Other Simple, Casual and Detailed Mindsets - An explanation

Idea

The Pun Tyrant
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One thing I mention often, especially here in the discussion threads, is something I call the "simple, casual and detailed mindsets". If know the terms simple, casual and detailed, then you probably have a vague understanding of what they mean in your head. This thread is not going to dispute that idea. In fact, you can have a detailed mindset and still play casual, and you can have a casual mindset and still write detailed. If anything, the mindset is more of a spectrum, with particular elements that make you fall closer to one side or the other, but not really saying you absolutely check on all of these criteria if you are a simple/casual/detailed RPer.

No, my purpose with this thread is mostly to explain exactly what I mean when I speak of these mindsets. I want to explain the idea behind what I'm talking about, and provide some examples of behaviors that lead more to one side or the other. My point isn't to argue, though if you have any objections other than counter-examples , as always I'm happy to have a discussion with you, or at least hear you out.

Without further ado, let's begin.

When I talk about, for instance, a detailed mindset, I am referring to a set of behaviors and tastes which make you more apt and inclined to enjoy and produce detailed content. While there is a general expectation here that detailed will have the highest length, the mindset isn't specifically about length, but moreso the degree of depth and complexity of your detail. If you're someone who values long descriptions of an environment, for instance, this is an element of a detailed mindset, because that taste makes you more inclined to enjoy posts with those long descriptions and to provide them yourself.

Right away, I want to dismiss the myth of a specific one of these- simple, casual or detailed- being better than the others. Same for post lengths. They aren't better or worse than the others, but they are for people who enjoy different things to different degrees. What elements you value and your creative approach to writing will decide what kind of roleplay you can enjoy and what works for you. A marvelously written detailed post may appear overblown and boring or even intimidating to a casual or simple crowd. A casual post may seem lacking and flavorless to a detailed roleplayer and way too much for a simple roleplayer. So when I speak of a mindset regarding one of these types, and the spectrum of those mindsets, I do not mean to imply a spectrum of post quality or skill, but merely one of one's preferences being more adjusted for this or that kind of roleplay.

Simple Mindset: Being honest, this one is the one I know least about, since I don't have much contact with it. If I were to boil it down to one key idea that would be "what matters is that we're roleplaying". More than any other mindset, the simple roleplayer wants to enjoy the very act of roleplaying without worrying much about what the contents of that might be. For this reason, they are a lot less inclined to care about grammar mistakes or post length (even one-liners), or thinking about anything in the long term. They are the most likely to just get two characters and ram them together, in fact most freeform sanbox-type roleplays tend to be simple roleplays because this attitude allows every party to have a significant amount of freedoom to do just about anything they want. In the end of the day, if the simple roleplayer gets to enjoy their bit of time to just relax and roleplay, they are pretty happy.
In the same way, however, they struggle with really forming anything resembling a proper plot, developing a solid setting and with the idea of anything in the long term, like slow burn romance and paced character development. There is a certain dread to the idea of having to wait around for stuff, like watching the seconds pass on the clock while waiting for class to finish. They aren't used to having to think of a surrounding plot or setting either, so it doesn't come naturally to them to have to push it.
On the other end, however, not only are simple roleplays usually fast paced, pretty freedoom-loving and relaxed, they also are just about the most organic out of any of the posts, but they contain exclusively that most immediate and raw response, the character's natural response when done right, without feeling the need to add anything extra, not even for the sake of moving the plot.

