FEATURE PAGE
RPW: THE STORY THAT
WRITES ITSELF
– V.
Role-play world — what ideas come to mind when you hear it?
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For sure, we all think of different experiences. It could be possible that we might have even thought of a person. But let’s start from the bottom, shall we?
The role-play community is where people come together to live in a world that they themselves can control. It can be based on any social media platform — Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram is only one of the few. It’s a place where role-players have the freedom to express their opinions, meet new people, and create stories as they go. It used to solely focus on writing, but now it’s clear that role-players have evolved in terms of portraying their character. Everywhere you look, you can see prompts, video edits, pictures, and so many more.
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Creativity is one thing every role-player has in common, but this fictional world itself is as vast and diverse as our Milky Way galaxy.
Roleplay world. (RPW). Screenshot taken from Dead Press Society account. (@DPSOCIETY_RP). Taken by: L.
It is a world of pretend play, a world that makes use of different faces, superficial personalities, a world of synthetic characters. However, you still create your own persona and get to experience a different life.
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Live up to the face. In character or IC. Being this type of role-player exerts a lot of effort. Updates, awards, concerts, and even live videos streamed in different social media sites done by your face claim will be showcased through your account. Your attitude or character will be based on what your face claim is. You are usually living up to the face you use.
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In the guise of a new persona. Own, rather original character of the admin handling your role-play account. Living this type of role-player drives much creativity for you to establish your own character using your face claim of your choice. Updates, concerts, and such, done by your face claim may not be given much attention in this type of role-play. You create your own character and personality, showing a slightly different lifestyle of the face used. You can be an heiress, fighting for the company and taking consequences that might be a hindrance in taking your throne or be a simple student that struggles with your studies. A cliché type of teleserye but still, you are your own story.
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A whim of fantasy. An alternative universe. Handling this type of character usually requires plotting and a wide scope of creativity as well. For instance, you use an artist of your choice as your face claim and link it with a mafia gang, or even vampires. You can be a fairy that grants wishes or even a godmother that everyone would love. You may take a trip down the underworld, and meet Hades or be one of his kind. See, your creativity can be stretched until you find the satisfaction in your alternate universe play. Rather than having a normal character from a movie that has riches or golds, you choose to think and play more, fiction wise. You are your own highness.
In the shoe of the opposite. Cross-gender roleplayers. Admins or the operators handling roleplay accounts tend to limit personal information due to confidentiality. Yet, beknownst to many, females are a majority of being an admin. It shouldn't be a problem, and shall never be a problem in this world for we all are here to escape the reality the outside world offers. They establish an act to live the opposite gender from birth, pulling different characteristics and personalities to justify the face claim used. Everyone shall welcome them.
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In a room of four corners. Closed roleplayers or the limited ones. These are roleplayers affiliated with a closed agency or bases that only caters to limited accounts. Being in this community usually limits you on four corners. First corner; only interact with accounts affiliated with the base. To avoid confusion, closed roleplayers shall interact with a closed circle of friends to stay intact with the idea of being a closed agency. Second corner; you must stick with the concept given. Again, to avoid confusion, the AU given shall be justified to pull off the concept. If you want your own alternate universe experience, being an OCRP is your top choice. Third corner; have a very tight bond with everyone. Having the idea of a closed community, it is easy for some to establish a reputation and make friends. Usually, people from closed agencies all have a tight-knit friendship for they are few. Fourth corner; enjoy your experience. It applies to all as fun is highly appreciated in this type of roleplaying. As said above, having a tight-knit relationship establishes strong ones and it all comes with fun since as what is commonly known, we are all here to escape the reality that the outside world offers.
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Just the face. Freelancers. Even though a bit stray to the whole point of roleplaying, it is still considered as a type, making it look like a stan account but rather using just the face of a chosen artist or Korean idol. You meet friends here and make memories. Nevertheless, we shall give respect to these accounts not belittling them.
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Above all, entering this world is to find an escape from reality. Whatever type of roleplay you do, you must keep in mind all these are a figment of our imagination. Differentiate real feelings from your characters to avoid being in pain. Guard your heart, wherever. Still, in this fabricated world, we find the real diamonds.
YOUR SYNTHETIC LIFE IN SHIFTS
– Mutya.
MANNER OF LITERATURE
– Lady Norse.
Types of Plotting Scripts. Screenshot taken from Dead Press Society account. (@DPSOCIETY_RP). Taken by: L.
