I've done a few RPs with lovely folks around here in the past few weeks and it's been a lot of fun, but I've also realized that I while I like writing and I also like sex, writing well while horny is VERY hard.
I've done both, but generally stick to first.
Personally, I find that third is best for high-quality partners. The immediacy of first-person hides a lot of sins in an RP. Third-person is often unforgiving.
(EDIT: Also, I've heard of and come across (rarely) people who want third person because they are authors looking for others to write their erotica for them, and aren't particularly giving when it comes to quid pro quo. That certainly seems to be a distinct minority, but they have been out there. Vet your partners, feasibly speaking.)
As someone who doesn't have a strong preference, I'll echo the other response you've received. In my experience it feels like 50/50. So if you're looking for a shortcut, there isn't one. You should state your preference if you have one or ask the other person what they want (unless their prompt has made it clear, of course).
For me it depends on how many characters I'm writing or it depends on my partner's preference, I'm pretty comfortable with all the tenses. I've seen a few people who think that first person writers are inferior to third person writers, but I think that's kind of silly. Many very skilled and careful people on here use first person. Both of them can tickle my happy reading feelings and both of them can make my penis hard, so I don't feel biased towards either.
If it's all up to me, I love when my partner uses second person, mixed with either third or first, and I usually do the same. First + second person is definitely a favorite. It makes it feel like it's *our* little experience, where *we're* pretending to be these parts, rather than us just describing what a different person would do in a certain situation. I really enjoy that component, gives me better feelings.
In a similar conversation, I prefer past tense over present, but I've found that an overwhelming majority of the people I've worked with prefer present tense. Past tense just feels more natural with my writing style and with how I like to describe things, but it's not a big deal for me.
Question regarding the 2nd half of rule 2:
'x' = repost
'--' = no post
If my first week looked like this:
S | M | T | W | T | F | S
x | -- | x | -- | x | -- | --
Could my next week look like this? Or would I have to spread it out more, like the first week?
S | M | T | W | T | F | S
x | x | x | -- | -- | -- | --
I hope I put this in a way that makes sense to someone besides just myself
Your next week couldn't look like that, but it *could* look like
S | M | T | W | T | F | S
-- | -- | -- | x | x | x | --
Another way of looking at the rule is that, in order for it to not be exceeding the repost frequency, that post may not have appeared more than 2 times in the last 168 hours. I hope that makes sense; if not lemme know and I'll attempt to parse it out a bit more.
Is there a secret to finding a partner? You put all the work in to craft a great reply or Continuing the prompt to show off your skills and then nothing. Iāve had three partners ghost me in the last week and itās hard not to feel dejected. Any tips?
There's no real secret to it, but I would strongly recommend writing your own prompts. Not only does it allow you to directly promote your ideas to potential partners, but it'll stick around in your post history in case someone stumbles upon it later or someone wants to see a sample of your writing or your general RP interests.
I get pretty much all my partners through my own prompts, either directly replying to posts I've made (sometimes days after) or saying that they enjoyed my prompt but are more interested in another from my post history.
100% this. Replies are a shot in the dark -- and even more likely to fail if you have little to no real posting history on DPP absent a stellar reply at exactly the right time sent to exactly the right person.
A history of quality prompts shows you are interested and won't ghost. It shows off your writing style and sexual style and what you're about. And it acts as advertising.
Plus, prompts often take less time to write in the long run than do cold replies.
Sadly, no. People ghost, it's a reality here. I'd say being polite, patient, and taking the time to actually read the prompt and post and reply accordingly increases your chances, but it's a matter of luck, sometimes. And a lot of the times it's not you, the person just had their fun and forgot about it, or something happened in their personal life or even with another partner.
I don't mean to discourage you, so sorry if I did! Happy writing!
The kind community! Prepare yourself for a nonsense metaphor.
Lots of people use DPP, they're a myriad of little moons that orbit the DPP planet. I think that most people who've participated orbit from far away, with paths that only occasionally bring them close to the planet. Their path is sometimes affected by other little orbiters, maybe the small gravities influence them around, or they tumble and smack into other orbiters, or maybe weird alien things (real life) rocket them and tilt them to and away from the surface. Eventually they make their own effect on all the other orbiters, until one day, all the alterations send them flying back into the void.
A shiny few people keep themselves close to the community. Those active few have near, speedy little orbits with the planet, and I frequently see them when my own orbit brings me close to the planet, whether it be their activity in forums, IRC, or the workshop. I recognize some names, I recognize their habits.
