So you have an epic story that you want to unleash. You’ve got your ducks in a row, the details are fleshed out, and everything is ready to go. You tilt your head back and march into your RP forum and announce the start of your fantastic tale and . . .

Nothing happens. No one cares. They sorta shrug and go back to playing checkers all the while humming the Warcraft equivalent of a Tom Waits tune. Heart wrenching isn’t it, when you have this great huge thing that you want to start and it gets no play? Instead of sawing at your arms with a butter knife and tuning iTunes to the most emo music ever, it’s time to step back and ask Why did this happen?

Possibility One: The Timing Wasn’t Great

Timing really is everything, and if a group of characters has just recovered from an amazingly difficult story, maybe they need that time with the checkers and the Waits to recoup before they can muster up the energy to have another go. Maybe they have stories of their own that they’re working through and just can’t add more to their plate at this time. Figuring out WHEN to unveil your story is pivotal. One thing I learned from doing a huge arc back in the day called Blood And Sunset is the benefit of an OOC announcement and outline of certain plans beforehand, along the lines of “I’d like to start a story, I’d love guild interaction with it, here’s what I have and what I’d like.” If you request feedback, people will usually give it.

Possibility Two: You Picked The Wrong Audience

Some stories will appeal to certain folks more than others. An example would be the Wildfire Riders collecting northerners like trading cards and the Icecrown thing in game. It’s the perfect storm for them because Arthas decimated Lordaeron early on, and this fight is considered “personal” by many. The characters and the story are symbiotic.

If you have a night elf druid and you want your story to be Elune based, a light loving paladin may not necessarily be the best target for your rants on the merits of worshiping at the Temple of the Moon. If the paladin is one to debate religion, well, bingo, you have a winner. Know thy audience and you will prosper.

Possibility Three: You Wrote A Play, Not Roleplay

This is very, very hard to see sometimes, but when you sit down with a arc, if you sketch out a beginning, an end, and a specific middle and no on has the ability to change any of the details of said arc at any point, you’ve essentially cast a play, NOT invited folks to roleplay. This isn’t to say characters won’t REACT to your drama, of course they will, you scripted it that way. You planned on the rogue’s witty banter and snarky comments, and that priest’s shoulder to cry on. Keep this in mind: if people are going to invest energy in your plans, you need to leave some things open, you need to make them feel like they can contribute and possibly change the course of the events. If you NEED a certain ending to happen for personal roleplay advancement, that’s fine, but at least allow the ‘how you got there’ to be flexible.

Possibility Four: They Just Don’t Find It Interesting

We want to write Hemingway. Sometimes we write manure. It happens. A sign that your story is missing the mark is none of the other factors seem to be a thing, you may have gotten an initial burst of interest, and everything wanes quickly. There’s no shame in asking a player “Hey, you seemed like my story might work for you and then it didn’t. Do you have any suggestions on how this could have gone better?” Feedback, feedback, feedback. Communication is key. And hey, if you look at your notes a little later and go “Yeah, wow, what was I thinking?” Rest assured, everyone who writes does this a lot more than you might realize. We make mistakes, we learn from them, we move on.

Possibility Five: You’re A Drama Llama

If your character has been kidnapped, tortured by Saurfang, maimed by a bear, lit on fire by gnomes AND had a trollish voodoo rite within six months, it might just be that folks are tired of the constant upheaval. Give someone else a chance to shine, for Christ’s sake! One thing I’ve had discussions with others about before is the need to spread the love for RP. It’s one thing to present a story because NOTHING is going on and people need a kick in the pants to get going again. It’s quite another to stack drama upon drama upon drama and expect saving and all of the glory. If you’re looking for realism in your RP, characters need wins from time to time, it can’t always be a big pile of shit, or what’s the point in continuing on? You might as well feed yourself to this guy. There is such a thing as too much of a good (or bad) thing.

*****

Flops in stories are very hard to stomach, but don’t think that because one story goes awry every story will. That’s not the nature of the beast. Even if everything looks dim because you had a lot riding on the outcome of your proposed RP and it went south, keep a few things in mind:

- Try, try, again. The next story will likely be a lot better because you’re going into it armed with the WHY of your previous failure and you can avoid pitfalls.
- It happens to everyone.
- Your friends will help you through it.

It’s amazing going over all of the roleplay advice threads and discussions we’ve had on this blog how MUCH goes back to communication. Discussing your wants, needs, and yes FAILURES with others can open your eyes and teach you a lot. People are more than happy to help when asked. There’s this saying called pay it forward, and that means when people help you, you will likely be willing to help them when their flop time comes up. Talk it out, ask for pointers and ask for advice if you’re unsure. It will get you far.

Ta!