Casual Mindset: What matters to a casual mindset is "contributing to the narrative". A narrative in this case can be plot-driven, but just as often it can be character-driven as well. However, in either case, the casual roleplayer is interested in the development of the story as their own fun (note: none of these mindsets is ever looking to do these things in spite of their own fun. They have, however, very different perceptions and needs when it comes to that fun), be it simply through the plot's progress and eventual resolution or through the character's exploration and development. Beyond this though, casual's unnoficial motto could be "I want it, but I won't ask it of you". A casual player may not be as straight up carefree as a player with a simple mindset, but they do tend to show an aversion towards trying to demand things of people, so they tend to stick to the minimums in that regard (typically, good grammar, a single paragraph that doesn't exactly have to be bulky, and making sure your posts progress the plot or conversation). That said, they won't mind and in fact will still be happy to get more (up to a point). That said, people with this kind of mindset tend to have a very book-like approach, where they tend to value saying more with less (a form of applying the show don't tell rule, often by expressing things through character action alone) and to disregard what does not contribute to the narrative as superfluous extra details or even flowery. The casual mindset tends to view these extra details as more padding than anything else, and in fact as potentially more harm than good, as they can be boring or clog the important parts of the post.
One example of this would be regarding internal monologue. For the most part, the casual mindset considers internal monologue superfluous. After all, others cannot react to your internal monologue and it seemingly contributes nothing to the progress of neither the plot nor the conversation, being there merely in place of action or dialogue or as repetition of action or dialogue. Instead of internal monolgue, the casual mindset just gives you whatever actions and dialogue it would lead to, and keeps internal monologue to at most brief reactions to the other's post or showing direct thoughts from the character.
One problem I often discuss and in which the concept of the simple, casual and detailed mindsets comes up, is in regards to casual-minded roleplayers jumping into detailed roleplays without proper consideration, and then being unable to keep up with or remain interested in the detailed posts, often resulting in at first bad detailed posts and later ghosting. The reason those players are unable to keep up good detailed posts, and in fact a reason why people often have a hard time filling their posts has to do with exactly what I just mentioned: Details like internal monologue, the state of the character's surroundings, the character's emotional state even are often considered superfluous by the casual mindset, and thus not ideas which a casual player easily associates with things they can put into a post. Even if they don't straight up think it would be bad to include them, they just think about them so little that adding them in is a possibility that just doesn't cross their mind. Instead, they often try to pad posts with more of what they know from casual roleplaying (resulting in cacophonic posts with too much action and dialogue), OR they add what they THINK a detailed post would entail (lots of meaningless repetition and pointlessly long descriptions).
Casual roleplay has advantages of its own naturally. First, it is the kind that most resembles how books are written, giving it a more familiar feel, and in combination with being a middleground of sorts, it has the biggest base, and one of the more solid ones. It is pretty organic, but if you take the time to make a better post you won't feel like you're missing out by not continually pumping out posts, and regardless of that, this mindset is pretty to the point, allowing you to enjoy an actual narrative without having to be bogged down by details unrelated to it.

Detailed Mindset: The detailed mindset appreciates what happens beyond just the narrative. They appreciate every moment of roleplaying, for the reverse reason of the simple roleplayer's: While a simple roleplayer enjoys the very fact they are roleplaying by itself, a detailed roleplayer enjoys the time they get to roleplay because of the content they make and receive, because of the richness and flavor of that content. A detailed roleplayer distinguishes themselves from the casual roleplayer first and foremost because want each moment of the roleplay to be as complete as it can be, with there being any narrative progress being a secondary matter by comparison. What others might find useless or superfluous, a detailed roleplayer may see value in- the structure of how one roleplays, the length of posts, internal monologue, detailed descriptions of the environment, lore etc... However, growing an appreciation for these things makes them all the more aware of it when it is lacking. To them a post is like meat, it may take time to give it flavor, spice and cook it, but not putting that in makes raw and pointless, even if still nutritious in the end. Likewise, for the detailed mindset a casual post is plain and bland, so even if they get that post it will simply be disappointing.
The detailed mindset tends to approach the long-term as a facet of the short-term, and thus has a lot less problems with it than the other mindsets. Where simple dreads it and casual thinks of it as what might come, the detailed mindset views the long-term as what you can set up now. However, all of this does come with a bit of a price. A detailed mindset takes effort and time, moreso than others, which in turn can affect the pacing others need or otherwise be unable to keep up with the quick pacing of casual or simple roleplays.
Detailed roleplay tells the most complete stories and has a degree of immersion not based on how organic it is, but through the artificial means it uses to completely place you in the right context, mindframe and understanding of the situation. I would argue for those with this mindset it is the kind of mindset that best allows you to experience the story, rather than merely watching it as an observer. Furthermore, detailed also has a broad range of styles it allows, because detailed roleplayers are often actually looking at and thinking about the very structure of how they roleplay, thus making them aware of more ways to approach it.


I want to mention once more: This is a spectrum. I highly doubt a lot of people will fall under an exclusive one of these. However, I do believe most people fall pretty squarely ALMOST in one. Maybe you have some ideas of pre-dispositions of a simple roleplayer, but just about everything else fits more the detailed mindset. The mindsets are ultimately patterns and inclinations, not restraints.

