#(dear HB/HH rpc please forgive me for this example post!)

[doublejango]

Hello! I read your post on being present in roleplaying and it got me curious as I've never done it myself (outside of drama improv, if that even counts, lol), but it's always felt like a formative staple in fandom community even though I've never really understood it.

I wanted to ask a couple of questions if that's okay. Namely, what actually is roleplaying, what it's like, and where one can find a community to try it out.

Otherwise, I thought your post was really good as it also applies to OCs in novels and experiencing real life, so if all else, we can just leave it at that, lol

Aw hi! And thank you, this was so sweet!!!

I mean, I am not an expert on RP or anything, I've only been back on Tumblr since February. I'm also absolutely not an expert on writing, just an enthusiastic lover of spilling words onto the page, so take everything with a grain of salt <3

Roleplaying is basically just shared storytelling. It can take a lot of forms--like LARP, which stands for Live Action Role Play, or tabletop games like D&D. With those, it is a lot like improv acting, I imagine. You have a character, you have parameters, and you shape the story by acting things out as you go--no plan, no script, just doing what feels right for your character while also working to build the "Yes, And" vibes.

Written RP is a lot like that. At least, to me it feels a lot like that. It feels like a game where we both pick our favorite characters and our favorite writing styles, then dive in hard. Maybe we explore whatever aspects of canon (if one or both of us is a canon character) left us howling and sobbing. Maybe we mix worlds--like Blitz hanging out with Cardan, from the Folk of the Air series. Maybe we just become absolute crack monsters. Whatever we do with it, it's essentially collaborative storytelling built on respect of each other's preferences and needs, and love of not just the results, but the process. It's fun, it's like--making a really satisfying with (usually) just one other person.

On tumblr, you can often find roleplaying communities (or RPCs) for just about anything just by checking for relevant tags, like helluva boss rp for me. If there's something you love, there's probably an RPC for it, and if not? There's usually someone who will be interested in checking your character out and talking about inspiration with you.

A lot of RPers--most, from what I have seen--will have a pinned post on their blog that communicates their rules/preferences. For example, since my character is a filth-goblin and a violent little feral monster, I am not okay with the idea of interacting with minors, so I put that in my rules. I'm also very anti-censorship and shaming, so that's in my rules, too. Whatever is most important to you, whatever you know you won't be able to handle in an RP partner, put that in your rules post. If you find the RPC tags for a fandom you like (and Tumblr will often help you with this by promoting other posts and blogs similar to the things you search for, once it figures out that's what you like), you can find roleplayers' blogs and check their rules out to get an idea of what sort of things might be most common, what sort of things other players seem to hope to find in rules.

If the idea of digging into tags overwhelms you, or you take a look around and decide nope, Tumblr RP is not for me, but I still want to try written RP, you can also look for blogs that are designed to help people meet so they can write together, often on Discord. @rphunter is an excellent example of those blogs and can be a great place to start, or even just a way to start seeing how people talk about RP.

TL;DR -- It's like creating fanfiction together (or original fiction, sometimes!), because we love the game, respect each other, and are cheerful nerds who just like to play. Roleplay is a very social hobby, and a lot of fun! If you're curious about it, I hope you give it a try! And hey I may be slow about answering questions, and may just babble and be the worst source ever, but I will always try <3 So please never feel bad for asking.