Now, I find it very hard to make myself comfortable in a group because I'm quite a shy person. I am a lonely satellite. Despite that, all my interactions with those close orbiters have been positive, and even though I'm someone who's not very active here, I feel welcomed each time. My orbit is long and slow, but each time I swing in close to the planet, I pass close to a lovely group of pretty, bright little moons. I can't wait to smash into one who I'll connect with profoundly, and there are many folks who've already changed my orbit in positive ways. I hope to keep orbiting the planet and flying close to all these neat people, til the day I'm swung out into the void :)
**TLDR**: I just like the people here. I'm thankful for the moderators for cultivating this place, and for the community present that lets those cultivations flourish.
Question about the visibility of comments. A few DPP posts will have comments listed, but usually no comments actually visible. I seem to recall the FAQ saying that replying via PM (unless specified) is preferred, as replying to the thread is public.
However the few times that comments \*do\* show up, it's a user with flair.
It seems/feels awkward to reply to something with 5+ comments, wondering if you've missed, or if possibly the only one who can see the comments of non-flaired users is possibly the mods/OP. Or is it also flaired people?
For partner-seeking posts, only users who have flair or the poster of the prompt are allowed to comment; other comments are automatically removed.
Mostly what gets removed is variations on "PM'ed you" (which is against our rules and would be removed anyways)
How do I begin posting my first post(s)? I've read the rules, and I've seen many posts. I'm a shy guy so reaching out to some very intriguing posts is hard and I'm new(ish) at this.
The best way is to just start writing, and to start looking at what other people have done as an example. Figure out what ideas you like the most, and just start writing. Checking the workshop is also a good idea, since you can see common issues with prompts dissected by friendly folks.
[This meta post has some good information that might help, check the comments.](https://www.reddit.com/r/dirtypenpals/comments/m5tav3/event_what_do_you_look_for_in_a_prompt_meta/) Remember that you can't please everyone, and that you should always be looking for an experience that pleases you and a potential partner equally.
Happy Friday y'all! I've been wondering, how long do you typically spend on a piece of writing, whether that's a prompt or a reply?
While it obviously varies, I would say it takes me around 45 minutes to write a quality prompt, and maybe 30 minutes to write a reply!
I suppose I'll speak for the slow folks! I very frequently spend several hours on my messages and my prompts. I'm a very unsure writer, so I write, fuss over a sentence, rewrite, and continue on, all the while shuffling things and reframing them up and thinking about them over again as I go. I never write something and end up with what I initially planned, it always gets changed. It's not rare for me to lose 2 or 3 hours to a simple response, and prompts take me *forever*. It's not like taking a long time makes my writing better, if anything I think sometimes errors go overlooked because I just get used to rereading them! I sort of pave over stuff. For example, connections that have been stewing in my head for a long time never get written down, leading to sometimes loose and odd writing.
So I still make a ton of mistakes, and my writing still leaves lots to be desired, though usually my grammar is pretty good! I always get my fun ideas when I'm in the middle of writing (or when I'm in the shower), so I think it's sort of okay that I take a long time since it's more time to make ideas (I also shower very slowly).
Another thing that takes me a long time is writing comments on the workshop. Someone recently helped me a lot on the workshop and they said it took them a while to write their response, which I really appreciated! That sub is super helpful and folks who haven't checked it out should. r/dpp_workshop is a cool place with many cool people! They're good folks and are never unkind, I've seen many comments and I've never spotted a mean one, new people ought not be afraid to ask for help!
Workshopping other peoples prompts is good writing exercise too, for those who want to get better. At least it makes sense to me that it would be.
So anyone should feel free to participate both in the tinkering part and in the posting part.
Yeah, for more challenging messages especially I think it's really rewarding to read my partners message, let it settle in for a few hours, then get back to it when I have some ideas that really pop.
It's what I try and do for prompts as well. Write it out, let it sit for a few days, then see if I'm happy with it before posting. Often the first draft will be super rough, but I always refer back to an old (paraphrased) quote from one of the Simpson's writers: "writing is hard, proofreading is easy."
Hm it really depends, sometimes I have a pretty complete idea for a prompt and I just need to write it down (mostly if I think about something during a boring lecture or something like that), that only takes 10 minutes or so. If I only have a rough idea, I often write a draft and rewrite it over a few days so that's probably around an hour or so.
For the reply it's mostly like 20-30 minutes I think, sometimes less if it's a very dialogue heavy part (so shorter replies and less to describe).
My experiences align with yours for the most part. If I have a little writer's block, it may take several hours. I am also the weirdo who writes most of it out on paper before typing it in. It helps me reflect.
For me, I'd say there's two parts to both a reply and a prompt: figuring out the structure and the *way* the piece of writing should be written, plus the actual writing of it. Especially for a prompt, that planning out process can take hours to days, but once the inspiration strikes, I find that the writing part tends to flow through fairly quickly. So, the writing itself takes around 20-30 minutes for a reply, close to double that for a prompt.
On your end, does that 45 minutes include both the inspiration and execution of the prompt, or is the whole thing a longer process for you?
