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Forums » Introductions » Hi there, could do with some writing advice/help.

Hi there, I'm a pretty experienced RPer, as I've been doing it since early 2012 (as far as I can remember anyway). I started on Twitter. Way back when that community basically wasn't even formed, and you could pretty much get along with most people and write with 90% of people there.

So I spent years on there, and about six months to a year on the Immortal Night chat RP before leaving and going back to Twitter. I remember when I first started RPing muse was so so easy to have, I had a lot of ideas and although my writing wasn't really any good I had a hell of a lot of fun and enjoyment out of it. People were mostly friendly in the Twitter community and you could just jump into something and go along with it. Improvisation I guess you'd call it.

Long story short, I'm now quite a lot older and I barely have any muse. I always want to write because I'm in a constant state of boredom and I still get relatively creative ideas but I struggle to execute them well. I think it's important to note that the Twitter RP community is in a really poor state now too.

Most people's characters don't seem very interesting to me and so I don't really follow a lot of people on there. Twitters RP community suffers from a lot of things. A big flaw is people don't really openly interact with eachother anymore and it's been like that from around 2014 or 15 or maybe earlier. It's really strange, and I think that's heavily due to the community getting more trend driven and less creative in general.

Some people have great character concepts but their writing styles can be very plain, and lack a lot of description. The character cap doesn't help but people used to bang out chunky paragraphs even before the character limit was expanded. It just doesn't feel like there's a really big push for great storylines anymore. People don't talk to you or some people will straight up ignore your tweets or starters (even if they've asked for them).

Right now the atmosphere on there is really depressing, and the only people who get a lot of interactions on there are lewd accounts and people with nicely dressed up profiles, fancy fonts and lots of pictures.

Anyway. I feel as if because I've been around this type of community for so long— not only my muse has suffered but my writing style too.
I feel extremely stuck in a rut with my writing style and it frustrates me to no end. I feel like it's extremely dry and boring, but at the same time I don't like writing "poetically". I do try to put description in my writing but I honestly struggle to. As with Twitter nobody really cares about that anymore, and it used to be all the rage on there in around 2014.


So, do you fellow Role Players have any advice, any experience or wisdom you could share? I would really appreciate it. I'm done with Twitter, I have only used that as a platform because it's what I'm experienced with the most and that I have a few friends there.
I don't want to seem like I'm just putting the community down, but I thought I should at least give some context as to where I've come from.

Oh. And I mostly do like fiction RPs with vampires and all that kind of stuff. I've done if for a long time...
Hey, welcome to RPR!! I can't provide any helpful advice but I hope you find some soon oop <:^)
Welcome. The community here is more supportive than it sounds like your last community was. I don't know how to rekindle your muse (I have the same issue), but I've noticed that writing with a variety of people who have a variety of styles can help. I've noticed that, although I'm a multi-para writer, some of the best plots have been forged with people who only write a paragraph or two. Then there are the other multi-para writers that I love and we've stuck with it through hiatuses (one of which I'm on). But yeah, the muse thing is an issue sometimes. Good luck and welcome!
Hello, welcome to the site! I hope you're settling in okay. If you have any questions, feel free to ask as there are a ton of friendly people around that are willing to help out with anything you may need.

As for finding a muse, or a desire to write, I've found that environment affects mine a lot. So when things are stressful or not in a good place, it's harder to write or come up with detailed characters. Maybe you will find a far more positive experience here? There are a lot of nice people on the site and so many creative ones too. I hope it helps.

Cheers to making new friends and finding lots of fun RPs!
Welcome to RPR! I honestly never would have thought of RP on Twitter, mostly because of that character cap. For me that would be endlessly frustrating lol

The best advice I can give to you is this, simply read your writing aloud to yourself. Or, Google Chrome offers a number of text to speech translators that can do it for you. I have found that many RPers do not read their writing back, but if it is boring to you, it is likely not very exciting to others either. Add more where you would want to hear more if your post were a book, or simply a story told by a friend. There are many ways to say 'the cow jumped over the moon' that doesn't have to be overly floral or poetic. Nor do they need to be overly descriptive to the point where all meaning tends to get muddied and lost. Too much can be your enemy, just as it can be in any art form. Knowing when and where to stop and having a clear end goal for the end of each post really helps IMO. Another trick is to think about who you are writing with, put yourself in their shoes, could you easily respond to the detail of the post if you had to respond to it? If not, add more until it would be easy to do so.

