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 Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:32 pm
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:48 pm
☼ It is quite common for you to encounter length requirements as
you join roleplays (one paragraph, two paragraphs, two pages of
Word Document). If these sort of rules have intimidated you, you
have struggled to meet the requirements or simply wish to better
your posts – I am here for you.
☼ I will address the most common obstacles in making posts longer,
fuller and of higher quality. I hope to help you feel confident in produc-
ing superior posts for any RP.
☼ Below is the index, followed by my guide. If your issue is not
covered by the list below, please PM me, and I will be
sure to add more to the class.
☼ My guide is full of important, helpful information. But to practically teach
these ideas I will be issuing assignments so that you can practice using
them in a learning environment. I will (gently) critique your posts and
show you ways to continue improving.
Obviously there is no kind of hard structure to this ‘class’.
It is just here to use when you have need of it and for you to take and use whatever helps you.
☼ I, by no means, claim to know it all or for this guide to
be totally complete. If you need help in a certain area, with a
certain issue or even want me to proof read what you have
written before you post it in your RP - feel free. I am here
to help and encourage questions and suggestions
☼ This Class has the complete Guide set up from the beginning.
So that you can read ahead and feel free to engage all of these
ideas as we progress. There will be new article each week that covers a different area that is explained in the guide. That way
you can reference to the explanations and examples to help you
get the most out of this information.
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:52 pm
☼ POST EXTENSION INDEX ☼
☼ What Does it Take to Generate Longer Posts? ☼
☼ The Many Outlets of Character Expression ☼
☼ Memories, Dreams, and Stories☼
☼ How to Make Your Characters and Their Worlds Real ☼
☼ Motivation ☼
☼ Conversations, Fighting, and Stalling ☼
☼Hints and Tips☼
☼ Assignments ☼
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:55 pm
☼What does it take to generate longer posts?☼
☼Details, details, details☼ First, you must realize that in writing, there is more than just the bare facts. Look at these examples:Sub-par She walked out of his house, happy to be done with him. Better Storming out of the house Felica strode determinedly into the bright sunshine of a beautiful Maine afternoon, happy to be rid of such a sorry excuse for a man and his pigsty of a home.
There is such a thing as too much description. Well, at least too much description about the wrong things. When you post you want to make us feel like we are in their world, but you don't need several paragraphs about a dress or an apple, unless of course that item is the crucial item to the ENTIRE story, example: Excalibur from the King Arthur story. NOT: the coffee cup that your character is drinking out of that we will never ever see again in the story. Here are examples of good description and 'bad' description: 'Bad' description Felica slammed the heavy Victorian door behind her as she left the house. It was a remnant of the original architecture unlike some of the other modified features of the house. Overly tall, made of solid mahogany and the door frame had lovely hand carved designs of local wildlife - red-bellied finches, flying squirrels and the New Kensington otter. The solid brass knocker, which was added later by George's great grandmother, glinted in the midday sunlight as Felica disappeared in the distance. 'Good' description The sound of the slamming door seemed to resound through the dilapidated house and the surrounding valley with a concrete finality. Never had she been so happy to cut someone from her life. George was an irresponsible, temperamental child and he would never change. The heels of her Gucci pumps clicked unusually loudly off of the broken stones which made up his walk in their own irate pace. As though her entire body was seething with rage and anger that penetrated even her clothes and shoes, filling them with fury. Despite the gorgeous weather, there was an almost visible storm cloud brewing over her head. Sunlight glinted off of her bright blue Beamer as it threw gravel about and screamed out of his drive and down the road.
Your fellow roleplayers will appreciate the depth of description that they could work from. If your character was George replying to this you have many details to work off of. Now look back at the first 'Sub-Par' post that we started with ('She walked out of his house, happy to be done with him.'). If you were responding to that, what could you really say? There is so little to work off of. So you can see how longer posts make you a better roleplayer and also how it helps your fellow writers.
