Helpful Hints for RPing better., Just some advice, if you want it.

By looking at the title, you make think that I'm pointing fingers at members, saying "Your RPing stinks; here's what you should do." That is NOT what I'm doing here. I actually have been asked by a few members for any help on how to improve their posts, so I decided to make a topic. Even experienced RPers, myself included, could gain something from this. I noticed that, within the last couple of days I've been formulating this post, I've work harder to practice what I preach. So, here goes.

So, you want to RP better, do ya?

Unlike what you may think, being a good RPer isn't that hard. It does take a bit more time and effort, as opposed to quickly typing out one-liners. Though one-liners should be dissuaded from being used, I have, in some cases, quickly tossed one out, just to try to move things along. However, if you have the time and want to shine, then you should put some effort into your posts.

From my analysis, there are two major ways to make improvements on posts: Clarity and Description. I will cover each of these topics here, starting with the first one.

Clarity

The first, and probably most important, step to having a good post is for it to be understood by the other members. If you have trouble sending your point across, then it will be hard to RP better, since no one can understand you. The first things that come to mind in this are grammar and spelling. While I'm not saying that your grammar and spelling should be perfect everytime, a majority of your posts should have good grammar and spelling. This allows others to be able to read your post faster, and respond more quickly, as opposed to taking time to have to figure out what you really meant. However, even with minor spelling errors and grammatical wrongness, the general gist can still be put across.

The next part is the use of pronouns. I've already had to moderate a argument on a post due to this, so this is important. The main problem is point-of-view; the writer knows exactly what he/she means, but the other members don't have that luxury. Let me give an example.

Zekk and Jay fought. He threw a rock at him, but he dodged and kicked him in the shin.

Now, to me, the writer, this could make 100% sense. However, I'm sure you're scratching your head, trying to figure out who threw the rock and who kicked who in the shin. This is the heart of the problem.

My general rule? If I am referring to two different people of the same gender in my post, I try to avoid using pronouns. If I do use pronouns, I use them for only one of the people. Even if it is just one person, or two people of opposite genders, I will use names after a couple of sentences to prevent repetition.

If you can, and you have the time to, try to get someone else to read your post before you post it. This will give you another point-of-view, allowing you to pick up mistakes before submitting it, since you are likely to overlook some since you know what you want to say.

Description

Now, a hypothetical question: I'm sure that you've read a friend's short story, or have seen fanfictions online. What is the difference between those pieces and the books you buy in stores? Besides one being published and charged for, I mean. The answer: the use of description. A good writer can expand a simple action into a few sentences. Let us make another example.

a ) As Zekk charged Jay, Jay attacked him.

Let us take the same action and modify it.

b ) Jay grimaced as he watched Zekk barrelling at him, but held his ground, twirling the chain in his right hand. As soon as Zekk was almost in range to strike, Jay threw his chain and scythe forward, hoping to take his foe by surprise with no time to react.

Now, which example was more interesting and informative? If you chose a, I will now go commit honorable seppuku, since I have failed you. However, if you chose b, you are right. Each example has the same general actions (Zekk charges Jay, Jay counters), but the second one paints a mental image, not only amusing other members who read it, but also assisting in giving others a clear image of what is occuring.

This, actually, goes hand in hand with clarity. Look back at example a. Jay's attack is ambigious. If this was a fight, the person in control of Zekk wouldn't know if Jay was throwing his scythe, creating an eruption from underground, or summoning a meteor to crush Zekk. Description helps others to get a good grasp on the situation, in order for their character to respond better.

However, as much as I advocate it, this is not Moby Dick (For those of you who haven't read the book, it is 700 pages long, and about 100 of those pages have action on them [and I mean any action: fighting, eating, walking]). There is a thing as too much description. However, I doubt that will be a problem on a fast-paced RP board such as this one.

So, next time you just have one action, try spicing it up a bit with a description. Sure, your character is sleeping. But do they just lay in one spot, looking like they've died? Do they toss and turn in their sleep? Do they snore, or speak aloud? Jazz it up!

Like I said before, I'm not pointing fingers at people, saying that their posts suck. I just want to help people out, to make it more enjoyable for everyone. I'm also not saying that you must do these things, or I will stalk you at night and harvest your soul. These are just suggestions, that have helped me out in the past and present, and I hope will help you too.

Good job, Zecaruis. That'll help everyone out. I know it's gonna help me, I need to be a little more descriptive...

yeh it is helping me and that would have been really annoying for you to write that but oh well. it helps

thanks its quite useful.

Yes, it will be very helpful. I also need to be more descriptive...

Another good thing to point out is about writing in general...back in highschool when I took a creative writing class, this was thrown out.. "Write how you talk." When writiting, especially for like stories and whatnot, don't try to put too much into it...if you do, it will be difficult for you unless you really talk and think like that. Don't go out of your way to throw in big words and elaborate ideas, keep it simple! X3 That way, not only will you be able to understand what you are writing, but more often, you will also have other people be able to understand it. When writing a story, and rping especially, the audience will be on the same level with you most likely, so don't try to one-up them. It's suppsod to be fun and if you try too hard and overdo it, it will just end up being frustrtaing and confusing. For writing, simple is best.

That's my 2 cents XD I think you did a good job on the hints ^^

I always write how I talk though. I'm teh type of person who get's things done short and simple without talking much.

All I mean is feel comfortable with the way you write. Most people don't really elaborate, but sometimes they have to. When writing a story, you're supposed to show the audience what's happening, not just telling them. It's more visual. So, all you do is think about if you were trying to explain to someone what was going on, even if they could see it, how would you do it?

For example instead of, "Bob was angry at his boss for getting fired." Try putting in just how he was showing anger or even why he was angry, "Bob's face turned beat red and his brows furrowed together. All of the rage he had kept inside was building up in his emotions about to explode. This was the last straw-his boss could tease him, taunt him, and even dock his pay, but fire him!? There was no way." See the difference? But, it's the same think, and the same writing style.

Decided to move this topic to the rules area, so it's easier to find.

This will help me, and everyone else, but I have a little tip that may be good.

People Who use :: it's a good idea of, organizing your post, or whatever it's for, but it could give you less EXP, I'm not saying that way sucks, I'm just saying you may get more EXP if you don't use that :: thing.

I can understand where Nanashi's coming from..but I'm not sure if that's the right way to handle it..

Now, honestly, I can't stand that format myself! It bears too much of a semblance to script format which to me is only good for script-based things like plays, movies, etc..and usally, those have more detail than a base script-format! A lot of times, the whole : usage docks from the details and takes a lot away from the action.

So, I do encourage you to try and do something about this..but honeslt,y I'm not sure how the best way to go about it would be! So...I'm not going to be much help here...(but like I said, I really am bothered by that format...it makes the charcters seem far too 2D...)