Solo role playing

[Ravenok Kinnes]

How does it work here? I just simply role play with myself, basically? Make a thread, respond to it myself, then again and again? I am just making sure, before I make one.

[Letho]

Yes, you just play with yourself. ;)

Basically, only you tell the story. You can always create NPCs to accompany you and enrich the story though. I personally always found solos rather boring. I mean, Althanas is all about interaction and writing with other people and sharing the experience with them. But sometimes you just can't do that I guess.

[Ravenok Kinnes]

Well, I just wanted to do something on my own, mainly because I have a lot of time on my hands right now, and I am forced to wait due to all the people that I am role playing with not being here. I'll probably just see how this one goes, and if it's good I might do another.

[MaxBlade]

I personally always found solos rather boring.

So true, sometimes though you have to, if you want to have an advancement in your level. For Seremela I have to do a solo for a while until she post in there, I believe it's challenging me, pulling me out of my usual style.

[Ravenok Kinnes]

Hmm... Well I decided to try it. Check it out if you want, link is in my signature. I don't think it's going that well, but, I leave those decisions to the readers.

I am just doing it because all the other threads I am in are progressing rather slow, I am a person who is on a lot, so I have a lot of free time while on here.

[Rajani Aishwara]

Solo Questing is alright. I kind of like to use it as a showcase of my writing talent. Might I suggest writing the entire thing first, then after the initial post advertising it to fellow players. This way the entire thing will be ready to go when everyone demands more.

I know it's kind of petty. In fact it's really petty, but it allows people to get accustomed to you your writing style, and it shows that you're dependable.

[Atzar]

Personally, I usually prefer to write solos over group quests. That way, I can write whenever the motivation takes me - I don't have to wait for somebody else. I've noticed that having to wait for somebody else to post can really kill the momentum of a quest.

Besides, writing solos seems more pure to me - the story is completely under my control, and it's entirely up to me how things get done.

If it's with people that keep up with me, however, collaborative work is still a lot of fun and it's exciting to see how things turn out.

[Letho]

Personally, I usually prefer to write solos over group quests. That way, I can write whenever the motivation takes me - I don't have to wait for somebody else. I've noticed that having to wait for somebody else to post can really kill the momentum of a quest.

Besides, writing solos seems more pure to me - the story is completely under my control, and it's entirely up to me how things get done.

If it's with people that keep up with me, however, collaborative work is still a lot of fun and it's exciting to see how things turn out.I guess it's all down to personal preference. I personally see no point in participating in a community such as Althanas if I'm going to write by myself. If I wanted to do that, I would write stuff in Word. Yes, you get feeback from the judge, but that's an opinon of a single person. When you write with other people, you are facing a number of different opinons. Besides, most people around here have a tendency not to read the stuff they are not in anyways (not a good thing, but still very present). With others, I not only share the experience, but I get the chance to learn something new every day, observing different styles and different characters. Judgments are a good overwiev of what's good and what's not in your writing, but I learned even more from my fellow rpers, reading their posts before I reply to them.

But to each his own.

[Doppelganger]

I don't see one method or the other as being superior. Letho, you raise a good point in mentioning that it seems silly to join a writing community (especially one with as much talent as Althanas) and then keep things all to yourself.

But it's also worth noting that some types of stories, particularly ones that may be very central to your character's development, are better suited to solo quests, since it allows the author total control over all aspects of the story.

Other times, you have a more generalized outline of what you want to happen, in which case having others participate will help to flesh out that story, and more than likely will make it more interesting than what it would have been if you wrote it alone.

I don't think you should stick to one or the other (solo or group), but rather try both occasionally, because it makes you think and write in different ways. Solo quests give you more control, but that also means it's more work for you to do; you have to come up with everything that happens, everything that's said, and make it all interesting enough for someone else to read without collapsing from boredom. Group quests take some of the pressure off you, but in that case you have to gauge the actions and reactions of others, and act in a way that allows others to progress. Depending on who you're writing with, that can be very easy or very difficult.

I just started a solo quest because this character is kind of experimental, I've never tried anything quite like it... So before I start to interact with other people's characters, I want to get a feel for how I'm going to present my own.

[Letho]

But it's also worth noting that some types of stories, particularly ones that may be very central to your character's development, are better suited to solo quests, since it allows the author total control over all aspects of the story.