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 1:04 pm
☼The many outlets of Character Expression☼
☼Thoughts, Gestures, Expressions and Actions☼ There are many things that you might want to convey but they would feel unnatural to appear in dialogue. Your character is a person, so think about how you interact with others. Do you move your hands when you talk? Do you smile readily and touch other's arms or legs as you gesture? Or are you more withdrawn, letting your hair shield your face and burying your hands between your knees, never making eye contact? So what kind of person is your character? How do THEY move and communicate?You can let the reader know what your character is thinking, without letting the other characters know, by simply putting the thoughts in italics and using the first person present tense. Of course you don't want to give away too much about your character, but it can be a good way for your character to interact with the world around them. Remember you do not always think about the big picture. How often do you sit around and think about graduation and what you will do afterward? Probably not much more than an idle thought or dream. People tend to focus on the present. They hate their job/they are irritated with an acquaintance/can't get a song out of their head. But even the little things that they think about can show us more about their personality.If you are supposed to meet a stranger in a coffee house and when you walk in they roll their eyes and jerk their head for you to come over OR they are smiling, hopping in their seat waving at you...what is the difference? They haven't said anything to you, you still don't know anything about them, but from that short non-verbal greeting you already have an idea what they are like and whether or not you like them. How a person gestures and their attitudes toward personal space can tell the other a lot about the person that they are. Do they lean in to hear what the other person says, or do they ignore them to watch the hot girl cleaning off a neighboring table?The actions that you give your character also tells us alot about them, so chose carefully. The character that enjoys going to a coffee shop to sip a latte and read a book, generally is not a wild party person. Don't make your character like everything just to fit into the plot. Decide what kind of things that they would like. Deciding on these things will help you become more familiar with your character and give you plenty of information to extend your posts with. What follows is an example of some of these things in a post. See how many non-verbal actions there are and what do they tell you about the character and would the post be the same without them? Example Michele slumped in her seat and gazed out of the cafe window, watching a happy young couple stroll by with clasped hands and stars in their eyes. Did I do the right thing breaking up with Tom? Sure, he was a little clingy but it was only because he liked me. Right? Taking another sip of her cappuccino and wiping the foam from her upper lip she looked disgustedly at the store clerk who was busy stringing Christmas lights. She hated being alone around the holidays. Thanksgiving at her aunt's had been awful. Her cousin Marie announced her engagement to her live-in boyfriend Rick, he was a gorgeous anesthesiologist with a trust fund. Oh well, she is getting fat. At least I still have my looks...not that they are doing me much good. Unconsciously brushing her dark, espresso locks back from her face and running a finger over her lips to smooth out her gloss.
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 1:31 pm
☼Memories, Dreams and Tales☼
☼Anecdotes are Antidotes! ☼ There are many times that you want to convey something about your character's past, thoughts or something that inspires them. It can sound awkward if they sit down and start rambling off a large story about their past or their favorite fable. There are other ways, no these are not things that you would want to do in every post, but if your character has a troubled past or is struck by a memory at that moment, you can pass that on. Here are examples how those would fit into posts organically. Notice how long these posts are, this is because you have to fit an entire 'mini-story' in a single post. Now if another character ever asked you something about this you would not want to do the long version over again. You would either give them a few details or put in a line or two like this: 'So she told him about the strange dreams that she was having, and the man that seemed to haunt her.' Memories Michele continued to try to read as she sat in the corner of the cafe. But her mind kept drifting back to last week. She had met Tom at her favorite restaurant where they had arranged to have dinner. Tom was waiting there with a bouquet of lilies, her favorite, and smiling in that charming way where his dimples peeked out of his sculpted cheeks. During dinner he kept telling her how beautiful she was and how much he loved her, over and over again. Meanwhile she was sitting across from him in a pair of old jeans, a sweatshirt and her hair pulled up in a ponytail. When he said that he wanted to take her for a weekend away at a romantic bed and breakfast upstate she couldn't stand it anymore. He was always fawning over her and calling her, she felt like she couldn't breathe. He seemed to love her but she couldn't stand his overbearing smothering.
She had broken up with him right then. He was shocked. He cried unabashedly in front of everyone at the restaurant. Begged her to reconsider and told her that his life had no purpose without her. She felt awful for not crying but she really didn't feel sorry, sad or upset. She just wanted to be away from him. When he finally stopped trying to plead for another chance he just sat there weeping into his napkin. She wasn't really sure what to do, so she just left him there. Now she had been single for a week. The first few days were great, it felt like a weight was lifted. But soon she began wondering if she was ever going to meet a guy that really loved her and she loved in return. But maybe those guys didn't exist, maybe that was all just a dream. Dreams Crawling into bed that night, Michele smiled as the thousand thread count sheets slid across her skin like the finest silk. Hugging her pillow tightly and pulling her down comforter around her she drifted off to the darkness of sleep. There are many different kinds of dreams; the scary dreams, the realistic dreams, the bizarre ones. These dreams could take you anywhere real or imagined. But never before had Michele visited this place in her dreams; sitting in Yinzo, the cafe that she had been in just that evening. In most of her dreams she watched herself do things, like a movie. But in this dream she was in herself. Everything felt so real. She had a cappuccino in front of her along with her Grisham novel that she was working on, her napkin was crumpled to the side from where she had cleaned up a small spill.