To wrap things up, I want to adress four topics and how they fit with this idea:

1. Skill --> Skill doesn't really factor into what mindset you have, and I do not mean to get into an argument about which style tends to have better skill attached. It is both a myth that people who want to roleplay detailed are snobbish about it (though snobbish people to tend to gather in detailed roleplay due to it being the type that values much more subtle details like structural details) and that detailed roleplay is inherently better.

2. People who value community and people who are in roleplay for reasons other than having fun --> "Wait, what about people who don't value the things you listed?", you may ask. Well, the thing is that these aren't exclusive. You can, for instance, value community over anything else and still have a casual mindset. This happens because at the moment of roleplay you need to have an approach, and unless I'm completely wrong on the subject, it will fall under the simple, casual or detailed approach.

3.Changing your level of detail --> If you want to change how you do detail, it is important that you learn the values of the other kinds of detail. A casual roleplayer aiming to transition to detail will need to learn to savor the flavor of descriptions and internal monologue, giving more emphasis on to the significance of how things are written rather than just that they are.

4.Pacing and length --> while there isn't a necessary association between a certain mindset and a certain length, it most commonly found. After all, detailed mindsets make you value the extra details more, making you more inclined to include and expect them, and in turn that means expecting more length. Length is, for a lot of people, not an end in itself, but a sign that the content has what you want to get from it. As for pacing, everyone wants quality posts, regardless of what length they may also be expecting. This means that detailed mindsets tend to be more willing to wait for posts, whereas simple mindsets will be more inclined to set aside a period when both players are free and just roleplay with each other for a period and then stop and schedule another time (so, instant responses pretty much).



And well, that's all I have to say. As mentioned previously, the point here isn't to convince people or start an argument, feel free to take this idea or not as you find best. In any case, I hope you at least enjoyed reading. Best of luck and happy RPing!
 
Nice explanation. I think most of this is on point.

What do you think about the relation between these spectrum and the type of character they can roleplay best? I think romance will be greatly benefitted by detailed roleplay, since you can delve into your love interest's mind.

One of my friend love romance roleplay and she pretty much write telenovela for each post with lots of inner monologue and purple prose in her narrative. I always daunted by the length of her post XD
 
Nice explanation. I think most of this is on point.

What do you think about the relation between these spectrum and the type of character they can roleplay best? I think romance will be greatly benefitted by detailed roleplay, since you can delve into your love interest's mind.

One of my friend love romance roleplay and she pretty much write telenovela for each post with lots of inner monologue and purple prose in her narrative. I always daunted by the length of her post XD

I don't think romance has any correlation to the above to be honest or at least not in the sense that one type is "better" at romance than the others. Romance is really just escapism and each of the types listed do escapism in their own specific ways. And you can write a romance using all of them.

You can do a detailed story where you really flesh out the characters relationships. You can set out to hit specific rom/com story beats. Or you can just jump in feet first and write the characters love story on the fly.
 
Nice explanation. I think most of this is on point.
Thanks! <3

What do you think about the relation between these spectrum and the type of character they can roleplay best?
Judging by what you said after, I believe you meant "genre" not "type of character", but I'll answer both just in case.

First its important to be aware that what is "best" is different for each type of mindset. The whole distinction of the mindsets is based on the fact they value different things after all. To take the romance genre for instance, to a simple mindset a good romance could just be a shipping/pairing. So long as the characters get to do romantic-y things with each other, and there is a bare minimum chemistry between them, that is probably enough. A casual roleplayer is going to be far more interested in the development of the relationship and in how it accompanies the plot or character development. For the casual roleplayer the important thing is making sure things are neither being rushed nor dragging too long, and to get to see the characters grow closer and progress in their relationship in a real fashion at their own pace. A detailed mindset looks into building up to very romantic scenes, to create the situation that highlight the character dynamics and place their relationship in relation to the plot and the charaacter's own goals, to explore the meaning and feelings and oddities of the relationship, the structure and nature of the romance and so on... And this is not even accounting for personal preferences in genres which might fall outside of the limited world of the simple/casual/detailed spectrum.