Other times, you have a more generalized outline of what you want to happen, in which case having others participate will help to flesh out that story, and more than likely will make it more interesting than what it would have been if you wrote it alone.I agree to a certain extent - that's why I mentioned in my first post that sometimes you can't make a group quest. However, I would like to say that including other characters into the development of your own can have awesome benefits. I personally have a character (Jared) whose development was completely linked to one of The Valkyrie. And it worked wonders for us both, getting us two JCs and leading us through five great quests.

My point is, yes, sometimes the story requires you to do it on your own. But if you manage to incorporate others people into such a story, you can enhance the interaction to a whole new level. Of course, it can also backfire at you sometimes. I guess there's always a certain amount of risk involved.

I don't think you should stick to one or the other (solo or group), but rather try both occasionally, because it makes you think and write in different ways. Solo quests give you more control, but that also means it's more work for you to do; you have to come up with everything that happens, everything that's said, and make it all interesting enough for someone else to read without collapsing from boredom. Group quests take some of the pressure off you, but in that case you have to gauge the actions and reactions of others, and act in a way that allows others to progress. Depending on who you're writing with, that can be very easy or very difficult.You see, I tend to disagree on the pressure issue. I always feel more pressure when I write with other people, especially if I'm leading the quest. The feeling of letting somebody down by writing a bad post or neglecting to post at all, it's a constant voice in my head that reminds me to give it all I got. And that's the drive that makes me excel more often then not. I like that kind of pressure. :)

I do agree that nobody should stick with either one or the other though. A person should strive to achieve some sort of balance. Of course, in a community with so many great writers, it's hard to resist the temptation of writing with all of them.

[Ravenok Kinnes]

I'm neutral here. For oneI have to go in 5 minutes, so no time to type a long speech. o for now all I say is,

I agree with everyone.

Seeya later!

[Sorahn]

lol

I like to write quests with groups of people and do battles sometimes. You do get that interaction and the story ends up progressing really... cool... ly... <_<

Like right now me and Koran are doin a battle for the first time in ages for both of us. It's ending up really awesome cause me and him kind of have a history together from other threads, and we can play on that in this thread. Also you have to adapt and write off of what each other is doing. It makes it a whole different game.

On the other hand, my series (which I'll probably combine to one thread) Rehn Mehnas is entirely solo. I did this mainly because it involves a huge huge character development and... frankly doesn't have room for other players in the plot. This plot has been developing in my head for... probably a good year now and I want to do it exactly the way that I want.

The result of this will be a major change for Sorahn, in his appearance, abilities, and even his character. Once that has happened, I can return to doing quests with others. It's like the solo lets me write this huge epic story exactly the way that I want it to happen, because it's necessary for my character's development, which in turn enables other threads with other people.

There's also some other situations when you can do plenty of character development with another person, so it really just depends on the story and where you want to go with it.

[Ravenok Kinnes]

True, true. It's all about character development. That's what mine is sort of doing, I mean, I probably won't make it into a series like you did, but it is going to show the reader his true personality, how he really acts. Solo role playing lets you focus on your character, and your character alone, you don't have to worry about other characters taking the scene because you're character will always be the center. At least, he/she should be.

[Doppelganger]

My point is, yes, sometimes the story requires you to do it on your own. But if you manage to incorporate others people into such a story, you can enhance the interaction to a whole new level. Of course, it can also backfire at you sometimes. I guess there's always a certain amount of risk involved.

Alright, I concede that point. I think (as I believe was mentioned earlier by someone else) it's also a matter of personal preference- for my own part, I'm quite vain, so I like getting to be the center of attention. What can I say, I'm an only child.



You see, I tend to disagree on the pressure issue. I always feel more pressure when I write with other people, especially if I'm leading the quest. The feeling of letting somebody down by writing a bad post or neglecting to post at all, it's a constant voice in my head that reminds me to give it all I got. And that's the drive that makes me excel more often then not. I like that kind of pressure. :)

I guess it's a different kind of pressure. I'd like to think, anyway, that I "give it all I got" regardless of whether it's a group or solo quest-- but, at the same time, I haven't written very many solo quests. And again, I'm very vain, so maybe I only think that because I think I'm wonderful at everything I do. :cool: I am totally willing to accept that as a (extremely likely) possibility. :D

[Reiko]

I've done a few solos and I'm pretty much done with them. I'm with Letho on it being a writing community that is more about interaction of writers instead of just having the judge though I Am a little more extreme in I'm pretty much done with solos, they haven't been very fun and the end usually leaves me cold. I just don't like writing by myself anymore and prefer to have others with me since they give their support and make it worth it to me.

