Advice/Help Feeling isolated. Getting better at plotting?

[grimmmy]

RP hasn't been feeling like a team effort lately, more like I've been reaching out to people and getting little to work with. I've been in situations where I've asked, "Well, what do you want to do?" And gotten an "I don't know," nothing else. I've been told my ideas are unoriginal, and then when I ask them for suggestions, they dismiss it as not being their responsibility. I really want to curb these types of interactions in the future so I want to address what I can do as best as I can.

I think a problem I have is struggling to "plot," or to think of interesting ways for characters to interact with each other. Any suggestions in this boat? And is there a way that I can get people to open up with their ideas?

I'll add that I really struggle with referring to character profiles: my plan has always been to read a character's personality/backstory and trying to tie that in somehow but most of the time they're pretty impenetrable, just lists of isolated traits and paragraphs about where they grew up.

 

[Mr. Cowboy]

This isn't such a big problem.

From the impression I'm getting, you're getting too bogged down with so many details. When you write a story it is like speaking, the words from the heart, and when you have nothing to say nothing will proceed from the heart. It is not so bad to not write, writing is an intense activity that takes up a large amount of your thoughts. And often, it is frustrating when you do not know what to say. So, as you write, and as you speak, you simply live your life and not put so much pressure on yourself or on others. Often these days, the problem with writers is that they do not have something in common to talk about. There are many stories, of so many varieties, and not everyone has heard of these stories. And not everyone has gone into battle or read a certain period of history. On the other hand, there are certain stories that I would say are overused, but I shall also say they are not necessarily overrated, for they too have a place for stories. Such as high schools, or trips in the wilderness, and so on.

But everyone or at least most people have at least gone to a birthday party or have gone to a museum. And when going to such places, not everyone has to show off what they're thinking.

Perhaps that is yet another thing that bothers you. I tell you that most people are more or less the same. They eat, drink and sleep like you do but they have different decisions, different priorities. Every man acts for a purpose, whether he knows it or not, even when he goes so far as to deny it! And people must be first tested before they prove their worth. Will you trust a soldier that has never seen battle or has never trained for war? Or a stake that has not been hardened by fire? A person can be the dumbest person in the world and yet do the right thing! It seems obvious but it needs to be said here. Have you heard of something so obvious everybody suddenly forgets it? Well, here is a case of it happening. The man who everybody trusted to do good did evil. And even the evil person does a good deed every once in a while.

You see this unfold in real life.

In short, writing is like talking about your life.

Be careful with what you say and don't get too cramped up. It is a skill and it needs constant practice. And it won't easily go away.

EDIT: And also, if you don't have anything to say, then don't say anything! Just move on.

 

[Chordling]

RP hasn't been feeling like a team effort lately, more like I've been reaching out to people and getting little to work with. I've been in situations where I've asked, "Well, what do you want to do?" And gotten an "I don't know," nothing else. I've been told my ideas are unoriginal, and then when I ask them for suggestions, they dismiss it as not being their responsibility. I really want to curb these types of interactions in the future so I want to address what I can do as best as I can.

I think a problem I have is struggling to "plot," or to think of interesting ways for characters to interact with each other. Any suggestions in this boat? And is there a way that I can get people to open up with their ideas?

I'll add that I really struggle with referring to character profiles: my plan has always been to read a character's personality/backstory and trying to tie that in somehow but most of the time they're pretty impenetrable, just lists of isolated traits and paragraphs about where they grew up.

I understand what you mean. It can be difficult to collaborate with other people when it doesn't feel like they are contributing ideas. Often times, I try to break this by offering options. Sometimes it can help the other person engage their creative side because they will only have to chose between a limited amount of choices. But if this doesn't work, because it's not a method that is guaranteed to succeed, then I just try to find people who are more engaging.

I am not a fan of using detailed character sheets for some of the same reasons you mentioned. They do feel limiting (see my "3-5 Pillar" tutorial). The most I use these days are a face claim and name. That often helps me generate a general idea of who the character is but still allows me to have the freedom to mold them to the roleplay as it develops.

 

[Malphaestus]

RP hasn't been feeling like a team effort lately, more like I've been reaching out to people and getting little to work with. I've been in situations where I've asked, "Well, what do you want to do?" And gotten an "I don't know," nothing else. I've been told my ideas are unoriginal, and then when I ask them for suggestions, they dismiss it as not being their responsibility. I really want to curb these types of interactions in the future so I want to address what I can do as best as I can.

I think a problem I have is struggling to "plot," or to think of interesting ways for characters to interact with each other. Any suggestions in this boat? And is there a way that I can get people to open up with their ideas?

I'll add that I really struggle with referring to character profiles: my plan has always been to read a character's personality/backstory and trying to tie that in somehow but most of the time they're pretty impenetrable, just lists of isolated traits and paragraphs about where they grew up.

Sometimes "I don't know" isn't code-word for "I'm just not telling you," sometimes we just don't know. A post doesn't spark any immediate thought or want.

 

[Malphaestus]

Different people find different things interesting, and what we, individually, find interesting is the cumulative fuel for what we, collaboratively, create. Sometimes it doesn't mesh well, and it can be dealt with through simple perseverence. Patience, as always, is really the best trait to have in any situation such as this. But ultimately, no one will fault you for not wanting to deal with people, such as myself, who find it hard to engage with most other peoples' creations. What I do is ultimately quite simple, I take what's presented in IC, CS, and Lore and spin it as is relevant to the IC; I don't really fore-plan too much, since, quite frankly, it's been long since I've felt the want to do so.

