Post by NPC on Oct 21, 2009 11:11:03 GMT -5
Buckle up, kiddies! It’s time for a little lesson in Posting.
Posting Length
This isn’t an uncommon problem. Most of us experience that thorn in any RPer’s side, Writer’s Block and sometimes we have one of those days where we just can’t make it past the 300 characters needed to post. It’s okay.
Here are some things to think about:
Let’s say my character John is waiting for a bus.
What does my character look like?
This is a given. All that’s needed is a few details like what they are wearing, the color of their hair, etc.
John was wearing a business suit and his blonde hair was messed.
What is my character doing? Where are they?
Every character needs to be doing something, whether it’s running, crying, or standing in a dark alley. They also need a place to do this. We can’t have our characters floating around somewhere in space, can we?
John was sitting on a bench in his business suit trying to comb down his messy blonde hair. He was waiting for the bus to arrive. He hoped he wasn’t wrinkling his suit, so he decided to stand. He looked at his watch. He decided to run to his destination.
What is my character feeling?
Everyone has emotions, so tell us what your characters feel!
John was nervous and anxious as he sat on bench. He was running a comb through his messy blonde hair and hoping he wasn’t wrinkling his business suit by sitting for too long. He decided to stand. He looked at his watch. He decided to run to his destination.
Why does my character feel that way?
Tell us why your character feels these particular emotions. It’s good to take into account the past when talking about emotions.
John sat nervously on a bench. He really needed to be on time for this job interview. The last time he went to an interview for this company he lost track of time and missed it. He was behind on the bills and his landlord wanted this month’s rent. Everything was riding on if he was able to get this job. He ran a comb through his messy hair and stood from the bench as to not wrinkle his business suit. He hoped the bus would come soon. He looked at his watch. The bus was late. He decided to run to his job interview.
Add describing words!
Adjectives and Adverbs are your friends! They paint a vivid picture to your readers and make your posts nice and descriptive. A lot of RPers skip this stage and go on to adding thoughts and speech. Some things to take into account are the scenery, nearby pedestrians, or the weather.
An anxious and jittery John sat nervously on a bench beside the bus stop with the hot sun bearing down on him. The teenage boy sitting next to him eyed him strangely as if he thought John had too many carbonated beverages with his lunch. John tried to calm himself, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of the traffic in front of him. It was bumper to bumper today and he feared that he would be late for his job interview, which would be the last thing he needed. He had already blown this interview once.
Three weeks ago, John had this very same interview with the same company Telecorp, a company which was the head of telecommunications for Southeastern New Hampshire. He had typed up a very descriptive resume which he was going to present to Mr. Bossman, the CEO of TeleCorp. He knew that his resume, which did the perfect amount of bragging, would get him a well-paying job. Unfortunately for John, his rodent-infested apartment was home to an extremely ravenous horde of mice, which went on to gnaw through the cord of his alarm clock. When John awoke, he was three hours late for his interview and he knew that there was no way he was going to be able to force himself into the conference room. He was sure that two security guards would throw him onto the asphalt in an alley behind the building if he attempted such a stunt. He swiftly called Mr. Bossman, who after much cajoling gave him a second chance to present his resume.
Everything was riding on the fact that John got this job. His refrigerator was barren of any and all food, the water and electric companies were threatening to shut of his power and water, and his landlord was hounding him for this month’s rent. John touched the top of his head and realized just how disheveled his hair was. He had done everything that morning. He had steamed and pressed his best suit. He had shaven successfully without nicking himself. He had set the Olympic record for the shortest shower ever taken. His breath was so minty fresh anyone within a three-foot radius could smell peppermint. But he had forgotten to comb his hair. He hastily reached into his briefcase, which was sitting on the ground by his feet, and pulled out a black comb. He prayed that today his hair would do as he asked it to. After a few quick swipes, his hair was laying flat against his head. He returned his comb to his briefcase.
John then realized that he was wrinkling his business suit and quickly stood from the bench. An elderly woman in a taxi directly in front of him yelped, as if she thought he was a mugger who had suddenly decided that she was the perfect candidate for a robbery. John muttered an apology to the woman and looked at his watch. The bus was five minutes late! He spent a moment weighing the pros and cons of waiting for the bus or hightailing it to TeleCorp, but he ultimately decided to run to his interview. He hoped that Mr. Bossman would not be upset with him if he was just a few minutes late for this interview.
