What's an advise you would give regarding RP?

[Sharpcloud]

As the title says, what's and advise you would give regarding RP, either something someone told you, you learned through experience or even something you realized by accident.

 

[Zephyra]

Don't waste your time on partners who are critical of your writing or impatient. If they always have something to complain about, then they'd clearly be better off finding someone else rather than trying to fix you. In that same vein, somebody who's rushing you to post is telling you they don't respect your other hobbies and obligations, and feeling constantly pressured is only going to wear you down and make you want to write even less. These are things I've learned through experience after a very long time in this hobby and trying hard to please people who would never be satisfied.

Also, you don't need to accept the first person who contacts you for a roleplay. Put in the time to vet people properly before starting anything, even if that means having to wait longer before you find someone worthwhile. It's a lot less stressful in the long run to turn down somebody's initial offer than it is to have to break things off later when you've already had a story running for a while. If you're not on board with something, simply don't engage. Your time is limited and you deserve to be picky about who you choose to spend it on.

 

[Carpe Diem]

I'd say healthy communication is the key to a great, long-lasting RP. Honestly, it's the same for anything that involves two or more people, but it can be easy to forget or ignore. If something comes up, if there is a problem with something that happened in the RP, then just talk about it, bring it up in a non-confrontational way. I think a good portion of RPs die just because one or both parties fail to communicate properly or there is a breakdown in communication.

Be open to feedback, don't be afraid of saying no if something isn't to your taste. If you're afraid of bringing something up to a partner, then there is likely something wrong, so try to figure it out if you want to keep the RP going. Or if you're not comfortable with that, don't be afraid to end things. It's not worth tormenting yourself over it if you're just not feeling it anymore.

 

[Mint]

To go off Zephrya's point-- do not just settle. Maybe if you're looking for a quick one-shot, sure, take the risk. But taking on a long-term partner requires a lot of communication and a lot of similar outlooks in what you want to see happen in a story.

I'm quite certain that all my current long-term partners want similar things and enjoy a lot of the same themes and concepts I enjoy, we wouldn't have worked out this long if that wasn't the case, and all of them are very open and communicative. These are very important factors to me but everyone is different, I know of some partnerships where there's almost no OOC communication and it works out for them so... power to them I suppose!

It's just more about finding your niche amongst the sea of writers on here.

Another thing is to not give into things that make you very uncomfortable. This is different from compromise in many ways.

For example, I'm not particularly fond of playing women with very large breasts, but I have some partners who very much enjoy that, I compromise and play them if they do something for me in turn-- this is how I'm able to make something I'm not too wild about long-term sustainable. But something I'm very much adverse against, let's say for example, Incest-- I will never compromise or bend on this rule. A potential partner who continues to try and squeeze in themes or concepts I have made extremely clear I am adverse to is not worth keeping around. If they can't be bothered to respect your limits, your time and what you value they are not worth investing long-term into.

Partners who understand motivation delays, work, real-life issues are the ones you will want to keep around. All of my partners are very understanding and don't give me any back-handed sass if I have to take a month or two hiatus at times, these are the types of partners I highly recommend keeping!

RPing is a two way street (well, most of the time!), so make sure that you both are enjoying what's going on and where the story is heading.

Long story short, it's really just about finding those partners you click with and sticking with 'em, don't settle for less or people who won't put in the same amount of effort as you do!

 

[Baka]

Many great advices that I would've shared have already been mentioned. Especially about partners who seem to hurry you up with replies, communicating and getting/giving feedback and being selective with your partners.

Here's one that have not been mentioned that I've learned through experience:

Be clear when discussing expectations and preferences, and make sure you both are in the same page.

Many of my potential RPs have failed when the expectations have not been clear for both of the parties.

Best example that I can give is that I love to play as/against chubby woman-characters. For some reason some people seem to think that curvy = chubby, and when I ask if a person is fine with me playing a chubby woman I usually get a green light... And when I send the refs it turns out that they were expecting a big booba big butt anime MILF with hourglass waist with no extra on her stomach or other parts of her body. These things usually sour the planning for either of the party, or both and that's all she wrote.

So explaining your preferences and expectations clearly is a tip I give. That way you can see if you're looking for same things and avoid the awkward aftermath when you both realize that you were actually meaning completely different things, and in best-case scenario you can strike a compromise-deal like Mint said so you both get something you crave fulfilled.

 

[Tenzai]

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───​

Over the course of the last year I spent writing on this site, I learned a lot of things about myself and from my favorite writing partners:

1. Like Zephyra said; Do not settle for just anyone. You have a limited amount of time to invest into your hobbies. Use it on people that bring the best out of you; The same people that could respect your time. They do exist, I've met many here. Likewise, there are also some that I met that drained me.

2. Don't force yourself to write something you're uncomfortable with just to appease someone else and don't be afraid of saying no. Its okay to have boundaries. Just communicate what you're cool with and what you're not cool with to ensure that both sides know where the line is drawn. If someone breaks your boundaries, leave em. There will always be someone else.

3. The three qualities of a great roleplayer are: Consistency, Creativity, and Chemistry. However, before those three could be brought up, there's two absolute pillars that must be upheld: Being Respectful/Not being an asshole and Honesty/Communication. There's nothing wrong with writers who can't uphold every single one of the three qualities, however, to be disrespected and/or to not communicate well is a near guarantee to having a story come to an early end.

4. Don't take anything here too seriously. Roleplaying is a hobby. At the end of the day, everyone here is here to have fun. If you're not having fun and you're treating this like a job, then there's nothing wrong with ending a story to start something new. Also, if there's anyone here that inspires you, reach out; Worst people could say is no and the best you can get is a story and a new potential friendship out of some kind words and effort ^^

5. Experiment. Something I learned when it comes to improving as a writer is pretty much taking ideas and giving them an honest shot even if its something I didn't feel like I was ready for yet at the time to explore (e.g., new genres, character concepts, writing ideas like music/gifs, BB code, RTs, and plots).

Hope this helps, Cloud!​

 

[Lockdown]

A lot of writers have already given great advice. So to avoid treading the same ground I’ll offer a different piece of advice. Don’t force the process. In my long time of roleplaying (here and other sites) I learned it’s best to get in the flow and state of writing as it comes to you. First you start writing for five minutes to see if anything comes. Once you feel that spark you let the words fly onto the screen and craft a brilliant post. Once the magic is gone put a pin in it and leave notes before coming back later.

I have so much regret for pumping out posts that were definitely not ready or anywhere near my best work. It’s much better to postpone your post by a day or two than posting something you’re not happy with. Remember this is supposed to be a fun hobby. You shouldn’t force yourself to crank out another post because your partner is hounding you or because you want to post it this instant.

Hope this helps.