under the age of 18 because I'm not a pedophile. Violence or gore as a sex thing. Impatient partners. Feet, just in general. 'Dark', edgy roleplays that are the writing equivalent to shopping for all your clothes at Hot Topic. Vampires, as a rule. Furfolks and their furry ways. Racism. Sexism. All the other terrible -isms. Perfect characters with perfect lives and nothing to worry about. Stevie fuckin' Nicks.
GENRE: Science Fiction
PAIRINGS: A pair of rival intergalactic treasure hunters, teaming up for the biggest score of their lives.
INSPIRED BY: Indiana Jones, but in space. Star Wars, but with less mysticism. Beastie Boys.
"Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people.”
In the vast expanse of space, amidst the twinkling stars and ancient cosmic relics, two seasoned intergalactic treasure hunters find themselves locked in a fierce rivalry. Like modern-day Indiana Joneses, they tirelessly search the galaxy for untold riches and legendary artifacts, their paths crossing time and again, always one step ahead or behind.
However, when rumors surface of an otherworldly treasure of unimaginable power, buried deep within an uncharted and treacherous sector of the cosmos, the rivals begrudgingly realize that their separate pursuits may be better served by joining forces. Reluctantly putting their bitter rivalry aside, they form an uneasy alliance, knowing that the stakes are higher than ever before.
Together, they embark on a perilous journey across the stars, navigating deadly asteroid fields, traversing ancient alien ruins, and facing off against literal Space Nazis. Along the way, they must decipher cryptic riddles and outwit cunning traps set by long-forgotten civilizations, all while battling their own egos and a growing sense of mutual respect (and maybe something a little more… )
Notes: Space, huh? It sure is big and there sure is lots of it. That's what this story is about: an unlikely pair going through all that space in hopes of getting rich. Maybe they might fall in love along the way, but even if they don't, they definitely learn something new about themselves along the way. This story is probably less heady than most my other stuff; it's just pure fun.
GENRE: Magical Realism. Romance. Mystery.
PAIRINGS:
INSPIRED BY: Going to the circus when I was a kid. Tom Waits.
"Just cause you got the monkey off your back doesn't mean the circus has left town."
In a realm where realities intertwine, there exists a mysterious circus that traverses the boundaries between dimensions. This extraordinary spectacle is shrouded in enchantment, captivating audiences with awe-inspiring performances and surreal wonders. At the heart of this ethereal carnival, two lost souls find themselves entangled by fate
When their paths intersect under the starlit circus tent, an irresistible bond forms between them. As they explore the vibrant and surreal dimensions visited by the circus, their love deepens, intertwined with the magic that permeates their existence.
But the Celestial Circus holds more than just wonder and enchantment. It harbors ancient forces, both benevolent and malevolent, that vie for control of the realms it touches. As the couple navigates the complexities of their burgeoning relationship, they must also confront the dangers lurking within the ever-shifting realities.
In this magical realm of the Celestial Circus, love and destiny intertwine in a tapestry of wonder and peril. Will the couple find a way to break free from the circus's enchantment and forge their own path, or will they forever be bound to its mesmerizing performances and the secrets it holds?
Notes: So, when I was a kid, there was this empty lot a couple blocks from my house. It was mostly used as a communal space, I don't think anybody actually owned it. Occasionally, they'd have a farmer's market or a crafts fair there. Twice a year, though, the circus would come to town and set up its tent there. It would appear overnight and be gone within a week. I always loved it and I'd get super excited every time it showed up. It was magical and otherworldly and a temporary reprieve from the ordinary. That's the space where this story exists: a trans dimensional circus, a big top set up in an empty lot, all the surrealism and shock and awe, a temporary reprieve from the ordinary.
GENRE: Science Fiction/Horror-ish
PAIRINGS: Members of an expedition into a secret, otherworldly place.
INSPIRED BY:Annihilation. The Southern Reach Trilogy. Brian Eno.
"That's how the madness of the world tries to colonize you: from the outside in, forcing you to live in its reality."
If you were to ask three different scientists from three different fields of study what exactly the Inland Expanse is and why it exists, you would receive three very different answers. These are the facts: The Inland Expanse is located in Nevada, an hour South of Las Vegas. It comprises a fifty square mile stretch of land that was closed to the public in 1994 after various anomalous occurrences were detected there. It's an ecological marvel in the sense that, for reasons still unknown, various flora and fauna that have never been observed on our planet before appeared there overnight. Prior to its closure, a clandestine government agency known as the Mojave Research Collective (hereby referred to as The MRC) made it their business to study, research, and better understand the phenomenon. As of 2023, the Inland Expanse still presents more questions than answers.
