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Creating 'active' characters

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I've noticed lately that many of my characters are a little too 'passive'. Things happen to or around them, but very rarely are they the source of drama, plot, etc. Therefore, I was hoping to have a discussion on what makes a good 'active' character.

What do you think are the qualities that make a character easy to plot with? What traits invite others to tie their characters in or thread? 

Alternatively, is it in the way the character is written or in the author themselves?
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What do you think are the qualities that make a character easy to plot with? What traits invite others to tie their characters in or thread?

personally: likeability, and how well i think they could fit into my muse's life/narrative (and vice-versa) are the things that make me want to plot with someone's character. it's tough to pin down exact qualities/traits, but i guess i'd say if they seem to have real agency + goals and aren't like...sitting about, and waiting for things to happen.

basically if they look like they actually want to do/could do stuff, and this stuff isn't wholly reliant on the actions of other characters...could they exist and function without outside influence idk if i'm making sense here.

Alternatively, is it in the way the character is written or in the author themselves?

it depends tbh. i've seen passive-looking characters attract tons of plot bc their writers were well-liked oocly (and conversely: active ones get nothing for xyz reason). ymmv


last edit on Jul 23, 2022 19:36:20 GMT by cae
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I find having a goal in mind helps make those characters move. It also helps if you clue into the site plot that other people are playing and see what roles you can fill for the story. Want ads are also really helpful.

Generally, I approach character creation with "I want xyz from this character" and I find that usually gives me a story to write for. Rather than just porting in my favorite characters blindly, I try to adapt to where I am writing and fill positions. I find it gives me more to do than writing a bunch of unapproachable loners.

Gonna use Sylvanas as an example; I'm writing her somewhere and instead of plopping her in the woods with nothing to do, I put her in a position of power in the RP. I also intentionally made her a bit of an outsider, which is concerning for people who think she is a Problem. She has a plot that will unfold as the site plot continues. This makes her an active player in the plotline, and gives me something to do with her generally.

To add on, I'm more likely to RP with people who play with this sort of attitude because it's easier to slot my characters into their story and they can usually give me stronger goals to thread towards. It's ok to have a few characters that only exist to fuck around with, imo, but for me, it couldn't be my entire cast.
last edit on Jul 23, 2022 22:07:41 GMT by illidan main

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Alternatively, is it in the way the character is written or in the author themselves?
imo, it's mostly the latter. an active author can turn a passive character into a plot mover, while an active character in the hands of a passive author can easily fall short of their potential.

IC/OOC qualities that i think differentiate an active character from a passive one (i was initially gonna group them into different sections but tbh i think there's enough of an overlap) -

> autonomous characters who want something and [xyz traits that come up when you google 'how to write a good protagonist']. characters who are played by people who aren't emotionally invested in their character being happy/liked/etc tend to draw my attention more - but that's mostly b/c that's how i, personally, tend to approach character creation & narrative development. alternatively you can app an edgelord or a dumbass twink and you'll probably get bites

> writing with a goal in mind. my most plot-active characters are the ones that i went into with some kind of goal that i, myself, wanted to hit. whether it's joining or leaving a faction, falling in love, being able to write a specific scene, whatever, i think having a plot point tied to internal motivation as an author can help a lot with getting the ball rolling, and i think having that ball rolling attracts attention and gives people a reason to give a shit about a character's journey.

> willingness to play a side character/serve as a plot device for the purpose of a larger narrative. i think it's the nature of the craft for characters to end up playing roles of varying importance (not every character can be the protagonist all the time, nor is every character suited for a leading role) and IMO leaning into it instead of indulging in the human instinct to take your ball and go home can set characters up to have a much greater impact. some of the cooler threads/plot points i've been in or observed came about because someone mentioned they liked the idea of XYZ plot point happening to a character, and someone else offered a character as a means to make said plot point actually happen.

> OOC sociability. i'm of the opinion that, similar to most things in life, the more social/outgoing you are in RP, the more successful you'll be. i don't think playing an active character hinges on being a super bubbly extrovert, but i think maintaining a presence in the community as a kind person, taking an interest in the plotlines of others, and/or simply showing a bit of initiative can go a long way.