Now with that said, I do believe there are genres which are better fits for particular ends of the spectrum.

Mystery, historical and scifi are genres which definitely work better in a detailed mindset. Mystery works best when there is an actual mystery to solve and the clues aren't being laid out at random, but carefully planted with events setting up a reveal that is as Brandon Sanderson puts it "surprising but inevitable", plot twists you might not have guessed until the very last moment, but which were in hindsight there all along. Detailed mindsets excel at this kind of set up do to being more used to thinking of a broader range of details and creating long-term content in the moment. Historical and scifi both share the huge importance on specific tinier aspects of the setting (something which they share with fantasy as well, but often fantasy is more of a pass to do certain things so there isn't as much of a necessary focus) and detailing how their societies work and differences between that and ours etc... So for them, a mindset which really appreciates these details works best.

Casual is home to adventure, thrillers, colloseum and all kinds of plots which are linear or just involve a lot of action. These are genres which aren't totally devoid of thought, but their main focus is how things are always moving, and always have to be moving, and if someone wants to push movement they always known where to push to get that movement. Even stalling creates conflict and danger for the characters, which is in fact more action from a narrative perspective. Colloseum roleplays in particular are great for casual RP because a lot of the posts there are pretty back and forth and always focused on the main action (fighting), so you generally want to focus on the essential, which is exactly what a casual mindset wants.

Genres which don't need a lot of plot, like slice of life, and sandbox RPs in particular, benefit from being in simple roleplays. You just want to play the characters and see them interact, so a whole genre about the character interacting in their daily lives is pretty fitting for a simple mindset. Sandbox RPs are entirely based on how much freedoom they allow, which makes simple's carefree attitude perfect for them.

This isn't to say, however, that any of these genres can't be roleplayed well in another type of RP or by another type of RPer. While the nature of some genres makes them generally work better with this or that mindset, each mindset has their own take on each genre. For instance, while I am an uber-detailed roleplayer, I love slice of life, because I enjoy the more light-hearted and comedic plots that can come from that, and because it allows me to focus on exploring the characters and their dynamics, as well as showcase worldbuilding by exploring life in the setting the slice of life RP takes place in.

Talking specifically about romance, the heart of romance is pacing and characters. Gun to my head, I might say maybe casual is slightly more fitting for it, but my general belief is that both casual and detailed average about the same when it comes to reaching that, just through very different means, and simple doesn't really care to try. Simple is more concerned with just getting a shipping there, and as far as that goes it can be pretty organic, the most organic of all mindsets. Casual is organic, but where it is king is in pacing, because well-done casual doesn't drop on continually pushing the plot and characters, nor in progressing the relationship, so there is always a feeling that things are going somewhere and seeing the characters grow closer can be quite endearing in that way. Detailed excels in creating relationships that in the big scheme of things are more forced than other ones, but it is a really good mindset for not only exploring all the dynamics of a given relationship, but also to create satisfying really big romantic moments, as it bothers to subtly build them up patiently waiting for the pay-off.

Which guess goes to back to, what matters to you most when it comes to the romance.


Now talking about characters, these have even less to do with the mindsets, and moreso to do with the players. I struggle to really think of a lot of character types that follow one type better than others (I guess characters that are very introspective and the brooding silent type is probably best pulled off by detailed roleplayers, but that's not exactly a lot).

When it comes to character this mindset is still important. Not in choosing what character to play directly, but in determing what your methods properly are. Take a character that is an extreme narcicist for instance. A casual mindset focuses more on actions and dialogue, and in direct contribution to the narrative. Their method for playing a narcicist will then probably be to have them be someone who shoves themselves into every conversation and tends to make topics about themselves, someone who is very loud and expressive in words and mannerisms alike. A detailed roleplayer on the other hand will probably focus more on showing their perspective, using internal monologue to show how the character warps their view of the world and carefully choosing actions that most predominantly showcase what they want to, or which are the consequence of that warping of the characters thoughts. They'll show the character struggling with reconciling reality and their narcicism, and possibly even little subtle hints of cracks in that shell through specific writing tricks or little moments.

Of course, this is generally assuming that you CAN do these things. When it comes to choosing what characters you roleplay you have to first and foremost think of what interests you, but also what you can actually sustain playing. Don't go for the loner if you aren't adept at writing solo scenes. Don't picks flaws you can't keep them up when they hurt.


