The Perfect Post; It´s a race :) [EDITING]

[The Empress of Ice]

DISCLAIMER; This is not the finished version and is in need of major editing, as it was posted more than a few months ago!


Hello!


So I've been thinking a lot lately about making this 'How to guide'. And personally there are MILLIONS of ways you can achieve that 'perfect' post. Practice, natural-genius or getting influenced by someone with a better experience in this area usually are the solution to how to make a long, descriptive and slightly touching post. And when I say touching I mean; something that makes sense, inspiration for your post to be made. A post that gives you multiple choices for action rather then two; Interact or simply don´t.


The question is though... How? Well I don´t even believe I will achieve the 'perfect' post or the title of RP 'guru' any time soon but this will at least check that little 'Make a how to guide' on my before you die list.


Also BEFORE you start reading the text below please do know that I won´t jump to how to make a post directly but the direction to make that post; what brings that one post to life? Now if you have any questions feel free to PM me since I rather this be just a flow of lessons through out the thread.


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Lesson one; The starting line. The Role-play. The host.

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Now think about our little journey as a race to the finish line. The finish line being the perfect post. Before we start the race we need to train, practice our stamina if you´d say so. We want to be ready to dash and win! That 'practice' is what most people call a character skelly. The bones that our meat hang on. The base of all actions our characters come to make are based on that little information we usually give in a sign-up for a rp. The rp itself could be called the host.


To participate in this race you´d have to have experience, good health and flattery to win 'him' over. Some hosts can be easily overthrown; not asking for much but some are cruel, demanding Kings/Queens accepting none but the brutal, cold assassin for this life-changing mission.


So how do you make that host soften up for you, give you a loyal spot in this brutal war for a place in the race? Well give them what they want would be one...But we want something that benefits us too. Basically a satisfying character sheet without the constant need for change. That leads us to experience.


Experience in this term doesn't really have to mean what knowledge you have about role-playing but why you joined the RP. Read the plot; understand the plot. Ask questions if you don´t understand a certain part rather then quit the thought of entering a character skelly. Read the rules; accept them and do remind yourself to follow them strictly.


Usually there are a rule pointing out that the GM [Game Master/HOST] words are ULTIMATE but you are allowed to ARGUE your point. You are allowed for an opinion but the GM is in the end the one with the plot twists and thus your idea may just affect the plot in a negative way and may be refused. If the role-play sparks an interest look at the character skelly. Don't write it , don't even think about filling it out but just stare at it. See what is needed. See what you want to work with.


An RP can have powers as its focus; The characters developing them through out the story. So concentrate on that power. Find its faults, its strengths, weaknesses and make it your own. Make the simple power of fire so much unlike the original idea that one could only think of it as his/her power. Your power.


Then you develop the basic questions; gender, name, age etc. And soon enough you come to the most crucial part; history/background. Is your character the usual Jane or James or are they the wild traumatized Angelo or Francesca? How does it affect their personality, their point of view? Can they trust anyone, are they themselves trustworthy? Could a certain episode in their life change all the decisions thereafter?


Make sure to be in control of you background. At times a 'host' would only require some information but others want the load of it. From 0 - 100 +. If you feel the need to conceal a certain part of your characters background, do tell since that popping up in the middle of the rp would upset the GM just like the host would be mad if you suddenly decided to ditch the race in the dirt.


When we have figured out our experience quality we have this weird thing called health check-up. That little needle making sure you don't go on steroids? Yeah, it exists in the role-playing world too. Good health means control to the maximum. Knowing what the hell your character is about.


For example you have put Bipolar in the personality description on your skelly. Now you can´t just show up in an rp thinking bipolar is practically an excuse to everything or not knowing how it affects your character. If you have bipolar as part of your characters personality you'd have to change parts in your background, develop your character so this disorder fits in and isn't something you just made up on the spot. You have to do some research and if you feel bothered by that fact then DON´T include it in your character skelly. No excuses! Thus good health means the fact that you know what you are doing; taking care of your characters needs if you may say so.


Now the last part of today's lesson; Flattery! Now don´t get me wrong when I use the word flattery because kiss up ain't going to hook you up in the rp. Flattery is dedication! Dedication is respect, understanding and simply showing that you care enough to be worth the bother. One reason for this small gesture; Someone took their precious time making this amazing rp and you're not dedicated enough to actually write sufficient posts, being inactive, in other words, will just simply show disrespect. Many GM have a rule including activity; mentioning that this role play will probably take time to finish.


How would you feel if someone showed up promising a million roses the very next day and the only thing you receive is a pot of rotten meat; hanging on a dead skeleton?


This is all the basics of making sure you win a host over but here is one last advice; Feel for the character; make sure that character will forever be THAT character. After all a figment of imagination is another part of you that we don´t want to lose


Next lesson is about body language O.o Wait what?


((Pm me if you have any questions you want me to answer, I´ll always post questions as anonymous ))

 

[The Empress of Ice]

UNDER CONSTRUCTION!

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The first thought that had crossed your mind must be; She is crazy. I´m not nearly insane, sadly I´m very much sane with a dose of weird in my daily life. Or your real first thought could have been something like this; What does body language have to do with role-playing? How am I suppose to use this in a rp? Is she really crazy?


The answers to those questions are simple; Body-language has to do with everything, you already use it in your daily life so put some thought into it and yes, I´m crazy. As for what I mean with that I´ll explain shortly.


Remember how we worked our way through the host? From experience, health to flattery? We´ll work our way through body language with; Show Me, Don't Tell Me, Habits and Psychology! Don´t make anything harder than it is; something I´ve been told a million times but as I deem this a necessary part of role-playing, please keep up.


