Experiences How worried are you about your RP writing quality?

[PaulHaynek]

Sorry for the late reply. I was organizing my thoughts on this matter. Yes, for a month.

Maybe you could think about writing some pieces of prose that aren't destined for an RP. It might help you to practice your skills without worrying about other people seeing it? Like a kind of writing sketchbook, it would literally just be for your eyes only to practice and not worry about final results. You can find writing prompts on places like Pinterest and Tumblr, or maybe try doing Inktober with words instead of images?

My problem... is not limited to roleplaying. I also drop the ball when I'm writing my own fiction, public and private.

I do practice though and it never gets better. Sometime I tell myself that it's alright to be like this, it's not as if I'm going to be some famous author someday... but that's loser talk and I go back to self-loathing criticism.

Roleplays don't last long. Most end after a week or two, some after a few months. It probably isn't related to your skill.

Besides,

Good writing is direct and short. The word "stop" is stronger than "discontinue". "Hurry" registers faster than "hasten".

Do not fall into the trap of writing long paragraphs of convoluted words just to flex your writing ability. Simple writing is coherent and most people will be happy to see just that ; )

I don't know about you but most of the high-quality roleplays I encounter tend to boot 'simple' writers (or begrudgingly tolerate) while those that post long-ass paragraphs gets the hearts and the likes.

And sure, 'stop' might be better than 'discontinue' but if you're going to see 'stop' 10 times in a paragraph or in a dialogue, you're gonna see the appeal of 'discontinue' or 'halt'.

 

[BittyBobcat]

I feel like I'm somewhere between bad and okay for writing quality. I mean, it's partly because sometimes I just write something and I read it and I hate it but I have to post it to keep up and I don't want to hold up the rp, but it's also because I'm really bad when it comes to proofreading (I do it, just not well).

I do have some standards when it comes to writing quality, but they're mainly about me needing to understand what's going on and being detailed enough to actually add something to it. Overall, I've met one person on rpn who didn't come up to my standards, and then I didn't mind because they were new to rping and it was a 1x1 rp, so we could just relax and be really casual with our replies.

 

[Crayons]

I do practice though and it never gets better. Sometime I tell myself that it's alright to be like this, it's not as if I'm going to be some famous author someday... but that's loser talk and I go back to self-loathing criticism.

Two(ish) words for you: E.L. James.
Fifty Shades of Grey is utter crud when it comes to writing ability and yet sold millions upon millions of books. If you're feeling bad about yourself just read that.
See also: Dan Brown.

Self-criticism can be a really good thing. If you can look at your work and understand why things work/don't work then that is a useful skill to cultivate.
Self-loathing however is not really constructive, and I wish you well attempting to turn the one into the other.

 

[Sludge]

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I don't know about you but most of the high-quality roleplays I encounter tend to boot 'simple' writers (or begrudgingly tolerate) while those that post long-ass paragraphs gets the hearts and the likes.

Dunno man. Advanced lit interest checks sometimes advise not to spam text walls. But sure, a lot of people enjoy that kind of thing.

Personal opinion. I think large posts can be lazy. I would much rather read delicious writing sharpened into four dense paragraphs in an hour of editing, than fifteen filled with irrelevant descriptions and internal monologue slapped together in under twenty minutes.

If novel authors cannot afford to waste a single word, why should we?

And sure, 'stop' might be better than 'discontinue' but if you're going to see 'stop' 10 times in a paragraph or in a dialogue, you're gonna see the appeal of 'discontinue' or 'halt'.

Writing clearly is different from being repetitive. "End", "Finish", "Halt" and "Cease" are all good alternatives to "Stop" that don't make you sound like a text book. "Discontinue", "Terminate", "Immobilize" and "Bring to a standstill" are not. But.

They can be powerful in the right circumstances. If guards caught the criminal with an unparalleled efficiency, you can make it seem important by saying he was immobilized. But if Molly brought the automobile to a standstill before going to work, you are better off writing Molly stopped the car.

(Better yet, say "She went to work". If the car is irrelevant, that sentence only bores the reader)

---

The point isn't so much to keep things short, as to trim the fat. Beautiful paragraphs of scenery description are pointless if another player has already described it. Internal monologue is pointless if it does not develop a character or explain motive.

That said, I don't think that my idea of good writing is necessarily the right one. Nor that roleplaying is about writing well. But if you care about it, might as well listen to my take on it, eh?[/DIV]

 

[just_patches]

It's not the quality exactly but my frequency to post
Sometimes I feel so burnt out that I don't post or even write for days
Have been getting better and joining the site is meant to fix this