Add your character’s thoughts and speech.
Even the most timid of characters speak from time to time, and even if they are mimes, they still have thoughts. Tell us what they are!
“Come on, come on!” An anxious and jittery John mumbled to himself as he sat nervously on a bench beside the bus stop. The sun was bearing down on him and causing him to sweat. The teenage boy sitting next to him eyed him strangely as if he thought John had too many carbonated beverages with his lunch. “Sorry,” John said to the teenager, “I’m late for a meeting.” The teenager rolled his eyes and placed the ear buds of his iPod into his ears to drown out John’s incessant muttering. John tried to calm himself, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of the traffic in front of him. It was bumper to bumper today and he feared that he would be late for his job interview, which would be the last thing he needed. He had already blown this interview once.
Three weeks ago, John had this very same interview with Telecorp, a company which was the head of telecommunications for Southeastern New Hampshire. He had typed up a very descriptive resume which he was going to present to Mr. Bossman, the CEO of TeleCorp. He knew that his resume, which did the perfect amount of bragging, would get him a well-paying job. Unfortunately for John, his rodent-infested apartment was home to an extremely ravenous horde of mice, which went on to gnaw through the cord of his alarm clock. When John awoke, he was three hours late for his interview and he knew that there was no way he was going to be able to force himself into the conference room. He was sure that two security guards would throw him onto the asphalt in an alley behind the building if he attempted such a stunt. He swiftly called Mr. Bossman, who after much cajoling gave him a second chance to present his resume.
Everything was riding on the fact that John got this job. His refrigerator was barren of any and all food, the water and electric companies were threatening to shut of his power and water, and his landlord was hounding him for this month’s rent. John touched the top of his head and realized just how disheveled his hair was. Crud! How’d I forget to do something as important as combing my hair? I thought I did everything this morning! I steamed and pressed my best suit. I shaved successfully without nicking myself. I set the Olympic record for the shortest shower ever taken. My breath is so minty fresh anyone within a three-foot radius can smell peppermint. But I forgot to comb my hair! He hastily reached into his briefcase, which was sitting on the ground by his feet, and pulled out a black comb. He prayed that today his hair would do as he asked it to. After a few quick swipes, his hair was laying flat against his head. He returned his comb to his briefcase.
“Oh my!” John exclaimed as he realized he was wrinkling his business suit and quickly stood from the bench. An elderly woman in a taxi directly in front of him yelped, as if she thought he was a mugger who had suddenly decided that she was the perfect candidate for a robbery. “I’m sorry, Ma’am,” John muttered in apology to the woman and looked at his watch. The bus was five minutes late! He spent a moment weighing the pros and cons of waiting for the bus or hightailing it to TeleCorp, but he ultimately decided to run to his interview. He hoped that Mr. Bossman would not be upset with him if he was just a few minutes late for this interview. Mr. Bossman, here I come!
I know that everyone is going to fell the wrath of that devilish condition known as Writer’s Block, but hopefully this will help you to make it through those times.
Bold and Italics
Be sure you embolden and italicize the correct words to add emphasis or to create less clutter. Many people bold things like quotes and italicize thoughts. Some even color their character’s speech. This is ultimately up to the writer; the only thing I ask is that you are consistent.
Posting Etiquette
In an ideal world, everyone would be able to be on at the same to RP, but this isn’t so. Keep in mind that other people want to RP as well. Have patience! Stick to a posting order such as:
Mary.
Kyle.
Bob.
Paula.
Mary.
Kyle.
Bob.
Paula.
Mary.
Kyle.
Etc.
Other Things to Remember
This RP is in third person.
Incorrect:
I skipped down the road.
Correct:
Ashley skipped down the road.
This RP is in past tense.
Incorrect:
Bailey walks into the room.
Correct:
Bailey walked into the room.
This RP is not a Chatbox. Stay away from Chatspeak.
Incorrect:
*kissed Georgette on the cheek.*
Correct:
Steven kissed Georgette on the cheek.
Spell check is your friend!
No one wants to read posts filled with misspellings or grammatical errors. It doesn’t take that long and it can make your posts so much better!
Breaking the Monotony
If you don’t think you have a great vocabulary, there is a wonderful invention called a Thesaurus that gives you synonyms for words. It gets monotonous reading “said” each time a character speaks. Use words like mumbled, shouted, groaned, thought, believed, suggested, or whispered. Microsoft Word Processor has such an application.