That's all, hope it answers your question :)
 
I've never thought about this, er, convention before that much—it's always been just writing for me I think, write a bit here and there, over, under, front to rear, side by side etc, maybe experiment and practice a new style. Catharsis, I guess.

Anyhow, good to get the know-how on such matters.
 
I've never thought about this, er, convention before that much—it's always been just writing for me I think, write a bit here and there, over, under, front to rear, side by side etc, maybe experiment and practice a new style. Catharsis, I guess.

Anyhow, good to get the know-how on such matters.
Well, its not particularly a "convention" (I guess simple, casual and detailed is, but the mindsets about those are entirely my own observation/ideas), I'm just explaining what I mean when I bring this kind of stuff up and trying to give a bit of insight into what I'm talking about.
 
Well, its not particularly a "convention" (I guess simple, casual and detailed is, but the mindsets about those are entirely my own observation/ideas), I'm just explaining what I mean when I bring this kind of stuff up and trying to give a bit of insight into what I'm talking about.

Oh, I just mean that I keep seeing those descriptors quite often in interest checks. It can be rather trippy sometimes.
 
Oh, I just mean that I keep seeing those descriptors quite often in interest checks. It can be rather trippy sometimes.
Ah, yes, but I wouldn't pay those much mind if I were you. Often they don't reflect what the roleplay is actually like. For a more accurate measure, I recommend the post requirements.
 
Thanks...Learnt a lot... Good stuffs for newbie like me. I am pretty much a "Simple" category, yearning to be more.
 
Thanks...Learnt a lot... Good stuffs for newbie like me. I am pretty much a "Simple" category, yearning to be more.
You're welcome :)

Nothing wrong with the simple category, it's just a particular style/preference/mindset. Of course, if you want to move to casual or even detailed, you can, with the understanding that neither is necessarily better.
 
You're welcome :)

Nothing wrong with the simple category, it's just a particular style/preference/mindset. Of course, if you want to move to casual or even detailed, you can, with the understanding that neither is necessarily better.
Got it...Loud and clear
 
Idea Idea I'm a good couple months late to this convo but this was very interesting to read. I've seen a mixed variety of stuff from these three mindsets on my own time in rpn, specially when I first joined and started rping here. Gotta say, really liked the thought you put into this
 
Idea Idea I'm a good couple months late to this convo but this was very interesting to read. I've seen a mixed variety of stuff from these three mindsets on my own time in rpn, specially when I first joined and started rping here. Gotta say, really liked the thought you put into this
Thank you very much :D

I myself started out as a simple RPer when I first joined, I just wanted to hop right into it, wouldn't mind getting a one liner, and so on... Over time I grew to understand my own preferences better, what style most suits how I want to not just tell but experience the story of the roleplay, which I would say falls on the very detailed category right about now.

That said, the concept is a spectrum. Most if not all people have some trace elements of each, however they definitely lean more towards one than the others.
 
This is really a very interesting analysis, and I have to say that I agree with your observations about these three mindsets and how they experience roleplaying in vastly different ways. I think that if I had to say, I fall more in line with the casual mindset, as for me it's all about the characters and the plot. I like to explore what's happening in the roleplay, I like to make a good plot and just see how the characters react to one another, how they interact and see how the plot develops from there. My post length tends to average 2-4 paragraphs when I'm in control of the post length, so that does sound like me as well.

I must say that I've encountered roleplay partners from all three mindsets, and in different ways I've learned to enjoy the roleplaying style of all three of them. I've roleplayed with people that have a simple mindset, and learned to appreciate the simple fast-paced one-liner back and forth that comes with that type of mindset. In fact one of my best roleplay partners on this site has a simple mindset, and we've been roleplaying for months now! Of course, it does help a bit that I provide a bit more of plot and character development, but not too much as to make things too heavy on my roleplay partner.

I've also roleplayed with a few people of the detailed mindset. And while at times I do struggle a bit when posts go beyond 10 paragraphs or more, I've learned to mirror their posts while providing consistent quality and detail, and so far none of them has ever complained that my posts aren't detailed enough or that I'm writing them wrong. I know of other roleplay partners I have who have a hard time writing that amount without stretching out their shorter replies, and instead of delivering the amount of detail that makes a detailed mindset roleplayer be fully immersed in the world of the roleplay, they end up just repeating things over and over again and not adding anything of value that would help to feel the ambient and atmosphere of the roleplay. I struggled a lot with it at first myself, but I eventually learned to write detailed posts with the quality and immersion necessary to please most detailed roleplayers as well.

