Why do people use alts?

[Nazgul]

Hello,

after a fun discussion with @Anarchia we were unable to figure out what the reason is some forum members use alts. It happens on most forums but seems especially prevalent here, and I/we were wondering what the practical gain of using an alt is. Is it to write about different topics? Do you use one for a male/female presenting personality? What is advantage of using an alt vs. just writing on one account?

Maybe you guys have an answer for us!

 

[reverie.]

i honestly think the actual reason will vary from person to person, but i'd say that the main reason people choose to have alts is to write different stories due to expectations. (genre, theme, tropes, kinks, settings, etc)

now, for reference ~ i prefer really dark plots, and i make this pretty obvious in my request thread and through my public threads. someone who is looking for sweet romance would never reach out to me (at least, i hope they wouldn't). but let's say i suddenly wanted to do something sweet and cozy, and i made a new request thread requesting this. this member, who was looking for sweet romance in the first place, would perhaps never look at this thread at all because it has my name on it, or they would at least be hesitant to reach out because of doubt. someone new who isn't yet familiar with me and my preferences might see my new request thread, take one look at one of my public roleplays and be like 'nopeeee, not gonna take that risk'.

so i think it boils down to expectations. when we see someone's public roleplays, we kinda know what to expect. it's not like their writing is gonna drastically change if they start roleplaying with you.

if someone approaches me, claiming they can play a sadistic king who is gonna make a slave out of his new wife, but all their public roleplays is about a dad fucking his daugher or a married couple making love (and without any writing samples to back up their initial claim), i would struggle to take their word for it, and therefore most likely turn them down. it's not personal ~ it's just that we only have so much time to write, and we're afraid to "waste" it on maybe's.

the exact same thing happens if you want to play the opposite gender. i play female characters 99/100 times, and this is what i prefer. so if i were to reach out to someone offering to play the male character for their plot, i'm sure they'd be like 'uhmmm, but can you play male characters??' now, you can either back up your claim or you can't, but again, it all boils down to expectations and whether or not someone is willing to take the risk.

we shouldn't kink-shame anybody (please don't do that!!), but some people are very shy about the kinks they like or would like to try, so creating an alt will make it possible for them to explore these kinks without risking judgment while maintaining their 'reputation' on their other account.

so, to sum it up ~ it's sometimes easier to use an alt for different types of roleplays, because then you're more likely to meet the expectations of your potential partners.

​

 

[Dungeness]

Partially it was to explore different themes, but when I had more of a problem of using alts it was more than that, and more exploring... shades of self, even if my wants did not meaningfully change a whole lot. Deep shades that would feel too fickle or worse to indulge under one profile.

 

[Neon Dream]

On my other account, I was a moderator for a short time, and I found that it impeded my ability to find writing partners at that time, so I made this account in order to do so and to write again freely without any issue. However, after I stopped moderating, I ended up liking this account more for various different reasons (mostly as a form of identity/aesthetic being wholly different than the other) and so I've been using this one since, for almost two years now.

 

[Healie491]

there's lots of weirdos, freaks and evil assholes interested in consensus cracking and perception manipulation, tho those are mostly connected to gov. stuff I would think.

 

[echo]

I have an alt account, though I don't use it. My intentions with it had been to explore a little more than I do as echo and try to branch out, but my writing bleeds echo and it was pointless... echo is more story-driven, and my other, well, I had tried to be less story and more erortic, (sorry, can't fucking stand the word 'smut'), and I tried to not scare people due to decent grammar use. I failed. Both as my alt and echo, so it is what it is.

People have different reasons for having them, though.

 

[Baka]

I have toyed with a thought of making an alt which would be dedicated to more smutty, erotic stories that have faster pace and could be short or longer-term deals, which is a branch from my usual formula, however I have not gone through with making it for the reasons echo already pointed out before me. I know that people could see through my alt immediately especially due to my own quirks in terms of writing and preferences, and people whom have been intimidated by or not vibed with my writing, kinks, slow reply pace or whatever else before would probably stay away from the said alt so it wouldn't most likely work in terms of expanding my partner range, which would just leave me with Baka, and an alt account that would just be left rotting. I get why people make them, and for those people who can make them work I see them as an amazing way to explore possibilities that one could not necessarily do with their main one, or who have difficulties doing so due to reason X or Z, or any other myriad of reasons to do one, but for me personally I doubt I could make it work.

 

[Nera9948]

I had alt accounts at one point to play different genders and sexual orientations, but I actually asked that these accounts be deleted after awhile because it was too hard to keep track of the accounts. My initial thought was it would make it easier, but it didn't for me. Some people I think do it to try and get roleplays from people that have already said no and reinventing themselves,. which is why I wouldn't probably have alt accounts available on my own forum.

 

[Bejeweled]

I have a few, personally. Like Neon Dream, I also used to be staff, and had a lot of trouble finding roleplay on my staff account, so one alt was born. Then, I wanted another for smuttier RP. I search for different things on different accounts - it's easier than logging into one account and only replying to a few people when I only have the muse for a certain RP at a certain time. That way, if I'm in a more story-based mood, I can reply to my story-based threads, and vice-versa with when I'm in the mood to write something a little more erotic.

Plus, I like the anonymity it brings. I'm not really one to be a "dedicated presence" on the site, so I like not having people recognize me every time I decide to pop into chat to contribute to a discussion.​

 

[Nazgul]

That way, if I'm in a more story-based mood, I can reply to my story-based threads, and vice-versa with when I'm in the mood to write something a little more erotic.

This is a very good point, especially with how some partners can become quite hounding on the replies or believe you have to follow a certain order in replies or something. I had not considered this.