But from the first instant that she appeared there, she knew it was a dream. She remembered going to sleep and she was knew without a doubt that she was dreaming. Never had she had such clarity or control in her dreams. There was an amazing rush knowing that she could do whatever she wanted with no consequence. The chair creaked as she pushed back and looked around the café. It was empty except for her, she even looked in the kitchen area and stock rooms. She had never been in them before but they were here and filled with every mundane thing that you would imagine in a café. Boxes of folded napkins, cases of pre-bagged coffee beans, sealed quarts of flavored syrups and stacks upon stacks of paper take-out cups. She walked back into the front and towards the door. She was about to step outside onto the empty sidewalk and quiet street when a voice came clearly from directly to her right. The table where she had been sitting at the beginning of this dream, in the chair facing hers. A place that she was sure, a moment before had been empty. "Leaving so soon?"Michelle jerked back with a gasp and spun to face the source. He looked Italian. Black, curly hair, olive skin and dark eyes with an athletic build,very Calvin Klein. His clothes were designer, thick cable knit creme turtleneck with faded jeans and a brown leather jacket. For a moment she was frightened, he had just appeared from thin air. But as she reminded herself that this was a dream she wondered if this gorgeous man was simply a gift from her subconscious after her few days of worrying about men. Wondering to his table with a playful smile, she decided to enjoy this. It had been a long time since she had a romantic dream. Sitting down opposite from him her green eyes drank in his perfect features and sensual charisma. Picking up the soiled napkin idly, feigning casual indifference but her lips smirking with excitement, she crushed it in her hand, planning on throwing it away. Even though he was a figment of her dream it just felt wrong for him to see her mess. Just about to speak, her pout lips open and still smiling, when he cut in. "You aren't taking good care of yourself. The next time I see you I expect you to be showered and wearing something nicer."Looking down she realized that she was still in her pajamas; a baggy t-shirt and ripped jogging pants. The same that she had went to bed in, and worn all that evening. As she looked back up he was gone again. Her gaze swung around the cafe one last time before suddenly the dream world spun and she had the sensation of falling. Jumping forward, she sat up in her own bed. The napkin still crumpled in her hand. Tales, Stories and Anecdotes It had been almost a year since the strange dreams began. Almost every night she would appear somewhere around town and Angelo would be there. It had taken Michele a few weeks to get in the habit of dressing the way that he like. She would shower, style her hair, apply make-up and don an evening dress before climbing into bed. Of course that had also involved buying evening wear.Tonight he had brought her to the Piatt mansion on top of the hill in town. Michele had always wanted to see inside of it. Running through the halls, her black dress flowing behind her, looking at all of the beautiful rooms. Soon she was curled up in front of the fire as Angelo stroked her hair. He had become quite affectionate ever since she listened to him and went to sleep dressed in the manner that he approved of.
"Are you real?" Michele's voice was hesitant. She had never asked him before. But a part of her knew that he was more than a figment of her imagination.
He was silent for a few moments. "When I was a little boy, my grandmother used to tell me a story. It was about a young boy named Simon. Now Simon had no friends and was terribly lonely. Everyday other boys would bully him and his life was quite hard, but he always thought that if he had a friend, then he could deal with the rest of the world much easier. One day Simon came home to tell his mother that he had made a friend. But when his mother inquired further he shocked her by telling her that his friend was a dragon that lived in the woods. He was beat soundly for lying and then put to bed."
"Simon never mentioned the dragon again but after that he spent his days in the woods and was much happier. His mother and father would ask him about his days but he would just respond that he was playing. One day his mother followed him into the woods to see where he went. After a while Simon entered a small clearing and his mother hid in the bushes. Simon walked to the center and sat down next to something that she couldn't quite make out. He talked to whatever it was, then he picked up an old broom handle and acted like he was sword fighting with imaginary foes. After a while he headed back into the woods, presumably to go home, and his mother waited for him to leave. Once he was gone she walked into the clearing and saw that the thing that he called a dragon was actually a skeleton of a horse."