Writing makes up a large part of the role-playing community. It's an ever-growing community and a lot of role-players give it out a try and share their ideas on certain topics and make up new plots. There are many styles in role-playing with someone or plotting certain topics, some are easy to initiate and some are a bit complicated.
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NOVICE.
One liner, most common form for role-playing. It is easy to role-play in this style for it doesn't require much detail. These styles can be used during casual conversations but it is not the type of role-playing wanted in serious situations. It can be initiated with brackets, apostrophes, or slashes.
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"oh, thank you! *smiles*" or "oh, thank you. *smiles at her*"
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Semi-lit, a stage between one-liner and descriptive role-play. This style is where more emphasis is put into detailing their actions, but not by much. Unlike one-liners, they put more than one line during their role-play.
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"oh, thank you. *she smiles at her* but you didn't have to! *looks at her, seriously* i know you have your reasons anyway, so i understand!"
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Script, this type of role-play is accessible to everyone. The reason for this is that it's easy to grasp and easy to start. These types of role-playing are mostly used when fooling around. This style starts with the character's name, followed by the emotion of the character, then the dialog and the action.
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"Freya : (tired) oh, thank you.. *takes the water bottle*"
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INTERMEDIATE.
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Descriptive/literate helps visualize, describe, define, and explain information about situations and actions. This is a common style of role-playing for serious events and also when role-playing with a partner.
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"She walked through the halls of the school with the feeling of excitement for their first day. Some won't feel the same as her when it comes to their first day of classes. for Freya, she has been excited for a club that would open on their first day. "good morning!" She greets her friends. "
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Advanced literate, this means you are roleplaying like telling a story - long paragraphs, no chat-speaks, or slang. Literate roleplay is a great way to sharpen your writing skills and can enable you to explore your characters more. In advanced literate roleplaying, you should write your plot in a full sentence, describe their emotions and reactions, but most importantly, stay on topic. It may be a little similar to descriptive roleplay, but in advanced literate, you should put in the complete thought and description of the situation of your character and his actions.
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"Freya walked down the dark streets towards her home, her footsteps audible as it hits the tiles. The cold zephyr and the moonlight that shown above made her have the scary vibes as she walked through the night. She reaches home, taking her keys from inside her bag. Feeling tired from all the work she has done for today, she sighed in relief as she opens the door of her home to take some rest for the day... "
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FLEXIBLE.
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A common literate you would see, mirrored. A mirrored roleplayer means they adjust to the roleplaying style to match their partner's. Most roleplayers can mirror without a problem, that's why you often see mirrored roleplayers in the community.
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These roleplaying styles are often used by many in the roleplaying community. You can see some roleplayers who are plotting on the timeline or in their private messages with their partners or with a group of people using these literates.
Plots and materials posted portray a huge part of the character’s development when it comes to roleplaying, but when one concept is deemed to have a dark or inappropriate trope how can the muse give such warnings?
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A diverse amount of topics ranging from a guide to aesthetics to bases recruiting members can already be surfed in the web with a single click. Someone can already fall into a rabbit hole just by simply scrolling through their gadgets. A part of that rabbit hole is probably stumbling upon an account or post which says “not safe for work” (NSFW).
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Roleplay accounts need to state if their account is safe or not for the general public to see as it would give people a warning that some of their contents aren’t catered for everyone. It’s usually placed on their pinned tweets, location, or even sometimes their carrd. It has to be written somewhere for viewer discretion.
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If we trace its history way back in 1988, the original abbreviation was NFBSK which meant “not safe for British school kids” in the place of rude content. It later evolved and named as it is today in 2003 by the Urban Dictionary. The roots of the warning illustrate that anything that is not child-friendly whether it’s the caption of a post, a photo or video, or a whole thread that’s not what is considered rated G or child-friendly would immediately be connected with NSFW branch.
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A common misconception in the community about this is that the tag is just limited to sexual themes like posting prompts and concepts which may or may not contain BDSM in them or engaging in sexual activity such as retweeting or posting porn. However, like how there is plenty of fish in the sea, there is also a variety of subtopics under this. A few of them include cursing, rude posts, raunchy memes, potty-mouthed videos, plots with dark themes such as gore, the mentions of blood, death, drugs, and the like.
Take for example a weather forecaster reprimanding about a thunderstorm that’s about to hit the town, they easily convey their report through the news. What they wanted to deliver was clear; people immediately get the gist and take precautionary measures. Similar to how easy it is to edit your profile, it’s not that hard to state whether you’re safe for work or not; the overview of your account gives those who suddenly find themselves scrolling through your timeline a heads up to safeguard themselves for the materials posted.
