RP tips & tricks for newbies!

[Jazz]

I’d noticed this forum has a real tight-knit RP community. I’ve found it really entertaining reading everyone’s interactions with each other, but I’m also slowly wanting to participate and jump in.. however I’ve never actually RP’d before and have no idea how to get into the “mindset” or where to start.

Any advice on getting comfortable enough, or where/how to begin? Even tips that help get you “into character”? There’s no wrong answer honestly, I’m just very curious. Heck, even sharing here how you got into RPing yourself would help (& be fun to read)!

 

[Wuff-Wuff]

Hmmh~ I am by no means an expert on the matter, but I'd say having a scene play out in your head and then trying to write it out is how I mostly do it!

The nice thing about it being a written medium, is that you can also place focus on little details that flesh out the "actions" you're writing :3

I guess it also depends on your style! Do you prefer the
does some RPing
approach

-----------------------------------------------------------‐--------------------

"Or would you rather remain more sophisticated, having it be more novelesque.", he wondered while scratching his chin.

-----------------------------------‐‐-------------------------------------------

Wuff: (in a cheerful voice) Heck you could probably even go for a script approach :D!

[WUFF gives JAZZ a thumbs up]



Just trying it out also helps learn from others! And having fun too, that one helps a lot actually ^w^

 

[DarkFox319]

As a long time rper on this forum and before joining it. It always starts with your character. Figuring out your OC is a great starting point. What are they like? How do they act? What are their dreams and desires? Just to go through a few questions I do when making new OCs.

Like Wuff said there are all different styles of role playing and its good to talk with your rp partner to make sure they are comfortable with the style that you would want to use.

Finally having some ideas for stories. Do you want some calm and tame? Are you looking for romance and action? Just a few questions that can help set the tone and stories.

Writing I feel is just a great way of expressing one's self and over all as long as communication is kept up between you and your rp partner a great story can be written.

 

[FinnTheGoldenRetriever]

I think of it like a book. I narrate everything that happens and take the mindset of the character i'm playing.

 

[Jack Foxtrot]

As I had stated before, it depends mostly on what you're looking for or what it is you're wanting to do for one. Adventure? ERP? Even maybe a group campaign like DnD?

Having a character would probably be the first thing to do, you could always start off small with some basic info, and go from there. Some people will make RPs canon to their character and have it affect their bio and information or stats, others will make their characters contain only the necessities and be entirely dependent on a per-RP basis.

 

[Mambi]

I’d noticed this forum has a real tight-knit RP community. I’ve found it really entertaining reading everyone’s interactions with each other, but I’m also slowly wanting to participate and jump in.. however I’ve never actually RP’d before and have no idea how to get into the “mindset” or where to start.

Any advice on getting comfortable enough, or where/how to begin? Even tips that help get you “into character”? There’s no wrong answer honestly, I’m just very curious. Heck, even sharing here how you got into RPing yourself would help (& be fun to read)!

<laying comfortably in the soft grasses, the kitty props his head in his paws and smiles warmly> Well now, everyone is different so I can only say what works for me, but I find step one is visualization. Simply put you picture the scene in your mind as it's happening...be it simple or complex. Then try and imagine the TONE of what's happening...is it cutsy, nervous, wild, fearful, playful, whatever it is. Then I try to describe what I "see and hear" in my mind in a way that carries that tone and helps the other person see and hear it too, but leave enough open for THEIR imagination to kick in.

As for plotlines, I find that if I just take the pieces of the world and let them arrange themselves to get my character to act it tends to solve itself. After all if you know who you are and you know your RP mates, the easy part is how they'd act in any scenario, so focus on the scenario and let the natural flow of the character work form there. For instance if your character's a nervous timid type and you set the scene where three hot foxes are hitting on them, their responses will naturally emerge from just that alone.