"The next day his mother took him into the clearing and explained to him what his 'dragon' really was and made him admit that dragons were not real. Simon blurted out what his mother wanted him to and ran off into the woods crying. Now his mother was not a mean woman, she just wanted her son to focus on reality. She thought if she got him out of his imaginary world and to make real friends. But Simon was sad for a very long time. His mother regretted that she had ever said anything, wishing that her son could be as happy as he was for that short period of time."
Michele listened patiently as he avoided answering her question. "So....you are just part of my imagination? Is that the moral of the story?"
Angelo's face was serious as he shook his head, "No. The moral is that asking questions and facing reality only brings unhappiness. So if you like the way things are, just let it be."
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Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 1:50 pm
☼How to make your character and their world real☼ ☼Stop, Look and Listen☼ It can be hard to figure out what else to say with your character. It will round out your post and make it more real if you flesh out the world that your character is in. Remember your five senses (sight, smell, sound, taste and touch) and think about what is going on in your characters world. Now, just like Who, What, Where, When and Why, you wouldn't want to address all of your senses in every post, just when it is applicable.For instance, if you are in a vampire RP, just dealing with biting your prey encompasses all five senses. The taste and smell of the blood, the feel of it rushing over your tongue, the softness of the prey's skin and the sight of their lifeless body with mauled neck afterward. Do you see how even the mention of these things creates a vivid scene as opposed to saying 'He bit her.'?One of the easiest ways to think about what is going on in your character's world is to stop for a moment and sit quietly while you focus on your own world. What do you hear? The ticking of a clock on the wall, the sound of a running refrigerator or washing machine in the house, music or TV on in the background? What do you see? Furniture illuminated by indirect light from another room, clothes strewn across the floor? Now close your eyes again and think about your character in the scene. What would be going on around them? Someone with excellent hearing might be annoyed by the ticking clock. Someone that is running away might be scared by the shadows. Someone who is nervous might be smoothing their shirt repetitively, trying to calm themselves by concentrating on how soft the fabric is.
Here are a few small examples from different types of RPs so that you can see how these details about the world make everything a little richer and also help to lengthen your posts, all the while fitting into the atmosphere of the moment. I have titled each of them with the simple action that is happening so you can see how the additions fleshed out the world/the moment/the character.
Romance- ‘He kissed her’ Maverick looked deeply into the sapphire eyes of his boss’s daughter. Damned already by a beauty that he couldn’t resist. Her long dark lashes batting coyly, knowing every inch of the influence that she had over him. Margo smelt of night blooming jasmine and the odor seemed to suddenly envelop the room, making her very essence inescapable. He did not want to escape her, not any longer. Cradling her face, the soft skin of her cheeks like satin against his rough hands as the ranch hand leaned in to kiss her. To possess her, his lips hot and pledging their devotion to her with each caress. Her room, with its expensive furniture, lace doilies and bowls of fragrant potpourri, everything that had once annoyed him about the ranch’s princess, all seemed to blur around him as they sank into the passionate embrace.
High Fantasy-Knights & Dragons – ‘He saw the dragon’ Gabriel approached the lair of large beast that the town’s people called Issachatar. The smell of brimstone and smoke grew thicker as he proceeded further into the dark cave, causing him to stifle his coughing and each step making it harder to breathe. On his first quest for his king, he felt that this had not the glory that he remembered of knight’s work from his time as a squire. Sweat had broken out over his skin, which was already covered with dirt and grit from this week long ride. Chafing roughly under his garments. Even under the rough wool of his pads, his armor scratched at his skin and the mass of the steel weighed heavy on his tired limbs. Nearing the back of the cave where the bones and gristle grew thick and slightly less rancid, a creaking of movement halted his step. He dared not breathe and his muscles ached as he forced them to absolute stillness.A deep growl preceded a sudden intense stream of fire blown on a pile of brush, bringing light to the cave and terror to Gabriel as he raised his sword in defense. The smell of burning wood and flesh made his eyes water and the clear sight of what it was that he was standing on nearly sent him running from the cave. As if that wasn’t enough, now from the bright glow of the fire he could see the true size of the mammoth beast as its gold scales glittered in the firelight. He should have rethought the offer of a catapult.