I hope that this helped some of you!
Happy RPing!
Posting Length
This isn’t an uncommon problem. Most of us experience that thorn in any RPer’s side, Writer’s Block and sometimes we have one of those days where we just can’t make it past the 300 characters needed to post. It’s okay.
Here are some things to think about:
Let’s say my character John is waiting for a bus.
What does my character look like?
This is a given. All that’s needed is a few details like what they are wearing, the color of their hair, etc.
John was wearing a business suit and his blonde hair was messed.
What is my character doing? Where are they?
Every character needs to be doing something, whether it’s running, crying, or standing in a dark alley. They also need a place to do this. We can’t have our characters floating around somewhere in space, can we?
John was sitting on a bench in his business suit trying to comb down his messy blonde hair. He was waiting for the bus to arrive. He hoped he wasn’t wrinkling his suit, so he decided to stand. He looked at his watch. He decided to run to his destination.
What is my character feeling?
Everyone has emotions, so tell us what your characters feel!
John was nervous and anxious as he sat on bench. He was running a comb through his messy blonde hair and hoping he wasn’t wrinkling his business suit by sitting for too long. He decided to stand. He looked at his watch. He decided to run to his destination.
Why does my character feel that way?
Tell us why your character feels these particular emotions. It’s good to take into account the past when talking about emotions.
John sat nervously on a bench. He really needed to be on time for this job interview. The last time he went to an interview for this company he lost track of time and missed it. He was behind on the bills and his landlord wanted this month’s rent. Everything was riding on if he was able to get this job. He ran a comb through his messy hair and stood from the bench as to not wrinkle his business suit. He hoped the bus would come soon. He looked at his watch. The bus was late. He decided to run to his job interview.
Add describing words!
Adjectives and Adverbs are your friends! They paint a vivid picture to your readers and make your posts nice and descriptive. A lot of RPers skip this stage and go on to adding thoughts and speech. Some things to take into account are the scenery, nearby pedestrians, or the weather.
An anxious and jittery John sat nervously on a bench beside the bus stop with the hot sun bearing down on him. The teenage boy sitting next to him eyed him strangely as if he thought John had too many carbonated beverages with his lunch. John tried to calm himself, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of the traffic in front of him. It was bumper to bumper today and he feared that he would be late for his job interview, which would be the last thing he needed. He had already blown this interview once.
Three weeks ago, John had this very same interview with the same company Telecorp, a company which was the head of telecommunications for Southeastern New Hampshire. He had typed up a very descriptive resume which he was going to present to Mr. Bossman, the CEO of TeleCorp. He knew that his resume, which did the perfect amount of bragging, would get him a well-paying job. Unfortunately for John, his rodent-infested apartment was home to an extremely ravenous horde of mice, which went on to gnaw through the cord of his alarm clock. When John awoke, he was three hours late for his interview and he knew that there was no way he was going to be able to force himself into the conference room. He was sure that two security guards would throw him onto the asphalt in an alley behind the building if he attempted such a stunt. He swiftly called Mr. Bossman, who after much cajoling gave him a second chance to present his resume.
Everything was riding on the fact that John got this job. His refrigerator was barren of any and all food, the water and electric companies were threatening to shut of his power and water, and his landlord was hounding him for this month’s rent. John touched the top of his head and realized just how disheveled his hair was. He had done everything that morning. He had steamed and pressed his best suit. He had shaven successfully without nicking himself. He had set the Olympic record for the shortest shower ever taken. His breath was so minty fresh anyone within a three-foot radius could smell peppermint. But he had forgotten to comb his hair. He hastily reached into his briefcase, which was sitting on the ground by his feet, and pulled out a black comb. He prayed that today his hair would do as he asked it to. After a few quick swipes, his hair was laying flat against his head. He returned his comb to his briefcase.
John then realized that he was wrinkling his business suit and quickly stood from the bench. An elderly woman in a taxi directly in front of him yelped, as if she thought he was a mugger who had suddenly decided that she was the perfect candidate for a robbery. John muttered an apology to the woman and looked at his watch. The bus was five minutes late! He spent a moment weighing the pros and cons of waiting for the bus or hightailing it to TeleCorp, but he ultimately decided to run to his interview. He hoped that Mr. Bossman would not be upset with him if he was just a few minutes late for this interview.
Add your character’s thoughts and speech.