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This can be applied to those who frequently cuss, or is inclined with bases and/or families whose concepts are not for everyone in the clique. Especially in this age where anyone who has fallen under the spell called roleplaying has the power to see anything and everything under the sun, not only to see it, but they also have the capacity to create the content themselves. Twitter is a free app that’s easy to access and navigate, all more the reason for people to label themselves not safe for work. With the number of people the platform hosts, once your account has been set to public, it’s open to the eyes of everyone.
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Keep in mind that anything that isn’t kid-friendly falls underneath the scope of the tag. If their reason for being flagged NSFW is correlated to their character development and AUs, then the age(s) of the face claim(s) used shouldn’t be a factor that affects this – as long as they portray the character with age-appropriate themes not only to the muse but also to the operator behind the account.
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It’s the small gestures like these that make roleplaying smoother, transparency is something that matters because not only do we use the faces of others, but also to avoid miscommunication. Always remember to use your muse properly and not taint their image. Bringing to life the phrase “What you see is what you get,” the profile is to remain clothed with stories, but naked with the basic facts.
– Fury
NAKED CLOTHING
SFW & NSFW. Screenshot taken from Dead Press Society account. (@DPSOCIETY_RP). Taken by: L.
RPW FEATURE DRABBLES
ONE-WAY TICKET
– Fury.
In the eyes of a wanderer who has yet to explore the fascinations the world offers, traveling is a luxury. But imagination and creativity runs free, so that’s something to hold onto.
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A world full of fiction where you can be whoever you want to be, doing things that aren’t as easy to attain in reality. A world where you can feel the most genuine happiness, most outgoing friendships, and bonds that are irreplaceable. A world so beautiful yet so catastrophic.
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Maximizing the use of my brain with unsaid stories that are to be voiced in this way was never a part of my plan. The door was open for me to enter, but why does it seem like it’s locked? The emotional and sentimental attachment this community has brought to me is something I would carry for as long as I exist, be it the brightest smiles or the loudest cries. In bliss and melancholy, it’s not that easy to leave. It’s not that I haven’t thought of leaving, because I have. A lot. Problem is, I can’t.
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From the people you meet to the people you connect with, all of them play a huge part in your muse’s life. It’s not an easy task to build your character and develop it in a way that’s respectful for the face claim/s used. Once you get in, there really is no convenient way out. In this world where reality and fantasy meet in between. A source of healing, and a source of heartbreaks.
MEMOIRS THROUGH THE SCREEN
ALEXA, PLAY TOXIC BY BRITNEY SPEARS
– Mutya.
– V.
The unfamiliarity runs down in a sprint, different faces, and foreign flow of lifestyle. Yet you choose to explore the community, a world of imagination.
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Putting on an act in this world usually comes with wide span of creativity. The progress in role-playing has caught the attention of many. From simple pictures of introducing your muse to video edits and such, producing your carrd as well. Simple prompts posted before may now be done in a video form, along with the written piece. It is a safe space for everyone, but as always, troubles are encountered.
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From endless issues on the timeline, misunderstandings of different parties, some people are overwhelmed with such occurrence. Their mental state may not be as stable as before for they experience it awful. But as we look on the brighter side, it is a platform of talents.
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Showcasing your writing skill, exchanges of prompts on the timeline, video edits, superb filters on pictures, it is a space for aspiring artists. Here, you unleash the abilities you have from the real world. The admin's dedication in putting time and exerting effort in producing your work is totally appreciated. In a sense, it inspires people.
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This fabricated world is a home to some, but keep in mind that all of these are a mere result of your imagination. Almost everything is made-up, but feelings are truly felt. Though it was foreign at first, still, genuineness and smiles were shared in this community.
I’ve been role-playing since summer of 2019, and I’ve been through quite a lot since then. I've met a lot of memorable people, formed amazing stories and virtually traveled through many different places. Role-play, even though I was still new at the time, quickly became one of the many things I considered as a hobby. But of course, it had toxic tendencies (I mean, what do you expect from a platform that gives people the freedom of speech and the choice to keep their anonymity?). I’ve tried leaving numerous times, but somehow, I just kept coming right back. I realized that the longer I stayed in this fictional world, the more it became an escape rather than a hobby.
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​Occasionally, when I think about RPW, I always come to a conclusion that life would have been less stressful if I hadn't discovered it. But the time that I've spent on Twitter ― plotting, attending events, and especially meeting people ― I honestly wouldn't trade these experiences for anything. Even though it might be toxic, I've learned so many things that I think I can carry on to the real world.