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Posted: Sat May 12, 2012 1:34 pm
☼Motivation☼
☼Focusing on what your character wants will help you figure out what to post☼ It can be tempting to just put down the bare facts or respond the way that 'YOU' would in that situation. For instance, someone greets you and you write that your character stops and responds, because that is how YOU were raised. However, if your character is on a single minded mission to hunt down demons or find a missing clue, they would probably ignore this person. NOTE: if your character ignores when someone else talks to you, it is okay as long as it is done PROPERLY.Bad Example of Ignoring Bad Example of Ignoring Maria walked along the lane behind her apartment building, taking Ginny, her new puppy, out for a walk. Footsteps signaled the approach of a dark figure. As the man approached she squinted and could make out Tom's features. "Tom! Hey! How is it going?" Better Example of Ignoring Better Example of Ignoring Maria walked along the lane behind her apartment building, taking Ginny, her new puppy, out for a walk. Footsteps signaled the approach of a dark figure. As the man approached she squinted and could make out Tom's features. "Tom! Hey! How is it going?" See? The 'Tom' character is still ignoring 'Maria' and not responding, but you (the writer) and Tom (the character) have acknowledged your fellow writers post and your character has acted according to their current motivation and 'Maria's' writer has something to work off of. Here is a response type situation with more interaction between the character and you can see motivation on both of their parts. This example is from an action/fighting RP: Motivation Motivation Nia ran at him at full speed, her sword drawn and she swung it over her shoulder in a downward descent towards his shoulder with all of her hate and rage powering her attack. He was responsible for the death of her father. He had been the King's guardian and God knows what he had been doing the day the King had been killed. Now the advisors were fighting over the crown and Princess Nia and her mother were on the run.
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Posted: Sat May 12, 2012 1:38 pm
☼Conversations, Fighting and Stalling☼
☼Responses that are more than just reactions☼ When your character is traveling alone, or working on something all alone, you will find that it is easier to write more because you can do whatever you want. If you are involved in a conversation or a fight, there is only so much that you can write because you are in a fast paced situation where a back and forth response is needed to carry through the interaction. Or if you are trying to kill time while other characters are involved in action, it can be stressful to come up with several posts of your character doing their own thing. This is what we want to avoid: Avoid This Avoid This Kai sent a punch toward Ando's chin. I have seen many roleplays reduced to this. The same with conversations, just one or two lines back and forth, which leads to marathoning. It can be boggling and confusing when you want to respond but know that you need to come up with more to say somehow. You don't want to just write anything because it can take away from the main action (fight/conversation). You need to use all of the things that we discussed in the many posts above. Though these will probably be some of the smaller posts that you make. I will post three examples(one of each type) to general situations that show you how to make two paragraphs out of a simple response. You can make some "observations" before the action happens or after: Fighting: Person 2 Fighting: Person 1 ] The humidity was no help as rivets of sweat left clean trails down Marek's dusty skin. The rough wool of his pads rubbed harshly against his skin as his armor weighed heavily on him after hours spent training. The crowd was now growing thick around James and himself. They had been fighting for over an hour now. Tournament was coming next month, if the young men did well the kingdom would send them to La Roche for their tournament. They could bring honor and riches back to Terrinne in two years time. James was circling with practiced ease. The sword was never Marek's best event. It felt heavy and his steps seemed forced and clumsy. James' calm unsettled Marek, and the younger man gave in and charged with a quick lunge towards the middle of his opponent. Luckily this was going to be their last sword match for the day. After this they would begin jousting practice where Marek was by far superior. James smiled from under his helmet as Marek gave in, as he always did, and made the first move. A foolish one at that. Stepping smoothly to the side, he arced his blade downward and out, knocking Marek's blade aside. As his blade followed the momentum outward he grunted loudly and reversed the direction, bringing his blade back down towards Marek's unprotected body. The two men had never backed away from using full contact on each other, regardless of being best friends. The crowd gasped and oohed with each swipe, block and lunge. They were all familiar with each man's strengths, as they watched them practice many times. The people of this town were proud, and yearned to see their village represented at the games. James and Marek had often spoke at night, while scrubbing their armor clean, about coming back home in a few years. Led by a procession of pages waving banners, each with a beautiful lady behind them and a cart bearing all of their prizes and winnings, with a string of horses they had won trailing behind. As the small crowd roared he imagined that it was an arena full of Lords, Ladies and peasants alike, cheering them on. So you see how the first person lunged, the second person deflected and retaliated. But we were still about to maintain two paragraphs per post. Now this class is not to teach you how to roleplay fighting, there are classes specifically for that purpose. Instead, we are here to show you how to extend your posts without losing focus on the action. Let us see how we can use the same idea in a conversation between two people. Notice that there are thoughts, descriptions, and non-verbal communication used to create a more literate response. Person 2 Person 1 Person 2 Person 1 Lisa attempted to walk quickly, but her new Jimmy Cho's were killing her feet. However, anything that cost a week's pay was worth putting up with a little pain for. She had not been on a date in ages. After the way things ended with Marshall, she was too crushed to try again. She had focused all of her time and energy on college and then finding a job. Now she was a blossoming columnist for an important regional newspaper and had met a charming group of friends.