Even the most timid of characters speak from time to time, and even if they are mimes, they still have thoughts. Tell us what they are!
“Come on, come on!” An anxious and jittery John mumbled to himself as he sat nervously on a bench beside the bus stop. The sun was bearing down on him and causing him to sweat. The teenage boy sitting next to him eyed him strangely as if he thought John had too many carbonated beverages with his lunch. “Sorry,” John said to the teenager, “I’m late for a meeting.” The teenager rolled his eyes and placed the ear buds of his iPod into his ears to drown out John’s incessant muttering. John tried to calm himself, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of the traffic in front of him. It was bumper to bumper today and he feared that he would be late for his job interview, which would be the last thing he needed. He had already blown this interview once.
Three weeks ago, John had this very same interview with Telecorp, a company which was the head of telecommunications for Southeastern New Hampshire. He had typed up a very descriptive resume which he was going to present to Mr. Bossman, the CEO of TeleCorp. He knew that his resume, which did the perfect amount of bragging, would get him a well-paying job. Unfortunately for John, his rodent-infested apartment was home to an extremely ravenous horde of mice, which went on to gnaw through the cord of his alarm clock. When John awoke, he was three hours late for his interview and he knew that there was no way he was going to be able to force himself into the conference room. He was sure that two security guards would throw him onto the asphalt in an alley behind the building if he attempted such a stunt. He swiftly called Mr. Bossman, who after much cajoling gave him a second chance to present his resume.
Everything was riding on the fact that John got this job. His refrigerator was barren of any and all food, the water and electric companies were threatening to shut of his power and water, and his landlord was hounding him for this month’s rent. John touched the top of his head and realized just how disheveled his hair was. Crud! How’d I forget to do something as important as combing my hair? I thought I did everything this morning! I steamed and pressed my best suit. I shaved successfully without nicking myself. I set the Olympic record for the shortest shower ever taken. My breath is so minty fresh anyone within a three-foot radius can smell peppermint. But I forgot to comb my hair! He hastily reached into his briefcase, which was sitting on the ground by his feet, and pulled out a black comb. He prayed that today his hair would do as he asked it to. After a few quick swipes, his hair was laying flat against his head. He returned his comb to his briefcase.
“Oh my!” John exclaimed as he realized he was wrinkling his business suit and quickly stood from the bench. An elderly woman in a taxi directly in front of him yelped, as if she thought he was a mugger who had suddenly decided that she was the perfect candidate for a robbery. “I’m sorry, Ma’am,” John muttered in apology to the woman and looked at his watch. The bus was five minutes late! He spent a moment weighing the pros and cons of waiting for the bus or hightailing it to TeleCorp, but he ultimately decided to run to his interview. He hoped that Mr. Bossman would not be upset with him if he was just a few minutes late for this interview. Mr. Bossman, here I come!
I know that everyone is going to fell the wrath of that devilish condition known as Writer’s Block, but hopefully this will help you to make it through those times.
Bold and Italics
Be sure you embolden and italicize the correct words to add emphasis or to create less clutter. Many people bold things like quotes and italicize thoughts. Some even color their character’s speech. This is ultimately up to the writer; the only thing I ask is that you are consistent.
Posting Etiquette
In an ideal world, everyone would be able to be on at the same to RP, but this isn’t so. Keep in mind that other people want to RP as well. Have patience! Stick to a posting order such as:
Mary.
Kyle.
Bob.
Paula.
Mary.
Kyle.
Bob.
Paula.
Mary.
Kyle.
Etc.
Other Things to Remember
This RP is in third person.
Incorrect:
I skipped down the road.
Correct:
Ashley skipped down the road.
This RP is in past tense.
Incorrect:
Bailey walks into the room.
Correct:
Bailey walked into the room.
This RP is not a Chatbox. Stay away from Chatspeak.
Incorrect:
*kissed Georgette on the cheek.*
Correct:
Steven kissed Georgette on the cheek.
Spell check is your friend!
No one wants to read posts filled with misspellings or grammatical errors. It doesn’t take that long and it can make your posts so much better!
Breaking the Monotony
If you don’t think you have a great vocabulary, there is a wonderful invention called a Thesaurus that gives you synonyms for words. It gets monotonous reading “said” each time a character speaks. Use words like mumbled, shouted, groaned, thought, believed, suggested, or whispered. Microsoft Word Processor has such an application.
I hope that this helped some of you!
Happy RPing!