As for "getting into character", that's a little trickier for me to explain or help with as I'm a Therian so Mambi's personality is basically mine anyway BUT thus said when RPing in other characters like Aurora or Sheila or any of the bunnies of the realm so to speak, I again picture what THEY would do in a scenario and then just write the scenario. So in Aurora's case for example she's a synthetic thousand year old AI who's highly intelligent but naive to organics often, so any scene with her usually has her act inappropriate innocently or be confused by others by default. Given that, a scene then could be as simple as someone asking her what's up and she looks skyward to answer them.

I have more ideas and tips but I don't want to bore anyone so feel free to AMA. I'm fairly good as longform and shortform I've been told. And if you want some practice feel free to check out Mambi's realm anytime! <the cat grins widely and his eyes glow as the air parts and a shimmering portal forms in the air, leading to an active rave with uniformed bunnies serving snacks and a raccoon operating a DJ booth. He reaches in and takes a snack as he hands it to you>

 

[FinnTheGoldenRetriever]

<laying comfortably in the soft grasses, the kitty props his head in his paws and smiles warmly> Well now, everyone is different so I can only say what works for me, but I find step one is visualization. Simply put you picture the scene in your mind as it's happening...be it simple or complex. Then try and imagine the TONE of what's happening...is it cutsy, nervous, wild, fearful, playful, whatever it is. Then I try to describe what I "see and hear" in my mind in a way that carries that tone and helps the other person see and hear it too, but leave enough open for THEIR imagination to kick in.

As for plotlines, I find that if I just take the pieces of the world and let them arrange themselves to get my character to act it tends to solve itself. After all if you know who you are and you know your RP mates, the easy part is how they'd act in any scenario, so focus on the scenario and let the natural flow of the character work form there. For instance if your character's a nervous timid type and you set the scene where three hot foxes are hitting on them, their responses will naturally emerge from just that alone.

As for "getting into character", that's a little trickier for me to explain or help with as I'm a Therian so Mambi's personality is basically mine anyway BUT thus said when RPing in other characters like Aurora or Sheila or any of the bunnies of the realm so to speak, I again picture what THEY would do in a scenario and then just write the scenario. So in Aurora's case for example she's a synthetic thousand year old AI who's highly intelligent but naive to organics often, so any scene with her usually has her act inappropriate innocently or be confused by others by default. Given that, a scene then could be as simple as someone asking her what's up and she looks skyward to answer them.

I have more ideas and tips but I don't want to bore anyone so feel free to AMA. I'm fairly good as longform and shortform I've been told. And if you want some practice feel free to check out Mambi's realm anytime! <the cat grins widely and his eyes glow as the air parts and a shimmering portal forms in the air, leading to an active rave with uniformed bunnies serving snacks and a raccoon operating a DJ booth. He reaches in and takes a snack as he hands it to you>

I gave like 1 or 2 sentences and Mambi gives a whole entire essay ;-;

 

[Jazz]

Hmmh~ I am by no means an expert on the matter, but I'd say having a scene play out in your head and then trying to write it out is how I mostly do it!

The nice thing about it being a written medium, is that you can also place focus on little details that flesh out the "actions" you're writing :3

I guess it also depends on your style! Do you prefer the
does some RPing
approach

-----------------------------------------------------------‐--------------------

"Or would you rather remain more sophisticated, having it be more novelesque.", he wondered while scratching his chin.

-----------------------------------‐‐-------------------------------------------

Wuff: (in a cheerful voice) Heck you could probably even go for a script approach :D!

[WUFF gives JAZZ a thumbs up]



Just trying it out also helps learn from others! And having fun too, that one helps a lot actually ^w^

I didn’t even really think about the layout, thank you Wuff! This is incredibly helpful.
It helps a lot seeing it written out so simply too, it’s definitely something I’ll have to practice at (especially when it comes to being creative with the little details!)

As a long time rper on this forum and before joining it. It always starts with your character. Figuring out your OC is a great starting point. What are they like? How do they act? What are their dreams and desires? Just to go through a few questions I do when making new OCs.

Like Wuff said there are all different styles of role playing and its good to talk with your rp partner to make sure they are comfortable with the style that you would want to use.