However it was one of those 'charming' friends that had insisted that her 'p***s embargo' had to end, and she needed to start dating again. Supposedly Kate's cousin's coworker had this new neighbor that was just dreamy and she should allow them to set her up on a blind date. Not only had she never been on a blind date, but the idea of meeting someone that no one really seemed to know terribly well was quite frightening. However, she was trying to keep an open mind as she hurried over to the restaurant where they were supposed to meet for lunch. All she knew was that his name was Rick and he would be wearing a tan blazer.
She felt a nervous tremble run over her shoulders and down her back as she stepped into the cool, air conditioned bistro. The summer sun had made her skin hot during her walk over here, now she almost wished for a jacket to cover her bare arms. Her simple, tan dress was casual and her black hair hung down to her shoulders with a subtle wave. She walked up to the bar and her eyes surveyed the scene. Several people were seated around the polished mahogany, but they all seemed to be with someone. Just as she was about to ask the maître d' if someone at a table was waiting she spotted a lone man at the far corner of the bar. Instantly she felt the tremble again. 'Dreamy' had been putting it mildly. This man was gorgeous and if he was not a model she would be insanely surprised. However he was wearing a tan blazer and sitting alone, so she walked shakily around the bar. Her small hand reached up to tap him on the shoulder, "I'm sorry to disturb you, but are you Rick?"
Looking over the dining room he watched a couple chatting and smiling at each other. He and Julie had been like that. He really couldn't imagine ever having that kind of connection with someone again. The woman reached out and lightly ran her fingertips over the back of the man's hand to his wrist and laid her hand lightly on top of his. Their eyes met and they didn't have to say anything. His gaze was steely but inside his mind was reeling with memories of the same exchange between Julie and himself. He had just resolved to get up and leave when a light tap on his shoulder brought him out of his reverie.
The raven haired beauty behind him took his breath away for a moment. She was almost his height with her heels on and had long slender legs and a lovely face. Recollecting his thoughts, he stammered, "Uum..Eh..I mean, yes. Yes, I'm Rick. You are Lisa?" His voice betrayed his disbelief. He had been told that she was pretty but that seemed a very inadequate word to use to describe this woman.
In her mind she vowed to round up Kate, Kate's cousin and Kate's cousin's co-worker and beat them all to death for arranging this small episode of humiliation. After all of the awful things that Marshall had said about her, she had never admitted it to anyone but it had hurt her so deeply and she feared that everything that he had said was true.
"You know, never mind. Let's just forget about this." She waved dismissively and spun on her heel to turn away. She felt so stupid. This is how middle school kids should act about dating. She just felt so dysfunctional when it came to men. Her face was burning and she was holding back tears as she rushed from the restaurant. She wasn't quite sure why she was so upset but her emotions were just boiling over at this point.
"Lisa! Lisa, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to zone out just then. It's just...I wasn't..ehm...You're not.." He didn't know what he was supposed to say to make her feel better. Sighing heavily he looked at the ground and then back up to her emerald eyes. "I haven't been on a date in a really, really long time. I was sure that whoever my neighbor had set me up with was going to look like a troll dragged in from under a bridge. I was just so shocked to see someone as pretty as you. Obviously my admiration did not come across, and I am so sorry."
