RPW Random Tips

You're having a RP, a very tense and serious one. You hit the "Share" button, and wait nervously for a reply. Finally, after 5 minutes, your partner's character responds. You read it but-- Suddenly, you seem out of it. "How the hell would my character react to this?" You wonder. "And where exactly are they now, anyway?" Perhaps you might even think "How do I put that scene in my mind into words...?" And similar sentences. We've all been there. But what do? It's actually pretty simple. Most of us probably just start RPs randomly, and then struggle against a dead end, without structuring anything. Usually, at least. There are also other factors which are important, hence I (and some others) decided to make this page for everyone to "Like" and even share their own experiences. You can also post your own tips, if you like, or even debate certain tips I share here if you find them utterly wrong or something. I'm open for anything. Let's begin with some simple things... RP Tip #001 Most important one, too: There are no actual "rules". Don't flame other people for RPing in a slightly different way than you would have wanted them to. RP Tip #002 Try to stick with one type of RP with each person. Sounds confusing, but it simply means that you shouldn't go "LOL SUP ICHIGO " in your one post and in your next post you're like "He stared at the boy with a dark frown. 'Why are you here?'" RP Tip #003 Make up your mind before you start off, whether you want your account to be a Literate RP Account, or a Casual RP Account. Literate RP means typing in paragraphs mostly, indicating actions in normal sentences and spoken language in "..." Making a Casual RP Account means that you RP as if your character actually made a Facebook Account, interacting with other people in chat language, etc. Of course these are just examples as there are way more kinds of accounts. RP Tip #004 Clearly separate RP and RL (Real Life). If you don't like your partner's character, but your own character gets along with them, don't be a jerk to them. If you really can't stand that character, just avoid them, but try to stay IC (In Character). RP Tip #005 In addition to #004 - Always remember it is just RP. If your partner's character insults yours because it's their personality, don't take it to heart. Obviously, this might be difficult at times, but if you should get too upset about these kind of things, just take a break for a moment to cool down. Perhaps even messaging the RPer privately might help too. RP Tip #006 Don't be an ass. If you personally don't like things others do, don't flame them. There are some RP Communities on Facebook which hardly have any serious RPers, so don't complain if you realize you're the only "serious" one. (Better join a different page or fandom, then.) RP Tip #007 No Drama. RP Tip #008 If you prefer Script RP, try to stick with one style to avoid confusion. E.g.: action, -action-, [action], ::action::, /action/ and so on. RP Tip #009 Make your OOC (Out-Of-Character) conversations clear. You can use different types of brackets or slashes to do so. Some people also like putting "OOC:" before their OOC messages. E.g.: ((OOC talk)), [OOC talk], (OOC talk), //OOC talk, [[OOC talk]], and so on. RP Tip #010 Try to stay IC. Of course, you may modify your character slightly to adapt, or for whatever reason, but at least do your best and take your time to make them seem authentic. RP Tip #011 If you have the option, use spell check. It'll make it easier for both of you. RP Tip #012 In addition to #011 - Use proper grammar to make your partner actually understand what you are trying to say. Occasional mistakes are absolutely normal and definitely no sin, but if ur rp txt clerly seem 2 lack effort u mite wanna re-think it. RP Tip #013 Take some breaks if you have a writer's block. It's no use if you try to force yourself. The results are mostly disappointing. RP Tip #014 If you're going to be absent for a while, it would be nice if you could put a message on your profile, or make a note, etc. Otherwise people might think you just quit and forget about you soon. RP Tip #015 When adding information about your character in the "About Me" section, one should be original and include a custom biography about that character instead of one that is merely taken from, say, a wiki or another website. RP Tip #016 If you make an RP account, try to stick with one character on said account to avoid confusion and causing annoyance due to the mercurial character changes. RP Tip #017 Proof-read your posts. It's time-consuming, but definitely worth it. RP Tip #018 Don't force your OTPs ("One-True-Pairing"s) onto others. If they ship something else, let them. Also, don't let others do this to you, either! RP Tip #019 Imagining a scenario before typing it is quite useful. Visualization is in RP as important as imagination. You might as well try saying something out loud your character is supposed to say. That way, it can be easier for you to figure out if it sounds still IC enough. RP Tip #020 Don't be a Facebook Whore. I'm sorry to say this, but please take note that RP isn't just about sex, making out, yaoi/yuri, hentai, or whatever. Just because your character is slightly tsundere doesn't mean that they secretly want to get laid very badly. Do your best not to ruin the image of your character, and try to do it with style. RP Tip #021 Make sure your RP doesn't come across offensive to certain kinds of people/cultures/religions/etc. If your character is, say, Muslim, it doesn't mean they'll plan to bomb the other character's basement. This is just an example as there are hundreds of different stereotypes. RP Tip #022 You might want to try out listening to music according to the mood of your RP for inspiration. But! Typing the actual scene with music on is rather irritating in most of the cases. Concentration tends to increase in pure silence. If music doesn't bother you, though, it's no problem then. RP Tip #023 "He said 'what?' He didn't know what else to say. Then it was silent. Did he say something wrong just now...?" -- This happens a lot. And after we read it again, we want to facepalm at our post. "But how else could I have said it!?!" The answer is: Use a thesaurus if you can't think of a different word with the same meaning. They're very useful and for free online! RP Tip #024 Try to avoid using emoticons in a serious RP. As tempting as "XD", "", "O.O" and "TT__TT" emotes might be, think of a way to describe the facial expression you're looking for, instead. RP Tip #025 In addition to #024 -- Facebook has the option to share photos in your wall posts. Make use of it! If you have an actual screenshot of a certain position/scene/background/etc. just attach it to make your partner get your idea! Don't be shy, try it out! RP Tip #026 Commonly, RPs should be held via Wall-To-Wall, which means not commenting on a wall post, but actually responding by writing on your partner's Wall. The reason for this is convenience. It's also easier to manage and keep up with WTW RP than with comments. RP Tip #027 Don't rush it! Even if other RPers might seem like they can write paragraphs in 2 minutes, it doesn't mean it's a competition. Take as much time as you need, as long as your post turns out good. RP Tip #028 Try out crossover RP! You don't have to stick in your fandom all the time, add characters from other fandoms for difference and interact with them! It might turn out more fun than you'd expect it to. RP Tip #029 Try to stick to one tense. Don't switch from past to present, or vice versa, inconsequently. RP Tip #030 If you're new to a fandom and are unsure about your account, or if the way you RP will be good enough: Don't panic! Try to adjust yourself by each RP. Give it some time, some editing on your profile here and there and you're pretty much done. RP Tip #031 A new account takes responsibility. Such as research, if necessary. In case your character is non-fictional, from real events in the past, and anything else reality-related, you should make some research on them to RP them more authentically. You sure don't want to RP a samurai, finding yourself unable to understand the four classes system and who you're even fighting. RP Tip #032 - Special Make use of Character Studies. If you plan on making a new account of a new character, it would be very useful if you made a so-called "Character Study". Why? Because even if you might think you know enough and a lot about your chosen person to RP, at some point, these things can get blurry. Thus, many of us get stuck RPing, usually. So how do you make a Character Study, you ask? There is a certain pattern to follow when making such a Study; A few important aspects and categories are here named: ● Re-watching everything is inevitable in most of the cases. When you re-watch a series/movie/show/etc. you should take notes of certain details like: → The way they act in certain situations, such as: Tension, Casual days, Sad Moments, Scary Moments, When in Love, Confronted with the past, etc. ● There are various categories: ・ The way they act around certain people like their enemies/friends/new people ・ Their thoughts/dreams/goals ・ Possible inner conflicts etc. ・ Personality Selfish, Silly, Loud, Easily Annoyed, Serious, Spontaneous, etc.? → Why is that person the way they are? Are those reasons connected to someone else, the past or certain circumstances? If applicable: Is there a point where their attitude seems to flip 180 degrees all of a sudden? Why? ● Outer categories: ・ Prominent Speaking Patterns → Does the character make use of a certain manner of phrasing/wording their sentences? (E.g. However...;Thus...;So...; [Formal] or: Well...;I mean...;That's not...; [Casual] or even: Nah; whaddya mean; sup [Colloquial]) → Expressions/Rhetorical Devices/Historical relations and the like; take a look at their wording and try to copy it the best you can. ・ Patterns of Gesture/Mimic: → Gesture: Do they walk in a stuck-up manner? Are their hands always in their pockets? Do they seem uneasy in their behavior? Are their arms always folded/on their hips? And so on. Depending on the way they express themselves in gesture, you can tell if they're, for instance, rather shy or self-confident about themselves. → Mimic: Do their facial expressions ever change? Do they laugh/scream/cry a lot? When do which kind of expressions appear on their face? Are there special cases? RP Tip #033 No matter if the character you RP is an OC (Original Character - a character you made up by yourself) or not, do not godmod. Godmodding is defined by invincibility, never getting hit/hurt by other characters, or having no flaws whatsoever. Don't be a jerk by making your character seem perfect. Although you might not want to, it is highly necessary to avoid doing that for the RP to continue and keep things interesting. It sure would be boring if you'd never get hit or even affected emotionally by, for instance, what the other character said. On the other side, it also is not enjoyable for either of you if your character never gets hit, but for some reason your hits always land. That is not fair, is it? If you feel you might be godmodding, try to think a little further when you RP: If you kill your partner's character, how could the RP even go on? Is it necessary for your RP development to have someone hurt? Does your character appear to have any flaws? RP Tip #034 Be considerate. If you're RPing with someone, always give them a chance to reply IC. So whenever you post something, make sure you already have an idea how their character might react, even if their answer differs from what you'd expected. RP Tip #035 In addition to #034 - Don't bring up paradoxes. If the other character already died in their universe, DON'T approach them by saying something like "I thought I had killed you." It's utterly IMPOSSIBLE for them to react to that. As well as the death paradox, you should avoid mentioning things to them they actually aren't aware of (yet). Examples: "How does it feel being adopted and all?" "<Insert name> actually killed your best friend." "I know your true identity!" "Don't trust <insert name>! He/she is trying to kill you!" RP Tip #036 If a character is supposed to be menacing, evil, scary or sinister in their universe, your character should react accordingly. It's kind of sad to see how many people do the exact opposite of this. Basically, it means: Someone is RPing an intimidating guy, whom people fear in their own universe. Then your character, who is also from the same universe, approaches this guy. The scary guy probably teases your guy, or even insults him, because it's canon ("canon" meaning it's official and true to the original story or plot). Now, what most people do is get defensive, even if their character is supposed to be scared. Maybe it's due to their ego, but they aren't able to handle such a situation, so they counter or do something very OOC. The problem is, the "scary guy" you're RPing with will be puzzled and unsure what to do next. This is often where RPs just die. More tips to follow...

(Credits) To the one who posted this in facebook :D