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Lesson 2: Body Language; Usage of it. + A small lecture about description.

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I have mentioned before how much a character´s background is crucially important and I shall mention it again for the same very reason I make my little cousin ride the bicycle every day; Learning it to perfection.


Because through our character's history, we learn their habits, their instincts and their ways. We, as humans, convey our feelings mostly through our body and our voice rather than words. When I feel nervous, I get flustered, I stutter and I repeat myself. I shiver and rub my hands together when I'm cold and I have a habit of biting my lip or playing with whatever I get my hands on when I'm nervous.


I love the cold and my grandma is [was] alive but... Maybe your character doesn't like the cold, maybe your character loathes it even. Maybe your character has lost her grandma quite recently but-


- INSTEAD of making simple statements about that fact


Ashley hates the cold as she always turns sick at the end of the day. Her voice would turn hoarse and right now, as she stood in front of her grandma's gravestone, she cried herself dry.


- SHOW what you mean.


The cold winter weather was harsh to the sensitive Ashley, her body shivering with each gush of air. Her lungs, unable to handle the cold air, made her breathe come out in small, harsh gasps, her voice turning hoarse. Gingerly, she put one leg in front of the other, her petite form sinking into the knee-deep snow. Her eyes teared at the sight of the gravestone in front of her, her hand reaching out to dust off the snow settling at the top. And once she had cleaned her grandma's gravestone, her eyes no longer able to hold the tears she had gathered, making a sob escape her as she released the wave of tears.





And instead of telling me your character is shy, instead of making her stutter, show me. Show me, and I won't need you to tell me.


Now compare the two texts below, both about the same girl but different personality, different past and certainly different body language!


Staring mindlessly at the oak door in front of her, May was frightened. Surely those who had passed Mr. James office thought bad about her, maybe whispered behind her back; Why was she simply standing in front of his office like a dummy! May shakes her head to clear her thoughts before hesitantly reaching out for the door knob. Once she had gotten a hold of it, gripping the cold metal tightly before opening the wide door open.


"You called Mr. James?" She stuttered out, a wave of nervousness filling her up. Her boss simply smiled before nodding at the chair. Though May wasn´t fooled, her gaze fighting a battle between the chair and the man. Settling down, she unclenched and clenched her fists, running her fingers threw her hair a few times. "If this is about Sunday; I can explain!" She spoke, panicked.


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May strolled over to the large oak door, immediately grasping the cold door knob. She wore a small frown, annoyed to be interrupted during work. So when she walked into her boss office, Mr. James raised an eyebrow; shocked at her rudeness.


"You wanted something, Mr. James?" She asked with an annoyed undertone. "Settle down, May..." He nodded toward the chair, his voice laced with sweetness. Though May wasn´t fooled, smirking as she sat down; putting one leg over the other. She leaned forward. "If this is about Sunday..." May snarled, her voice raising slightly. "I can explain, obviously!"


Do you see a difference? Because I certainly do. In fact, we are going to dwell deeper into this subject. So deep, that we have come to our next stop point, HABITS!


Habits? Habits!? What does habits of all things have to do with roleplaying? Well, a lot. It establishes a connection between characters for one. I have a best friend, she's a horrible liar but others don't seem to notice... I wonder why? Maybe because they don't know that she tends to look away every two minutes, her upper lip twitches or the fact that her eyes start smiling?


Not very obvious but it still happens, every single time! I explain myself too much when I lie, apparently [idiot friend's words, not mine ]. So if your character is close to their mother, or perhaps a classmate, teacher, neighbor etc. They tend to notice things which others don't.


Next lesson is about Description


((Pm me if you have any questions you want me to answer, I´ll always post questions as anonymous ))

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[Hatchet]

This is good. It takes time to compile anything of this length, so don’t think for a second that I don’t appreciate what went into this. This is a contribution from me to help with particulars.


The message in your first lesson is a little lost in the details, but it is nonetheless true and very important, the need for dedication and respect. I can’t begin to tell you how crazy I did NOT think you were that lesson two focused on body language. It’s probably the second most-underutilized tool in writing, after pure sensory input. People include scents and particular sights and unusual sounds when it’s relevant to a scene or a set-up, but what about what’s just always there? I was happy to see it. I really only have a couple of things worth elaborating on.


Point one: Grammar/Spelling/That Nazi stuff people make fun of.


You honestly lost credibility with me with this line:


--->“The question is thou...How?”


‘Thou’ is a word. It’s the informal way of saying ‘you,’ which does not fit this context. I would neither have mentioned this, nor likely posted at all, except I kept reading and the incorrect ‘to’ (too) popped up at that end of your first paragraph. I won’t continue to point out these structural things unless you would like me to. I recall English is not your first language.


Point Two: Structure.


Paragraphs, very useful, beautiful things, and especially relevant to your lesson. But I also scanned/scrolled, and the bolded word ‘bipolar’ stood out to me, so I read that sentence. Making key words pop is a useful tool. Advice from Ace to me to you. Additionally, in your first paragraph alone, you use a lot of words to repeat the same ideas. Concision can be your friend. (Also, if you have to say ‘I’m being funny,’ it’s probably not that funny.)


Point Three: Consistency.


Unfortunately, I didn’t think your actual lesson two followed with its title plan. The content was much more about the details of the psychology of the character than about what the different inclusions of body language can convey. Basically, point of view is not the same as body language. The comparison posts you used are more useful to the lesson.


A final personal note: Bipolar is not a ‘small disorder.’


Keep up the admirable work!

 

[White Masquerade]

Oh my. You worked really hard on this!