Her face showed her hurt and he felt even more pathetic that his first date in years was starting off so badly. The weather outside was so beautiful and she was blotchy and sniffling. He remembered how sensitive Julie was about people seeing her when she was crying.
"Listen, I'm so sorry that I made you upset. Why don't we take a walk down the street. There is a little coffee shop about a block away. We can take a little stroll, calm down, get to know each other." She looked somewhat unconvinced. He spoke sincerely and quietly, "I'd really like a second chance at my first impression."Once again, if you look at just the verbal communication in these posts, it is quite limited. But all of the other elements contributed to long, detailed posts. Now, I these previous posts would not make great roleplay material because there is no complicating action. But that wasn't what we were really talking about. What you should take away from the above example is how to carry on a conversation without limiting your post size. Now this is an example of stalling. To save on text, let's assume that the situation takes place in a high school setting. Three guys have basketball practice after school; Tom, Jim and Damien. They have all just got out of their last classes. Tom and Jim met up and are in a conversation about a girl. Damien has nothing to do. Now, it is not fair for Damien to go straight to the gym and say that practice has begun immediately. Nor is it fair for Tom and Jim to hold everyone else up for too long of a time. You need to be reasonable. But, for the sake of our example, Damien is going to put in one post of stalling before he heads to the gym to start getting ready. As the writer, you can invent anything you want for him to do that would keep him from getting to the gym. Create some random character to bump into, have a phone call or just take a walk and think about the events of the day. This example shows a few of these methods. Stalling The last bell rang with the usual amount of anticipation leading up to it. The sharp shuffle of papers, slamming of books and stampede of rubber soles across the universal public school tiles; putty colored flecked with grey. Damien sat in his seat rather than joining the mad rush for the door. He slowly gathered his books and replaced them in his quite tattered messenger bag. He had more homework than he cared to think about right now. Practice was going to be intense today. The first game of the season was next week and the coach was making final decisions for the starting lineup.
Walking through the halls he spotted Tom and Jim deep in conversation. Jim was the coach's son and a decent player, but Damien didn't think that he deserved a starting position. Jim was an alright guy, if you were on the team. But he was a bully and a jerk to most everyone else in school. Damien didn't know why Tom was friends with him. Tom was that perfect, all-American kind of kid. He was friendly and considerate to everyone, made excellent grades, was the team's best point guard and did volunteer work as well.
Damien felt quite unremarkable next to both of them. He was a B student, talented player but not especially so, he had a group of friends as well as a few people that he could not stand and in his free time he played video games. He was painfully average. The only thing remarkable about him, he did not even know of. He was the heir to fantastic wealth and power. There was a day fast approaching where he would learn of this, but for right now, he walked around with a dollar fifty in his pocket and soles of his Converse's were wearing thin.
He had the poor luck of getting a locker on the fourth floor. The only classrooms up here were two science labs and a computer lab. The rest of the class rooms were empty. Now the hallway was deathly silent as most all of the students were on their buses and heading home. Just as Damien swung his locker closed, he jumped in surprise. He had not heard her sneaking up on him. Her eyes sparkled flirtatiously as he glared down at her.
Lily Myers was one of the most popular girls in school, and the prettiest. Her light blonde hair was straight and her perfect pouty face was framed with a fringe of bangs and layers. Her skin was California tan and her eyes were rainy-day grey. Her mouth was full and her pursed lips were pale and glossy. As Captain of the volleyball team she was fit and lithe. Her clothes were all designer and very revealing.
It was like staring at opposites, seeing the two of them in the hallway. Damien was tall, with a sinewy musculature, dark Italian skin, bright green eyes and a messy mop of soft, curly brown hair. His clothes were faded, loose and worn. Not because he had bought them that way, but from wear and tear. Even at the young age of seventeen, his face was ruggedly handsome with prominent cheekbones and a strong jaw line.
Lily broke the silence first as Damien glared at her, fully aware of her motives. "Ooo Don't look at me like that, sweetie. Do I look so bad that you are mad just at the sight of me?" she asked coyly, dropping her head in mock sadness and running her hands down from her waist over the back of her hips, jutting her chest out towards him.
"Get away from me. I know why you are here. You're wasting your time." Damien said as he turned and slung his bag up onto his shoulder. He was just about to walk away when Lily grabbed him and pushed his back into the lockers with a giggle. She was not particularly strong, but Damien didn't really want to hurt her by knocking her away. Well, maybe he did.