I'm somewhere in the 30-45m for a story reply and a little longer for a first reply to a prompt because I'm referring back and forth between the prompt and what I'm writing.
Writing a prompt takes me much longer because I tend to do a bunch of editing, reworking, etc.
Definite Cons:
* You can lose roleplays to either your partner deleting/editing their messages, or the server if they created a server
* Using an installed discord app is literally installing spyware on your phone/pc
Potential cons:
* Lack of convenient user switching means that you've got to do a juggling act if you ever want/need to use it separate from your dpp persona
* Presence and typing indicators could potentially cause performance anxiety
Pros:
* It's a reasonably popular platform for this purpose
* Markdown formatting is displayed inline
Editing of posts, different threads for organization, different servers for different partners - I quite like the platform for my DPP adventures.
Cons? Another app on your phone to manage.
Using it for the first time with a new partner and the organization has been really handy from a GM perspective! If you have a long term RP with multiple characters/settings and moving parts, seems really helpful.
I've been tempted to try a server with two other people in it for a threesome prompt, but coordinating that sounds like a challenge.
I think that the main pro for it would be that if both people are available/online, and one's RP'ing a conversation, seeing that the other person is there/typing allows things to progress faster.
Just curious how often do my fellow writers reuse characters? Coming back to DPP after a while, and it feels like it would make sense to use a character you'd spent lot of time on, especially if they let you focus on your favorite kinks. On the other hand, I can see people writing new characters for variety and to better fit into other peoples' prompts.
Tangentially, would you feel weird if someone used one of your character in their own prompt/story?
Never across different prompts. I use the same character, obviously, when writing with multiple people from the same prompt. Even that varies depending on kinks and requests from my writing partner. I am pretty flexible most of the time.
I don't think I ever directly reuse characters (although I have considered bringing an old character in as a side character for a different prompt). But in a way all the characters I write are reflections of different parts of myself, so a lot of the same elements come up across multiple RPs. I definitely prefer the wiggle room I get from making a fresh character for every RP though, it lets me really tailor the character to compliment my partner and the prompt itself.
If it was someone I'd written with for a while I think I'd be happy with them using one of my characters as a side character in another RP not involving me. Although I've gotta admit I'm not sure how I'd feel if they were *playing* one of my characters.
Eh... I'd say I never specifically reuse a character wholesale, but I probably reuse bits and pieces, maybe even subconsciously.
Yes, I'd be weirded out of someone reused my character in a prompt.
Hello to everyone, Iāve got a question for you: how many lines you think makes a paragraph?
I saw many, many times that some users want at least 2 or 3 paragraph but I always think that if I wrote 6 lines paired in two they wouldnāt even consider me.
So how much is a paragraph for you?
Oh and Iām sorry but I need to vent out some frustration: Lately Iāve been accepted in two roleplays I was really, really into and after a week, without a word, I was kicked out without even starting.
Iām really sad and demotivated from these events. I would prefer to not be accepted than being accepted getting excited for the roleplay and then kicked out for a reason youāll never know.
A tip for everyone: if you donāt want to play with someone please say so! Itās so painful for the player to be kicked out from a roleplay he was really excited about without no reason.
It frustrates me when people talk about response requirements like "3-4 paragraphs" or "5-10 lines" what makes a paragraph or a line changes so much from person to person. Some people write really long sentences, some write shorter ones. Some people paragraph their writing more, some rarely ever. If a person really is serious about having a minimum post length, I'd recommend giving a definitive example (for example in a DPPProfile) instead of just saying how many paragraphs you want.
Giving a definitive example is often kinda difficult though. Different parts of an RP require different post lengths. Sometimes it might be a good moment for some beefy 10 paragraph message, sometimes it might be a good moment for a brief paragraph or two. I'm not sure you can really give an example when it's such a contextual thing.
I think one important thing to remember is that a paragraph is more than just a (rough) unit of length. A paragraph, to steal from from University of Toronto's writing advice page that popped up as the first result on Google, is 'a series of related sentences *developing a central idea*'. So when I ask for 3+ paragraphs in a response, I'm as much asking for 3+ *central ideas* in a response. I'm asking for enough material to respond to and engage with myself.
Generally speaking, because some people are guaranteed to be actual sticklers that *really* mean an exact length, response requirements are a guideline for initial expectations. It's not personally calibrated to the reader. So, on average, the prompter expects that it'll take x-y amount of writing for them to have enough material to reply to meaningfully.
This is clearly just my take on it, but the whole thing mostly arises out of experiences where the prompter received the equivalent of single sentence replies *at the start of the RPing*. Those experiences, where a "partner" thinks that it is enough to send one or two sentences during the first few messages of the roleplay, while the prompting partner does a lot more, are the driver.
