~GM Help Zone~

**valkoordb** · 06-02-2012, 03:11 AM

This thread is for GM's by a GM.
This thread is simply to help those who have an idea for a RP but they don't want to just thow it out there and see if it sinks or floats. This is to help iron out plot details, get some goodadvice from experinced RP veterans, and non-veterans, from true writers, and day dreamers. This is the place to get a bit of help, becuase lets face it which one of us can carry the weight of the worlds we create on our shoulders?

To start you off here is a bit of advice from my past experince. I am no RP veteran, but I am a real Author who has a very real passion for writing.

1: Basing a character of yourself. We all do it, prehaps a bit more than we know. However if you look at your characters closely, I garntee 9 out of ten of them are passed of some asspect of yourself. This can be a good and a bad thing. It is good because it causes you to feel more of a bond with that character, it is bad because if the thread ends and you don't get the end you were looking for you feel like crap. Once again, thats why we needthis thread.

2: Starting your story. When starting your thread/creating a character try and avoid cleche's. A few examples would be:
Starting with a dream.
Starting with the end of a school year/school day.
Letting your character have daddy issues.
A really cheesey vendeta or need for revenge.
(more later)
One of these is ok to have, but if you have two or more then you may need to take a step back and get a second opinion. Another reason why I felt the need for this thread.

3: I would suggest when forming a plot looking to something know as "The Hero's Journey" (The link is below) This is something nearly every protagnist follows to a T. Whether they are trying to or not. So if you make use of it instead of just fumbling around in the dark you will have a much smoother plot and you wont have to make it up as you go.
http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/sm...f/summary.html

Alright now to the part everyone hates... Rules.

1: Please don't snoop on this thread to try and get sneak peeks to what your threads plot may be. Your GM will tell you what they want to tell you the rest however is up to them. In otherwords no metagaming.

2: No putting potential threads down. If you have critisism make it constructive critisism. Try using a technique known as the kiss, kick, and kiss. Something you liked, then your problem with the thread, and then a way to fix that problem. I have found this usefull when helping others with their Novel writing and wouldhighly recomend it.

3: Try not to use foul language. I realize some of you are just used to cursing and it is technically allowed, I would like it if you refrained from cursing to often. This shouldn't become a big issue so I'll leave it with that.

4: The rules of the sight have a supremacy clause. If you have any questions if wether or not something would be ok look there. I myself am pretty linant, but those are the law of the site and must be followed.

5: This is the most important rule by far...

Be Creative!

No body wants something thats already been done so seriously think before you just word vomit some advice.

I really hope this thread will be of use to you all. I know I had a hard time whith my first few writings, so I would very much enjoy helping you all.

**TheDoctor** · 06-08-2012, 06:49 AM

Sup valk! I will probably use this thread a lot and help it when I can because heck, I can undoubtedly improve and I want to help others improve as well! I am a writer as well (I am in the process of a trilogy at the moment. My white board is a complete mess XP), and I have a couple of tips that apply to writers and RPers.

1) Write a short story about your character! I have found this to be a massive help with my RPing and writing. It enables me to look deeper into my character and see what kind of responses they would have simply from putting them in one situation. Plus, it is tons of fun, and it'll sometimes apply to your story!

2) Weak characters are OK! I had a big problem with this at the beginning of writing my book, so I basically had to restart it with all new characters. But really, weak characters provide for awesome character development. If your story or RP consists of a bunch of BA's (pardon my language, valk), then nothing is very surprising. On the other hand, one strong character who hardly fails is usually necessary. That character is more likable, and then when that character DOES face failure, it hits them. Hard. Then they rise from the ashes, accepting that failure and coming to terms with it, making them stronger than ever. The feeling when you see that in a movie or read it in a book is AWESOME (when it is done well).

3) Starting a story off with a complete mystery is a blessing and a curse. Although it does make the reader think as the story goes on and the "big reveal" can be mind-blowing, it can be very cliche. Only start it off with a mystery if you are confident with it, and you think that your audience has only the slightest chance to predict a future event correctly. However, if you make it impossible to predict, that can be almost as bad as making it really predictable.

I really like the point you brought up about characters being based off of the self. It is incredibly true, and I have found that such a thing is true in almost every single writing I have done or read. A fine point valk