@TheGreenerGrey Stopppp, you're making me blush ;u;
@Influenced Conscience
Alright.
Lemme put my two cents in here.
(I know I wrote a lot here. I'm really really really sorry for the long post. I got.... excited. To say the least. If you don't want to read through all of it don't feel pressured to, I just wanted to put this out there in case you still wanted the help.)
As a warning I am not using a sample of your writing, so I'm starting from the bottom and working up. Please, do not be offended for any assumptions regarding your writing style and level.
First things first. Write at your own pace, this is you and you will get to where you want to be eventually. But like everything else in life, it takes
practice.
Everyone thinks their writing is bad, it's your writing, you've read it and you will always think there is something more that needs to be added. It's just how writers work. But you forget that while you've read it eighty thousand times while editing, the people who will be reading it will be reading it for the first time and it's something completely new and fantastical to them because
they couldn't have come up with it. It's all you and it's
new to them.
You never have to delete a post, if there's something you want to fix, there is an edit button for that and trust me, I use it constantly.
A book is not the necessity when it comes to posts, it's the goal, yes, but it's a goal we work toward
together and write
together. Roleplaying is essentially collaborative book writing and you need to remember that you aren't expected to write the whole thing yourself. In fact, I find Roleplaying almost better than books because of the multiple views of the characters. Yes, it's easy for someone to assume multiple 'personalities' and portray different characters, but the characters will always be subtly similar in some way, they'll work together for a certain goal in a way that lets you know they're all written by the same person. It's impossible to avoid when writing a book by yourself, but in Roleplaying, you have multiple people making their characters interact like
true people. Everyone has their own goal, everyone wants to do things differently and it
shows. That is the
wonder of Roleplaying, and that is why it appears like a book when being written. Each character will do their own thing and want their time in the limelight, just like real life. And what is life, if not a story?
Now, your post lengths don't have to be as long as everyone else's, sometimes all it takes to create a good post is a few choice lines of dialog and an explanation of what the character is doing so the next person has something to play off of or react to.
If you're truly worried about post length and adding description, the easiest thing I've found to do is to copy the post you're replying to, and paste it above your own writing. Of course, you'll delete this before posting, but it's nice to have it right there so you don't have to continuously scroll back and forth. Now, with having the post there, read it over a couple times, imagine it in your head, and figure out
how your character would
react. Do a step by step through the post you're playing off of. Did the character do or say something disturbing, threatening, sad, ect? React!
Say the character you're responding to lifted a weapon in warning, taking a threatening step forward while saying harsh words. How does your character react? Are they scared? Confused? Angry? It's even possible they'd be amused, but this would be in the case of them
knowing they have the upper hand, or at least assuming as much. But for this example, lets say they're scared.
Scared how? Do they take a step back? Is their heart beating hard? Has their breathing sped up? Are they trembling, going to cry, are they pissing themselves? Add detail, don't just say they're scared. Stating an emotion is the easiest way to respond, but it's not the most
entertaining. The classic rule of show, not tell. And don't stop at things only your character would notice. Like I mentioned with taking a step back, give them a visible reaction to the threat, show the person that's threatening them
how they feel about that. Again, unless your character is the best poker player in the world, they would show a reaction to being threatened with a weapon. Even if they aren't scared, and arrogant smirk or raised brow shows your disdain for the one threatening you. Truly, for detail, you have to focus on the little things and let them play a part in
accentuating the bigger things like dialog.
The next thing to think about for detail is the surroundings. These characters aren't on a blank plane of existence, they are
somewhere. Tell the audience where by adding color to that grey world. Sticking with the analogy that your character is scared, lets place the setting as a back alley at night. Nice, right? You have a general sense of where they are, but now add
more. Use at least three of the five senses if you can. Sight, smell, touch, sound, taste.
Example:
Dripping sounded in the sudden silence. The dim sounds of the city seeming so far away as the man approached her, iron bar raised in a clenched fist. She stared up at him, eyes wide and open mouth trembling as she took a stumbling step backwards, her shoe scraping damp gravel as it caught on trash left lying in the alley. The air tasted rotten on her tongue, foul with gutter steam and the scent of the rotting trash that surrounded them. Her assailant was silhouetted by a flickering street lamp, the light barely reaching them with how far away from the main street they'd gone. It revealed his face in a strobe like fashion, stony expression and cold eyes that made her heart race faster. It was late enough, no one would be out anymore. She couldn't even see the lights of any cars passing on the main street from when her eyes dared to stray from the slowly approaching form. The narrow walls seemed to close in even closer to her, isolating her with her attacker. She was alone, even in this city full of people. She was alone.