Finally having some ideas for stories. Do you want some calm and tame? Are you looking for romance and action? Just a few questions that can help set the tone and stories.

Writing I feel is just a great way of expressing one's self and over all as long as communication is kept up between you and your rp partner a great story can be written.

AHH! Absolutely, well I’ve certainly got some tinkering to do. I’ve always had my OC just as a face to my account, but never wrote out any backstory for her. It’s something that’s crossed my mind before to do, but in a RP setting seems like a must to flesh out the character you’re using!

That makes sense about discussing format ahead of time. Just curious, is it seen as bad manners to have 2 different styles going? Like would one be seen as lazier than the other or is it a thing of consistency (sorry I know I’m probably thinking too deep into this, it’s fun to learn ;o;)

Really appreciate the questions I should be asking myself by the way, I’ll be marking these down to help get an idea. I’m sure before any story-related stuff I’ll be practicing just in the games section here on the forums! Seems like the easiest way to dip my foot in :D

 

[Jazz]

<laying comfortably in the soft grasses, the kitty props his head in his paws and smiles warmly> Well now, everyone is different so I can only say what works for me, but I find step one is visualization. Simply put you picture the scene in your mind as it's happening...be it simple or complex. Then try and imagine the TONE of what's happening...is it cutsy, nervous, wild, fearful, playful, whatever it is. Then I try to describe what I "see and hear" in my mind in a way that carries that tone and helps the other person see and hear it too, but leave enough open for THEIR imagination to kick in.

As for plotlines, I find that if I just take the pieces of the world and let them arrange themselves to get my character to act it tends to solve itself. After all if you know who you are and you know your RP mates, the easy part is how they'd act in any scenario, so focus on the scenario and let the natural flow of the character work form there. For instance if your character's a nervous timid type and you set the scene where three hot foxes are hitting on them, their responses will naturally emerge from just that alone.

As for "getting into character", that's a little trickier for me to explain or help with as I'm a Therian so Mambi's personality is basically mine anyway BUT thus said when RPing in other characters like Aurora or Sheila or any of the bunnies of the realm so to speak, I again picture what THEY would do in a scenario and then just write the scenario. So in Aurora's case for example she's a synthetic thousand year old AI who's highly intelligent but naive to organics often, so any scene with her usually has her act inappropriate innocently or be confused by others by default. Given that, a scene then could be as simple as someone asking her what's up and she looks skyward to answer them.

I have more ideas and tips but I don't want to bore anyone so feel free to AMA. I'm fairly good as longform and shortform I've been told. And if you want some practice feel free to check out Mambi's realm anytime! <the cat grins widely and his eyes glow as the air parts and a shimmering portal forms in the air, leading to an active rave with uniformed bunnies serving snacks and a raccoon operating a DJ booth. He reaches in and takes a snack as he hands it to you>

MAMBI!! Holy, this is outstanding. I’ve definitely noticed how in-depth your RPing is from around the forums! I’m seriously so happy to see your input, it’s neat seeing everyone say the first step is to visualize. I think this is why I struggle getting into the mindset, since I see it more as trying to respond rather than “live the experience” like you have it described. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, I really appreciate it!

 

[DarkFox319]

Just curious, is it seen as bad manners to have 2 different styles going? Like would one be seen as lazier than the other or is it a thing of consistency (sorry I know I’m probably thinking too deep into this, it’s fun to learn ;o;)

Really it all depends on your partner. I've had partners before who will write as if they are the character and everything is happening to them. They would you I and me, where I'm used to the more formal style of doing rps in third person. It's like I said communicating is key. I'm what you would call an adaptable rp so depends on how my partner post I may change the way I do to match the story a little better. If that makes since. I know there are some people who prefer third person rps over first person.

 

[Wuff-Wuff]

Thank you @DarkFox319 I was wondering that too!

You'll find your style @Jazz I think most people here would be thrilled if you would join in (granted maybe not in the closed RPs, but you know what I mean!)
^w^ and if you would do anything "wrong" theyd certainly say without malice.