> actually on that point: initiative, full stop. tbh that might be my #1 answer to what differentiates an active character/author from a passive one. OOC initiative. IC initiative. being the person willing to cold dm someone, to start the thread, to write the want ad, to mention that insane idea for a plot point you had that won't leave you alone - to put in more effort without expecting anything in return. there's a much more consistent success rate when one starts the conflict themselves rather than waiting for the conflict to come to them.
last edit on Jul 23, 2022 22:18:49 GMT by selkie
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So, too, is Death possessed of infinite strategies and a gaunt nature.
the biggest takeaway is that rp is about storytelling

on every site i join i have but one (1) goal in mind and that's to push the overall site plot forward. obvsly, i can't do that alone (threading w myself is boring tbh) so i seek out ppl who share the same ambition and are disciplined (with their characters / plots / threads they agree to take on and subsequently complete) enough to see to that story end.

and sometimes (most of the time) you gotta work for that story which requires a lot of bending, fitting, and molding that character.

i personally look for impactful characters / writers who are willing to cooperate for the sake of story. aka, characters who impact other characters or the goal at large (kudos to those who are selective about what character to include in events—especially events that impact the overall site.) the writer doesn't need to be mega active to catch my attention—hell, i thread with even tho he leaves me on read half the time :pepesleep:

its why i always pick up site canons. bc its the sure-fire method to push site plot and also gain plots / threads from people who might surprise you down the line


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hell, i thread with even tho he leaves me on read half the time :pepesleep:



??

now idk why u are lying 2 these good ppl.

our last rp together i was waiting on your post mam tyvm.

EDIT: to add more 2 the conversation, imo a good character can only be propelled forth by a good author. good characters can great great plots/interaction. but the writer and person behind the character can really create the magic. there's a rper oocly named strider that excels in this and he probably could give more input. a lot more. but his uncanny ability to bring together dozens of characters and plots is pretty amazing imo.

but by nature his ooc personality is the type of the guy that is at your neck and always hitting you up for this or that. he's like the guy you avoid making eye contact w/ when they come at your window with a squeegee and you're at a stop light and then you just politely say no ty because lord knows wats in that bucket or how that puddle water entered the bucket.

that being said, he also is willing to put his character in certain spots (as long as it makes sense) and be on the bottom instead of the top as long as it servers a narrative of pushing a cohesive plot together w/ multiple chars.

to this very day i call him rp ragnarok because when he gets burnt out the whole massive rp plot intertwining spider web burns with his muse. however, i never deny him the power to rope tons of people into a singular storyline and MAKE people feel important and experience significant character growth/hardships.

that being said, IMO, ppl like him are a dime a dozen.

i think the secret however is networking and putting yourself out there the same way you receive that random text asking "will you be voting for phim for governor of PP" and you look at your phone like "??? these mfers are hitting the campaign trail hard. how did they get my number???". people are creatures that stick 2 comforts understandably. so many of us either stick to familiar groups and there's a few people that reach out with open threads and etc, but ppl are so rooted to their familiarities that they don't stretch out. but to move site plot, a lot of people have to be willing to exit their comfort zone and tread in the no mans land of "idk who tf this person is but lets try something diff". and who knows, you may have a shit thread and be like good lord what have i done.

But you mite have an amazing time, make a new friend, and have a personal sub plot go or an addition to the main plot. the pluses definitely outweigh the minuses.

however as a community, we have to be willing 2 take that leap of faith no matter how many times we fail on both sides and go through some failure before we can emerge victorious.

tldr; it's not really the character imo, though they have to be somewhat compelling ofc but different types of characters whether passive/aggressive can server different plot purposes and still have a role. however to push the site plot agenda we have to be more adventurous/collaborative/vocal as writers so we can assist staff team's that want to see/hear their members actively engaging and affecting plot decisions.

president kae out.


last edit on Jul 25, 2022 6:38:33 GMT by kae
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what creates an active character:

  • posting
  • making and following up with defined* plots


that's it! it's that simple hahaha YEAH!

i think worries about having a 'passive' character or one that isn't a source of drama / plot is perfectly fine! if you're having trouble then maybe you need to examine it from a storytelling perspective as an author!1 :OOO

as someone who loves BoRiNg threads all you need to do is know how to move it forward yup YUP!!!

it can be something as simple as a conversation but you need to make sure the conversation progresses. asking questions and what other characters are thinking is both a good way to give them an easy thing to respond to and help them flesh it out!!!

the biggest trouble i see some authors have is 'my character wouldn't do that :( they're shy' or 'my character sits in a corner and will not interact with anyone unless they do so first and even then they will just answer with grunts V_V'.

that's fine if that's your character but it's okay to break the mold just a bit if, as a story teller, you cannot move a story forward with that archetype!

hahahahahaahahaha think of it as DND!!!! i heard that's super mega popular now :OOOOOOO

if ur first session is someone who going 'oh my character won't join the party', 'my character won't go with them. they will go the opposite direction and do solo stuff', and other derivative will often lead the DM to tell them to make another character :o
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When it comes to the site itself --


I've written in a lot of narrative-based or story-oriented/plot-driven roleplays where it isn't necessarily the character that drives themselves most of the time, but moreso ends up in situations or cumulative events where they become active characters as tools that are used to push the game forward.

Outside of that, in individual threads and slice of life-esque sites, I've found out that what works best for the community is a character that is written with/posted with a decent amount counts for a lot.