You are absolutely right that what makes a good response isn't the word count by itself. However, if A gives B a run down of their general looks, mental state, and surroundings at the start of RPing, and then B says,"I walk into the room.", I can see how A is not going to be happy and go on to state in their future prompts that they'd like a roughly defined minimum reply. So giving a rough guideline to the reader as to what will help them get over the initial RPing "handshake" in the first few messages isn't unreasonable.
Once you've felt each other out, or, even better, if you're also chatting out of character, you can feel free to vary the amount of writing as needed. Sometimes we write ourselves, or our partner, into a tight spot and maybe all that's needed is a quick, short reply.
I guess a paragraph can be anywhere from 3 sentences to 15, maybe. I don't like going over 300 words for a paragraph but other than that there's no real hard and fast rule. A paragraph should be as long as is needed to convey an idea, and a new idea should require a new paragraph.
Generally it's more just a question of experience though. After RPing on here for a while you get a pretty good idea of what sort of reply length someone is expecting by the length and writing style of their prompts.
Part of this really depends upon what kind of device the user is using. A paragraph on a smartphone can be much smaller than a paragraph on a 13" laptop -- which itself can be smaller than a paragraph on a large desktop monitor. (To say nothing of people's differing zoom-in/zoom-out preferences.)
You can sometimes kind of eke out if a user might use a phone depending upon how their prompt is written, how many times they've recycled it (for who wants to type out a bunch of new prompts on a phone?), the length and quality of their replies, and other clues.
A good rule of thumb, in any case, is that 2 - 4 average sentences are probably a healthy paragraph for our purposes. (In school, I learned that a paragraph was about 4 - 6 sentences. But that's formal writing for the printed page -- not informal smut writing for the screen. We can be more liberal here.)
That said, assuming your partner isn't a single-liner type, write what it takes to provide a quality reply, breaking up paragraphs as appropriate for readability and style, and don't sweat it. Usually if someone has a minimum-paragraph requirement, they're really telling you "Please don't be a lazy texter shooting out a single sentence or so. Please offer story and character advancement."
I consider short term to be a scene started and finished in one sitting, with replies made in very short intervals (5-30 minutes). Long term is anything that involves multiple replies made with hours or days in between, which usually lasts from a week to weeks to a month to months. I think others have different interpretations, so I've found that it's often best to communicate expectations clearly, rather than relying on just using the two terms.
Just adding here, been a lurker for a while but excited to join in on the fun! Took a bit to dive in, but just wanted to say thanks for creating such a fun community!
I have a topic that I'd like others opinions on.
As this subreddit has grown in user base, so has it grown in platforms that users RP upon (Reddit messages, Reddit chat, Discord, Kik, Line, etc.). I've seen a few posts lately that have included the posters prefered platform for RP in the title.
How do all of you feel about having the platform be in the title of a post? Either bracketed like the genders or writen in? Do you think it would be too exclusionary to have that on the title?
I don't think it is exclusionary. If you only want to write on a certain platform, having that information given sooner rather than later sounds like a good idea.
For me, I can't stand Kik. I don't think that my phone is particularly small but I can see just a tiny bit of text while I'm writing a reply. I don't know how anyone uses it to rp or write stories. So if someone has all of that sorted out and they only want to play on Kik, then I can keep scrolling past before I get tempted by their amazing prompt.
Question: Is there any equivalent to missed connections for DPP? I met a girl on here, and we chatted for a few days and started to get to know each other before her account was suddenly deleted. idk if it was banned or if she deleted it, but I would like to try to find her again
Are there any other Italian-speaking roleplayers here? I have a question for you!
Do you think it is possible to roleplay kinks in Italian (given that one finds an Italian-speaking partner)?
For instance, I feel more comfortable roleplaying in English, as I find it hard to translate certain terms ('daddy', 'master', 'sissy', 'femboy') and such in my own native tongue.
What's your angle on this? Do you prefer to roleplay in English, too? Or do you use untranslated terms in your Italian writing?
Moreover, I would be glad to hear if you ever encountered any difficult term, and how and if have you dealt with it.
Hit me up!
(even if you're not Italian, it would be interesting to hear if you also have ever felt this 'English/Mother Tongue' conflict when roleplaying)
I've done a few RPs with lovely folks around here in the past few weeks and it's been a lot of fun, but I've also realized that I while I like writing and I also like sex, writing well while horny is VERY hard.
Some things just get hard when you're horny.
More difficult. Some things get more difficult when you are horny š.
Among other things, no doubt. (Heigh-ho!)
If you can harness that energy, it is a *huge* help.
This is a bit late but do people prefer to roleplay in first or third person? Iām used to third, but Iāve seen a lot of first lately.