 

[DarkFox319]

Another thing I would suggest especially if your planning multiple characters is having a way of setting them up for example, I usually set my characters up using this format.

Name:
Species:
Fur Color:
Gender:
Age:
Height:
Eye Color:
Sexuality:
Appearance:
Backstory:

Even if I only have a idea this helps me work through and give them more life.

 

[Jazz]

Thank you Dark & Wuff, seriously! You’ve no idea how much it means to me how thoughtful you’ve been. I’m excited to start getting info down about my OC & get RPing (even on a small scale!)!

 

[Jack Foxtrot]

I’m excited to start getting info down about my OC & get RPing (even on a small scale!)!

The only thing is though is you should probably make sure your husband is okay with it. I mean I don't know if you plan on doing ERPs or anything like that, but just in case, he should probably know. Especially since I know a few folks who their partners didn't know, found out, and things kind of got heated from there, including a close friend of mine who said nothing to me about him having a partner until the last second, followed then by his wife finding out. Well, she ended up burning his apartment down and he ended up in a mental hospital receiving help for his suicidal tendencies.

He's doing better now, thankfully... he kind of realized how bad his marriage was especially with her in particular. While I wish he would've said something to me sooner about it, I don't feel that justifies what she did to him at the end of the day.

So yeah, I just don't like seeing bad things happen to people like that, and talking about it beforehand would help to prevent things getting blown out of proportions. Obviously I'm not saying a house is going to get burnt down over it or something, but it never hurts to just check first.

 

[Bunny Lvr]

hops in carrying a basket of yogurt

"Hey there @Jazz, nice to meet you! I do not believe we have met, so I thought I would hop in and bring some yogurt for you as I offer my 2 cents" sets the basket down, opens one and offers you one as I enjoy one as I gather my thoughts

"Well, some furs may refer to me as a greyfur, I have been around the rp world for over 15 years now so I am stuck in my way of rp, although I do try to improve <giggles as I enjoy more yogurt.> A lot of good advice has been given by those who are much better than I, but what I can offer is be yourself and have fun!"

Looks around and takes a minute "I personally do not like to be pressured to rp, I find if I HAVE to do it, then it sucks, plain and simple. Just relax, and do it when the time feels right. There are basically 2 ways I have seen people rp, either one liners, or paragraphs (or something in between). Personally, I like to describe what is happening <wipes yogurt off my chin> and I cannot do that in just 1 sentence. However, it takes time to do a paragraph or two, so sometimes one or 2 sentences are nice"

takes a drink of my carrot juice and watches the butterflies flutter as I pause "Lastly, before I bore you much more, read how others do their rp and see which fits you. I like reading and seeing how each does their rp. I take notes mentally and try to incorporate them as I write."

"As you can see here, I have a way <I am not sure what it is called> where I use "" and ** a lot to differentiate when I am talking and when I am feeling, or acting out actions. @Mambi has introduced me to the lovely <> which I am currently learning to use <which he did not know until now....SURPRISE lol>. Basically it boils down to practice, practice, practice. Don't worry about messing it up or getting it wrong, how else will you learn <makes a silly face>. Feel free to pm me and I would love to rp with you and help hone in your skills."

sits back, sips carrot juice, enjoys yogurt as you take it all in

 

[Wuff-Wuff]

I do wonder Sarah, when do you use ** and when <>? Are the brackets for shorter actions in between sentences while ** are for actions after passages?

 

[Bunny Lvr]

I am learning that @Wuff-Wuff. As a rule when I am using "" and have an action within that (usually shorter) I think I will use <>

"Ok @Wuff-Wuff, shouldn't you have already picked up on this <giggles> from our previous interactions?" Poking you overand over again until you cry mercy and tell me that I am right

See how I did that there?

 

[Wuff-Wuff]

XD lovely :D thank you Sarah! That helps a lot. I do find it rather visually pleasing :3

 

[Bunny Lvr]

gives @Wuff-Wuff belly rubs
"Whose a goood boooy? <asks in a silly voice> Are you a gooood boyyyy? Areyouareyouhuhhuh??"