[Ravenok Kinnes]

True. I just felt like I should experience it before deciding whether I like it or not. In which case, I kind of enjoy it. You don't have to wait for anyone, you can come on and type whenever you feel.

I certainly do love community role playing, though. I'd probably have to say I like both an equal amount. They both have their ups and downs, but in the end I like them the same.

[grim137]

Personally I agree with a lot of whats said though I would like to add a few things.

Solo's I like because you can expriment with a different style of writting or without having to worry about letting somebody down due to a low score. I also find they provide less preasure than group quests because you don't feel forced to post at a certain rate or certain level of quality. The only writer you have to please in solos is yourself.

Group quests I like because of how spontanious they can be. Anybody whose ever done a group quest with me knows that I rarely have anything planned for them outside of maybe a basic plot or a few key events. Also that spontainiousness can be a good thing. Case in point my two most recent group threads "Return of the monster" and its sequel "Escape from Radasanth" which basically started as me, Storm and Osato saying "were bored lets start some random thread together" and it quickly turned into a multi thread epic with the second part scoring an 80 (though sadly not making Judges Choice, that award still eludes me) and a third part coming soon, which led to some pretty big character development.

[Sorahn]

Solo's I like because you can expriment with a different style of writting or without having to worry about letting somebody down due to a low score. I also find they provide less preasure than group quests because you don't feel forced to post at a certain rate or certain level of quality. The only writer you have to please in solos is yourself..

I know exactly what you mean here. Let me just go ahead and say that I believe that while scores may be a good indicator of a thread's quality in relation to other threads, it's not much more than that. I think too many people write with the sole purpose of getting good scores. I know because I used to do it. I got so caught up in writing posts that were of awesome quality in order to get a good score, that I ended up never posting. Finally I decided that the whole reason I'm on here is to have fun, so I stopped worrying about pleasing others and just tried to have a good time. Whatever score results is what happens.

This isn't to say I'm opposed to the judging system. I love getting feedback on my writing and finding ways to improve it, which is the whole point. But I had to remember that this is in fact a game, and not an English class assignment, which is what it eventually turned into... a chore.

NOW... none of that has anything to do with the topic of this thread, whatsoever, so I'm gonna stop now.

[Seth_Rahl]

I believe that writing a solo thread is just like writing a book, and I approach with that same attitude. While right now i'm just doing a so-so solo (Dark Satisfaction...), I write much better material on my computer at home.

The positives are that when writing a solo, it is just you and your imagination. Unless constrained by some other rules, you are bassically the god of that world, or the "Dungeon Master". You control your own NPC's without interrupting other forum-goers' actions and stories, and thus create a mini-world within the main world that no one else has to abide by.

However one of the risks of this is what role-player's call "powergaming". A person could make their character inhumanly powerful and seem to destroy everything in his/her/its path, and disrupt the way the entire world is played. Of course, there are you moderators and admins for such people, but it is still a major inconvenience.

But I believe that role-playing with other's is easier. Although you don't have control over what is happening, bouncing off other people's ideas can create a fun and unique world in which anything can happen. Plus, it eliminates those who wish to disrupt this fun with their powergaming.

so really, i'm on the fence with this issue. I like to write alone, but like to role-play with others. Hmm...

[Séreméla]

So true, sometimes though you have to, if you want to have an advancement in your level. For Seremela I have to do a solo for a while until she post in there, I believe it's challenging me, pulling me out of my usual style.


teehee you would use me...and yeah I am sorry it's taking so long, depending on how this judging thing goes I should be able to post and start the new quest with you and ruben by monday...next friday at the latest.

Soloing can sometimes be boring but it allows you to go at your own pace which is nice sometimes for us in school and such. And you can do your own little thing and not have to worry about somebody changing something up a little and making your first plan change up...I prefer to solo, but I know when I am going to need help in quests that I am going up against crazy odds. That's when I dip into the Althanas pool of people lol