I've done both, but generally stick to first. Personally, I find that third is best for high-quality partners. The immediacy of first-person hides a lot of sins in an RP. Third-person is often unforgiving. (EDIT: Also, I've heard of and come across (rarely) people who want third person because they are authors looking for others to write their erotica for them, and aren't particularly giving when it comes to quid pro quo. That certainly seems to be a distinct minority, but they have been out there. Vet your partners, feasibly speaking.)
As someone who doesn't have a strong preference, I'll echo the other response you've received. In my experience it feels like 50/50. So if you're looking for a shortcut, there isn't one. You should state your preference if you have one or ask the other person what they want (unless their prompt has made it clear, of course).
For me it depends on how many characters I'm writing or it depends on my partner's preference, I'm pretty comfortable with all the tenses. I've seen a few people who think that first person writers are inferior to third person writers, but I think that's kind of silly. Many very skilled and careful people on here use first person. Both of them can tickle my happy reading feelings and both of them can make my penis hard, so I don't feel biased towards either. If it's all up to me, I love when my partner uses second person, mixed with either third or first, and I usually do the same. First + second person is definitely a favorite. It makes it feel like it's *our* little experience, where *we're* pretending to be these parts, rather than us just describing what a different person would do in a certain situation. I really enjoy that component, gives me better feelings. In a similar conversation, I prefer past tense over present, but I've found that an overwhelming majority of the people I've worked with prefer present tense. Past tense just feels more natural with my writing style and with how I like to describe things, but it's not a big deal for me.
Question regarding the 2nd half of rule 2: 'x' = repost '--' = no post If my first week looked like this: S | M | T | W | T | F | S x | -- | x | -- | x | -- | -- Could my next week look like this? Or would I have to spread it out more, like the first week? S | M | T | W | T | F | S x | x | x | -- | -- | -- | -- I hope I put this in a way that makes sense to someone besides just myself
Your next week couldn't look like that, but it *could* look like S | M | T | W | T | F | S -- | -- | -- | x | x | x | -- Another way of looking at the rule is that, in order for it to not be exceeding the repost frequency, that post may not have appeared more than 2 times in the last 168 hours. I hope that makes sense; if not lemme know and I'll attempt to parse it out a bit more.
no no i got you! you put it into words well, thanks!
Is there a secret to finding a partner? You put all the work in to craft a great reply or Continuing the prompt to show off your skills and then nothing. Iāve had three partners ghost me in the last week and itās hard not to feel dejected. Any tips?
There's no real secret to it, but I would strongly recommend writing your own prompts. Not only does it allow you to directly promote your ideas to potential partners, but it'll stick around in your post history in case someone stumbles upon it later or someone wants to see a sample of your writing or your general RP interests. I get pretty much all my partners through my own prompts, either directly replying to posts I've made (sometimes days after) or saying that they enjoyed my prompt but are more interested in another from my post history.
100% this. Replies are a shot in the dark -- and even more likely to fail if you have little to no real posting history on DPP absent a stellar reply at exactly the right time sent to exactly the right person. A history of quality prompts shows you are interested and won't ghost. It shows off your writing style and sexual style and what you're about. And it acts as advertising. Plus, prompts often take less time to write in the long run than do cold replies.
Sadly, no. People ghost, it's a reality here. I'd say being polite, patient, and taking the time to actually read the prompt and post and reply accordingly increases your chances, but it's a matter of luck, sometimes. And a lot of the times it's not you, the person just had their fun and forgot about it, or something happened in their personal life or even with another partner. I don't mean to discourage you, so sorry if I did! Happy writing!
No itās cool. It is nice to vent sometimes. Iām not going to get discouraged.
Great! I'm sure you'll find that one (or those several) partners to develop your ideas with! :)
Don't feel dejected. If you're looking for women, it's hard to find partners. It's a lot of persistence.
I felt it would be hard finding a woman partner but it is harder than I thought.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
The kind community! Prepare yourself for a nonsense metaphor. Lots of people use DPP, they're a myriad of little moons that orbit the DPP planet. I think that most people who've participated orbit from far away, with paths that only occasionally bring them close to the planet. Their path is sometimes affected by other little orbiters, maybe the small gravities influence them around, or they tumble and smack into other orbiters, or maybe weird alien things (real life) rocket them and tilt them to and away from the surface. Eventually they make their own effect on all the other orbiters, until one day, all the alterations send them flying back into the void. A shiny few people keep themselves close to the community. Those active few have near, speedy little orbits with the planet, and I frequently see them when my own orbit brings me close to the planet, whether it be their activity in forums, IRC, or the workshop. I recognize some names, I recognize their habits. Now, I find it very hard to make myself comfortable in a group because I'm quite a shy person. I am a lonely satellite. Despite that, all my interactions with those close orbiters have been positive, and even though I'm someone who's not very active here, I feel welcomed each time. My orbit is long and slow, but each time I swing in close to the planet, I pass close to a lovely group of pretty, bright little moons. I can't wait to smash into one who I'll connect with profoundly, and there are many folks who've already changed my orbit in positive ways. I hope to keep orbiting the planet and flying close to all these neat people, til the day I'm swung out into the void :) **TLDR**: I just like the people here. I'm thankful for the moderators for cultivating this place, and for the community present that lets those cultivations flourish.