Now, I might have gone a bit overboard there, but I have sight, smell, sound, and taste all wrapped up neatly. Possibly even touch, depending on how you translate touch. In a scene like this, you barely need to mention the character from who's point of view you're writing. By just describing the surroundings with a couple inputs from her in how she's acting, I'd like to believe I captured her fear, hopelessness, and desperation regarding the situation.
Getting a little more back on topic, from how you phrased it, "I don't typically find myself using a lot of different descriptions until it's too late" It sounds like you focus mainly on the dialog. (Again, I'm guessing here, I don't have an example of your writing.) If dialogue is your comfort zone, there is a lot to be done here too. Simple statements simply won't cut it. (heh, simply) You have to
expand. How does your character speak? Do they have a stutter? Do they use slang? Are they intellectual and would use all the vocabulary they possibly could? The nuances of speech are a wonder. Truly. So show it! A hidden accent that pops up when the character is drunk, tired, or under stress can tell a
story about their background. So can a speech impediment or the use of slang words. Again, show not tell. USE PUNCTUATION TO YOUR HEARTS CONTENT. Use it to cut off words early, or start the word stunted to show a slurring speech or accent. Spell the word how it would sound when
they say it. (Staying as close to how it's actually spelled as possible so everyone understands.) An example. Governor vs Gov'nah. An example of rough British/English accent. Another thing to watch with speech is to write it how
they , the character would say it, not just in spelling and abbreviation and slang, but pacing as well. Say your character is embarrassed about something someone just said and they want to deny it. They might not simply say "That's not true." Maybe they cut off, blushing and have to start again. "That's- That's not true!" Use the English language to your advantage and exploit all it's weaknesses! Type dialogue like it would be said in real life.
Use italics. Use bold. Underline doesn't have too much use while writing besides keeping track of what character you're using.... Use whatever you can to make a point or accentuate something that needs to be accentuated.
PLEASE DO NOT USE EMOJIS. PLEASE.
Next, read through what you've written, but don't edit it to death. There is, in my opinion, such a thing as too much editing. Edit to correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and word flow. Do not edit to change the phrasing of something for the eight time, I can assure you, you probably had it perfect on the third try. If you are struggling to phrase something perfectly, put down a rough draft and continue with the scene, either you will figure out a different way to put if after continuing, or the scene will be written around the phrase and you will discover it fits perfectly after all. And if you really
really struggle with the phrasing, remember. It doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to make sense.
Alright. I rather think I'm out of ideas. I'm also rather sorry for the long post.
TO RECAP
- Write at your own pace
- Everyone thinks their writing is bad, this DOES NOT MEAN IT IS
- If there's something you want to fix after posting, there is an edit button for that
- A book is not a necessity
- Put the prompt post in easy view for reference
- Read, brainstorm, react!
- Show character reaction, inwards and outwards
- Show don't tell
- Describe the scene using at least three of the five senses
- For dialogue, simple statements simply won't cut it. Expand.
- Put dialogue as the character would say it
- Use and abuse the English language, punctuation, and your bold, Italics, and underline if you can and if it fits.
- Don't edit it to death
- And always remember, it doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to make sense and mostly cover responses to anything in the post previous.
This is what I do when writing a post.
Now, the last thing in your question I have to mention. Other people.
Other people do not matter. What you write is what
you write. What they think does not matter if your writing makes you happy. Remember that only you can write how
you write, and that is a wonderful thing! If other people don't see it the same way, then why RP with them? This site generally has some pretty nice people on it, not gonna lie. I haven't personally seen anyone that would vocalize distaste for anther's writing style, at least not publicly. And if someone is bullying you in private,
tell someone. I think I speak for most of the community when I say: A person like that is not someone we want on this site.
Also, if you don't start RPing, you won't have any fun on here. I was scared when I first started on here too. I wasn't sure if I would be welcomed in an ongoing RP and I was afraid I would mess up too. It took a response to my first post, and then my response to
that to get me into it. And after that, it all just flowed like water.
I encourage you to start. Find a RP, get a character accepted into it, and start RPing! You'll have fun, and if you have questions, just ask! We're right here for you and I can guarantee we're more than willing to help. And like
@TheGreenerGrey, said: We've all been there, we've all started at that level. We're here for you.
You got this.
~Willow