Most of all, if you aren't having fun writing your RP post, it's not worth writing. Don't force things! I often find many people (very much myself included) forget this is supposed to be fun and not something stressful.

Welcome again to RPR, I am sure you'll fit right in!
LakotaSiouxWarrior

There are a lot of experienced writers on here. Welcome to RPRepository.
AmberShades

Hey! Welcome To RPR! Hope You Have Fun, And I'm Sure You'll Find Plenty Of People To Rp With! :D Just Don't Stress About Writing Too Much! The Best Comes When You Don't Expect It! <3
I think everyone has struggled with their muse and style at some point or another. honestly, I am comfortable with how I write but still get jealous of other writers - how creative they are, the phrases and metaphors they use. but instead of focusing on how it makes me feel inadequate I take mental notes and think of how I can use those things to inspire my own writing.

the biggest thing of all, I think, is writing even when you don't feel like it. even if you type two words and you feel awful, just keep going. I've had times where I lost my muse and wanted to RP but struggled on an empty page, but when I put my nose to the grindstone and powered through it even though it felt crappy and awful I saw improvement. having something down in the first place is what matters, because then you can go back and edit it as many times as you want or need. literally today I was stuck on a post and I just kept rewriting paragraphs until I settled on something that felt right and in the end I was satisfied with the quality I ended up with.

you'll find that over time it will all come back to you, and each and every post you write will only be better than the last. and remember, a thesaurus is your friend! if you think something looks stale, look up a synonym and you'll find some creative words and phrases you could use to spice it up a little.

I hope that you have a great time here, and happy writing!
hello and WELCOME TO RPR!!<3<3
Sphynx236 Topic Starter

Thank you for taking the time to write this out for me, honestly. I really appreciate it. I felt like this thread would just get skipped and I didn't think it had been seen until just now.

I've had so many shitey experiences with Twitter people; dropping my RPs, making promises when I vented my frustrations and then never following up on them afterwards.

All in all the community there has really made my relationship with RP pretty strenuous and I've wanted to just put the nail in the coffin many times.
But, somehow I haven't and I hope that it changes. It means a lot to me that people like you have seen this and offered help. I hope my muse returns and that I can be rid of that site, haha. Thank you for the welcome, too. It means a lot.
Sphynx236 Topic Starter

khaellar wrote:
I think everyone has struggled with their muse and style at some point or another. honestly, I am comfortable with how I write but still get jealous of other writers - how creative they are, the phrases and metaphors they use. but instead of focusing on how it makes me feel inadequate I take mental notes and think of how I can use those things to inspire my own writing.

the biggest thing of all, I think, is writing even when you don't feel like it. even if you type two words and you feel awful, just keep going. I've had times where I lost my muse and wanted to RP but struggled on an empty page, but when I put my nose to the grindstone and powered through it even though it felt crappy and awful I saw improvement. having something down in the first place is what matters, because then you can go back and edit it as many times as you want or need. literally today I was stuck on a post and I just kept rewriting paragraphs until I settled on something that felt right and in the end I was satisfied with the quality I ended up with.

you'll find that over time it will all come back to you, and each and every post you write will only be better than the last. and remember, a thesaurus is your friend! if you think something looks stale, look up a synonym and you'll find some creative words and phrases you could use to spice it up a little.

I hope that you have a great time here, and happy writing!