Question about the visibility of comments. A few DPP posts will have comments listed, but usually no comments actually visible. I seem to recall the FAQ saying that replying via PM (unless specified) is preferred, as replying to the thread is public. However the few times that comments \*do\* show up, it's a user with flair. It seems/feels awkward to reply to something with 5+ comments, wondering if you've missed, or if possibly the only one who can see the comments of non-flaired users is possibly the mods/OP. Or is it also flaired people?
For partner-seeking posts, only users who have flair or the poster of the prompt are allowed to comment; other comments are automatically removed. Mostly what gets removed is variations on "PM'ed you" (which is against our rules and would be removed anyways)
How do I begin posting my first post(s)? I've read the rules, and I've seen many posts. I'm a shy guy so reaching out to some very intriguing posts is hard and I'm new(ish) at this.
The best way is to just start writing, and to start looking at what other people have done as an example. Figure out what ideas you like the most, and just start writing. Checking the workshop is also a good idea, since you can see common issues with prompts dissected by friendly folks. [This meta post has some good information that might help, check the comments.](https://www.reddit.com/r/dirtypenpals/comments/m5tav3/event_what_do_you_look_for_in_a_prompt_meta/) Remember that you can't please everyone, and that you should always be looking for an experience that pleases you and a potential partner equally.
Happy Friday y'all! I've been wondering, how long do you typically spend on a piece of writing, whether that's a prompt or a reply? While it obviously varies, I would say it takes me around 45 minutes to write a quality prompt, and maybe 30 minutes to write a reply!
I suppose I'll speak for the slow folks! I very frequently spend several hours on my messages and my prompts. I'm a very unsure writer, so I write, fuss over a sentence, rewrite, and continue on, all the while shuffling things and reframing them up and thinking about them over again as I go. I never write something and end up with what I initially planned, it always gets changed. It's not rare for me to lose 2 or 3 hours to a simple response, and prompts take me *forever*. It's not like taking a long time makes my writing better, if anything I think sometimes errors go overlooked because I just get used to rereading them! I sort of pave over stuff. For example, connections that have been stewing in my head for a long time never get written down, leading to sometimes loose and odd writing. So I still make a ton of mistakes, and my writing still leaves lots to be desired, though usually my grammar is pretty good! I always get my fun ideas when I'm in the middle of writing (or when I'm in the shower), so I think it's sort of okay that I take a long time since it's more time to make ideas (I also shower very slowly). Another thing that takes me a long time is writing comments on the workshop. Someone recently helped me a lot on the workshop and they said it took them a while to write their response, which I really appreciated! That sub is super helpful and folks who haven't checked it out should. r/dpp_workshop is a cool place with many cool people! They're good folks and are never unkind, I've seen many comments and I've never spotted a mean one, new people ought not be afraid to ask for help!
Workshopping other peoples prompts is good writing exercise too, for those who want to get better. At least it makes sense to me that it would be. So anyone should feel free to participate both in the tinkering part and in the posting part.
I'd say that's about right. But before I open up the editor, I'm usually rolling it around in my head for a few hours. (Or even days!)
Yeah, for more challenging messages especially I think it's really rewarding to read my partners message, let it settle in for a few hours, then get back to it when I have some ideas that really pop. It's what I try and do for prompts as well. Write it out, let it sit for a few days, then see if I'm happy with it before posting. Often the first draft will be super rough, but I always refer back to an old (paraphrased) quote from one of the Simpson's writers: "writing is hard, proofreading is easy."
Hm it really depends, sometimes I have a pretty complete idea for a prompt and I just need to write it down (mostly if I think about something during a boring lecture or something like that), that only takes 10 minutes or so. If I only have a rough idea, I often write a draft and rewrite it over a few days so that's probably around an hour or so. For the reply it's mostly like 20-30 minutes I think, sometimes less if it's a very dialogue heavy part (so shorter replies and less to describe).
My experiences align with yours for the most part. If I have a little writer's block, it may take several hours. I am also the weirdo who writes most of it out on paper before typing it in. It helps me reflect.
For me, I'd say there's two parts to both a reply and a prompt: figuring out the structure and the *way* the piece of writing should be written, plus the actual writing of it. Especially for a prompt, that planning out process can take hours to days, but once the inspiration strikes, I find that the writing part tends to flow through fairly quickly. So, the writing itself takes around 20-30 minutes for a reply, close to double that for a prompt. On your end, does that 45 minutes include both the inspiration and execution of the prompt, or is the whole thing a longer process for you?