"Oh really?" Her grey eyes sparkled with interest. "Why am I here?" She leaned so close that their bodies were touching.
Damien pushed her back roughly by her shoulders. "You are here..." he annunciated. "..because your a*****e of a boyfriend cheated on you again with some cheerleader. So now you are trying to get back at him by sleeping with some random guy. Find somebody else, Lil."
Lily seemed to be excited by being manhandled and talked back to. "Well, you didn't mind last time. What is so different now? I know that you had fun before....What is it? Did I break your little heart?" Her mocking tone and teasing eyes convinced Damien that she was surely some inhuman succubus and not actually a high school student.
Damien pushed passed her forcefully and decided that there was no further need to talk to her. At least, that is what he told himself. The last time Lily had came to him, he had thought her a wounded butterfly that needed love and nurturing and that once she was better she would be his. But just as soon as she felt better, she was gone. Flown away and right back into the arms of the idiot jock responsible for the original crushing.
Lily was somewhat stunned as he just walked away from her. She began screaming insults at his back. "Whatever..You are such a loser. I don't know why I wasted my time on you anyway...I didn't know that you were so pathetic that you can't even be a real man and just have sex with a hot girl...Any guy in this school would kill to have me!...You must be gay!...Is that it? You would rather be wi-"
Her voice was cut off as the stairwell door slammed and he was in the quiet corridor, heading downstairs and off to the gym. He put Lily out of his mind, he had to be focused in practice today. Now, that was a very lengthy post. Not only do we have more information on our character, his view of other characters, and what is going on in the story, he has had a nice sized conversation with someone and had to travel all of the way to the fourth floor and then back down. So we have taken up a lot of his time. This would be the only post that you would want to put in until Tom and Jim were done with their conversation and heading for the gym. Using random characters(Non-Player Characters (NPCs)) is probably your best weapon to creating longer posts. Whether it is a waiter interrupting you in a restaurant, or a innocent old woman that you have to get out of the way before a vampire grabs her, or an adoring villager that comes to thank you for saving their family. Remember, you posts are only limited by your imagination.
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Posted: Sat May 12, 2012 1:58 pm
☼Tips☼ ☼Tricks from experienced roleplayers☼ ☼Instead of writing your post in the reply box of your internet browser, write it in Word (or whatever document program you may have). This gives you several advantages: ¤ You do not have to worry about being timed out while you are working on a long post. Nothing is more disappointing than writing something that would make the likes of James Joyce cry with jealousy and you hit that devious 'Submit' button, only to learn that you were timed out and now your brilliant masterpiece is lost forever.¤ ¤If you save all of your work then in case of server malfunctions (such as 'The glitch' that occurred recently) you have all of your previous work for reference.¤ ¤If you have saved your work, it would be that much easier to copy and paste it into a PM if you wanted someone's opinion before you posted it. Or if you really liked what you wrote, to post it in a writing forum for critique.¤ ☼ Re-read what you have written. Never expect that the first thing that tippity-taps its way across the keyboard is the best that you can do. Good writing takes effort. Which is why literate roleplays tend to move a little slower than one-liner roleplays. ☼ Even if you are intimidated by highly literate roleplays and their writers, spend time reading them to see what ways those writers use to increase the length of their posts. Read the posts over once, then go through and see if you can sum up the whole thing in one or two sentences. Now, what else did they add to make it so much longer than that? ☼Don't be afraid to ask for help. We are all here to help you become the best writer that you can be.
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Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 8:30 pm
May I just say...
THANK YOU!!!
I was starting to think I was doomed to my 3-paragraph-maximum but I feel that your advice will really help me. biggrin I'll try to put these into my posts next time.
((I can delete this if needed))
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Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 9:45 pm
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i was beginning to think that i would be stuck as a one paragraph maximum roleplayer, forever cast in the world of writing as a newbie and an amateur..grazie!
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2012 3:53 pm
Aw! Thank you both so much!
I have been considering putting a full length manual together on the benefits of online roleplaying (though I hate that term, I don't feel that it fully encapsulates what we do) and it is encouraging for me to hear that this is helpful.
If you every need any help, feel free to ask.
I look forward to writing with both of you.
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Posted: Fri Jan 18, 2013 9:29 am
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Angstbucket Edgelord Captain
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