Post by Reagan on Sept 10, 2013 11:08:50 GMT -8
Shelby's Guide to Better Roleplaying
Hey there members! I realized since the board welcomes role-players of all levels and experience it might be a good idea to create a list of simple tips and tricks for anyone hoping to improve. None of these are rules just easy techniques that can help take your writing to the next level.
1. Proof read before you post.
This probably sounds redundant but it's a vital part of good writing that's often forgotten. Proof reading is necessary in finding and exhilarating small mistakes that may throw off readers trying to reply to your post. Of course this does not mean you shouldn't make stylized mistakes that may better portray your character's inner self or state of mind. But for example look how in the second sentence the word "exhilarating" appears wrong and out of place and your brain pauses at the word. That's because I should have written "eliminating". This is why role-players should always proofread. Proofreading is also not limited to typos alone. When handling word choice try to avoid using the same ones in consecutive sentences or too close together as it can be redundant. For example "The cat curled into a tight ball in her lap. Where he laid in her lap she could feel the heat emanating from his body" flows more smoothly written as "The cat curled into a ball in her lap. Where he laid on her legs she could feel the heat emanating from his body".
2. Stick to one tense.
There is no standard tense for IHU however you should stick to whatever one you chose for the length of the thread, obvious exceptions made if you are including different tenses on purpose like for example if you are writing in present tense and use past tense for a flashback. But just like misspellings switching back and forth between present and past tense can be jarring. Future tense is discouraged for the most part as it can be very difficult to read.
3. Stay in character.
This can be difficult especially for new role-players. The urge to self insert and place yourself into your character's shoes can be a hard one to fight. I mean, isn't easier to just imagine what you would do? But unless your character is a reflection of your own personality take the time to stop and think how someone with their history and personality might react in that situation. For example when facing a demon not every person would immediately attack it. So if you introduce your character as a pacifist or any other personality type remember to stick with it in order to create a consistent, believable character. You can check how you're doing while proofreading. Maybe open your character's profile in a separate window and check to see if their response to the particular situation is accurate to how you originally planned them.
4. Post length reciprocation.
Now this is a highly controversial issues on a lot of boards. Often word counts and minimums are imposed to create uniform and equal post lengths, however here at IHU we do not have any such rules. Players are welcome to post whatever length they are comfortable and capable of doing. However it is highly recommended that when posting with players of different level or style that you try to reciprocate at or near the same number of words. Of course there are situations for example where a player may post five hundred words and three hundred of them are scenery. It would be perfectly understandable to reply to a post like that with only two hundred words as long as they matched in amount of story moving material. Even if you can't match in length we recommend you try to push yourself. Look at your previous posts and try to find your average. Even if you're only at a fifty word average and posting with someone who is at a three hundred word average if you can get yourself up to a seventy five word average that is improvement and that is wonderful.
5. Show don't tell.
This is probably one of the most helpful tips for creative writers. When posting try to paint an image that can be interpreted instead of simply telling your reader what's what. For example "'I hate demons,' she said angrily." does not convey the same image as "Her eyes narrowed dangerously at the black eyed monstrosity in front of her. Her lips curled back into an irritated sneer as she touched her fingertips to the blade at her hip. 'I hate demons,' she growled." Want to improve this technique but don't know where to start? Look for keywords in your post such as angry, happy, sad, frustrated and replace them when sentences describing the way your character looks at that moment. You find you can describe them as grinning to portray happiness or scowling to portray anger and maybe describe tears welling up in the eyes to describe sadness.
6. Proper post dressing etiquette.
While "dressing up" a post is completely optional, if you do decide to modify the text in any way please understand that we have multiple skins and while the color of your text may look wonderful in one skin it may be unreadable in another. Checking to make sure of compatibility with multiple skins is something I highly recommend.
Feel free to message me if you have any questions or need any help.