The post I just made was in reply to this. Sorry I'm not familiar with how forums work in general.
Just be confident in yourself and take the time you need to think out a reply. There's no shame in looking up new words as well. What I do is I assess the situation and imagine it in my head, and how I'd react in that situation, and than I try to think about how my OC would react and what differences there are, I than stretch the scene out a little and read through it, removing unnecessary details, extra fluff and correcting grammatical errors. I play a few characters which are very contrary to my personality, such as cocky but ditzy rich girls and crafty, but unstable psycho's, so of course the way I'd react to a situation like, for example, my partner cheating on me would be different from someone who could have any man they want in the world, or the way a psychopath would react to it.

I find this form of assessment to be the most effective when I don't know what to do, it really helps me empathize with the current situation. Just know the community here is pretty relaxed and from the people I've met, they do their best to contribute to the cause. There are the exceptions (you people know who you are), but even with ghosters and people who slowly get more and more lazy with their replies instead of stating they just aren't interested anymore, the community still thrives off those willing to pitch in. You'll fit in here, feel free to DM me even and I'll get back to you when I can.
Hey! Welcome to RPR. Honestly the best advice I could give is something you've already done... Join this website!

I had similar problems with twitter when I attempted to RP on there circa 2016. I quit after just a few weeks and this website became my home for RP and still is.

I have met fantastic rp partners who bang out paragraphs of goodness with me, who care about plot and character development.

That alone helps my muse stay strong usually.

I know or any least hope, you'll be able to make yourself a little nest here.
Sphynx236 Topic Starter

MercyInReach wrote:
Hey! Welcome to RPR. Honestly the best advice I could give is something you've already done... Join this website!

I had similar problems with twitter when I attempted to RP on there circa 2016. I quit after just a few weeks and this website became my home for RP and still is.

I have met fantastic rp partners who bang out paragraphs of goodness with me, who care about plot and character development.

That alone helps my muse stay strong usually.

I know or any least hope, you'll be able to make yourself a little nest here.

Hey, glad to see I'm not the only one who's experienced Twitter and I definitely don't blame you for quitting it. By 2016 it was already going downhill. Thanks for the advice!
Welcome aboard! If I'm being honest, I started on a kiddy website where I was goofing and gaffing. I'm also pretty old considering and most of the time I'm the oldest in a group. Not that, that is a problem because being on here has helped greatly with my own writing skills.

In the other rps I did I had a word limit and it was annoying BUT the story was always still there. Working with a variety of styles of writing and people who had different and strange ideas that helped me grow as a writer. Plus I made great friendships there. Unfortunately, the site became to kiddy and we stopped rping but still stayed close.

One day someone found this site for me and I have never been more grateful! Here is where I learned how to open up and expand my writing to more descriptive and visual writings. I occasionally put in pictures since I have so many ones that work.

One thing I will tell you is to spread your horizons! Yes you love one type of rp but if you go to a style you're not use to it can potentially help your own writing style. You get to see how they write and it can help your own.

Individual rps also help! I think its important to remember that we all have life going on every day so it's only natural to lose that interest or inspiration. Sometimes you have to jump in feet first into the deep end in order for things to come back. Or, you need a break to collect yourself. This place is very flexible with rpers of many different kinds. I'm sure you will find someone!

Heck, hit me up and I would love to rp with you! I have many different characters with many different backgrounds!

Enjoy your stay! I hope this place brings what you're looking for!
Echoing what a lot of other people here have said:

Maybe try finding a variety of different people to write with, or switch genres up entirely. If you normally play lowtech, try something scifi or futuristic - may not be your cup of tea, and I may just recommend that as a solo writing prompt versus an in-depth RP. Maybe if you play characters of one gender primarily, switch to a character of a different gender to try to play something completely different from what you're used to.

Going back to the lone writing prompt idea, maybe try writing short stories from the POVs of your characters to get back into the groove with them?

These are all things I've done to try to kick writing block, but, it kind of boils down to what works for you as a writer. I'm with you in the fact that I've lost a huge portion of my muse, and I'm really not interested in the type of RP that my chosen platform (A little game called Furcadia) tends to be swamped in.
Rogue-Scribe

Welcome DeadlySphynx! I get what youre saying about the rut. It happens.
I hope you find some inspiration here on RPR!
Serene

First of all, welcome!