But while I can definitely enjoy a fast-paced one-liner back and forth with simple mindset roleplayers, and I can take the time and effort to paint and craft a well-written post that fits in line with a detailed roleplayer's mindset and preferences, at the end of the day I feel most at home playing with other roleplayers that have a casual mindset. The plot development, the characters interacting with each other, that's what really captivates my attention for the most part. I like to write a good plot, explore how characters interact with one another, and overall create an exciting story that I'm passionate about.

I'm glad that over time I've learned to adjust to the preferences and interests of all three mindsets, as you really experience the roleplay in a very different way which each of these three groups. You don't get the same experience with a simple mindset roleplayer as you do with a casual mindset roleplayer, and neither of them provide the same experience as a detailed mindset roleplayer, and it's interesting how even the same base plot and setting can be experienced in a drastically different way simply because of the roleplayer mindset you roleplay with. I've really had a lot of fun and enriching experiences with roleplayers of all three types of mindsets. And while I still prefer the casual mindset myself, it's really been interesting to explore how different roleplayers experience roleplaying through their different mindsets. There's something unique to each of the three mindsets, and I'm glad I've had the chance to try and appreciate the different roleplaying styles of each mindset.
 
This is a great post, just wanted to say that. I think I myself would fit into the casual-detailed spectrum, although I sometimes yearn for a more quick-paced, simple mindset in a roleplay. I believe that a roleplay can have different moments where these 'mindsets' take turns and play a part in the roleplay. Like a pendulum, you could say. Depending on the scenes one's roleplaying, maybe.
 
This is a great post, just wanted to say that. I think I myself would fit into the casual-detailed spectrum, although I sometimes yearn for a more quick-paced, simple mindset in a roleplay. I believe that a roleplay can have different moments where these 'mindsets' take turns and play a part in the roleplay. Like a pendulum, you could say. Depending on the scenes one's roleplaying, maybe.

I think I would probably classify you as casual in this case. You're right, players do swing slightly more towards one angle or the other at times, however I believe its at the very least more productive what someone naturally is rather than what circumstances would call of them. For instance, almost every casual roleplayer I ever met would of course willingly take time for a long description if they were introducing a new important character, take some time for the scenery, etc... However they wouldn't sustain this kind of writing except in those kinds of circumstances. Likewise many of them advocate short snippy posts during many action sequences or everyday dialogue which is more naturally back and forth.

You tend to see this kind of switch at times when a person is particularly passionate or particularly lacking in passion on a specific topic. Hype can help for that effect as well. When a person is engaged on a topic they are really invested in, they usually can talk about it endlessly even if regularly they would give short distant answers.

However, a detailed roleplayer will still tend to be a lot more descriptive and focus on more environmental details than a simple roleplay even in those everyday dialogue scenes. A casual roleplayer will still tend to focus more on the details of the description relevant to the plot, as opposed to for instance, go into details intended to create an air of some sort or which revealed worldbuilding details.

All tendencies of course, not necessities, but I believe at the core if what the person values doesn't change, then their method doesn't fundamentally change either- much less what they like. If you want to measure the temperature of water, and you throw boiling water right before you measure, you at the very least need to account for that distortion. Likewise, the distortion circumstances cause needs to be accounted for before we can say whether they affect the classification.
 
Wow the simple description fits me perfectly and its hard to find roleplays since Im so used to one-liners and the occasional 2 or more sentences
 
Wow the simple description fits me perfectly and its hard to find roleplays since Im so used to one-liners and the occasional 2 or more sentences

Earlier today BlackLynx BlackLynx made a thread in which they said they felt, quote: "I just want to know if I "belong" here, because most people seem more advanced than me". So maybe you could talk to each other? Who knows, maybe you'll be compatible (though of course, there's a lot more to that than just one's degree of detail, but ya never know...).

Regardless, no worries. There's a big number of simple-style roleplayers out there, in fact some roleplays thrived on being able to quickly replace them.
 

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