The main method of research over the years has been the practice of sending in teams of researchers to study the Inland Expanse in the flesh. To date, there have been four expeditions in total. While every expedition has yielded a wealth of fascinating discoveries, the fourth expedition quickly became the most notorious after only one of the twenty researchers that crossed into the Inland Expanse returned. The researcher was found suffering from a form of amnesia regarding what happened during their six-month expedition and did not know the whereabouts of the rest of their team.
Two years later, the MRC has decided it's time to send in a fifth expedition to uncover more secrets and, with any luck, discover what happened to the fourth expedition.
Notes: This story is my white whale. I've had it posted in some form or fashion since my first time on BMR. I've even talked to a few people about possibly playing it. It's never panned out. This story is heavily inspired by The Southern Reach book series and the movie adaptation of Annihilation. I would highly recommend watching the movie if you're interested in this story as it does a pretty excellent job at giving the general vibe that we're going for. We'll be playing members of the fifth expedition as they traverse what amounts to an alien world in the middle of the Nevada desert. Ideally, we'll be taking on the roles of multiple characters in the story with multiple storylines happening at the same time.
GENRE: McCarthy-esque Western, but with vampires.
PAIRINGS: A pair of vampire hunters in an apocalyptic version of the Old West.
INSPIRED BY: Blood Meridian, From Dusk Till Dawn, The Mountain Goats.
"You can find meanness in the least of creatures, but when God made man the devil was at his elbow.”
In the desolate and lawless frontier of the Old West, where violence and death are as commonplace as tumbleweeds, two relentless vampire hunters emerge from the shadows, driven by an insatiable thirst for justice and a deep-rooted desire to rid the land of the undead scourge.
As the sun sets over the ghostly town of Devil's Belly, a place stained with sin and blood, the hunters, a hardened gunslinger haunted by his past and a mysterious woman skilled in ancient lore, form an unlikely alliance. Together, they embark on a perilous journey, chasing the trail of a coven of vampires that has been terrorizing the unsuspecting settlers and leaving a trail of mutilated corpses in its wake.
Notes: So, full disclosure: I don't really like vampire fiction all that much. You might have noticed up above that vampires are on my 'no' list. This story is the exception. If you've known me for any length of time, you know that I'm obsessed with Cormac McCarthy and his novel Blood Meridian. It's very possibly my favorite book and I think it's fair to say that no other piece of fiction has had such an impact on my writing. This story pays homage to that while also adding that horror element that I very clearly crave. This is, ultimately, an intimate story of shared grief and violence. It's going to get dark.
GENRE: Lovecraftian seafaring surrealism.
PAIRINGS: A widowed woman and the fishing boat captain she hires.
INSPIRED BY: HP Lovecraft, unfortunately. Dredge. That feeling you get when you look out at the sea and realize exactly how small you are. Cocteau Twins.
"Eternity begins and ends with the ocean's tides."
She arrived on the dock at dawn, her cheeks tearstained and the letter still gripped tightly in her hand. She was begging, pleading to anyone that would listen. Safe passage, she said. I'll pay good money. A lone fishing boat captain overheard her. He could never turn down a woman in distress or an easy paycheck. He took her on board without so much as a second thought.
Her husband had gone missing three years prior, she explained. Lost at sea. She'd moved away from New England in an attempt to rebuild her life without him, but recently received a letter in a mail from her missing husband. The letter was cryptic, written in tongues and metaphors, but one thing was perfectly clear: Her husband was alive and well, living in a island town called Ulysses. The captain had never heard of Ulysses, but that didn't mean it didn't exist. The coastline is full of little towns on faraway islands, nameless and unknown to the mainland. And so, the search began… and unspeakable horrors were found.
Notes: So, I think it's best to start this off by saying I'm not a big Lovecraft fan. As a writer and as a human being, the guy kinda sucked ass. But… it's hard to deny his impact on horror and weird fiction. You can see his fingerprints all over the genres. For example, I recently started playing a video game called Dredge. It's basically a Lovecraftian fishing simulator where you captain a boat through a series of islands, fishing from horrifying creatures lurking beneath the waves. That's where this idea comes from: the uncanny results of something so mundane being turned macabre. While this is absolutely a horror story in every sense of the word, I want to take an almost surrealistic approach to telling the story, employing everything from dream logic to magical realism as our characters traverse an ever widening ocean, going from island to island and coastal town to turn, searching for a place that might not exist, a man that might not be alive, and finding things they can barely comprehend.
ONE LAST THING
Woof. You've made it to the end! I hope that wasn't too much of a chore to read. As you might have noticed, most of my ideas are left fairly open ended to give room to improvise and flesh things out with a partner. That's entirely on purpose. It might also be worth noting that these ideas aren't the only ones I'm willing to write; if you have something in mind that you think would be up my alley, feel free to pitch it! The worst thing I can say is no, right? Anyway! Thanks for stopping by and I hope to hear from you soon.
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