[Zarkaylia]

I'm shamelessly stealing this from imgur. The title of this post really is that it's Pixar's 22 tricks into making good movies. Surprisingly many of these apply for roleplay.

These are very good advises, most of which I abide by myself. Worth to have a look.

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Doesn't mean your character shouldn't succeed, but as they say... The journey's more important than the destination. This I couldn't stress enough for roleplay... No one's gonna get much roleplay out of "I'm be the best, always, without effort!".

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This is good basic advice for writing a character background in general. Start someplace, things happen, then what's the result? Myself, I find that as you write characters and you do it this way, the character almost writes itself and you get new interesting ideas down the road as you realize how your character will react to events. Just don't start with "once upon a time...".

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This is recipe for yummy roleplay... Don't stay in your characters' comfort zone forever, figure what would be a challenge for them and get others involved in seeing to them getting through. This is Roleplay 101, I personaly try to do this all the time without repeating myself too much. After 3½ fucking years with same character I certainly have to be creative sometimes. Other times it's very simple.

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Just a general good tip. It's difficult to get a character out of a low and all characters get there sometime, but it is possible. It's often the better alternative than letting the character go and make a new one.

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This applies to RP audiences as well, fellow RPers and general RP. Each reply you give need to have a bit of substance, something you give the other RPer to work with. If you absolutely feel your character happen to be passive on some things, then add something else to your reply or you're going to be difficult and draining to RP with.

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Just a general good tip. If you don't know how to feel sad over a dead pet you're unlikely to be believable in your RP. No matter if your character reacts the same way or not, you'll have no idea how to react on sole ignorance. This applies very well to everything you may need to research. If you don't know how to feel about your home lost cause you've never been in the situation, your imagination or Google is your friend.

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Related to both above.

[Michelle]

*reads "Pixar's 22 Tricks"*
Aarrrgh what is this, /r/writing?
*reads the commentary*

Spot on, actually. Something I'd want to add onto is number 13, or the third-last spoiler. While trying to make sure every post you write can be replied to in a meaningful way is 100% what you should be doing in RP, the process really starts at character creation.

When you start your character in the setting as a passive character rather than a proactive character, coming up with stuff for others to reply to meaningfully might not be impossible, but it's fucking tough.
So here's a nifty blog post to help with that:
http://referenceforwriters.tumblr.com/po...chaperoned

[Michelle]

Idk if I should make a new thread for this, but screw it. This should just be one big thread of self improvement.

I saw this today. I think it's one of the most challenging versions of the "character questions" I've ever seen. Perfect for anyone who feels like they need to know their character a little more.

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I might make a text version of it eventually, but feel free to use it and post your results! Or don't post, it's up to you.