1. Literacy. I consider myself somewhere on the line between moderate and advanced in terms of writing skill, and I tend to appreciate partners of a similar skill level. Those who can excite me with their writing and push me to do my best, without being so far above me that replying feels intimidating. The occasional mistake is alright, but I expect decent spelling and grammar from my partners.
2. Post length. Personally, I aim for a minimum of at least three full paragraphs every time I post, and have been known to write multiple pages when feeling particularly inspired, if the situation within the story allows for it. In turn, I expect a bare minimum of three paragraphs from my partners every post.
3. Creativity. I’m an absolute sucker for world-building, unique characters, and memorable plots. I want to work on building something together with my partner, and I expect both players to actively contribute creating and progressing the story. If one of us is doing all the work and the other player just ‘along for the ride’ then I’m probably not going to enjoy myself.
4. Communication. I’m the sort of person who loves to talk with my partners outside of the roleplay. Whether it be idle chatting, further planning for our story, or just idle musings about the world and characters, I’m always happy to talk. I try and become proper friends with all of my writing buddies, but I expect to be exchanging messages to discuss how the story is progressing on a semi-regular basis with my partners at the very least.
Along similar lines, if there is anything about our story you find unsatisfying, please don’t hesitate to tell me. I promise that I’m not going to get upset or offended by your honesty. I’d rather know about the problem so that I can try to fix it, rather than it going unspoken and eventually ruining the experience as a whole for my partner. Communication is key and all that jazz.
5. Activity. Generally speaking, if our story goes a full month without me getting a reply, then I’m going to consider it dead. I’ve already stated that I try and reply to my partners at least once a week, and whilst I’m not as strict in my expectations of my partners, if things remain stagnant for too long then I’m probably going to start losing interest.
That said, I tend to be very understanding with my partners so long as they are open about these things. If you give me advance notice that your reply is going to be late, for any reason, then I’m totally happy to wait much longer than a month. So long as I have some idea as to what I can expect, then I tend to be extremely patient.
It probably goes without saying, but if you intend on dropping our roleplay, I’d really prefer that you let me know, too. Again, I’m more likely to appreciate your honesty than I am to get upset. Knowing that my partner won’t be returning is much easier for me to cope with than the uncertainty of not knowing at all.
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