But, if you're talking about character placements positions in the game --


Even though these worlds we create are, essentially, "games"(for lack of a better word xD), I don't think they really share the same mechanics as a fighting pvp or turn-based rpg that have different character "roles"(like support/healing, fighting/offensive, etc.), which is what, personally, "active" and "passive" sound like to me.

We're writing a story here, and it's a collaborative one, and it's all up to the player. Any character can be portrayed as "active", just as any character can be written as passive. Sometimes, it is situational, like what's happening in the thread or goal-oriented, and sometimes that's just how the character naturally comes off to others by the way they are written.

last edit on Aug 16, 2022 2:59:01 GMT by Deleted
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I've noticed lately that many of my characters are a little too 'passive'. Things happen to or around them, but very rarely are they the source of drama, plot, etc. Therefore, I was hoping to have a discussion on what makes a good 'active' character.

What do you think are the qualities that make a character easy to plot with? What traits invite others to tie their characters in or thread? 

Alternatively, is it in the way the character is written or in the author themselves?
Might be necro'ing a thread but I just wanted to chime in. My bad.

Let me preface this:

When I join a site it's for a very particular reason, I like the setting and I have character stories I want to really play in that setting. So typically when I join a site the first thing I do is ask staff if it's okay if I go in my corner and do my own thing parallel to the site and then discuss with them and get the okay. 

-----------------

Like I learned a while ago that regardless of how active you are, if you're just reacting and expecting development to occur from just the RP then you're fair rarely going to have that occur. You have to have characters that have things for others to discover, points of themselves to unveil. You also gotta sometimes be that person that drives the thread/rp development. My style that works for me is I build characters and then following that I build characters with an overarching story along with development and story goal-posts. I then find people who want to RP with me and after a few threads and shit I'm not dragging them along on a fucking roller coaster

A good proactive character comes mostly from a proactive roleplayer instead of a reactive one. If you're characters are too reactionary maybe take a moment to assess what you're doing in RP, are you being more reactive instead of proactive? And then take steps to fix it, set up developmental goals for you characters, set up scenarios you really want to RP using them, or figure out points about the character you really want to display to the other rp'er and their characters. Then start guiding roleplays in those directions so that those things can happen.
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I echo basically everything said.

Active characters are collaborative characters. They act as much as players in other people's stories as they do as the protagonists in their own. This, I find, is more often than not something a writer specifically has to foster.

Be curious about other people's characters and stories! Where do you synergize? What interesting contrasts can you play on? Are there shared goals? Opposing ones? Find the hooks that you can pull on, and tug with all your might.

A mistake I see people make a lot is that they are so focused on their own stories, on their own goals and plans, that they lose sight of the opportunity to widen their horizons and try new things invited by the site plot or by other characters. They approach forum-roleplay as writing a novel, when it's actually writing back and forth with another person.

It's ping pong! They ping something at you, and you pong back.

Be open to what you receive, and do your best to give something worthwhile back. No thread is a throwaway thread, imo, if you take this approach.

Things that can help facilitate this:
-Understand what you enjoy in roleplay. Sometimes the reason your character feels 'passive' is because you aren't actually interested in the plots you've designed them for. Your muse knows what's up. No shame in being self-indulgent!

-Read threads you aren't in. You'll be amazed at how many incredible stories are written all around you, and often people are kind enough to share them with you.

-Be the one who initiates for plots, and keep an open mind. Come to people with specific ideas that show you have an interest in their character, and explain why you think the plot would be fun for both of you. Be sincere and thoughtful in this, and likewise, be open when new people offer the same to you.

-Have clear character motivations and goals. This will make it easier to "push" things forward. Often, your character will have many motivations! And different ones will appear in different scenarios. These should include capital-G goals ("I want to avenge my parents") and also lowercase-g goals ("I want to get better at making friends").

-Have an understanding of your character's day-to-day routine. This sounds boring, but it's so helpful. Where does your character work? How do they blow off steam? Do they go on daily walks somewhere? Are they doing any hobbies? This becomes an easy entry point for a lot of new threads!

-Be flexible. Take the "yes-and" approach to roleplay, always. Instead of saying, "My character never does X," ask yourself, "What would it take for my character to do X?" That's a more interesting question, and more fun one to write the answer to. If you want to join a raid, find a reason your character would do so! It's better than sighing at your computer with FOMO. Which brings us to...

-Hold no expectations. They are the thief of joy. Write because it's fun to write! If you write because you expect a certain conclusion, you will find yourself frustrated when unforeseen difficulties arise (ie, people lose interest/go inactive/the site plot doesn't go how you want/someone else gets the canon position you want/etc.). That will take the wind out of your sails, but worse, you might find yourself writing with the destination in mind instead of enjoying the journey. Many of my best plots have been organically developed through genuine interest in exploring connections between characters, and I never expected where they would lead.

-Be kind. No one is obligated to write with you as a hobby. Make the effort to be a friendly and gracious roleplayer, and you'll find more doors open to you.