 

[grimmmy]

Often times, I try to break this by offering options. Sometimes it can help the other person engage their creative side because they will only have to chose between a limited amount of choices.

Right, that's what I'd like to be able to do: my issue is I'm having a hard time thinking of options.

 

[Mr. Cowboy]

Just give it time. And if all else fails just write.

 

[Chordling]

Right, that's what I'd like to be able to do: my issue is I'm having a hard time thinking of options.

Ask yourself questions! What are the possibilities here? What could make this the most interesting? Don’t be afraid to make things up, even if you think they may not be the best, because you can always change the later. You can use Google to look up inspiration for ideas, too. Get creative. Try new things! You will learn what works for you and what doesn’t. Sometimes I find it best to have some pre-outlined ideas to bring to the table, too. Engaged partners will find ways to contribute their own ideas.

 

[Mr. Cowboy]

Don't use Google, use Duckduckgo and use Brave.

Why not try entering craftsmanship or manual labor? It'll turn you into a worker. When writing, everything is so abstract. It is so vague. Perhaps all you need is to get a feel for things.

 

[nerdy tangents]

So to be clear you are not responsible for doing the plotting in a story. That is meant to be a collaborative effort between two people.

If your partners aren’t contributing their fair share they are the ones who need to change not you. It seems to me you are just finding people who expect you to do the heavy lifting while they don’t put in any work.

I would look for people who enjoy world building and are naturally more talkative. They are out there and they will be more than happy to help you flesh out ideas.

 

[GojiBean]

I think a problem I have is struggling to "plot," or to think of interesting ways for characters to interact with each other. Any suggestions in this boat? And is there a way that I can get people to open up with their ideas?

To help answer your questions and figure out the best approach to move forward, I think we should first go over the difference between "plot" and "story."

Plot is a narrative of events in your tale based on causality. In short, it's the "why" behind each event.

For example: Driven by grief a sorcerer of dark magic embarks on a journey of self discovery.

This is a plot point. The grief is the why behind this particular narrative event that is his journey of self discovery.

Story is also a narrative of events, but is not based on causality. It's simply the events as they happen.

For example: A sorcerer of dark magic embarks on a journey of self discovery.

This is a story beat. No causality. Just the event.

Sometimes plot and story are so similar they can easily be mistaken as the same thing. But in this case, it's pretty clear that plot isn't the problem.

Based on what you wrote I believe you're suffering more from story issues. Character interactions in and of themselves are story moments. The same is true of fight scenes, romance scenes, buddy buddy comedy scenes, etc. And that's where your struggles lie, correct? It's finding ways to make events happen. Not necessarily the "why" behind them. Because you know exactly why interactions should happen. The why is in the circumstances behind where they are right now.

For example: If your respective characters are allies/friends and are sitting by a campfire after a big battle to nurse their wounds and try to help each other relax after a near death experience, this is all part of the why behind any interactions they have from this moment forward. The plot is established. They just survived a big battle and now they're trying to cope and decompress. What comes next, aka the interactions they share, is all story.

And the best advice I can give about story is this: Let it flow.

If there's no interaction flowing naturally in the current situation the characters find themselves in, the scene is over.

It's time to wrap it up and move on to the next one.

In that campfire example I gave above, let's say for the sake of argument that they've been chatting about the battle and how horrible it was. One of them, your character, says something about how it could have been avoided if one side hadn't been so stupid. My character, meanwhile, disagrees but remains silent about it because he's done with conflict for one day and feels it can be discussed another time. Your character then gets up and starts pacing because they're still on edge and have no other outlet or anything in mind to talk about, but my character has nothing left to say either and remains seated by the fire.

The scene is over.

It's now time to skip to the next morning when they're making sure the campfire won't catch again by stamping it out and covering it with dirt and gathering their belongings to start heading home to report the results of the battle to their superiors. They can chat a little about breakfast or about how they'll present the report to their superiors who are all uptight jerk wads and have a little banter or even play the "One, two, three, NOT IT!" game to see who has to suffer the inevitable lectures that are incoming when they get back.

And when they run out of witty banter or playful jabs at each other, this scene will also be over and it will be time to move to the next.

Hopefully this all made sense.

As to what you can do to get people to open up?

Well... Don't.

If a role-play "partner" of yours is being distant and not offering anything to the RP, then it's probably time to cut your losses and just end the RP and find someone else to partner with. Or if it's a group RP and you're the GM, it's time to ask them to walk away and focus on the others who are more active and engaging. If you're not the GM, then it's time to ask the GM to separate your characters because you don't feel this individual is offering anything to your experience as long as you're stuck with them. And if the GM gives you any grief, it's time to walk away from the RP because an unhelpful GM is a clear indicator the RP is going to fail anyway.

A GM who can't appreciate, understand, and help solve issues like this is not one worth sticking around to role-play with, and they most certainly won't be able to sustain the RP effort if they can't manage their participants needs and expectations.

That's about all I have for this one.

Good luck!

 

[grimmmy]

Honestly the lack of... I guess an equal output of ideas goes hand-in-hand with a lack of interesting ideas. Over the last month-ish I've just been completely understimulated. I'm just BORED. I'm BOOORED. I can't think of any ideas because I have like nothing to work with.

I stuck with RP because "it gave me ideas" but now everything's samey or stupid and it makes me feel stupid by draining my mojo with it. I think I either need to nail down my standards/expectations or dump the hobby.