Role playing or fiction writing?

While I haven't done any actually role playing with any of my character for way over 10 years - I "role play" scenarios whenever all the time. This is, for me, how stories evolve. When I go to bed, commute or if I'm at a job that doesn't need much brainpower - I think about my characters. I think about them in direct situations from the books, or in crazy "what if" situations to amuse myself.

If I only thought about my writing when I sat at the computer ready to write - I would probably come up blank. As it is now, scenes are already more or less finished in my head and all I need to do is get them on paper and "style" them.

 

I give up. Clearly no one has understood the point I was trying to make originally (and it seems no-one understands the meaning of the phrase role-playing). And no, this isn't frustration because no one's in agreement with me. It's frustration because people are failing to understand.

Quote me all you want, pick holes in my past comments to show my contradictions, but I'm moving on

 

I have been watching this thread for a while never had a good moment to reply myself and everyone else said essentially what I was going too.

But your last response brings me to what I find interesting. You start a thread, no one understands the position your trying to express. So you abandon it?

This makes me a bit sad. As people have responded in the same way I have. I assume I have also not quite grasped your intended meaning. But all I have in which to do it is your text.

If your current text has not expressed your meaning to any of us. Perhaps you may want to pause, rethink your words and try and give them to us in a way we would understand? Your call of course but since you started what appeared to be a mildly interesting chat. I would be curious to see it gain some sort of conclusion.

 

I was thinking about this last night. I was trying to find other examples of fiction that are heavily weighted toward character, with less attention to plotting. Aside from improvisation, I realized that there are a lot of plays that have thin plotting in exchange for deep character. I suspect this is a playwright's gift to actors, who love to sink their teeth into something juicy, even if the story isn't a thriller.

The type specimen that came to mind right away was Waiting For Godot. I sat through this play as a teenager kept waiting for 'something to happen'. The plot doesn't really have pacing, there's no conflict, no resolution. I was hoping Godot would show up and be an asshole and send the plot somewhere more interesting. But the characters are fascinating, and that's what it's about because it's an analysis of how humans think.

Knowing a bit about Beckett's writing style, it wouldn't surprise me if he spent his days telling exhausted friends and family what Vladimir and Estragon thought about current events.

 

Why not both.

 

@OurJud

Is this one of yours?

https://www.writingforums.org/threads/character-theme-songs.155495/

 

I can't completely tell, but it almost seems like it's good to write well developed characters with a well developed plot in an interesting setting. @OurJud asked why is it necessary to share those lives with others. Maybe because it is fun, gives a writer a simple distraction instead of staring at their screen or at their page, it could also give them ides about different situations their characters could be in.

Roleplaying can lead to good fiction, a good example are roleplaying games. A lot of roleplay games, once you get past the technical side, are just stories that are being played out. Roleplaying, in my opinion, is just one form of writing, whether it just be unrelated to the story or not, personally, I've gone through three different iterations of one character that has changed through interactions in character chatrooms, the plot has also changed, along with the setting. It may not be a big part of writing to you, but I'm assuming people want to test their characters. See how they would react like many people have said. In the end, the overarching argument seems to be if roleplaying can be good, solid fiction, my answer is maybe, because it all depends on the person.

 

At first, what @OurJud was saying made sense to me, although the thread has expanded the issue a bit. But I'll give my interpretation a try.

I think what he meant was that there is a gap between role-playing a character and actually writing fiction.

Just because you've created a great character, and you know their hair colour, eye colour, height, weight, skills, quirks, strengths, weaknesses, and what they would do if they were choosing books in a library, or eating an egg, or slashing at an opponent with a sword does NOT automatically create good fiction. Pretending to be 'them' in umpteen situations does not automatically lead to writing success either. Too much of that kind of immersion can actually stall the writing process, and even prevent it from starting. That may be what's behind the people who seek approval for their elaborately-constructed characters before they begin writing at all. The leap from head to written page just isn't happening.

Role-playing might be a step a writer likes to take to get into a story, but it's only the first step.

Some successful writers may use this kind of intense role-playing to gain a picture of their character's likely responses to events. Do whatever works for you. However, there is a lot more to be done before these characters emerge in a great piece of fiction.

A writer also has to create a convincingly-portrayed setting, a reason for a story in the first place, a compelling plot that is more than just vignettes strung together for fun, and other vivid characters for the MC to interact with—unless the story contains only one character. Writers also need to acquire a sensitivity to mechanical wordcraft, story structure, and master a few mundane tricks-of-the-trade as well.

Lots of people can create a story in their heads and have fun role-playing their characters. Not everybody can write that story down so that others read it with the same enthusiasm.

If that's what OurJud meant, then I agree with him. If that's not what he meant, I apologise for missing his point.

 

To me, it just comes across as condescending. "The way they present their characters and ideas doesn't fall into line with my thought process, so they must not be a true fiction writers." That's the impression I get. The fact is that people will present whatever they want, however they want. Unless they haven't produced anything meaningful to them, I don't think anyone has any right to tell them that they aren't writers, because writing a story isn't really about putting the "pen to the paper" so to speak, it's about the entire process up to and beyond that point. And I guess I don't really understand the assumption that role-playing a character isn't actually writing anyway. Besides, what better way to develop a character than to imagine yourself in their shoes? I do that all the time, and honestly think it's quite essential.

If your intent wasn't to be condescending, then I apologize for the misinterpretation, but honestly, everyone has a different thought process when it comes to developing a story. And you never know, it may be a way of coping with some sort of writing block. It's just going to always be different from writer to writer.

On a side note, I much prefer to hear a writer role-playing a character they care about or a diverse setting they've created with no established story over a completed book or series with two-dimensional plot and little creativity.

 

When that happens, you can try explaining.

 

Yeah, I'm the writer. But if a character suddenly 'won't do' what I want them to do, I pay attention. (In my case, it's often that they want to do something I hadn't previously thought of.)

You might start with a character who will do this and that, but as they develop (through writing them) they begin to acquire a more nuanced personality. If you try to stuff them back into the original rough mold, you're going to end up with a character that doesn't quite feel right.

I think if they 'won't do' what the plot requires, you probably need a rethink. Figure out how/when that character changed since you first envisioned them. Then either go back and eliminate the change—or go with what the character now 'wants' to do.

This is not a disembodied character fooling with your head—exterminate, exterminate. It's your own subconscious at work. You know, down underneath, that something's not right.

 

One of the reasons I don't generally outline is that I have only a sketchy idea of my characters before I start writing them. I can't figure out a coherent plot until I have a better idea of what the characters are like and how they'd react to different situations. It's not the same as thinking the characters are real people; it's just a question of building them as I go, adding layers and backstory and elements of personality.

I can't really imagine how someone would be able to draft a coherent outline (and stick to it) if they only knew as little about their characters as I do when I start writing. I'm not saying it can't be done, I just can't imagine how. So, for me, I think it would make sense to do something to get the characters figured out before I wrote the outline. The chatroom/role-play stuff doesn't appeal to me, but I definitely think it's more organic and likely more productive than filling out those exhaustive "character sheets" some people use.

So, for me, I get impatient with all the pre-writing stuff some people do. I'm in favour of sitting down and starting the damn story, typing it through (in proper order!) until the end, and then moving on. But obviously others write in different ways.

 

I said I was done, but feel obliged to say @big soft moose has understood to a large extent, and @jannert nailed it with the third paragraph of her second-to-last post.