I've never done rp on Twitter before, and frankly, just seeing rp accounts there is enough to make me feel bored. But I can understand you, I think it was a good decision to leave. I'm kind of new, like you, and that's why I haven't had an rp experience with the people here yet. But given my experience in the past, I believe that after a while you'll be able to sort people out in your head, and it'll help you understand who's closer to you.

The advice part is pretty simple, actually. Most people just think about what that character is going to do and how he's going to react. And that's the biggest problem that restrains them. Thinking about what a character is going to do just alienates you. What you really need to do is be that character. Close your eyes and change your identity. Act like that character, think like that character and feel like that character. You're that character. No muse can withstand this method. You have writer's block? That's wrong, you just don't know what to do and this method will solve your problem! However, in order to use this method, the character must be designed in detail. So don't compromise on time and effort. Every character you create will be your creations, and it must be embarrassing for you to have them boring or plain so you can better concentrate on perfection. Oh and listening to music that suits that character is always an effective promoter. You can't imagine the contribution of that.

The fact that you're talking about rp issues in such detail shows how much it affects you. And that's a nice trait to be a good writer. I'm designing a vampire character right now, and I'm sure there's gonna be a story that might interest you. If you've played VTM: Bloodlines before, you can easily understand what I mean. Poke me anytime and good luck here!
Sphynx236 Topic Starter

Serene wrote:
First of all, welcome!

I've never done rp on Twitter before, and frankly, just seeing rp accounts there is enough to make me feel bored. But I can understand you, I think it was a good decision to leave. I'm kind of new, like you, and that's why I haven't had an rp experience with the people here yet. But given my experience in the past, I believe that after a while you'll be able to sort people out in your head, and it'll help you understand who's closer to you.

The advice part is pretty simple, actually. Most people just think about what that character is going to do and how he's going to react. And that's the biggest problem that restrains them. Thinking about what a character is going to do just alienates you. What you really need to do is be that character. Close your eyes and change your identity. Act like that character, think like that character and feel like that character. You're that character. No muse can withstand this method. You have writer's block? That's wrong, you just don't know what to do and this method will solve your problem! However, in order to use this method, the character must be designed in detail. So don't compromise on time and effort. Every character you create will be your creations, and it must be embarrassing for you to have them boring or plain so you can better concentrate on perfection. Oh and listening to music that suits that character is always an effective promoter. You can't imagine the contribution of that.

The fact that you're talking about rp issues in such detail shows how much it affects you. And that's a nice trait to be a good writer. I'm designing a vampire character right now, and I'm sure there's gonna be a story that might interest you. If you've played VTM: Bloodlines before, you can easily understand what I mean. Poke me anytime and good luck here!

||I think you've just tapped into something there. I remember when I first made Elena. (Check my characters if you wanna see what I mean) I had a sudden burst of extreme muse. I got so into that character even though her personality is absolutely nothing like mine. I remember how exciting it was to play her at the start, as she's basically really powerful. But I never made her OP to make up for a lack of being able to write fights or anything like that. But in a way. That character was so easy to play because I started to think for her, if that makes sense? When she acted it didn't feel forced, like it does now. I think it was because I had thought about how she would react if I was in her position. I fell in the love with that character and it all unfortunately stopped when writer's block decided enough was enough and I had a clouded head for months on end leading me to delete most of my accounts on there.

Also, I don't know about on here but Twitter RPers DO NOT like a character that isn't constantly 100% sunshine and rainbows so she was hated and I think people feared her. But... Elena was kind of made for the purpose of trolling in a way. I had a long standing beef with one of the guys and his minions on there that would use their villain characters to push their weight around and in a way I made Elena as nasty and as careless as them so I could basically be on par? It seems childish looking back on it, but it was a lot of fun seeing all of those people kind of panic when they met her. (and the writers behind those characters weren't the best people either).
So yeah... It was a pretty rad time if not for a short one.
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Hi there! I'm Hibari.
It's nice to meet you and WELCOME TO RPR!
I hope you're enjoying your stay so far. HAVE FUN!

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