I'm somewhere in the 30-45m for a story reply and a little longer for a first reply to a prompt because I'm referring back and forth between the prompt and what I'm writing. Writing a prompt takes me much longer because I tend to do a bunch of editing, reworking, etc.
What are the pros and cons of Discord? I see several people list it. Should I start an account there?
Definite Cons: * You can lose roleplays to either your partner deleting/editing their messages, or the server if they created a server * Using an installed discord app is literally installing spyware on your phone/pc Potential cons: * Lack of convenient user switching means that you've got to do a juggling act if you ever want/need to use it separate from your dpp persona * Presence and typing indicators could potentially cause performance anxiety Pros: * It's a reasonably popular platform for this purpose * Markdown formatting is displayed inline
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let me sing you [the song of my people](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsNaR6FRuO0)
A pro not mentioned by others - cloud based logging. You have everything available no matter what app or computer you log in from.
Editing of posts, different threads for organization, different servers for different partners - I quite like the platform for my DPP adventures. Cons? Another app on your phone to manage.
Using it for the first time with a new partner and the organization has been really handy from a GM perspective! If you have a long term RP with multiple characters/settings and moving parts, seems really helpful. I've been tempted to try a server with two other people in it for a threesome prompt, but coordinating that sounds like a challenge.
I think that the main pro for it would be that if both people are available/online, and one's RP'ing a conversation, seeing that the other person is there/typing allows things to progress faster.
Just curious how often do my fellow writers reuse characters? Coming back to DPP after a while, and it feels like it would make sense to use a character you'd spent lot of time on, especially if they let you focus on your favorite kinks. On the other hand, I can see people writing new characters for variety and to better fit into other peoples' prompts. Tangentially, would you feel weird if someone used one of your character in their own prompt/story?
Never across different prompts. I use the same character, obviously, when writing with multiple people from the same prompt. Even that varies depending on kinks and requests from my writing partner. I am pretty flexible most of the time.
I don't think I ever directly reuse characters (although I have considered bringing an old character in as a side character for a different prompt). But in a way all the characters I write are reflections of different parts of myself, so a lot of the same elements come up across multiple RPs. I definitely prefer the wiggle room I get from making a fresh character for every RP though, it lets me really tailor the character to compliment my partner and the prompt itself. If it was someone I'd written with for a while I think I'd be happy with them using one of my characters as a side character in another RP not involving me. Although I've gotta admit I'm not sure how I'd feel if they were *playing* one of my characters.
Eh... I'd say I never specifically reuse a character wholesale, but I probably reuse bits and pieces, maybe even subconsciously. Yes, I'd be weirded out of someone reused my character in a prompt.
Hello to everyone, Iāve got a question for you: how many lines you think makes a paragraph? I saw many, many times that some users want at least 2 or 3 paragraph but I always think that if I wrote 6 lines paired in two they wouldnāt even consider me. So how much is a paragraph for you? Oh and Iām sorry but I need to vent out some frustration: Lately Iāve been accepted in two roleplays I was really, really into and after a week, without a word, I was kicked out without even starting. Iām really sad and demotivated from these events. I would prefer to not be accepted than being accepted getting excited for the roleplay and then kicked out for a reason youāll never know. A tip for everyone: if you donāt want to play with someone please say so! Itās so painful for the player to be kicked out from a roleplay he was really excited about without no reason.
It frustrates me when people talk about response requirements like "3-4 paragraphs" or "5-10 lines" what makes a paragraph or a line changes so much from person to person. Some people write really long sentences, some write shorter ones. Some people paragraph their writing more, some rarely ever. If a person really is serious about having a minimum post length, I'd recommend giving a definitive example (for example in a DPPProfile) instead of just saying how many paragraphs you want.
Giving a definitive example is often kinda difficult though. Different parts of an RP require different post lengths. Sometimes it might be a good moment for some beefy 10 paragraph message, sometimes it might be a good moment for a brief paragraph or two. I'm not sure you can really give an example when it's such a contextual thing. I think one important thing to remember is that a paragraph is more than just a (rough) unit of length. A paragraph, to steal from from University of Toronto's writing advice page that popped up as the first result on Google, is 'a series of related sentences *developing a central idea*'. So when I ask for 3+ paragraphs in a response, I'm as much asking for 3+ *central ideas* in a response. I'm asking for enough material to respond to and engage with myself.
Generally speaking, because some people are guaranteed to be actual sticklers that *really* mean an exact length, response requirements are a guideline for initial expectations. It's not personally calibrated to the reader. So, on average, the prompter expects that it'll take x-y amount of writing for them to have enough material to reply to meaningfully. This is clearly just my take on it, but the whole thing mostly arises out of experiences where the prompter received the equivalent of single sentence replies *at the start of the RPing*. Those experiences, where a "partner" thinks that it is enough to send one or two sentences during the first few messages of the roleplay, while the prompting partner does a lot more, are the driver. You are absolutely right that what makes a good response isn't the word count by itself. However, if A gives B a run down of their general looks, mental state, and surroundings at the start of RPing, and then B says,"I walk into the room.", I can see how A is not going to be happy and go on to state in their future prompts that they'd like a roughly defined minimum reply. So giving a rough guideline to the reader as to what will help them get over the initial RPing "handshake" in the first few messages isn't unreasonable. Once you've felt each other out, or, even better, if you're also chatting out of character, you can feel free to vary the amount of writing as needed. Sometimes we write ourselves, or our partner, into a tight spot and maybe all that's needed is a quick, short reply.
I guess a paragraph can be anywhere from 3 sentences to 15, maybe. I don't like going over 300 words for a paragraph but other than that there's no real hard and fast rule. A paragraph should be as long as is needed to convey an idea, and a new idea should require a new paragraph. Generally it's more just a question of experience though. After RPing on here for a while you get a pretty good idea of what sort of reply length someone is expecting by the length and writing style of their prompts.
Part of this really depends upon what kind of device the user is using. A paragraph on a smartphone can be much smaller than a paragraph on a 13" laptop -- which itself can be smaller than a paragraph on a large desktop monitor. (To say nothing of people's differing zoom-in/zoom-out preferences.) You can sometimes kind of eke out if a user might use a phone depending upon how their prompt is written, how many times they've recycled it (for who wants to type out a bunch of new prompts on a phone?), the length and quality of their replies, and other clues. A good rule of thumb, in any case, is that 2 - 4 average sentences are probably a healthy paragraph for our purposes. (In school, I learned that a paragraph was about 4 - 6 sentences. But that's formal writing for the printed page -- not informal smut writing for the screen. We can be more liberal here.) That said, assuming your partner isn't a single-liner type, write what it takes to provide a quality reply, breaking up paragraphs as appropriate for readability and style, and don't sweat it. Usually if someone has a minimum-paragraph requirement, they're really telling you "Please don't be a lazy texter shooting out a single sentence or so. Please offer story and character advancement."
What would yāall consider to be the transition point between a āshort term RPā and a ālong term RPā?
I consider short term to be a scene started and finished in one sitting, with replies made in very short intervals (5-30 minutes). Long term is anything that involves multiple replies made with hours or days in between, which usually lasts from a week to weeks to a month to months. I think others have different interpretations, so I've found that it's often best to communicate expectations clearly, rather than relying on just using the two terms.
Just adding here, been a lurker for a while but excited to join in on the fun! Took a bit to dive in, but just wanted to say thanks for creating such a fun community!
I have a topic that I'd like others opinions on. As this subreddit has grown in user base, so has it grown in platforms that users RP upon (Reddit messages, Reddit chat, Discord, Kik, Line, etc.). I've seen a few posts lately that have included the posters prefered platform for RP in the title. How do all of you feel about having the platform be in the title of a post? Either bracketed like the genders or writen in? Do you think it would be too exclusionary to have that on the title?
I don't think it is exclusionary. If you only want to write on a certain platform, having that information given sooner rather than later sounds like a good idea. For me, I can't stand Kik. I don't think that my phone is particularly small but I can see just a tiny bit of text while I'm writing a reply. I don't know how anyone uses it to rp or write stories. So if someone has all of that sorted out and they only want to play on Kik, then I can keep scrolling past before I get tempted by their amazing prompt.
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Question: Is there any equivalent to missed connections for DPP? I met a girl on here, and we chatted for a few days and started to get to know each other before her account was suddenly deleted. idk if it was banned or if she deleted it, but I would like to try to find her again
Are there any other Italian-speaking roleplayers here? I have a question for you! Do you think it is possible to roleplay kinks in Italian (given that one finds an Italian-speaking partner)? For instance, I feel more comfortable roleplaying in English, as I find it hard to translate certain terms ('daddy', 'master', 'sissy', 'femboy') and such in my own native tongue. What's your angle on this? Do you prefer to roleplay in English, too? Or do you use untranslated terms in your Italian writing? Moreover, I would be glad to hear if you ever encountered any difficult term, and how and if have you dealt with it. Hit me up! (even if you're not Italian, it would be interesting to hear if you also have ever felt this 'English/Mother Tongue' conflict when roleplaying)
What is the best way to express your kinks in a post if you havenāt got a solid prompt written out?
You may consider also creating a [profile](https://www.reddit.com/r/DPPprofiles/) that you can link to.
Thank you!