Post by Jack'Aran on Nov 20, 2011 8:37:35 GMT -5
Introduction to Profile Analysis
Ever seen those characters that look really attractive? Not just the photo, but everything from their writing style, format of Rp, first person or third person, para or one lining?
You want to RP with them but you don't know if they have a character that is compatible with yours or maybe they're checking out your profile and you're not sure if you can sell the deal. Here you can find out some tricks to use when looking for someone to RP with. Hopefully you will become a better writer and learn to analyze key words that should give you warnings if your RP will work in the first place.
If you read my post "How to create a Role Play profile," you already know how to make an effective and rather basic profile. But now you're reading other peoples profiles and don't know what to look for.
I'll use some examples of REAL role players and show you what throws me off and what attracts me. I'll explain why and allow you to make the decision.
Websites
Typically, websites have a rules page. You can learn A LOT just by reading the rules. Here's an example of someone who sent me a message with no idea what they wanted to RP but they had a website to share with me.
Parenthesis are my commentary / reaction.
Role player 1 Rules:
If you would like to RP with me, please read these before hand:
(The Header is too long! Its a subject line not a damn sentence.)
You MUST be over 18 - (Ok, she's looking for a mature audience.)
No Anime!! - (She doesn't like cartoon characters.)
Please have a profile for your char(s) or at least an idea in mind. (She wants you to care about your character as she does hers)
Please take the time to have of looked over my chars before you PM me. (Again, she wants you to message her with some substance and material.)
I'm not a hard-ass with grammar/spelling, just make it readable. (Now this is retarded. You don't ask for people to give substance and then say "Do whatever the fuck you want with writing the damn thing.")
Semi to Paragraph, but I'll multi if I'm feeling inspiried. (This makes me feel...uncertain...Do I want to RP with someone who might care about the RP but then again they might not??)
I'm friendly and sometimes just want to chat rather then PM you all the time with "Hey! Wanna RP?". If you are not into chatting please tell me before hand. (Perfectly said. She states that she doesn't want to log in, RP herself to death and then log out. She wants to understand her partners and get to know them better; nothing wrong with that. Just keep a professional attitude and atmosphere and you'll stay on the right track.)
(End)
My Summary and evaluation - She builds up to be rather intelligent and she seeks partners who are as intelligent, but she can care less for substance, material, and story.
In my opinion, if you're going to make demands like "Please take the time to have of looked over my chars before you PM me" you had better damn well care about story and content otherwise, you're wasting my time. I want a fruitful RP not some mindless text that has no meaning.
Lets look to another rule list. Last one, I promise.
Role player Rules 2:
This is your default character website. Tabs are for genres, each hold multiple characters. I'm also inclined to make up on the fly given my mood. Rules are simple.
(This one has no header, just a small box explaining everything.)
Creativity - (They enjoy using their minds and understanding the minds of others. They are an abstract thinker.)
Depth - (Intellectual stimulation. They don't want just writing, they want the writing to mean something.)
Focus on Dialogue over Thought - (More depth, they want the writer to put effort into this.)
Interaction over Mindless Cyber - (Once again, more depth and not just mindless sex.)
Keep it Tense, Contentment is Boring - (Once again, they want to keep their brain active, they don't like sitting around twiddling their thumbs.)
No Canon - (They enjoy seeing players with their own characters using their own intellect to make a character.)
Third Person Only - (I understand this. First person RPers are really bad, I've met a lot and none of them can RP efficiently when compared to a third person RPer.)
Be Polite - (They put time into their website and characters, if you're gonna be a douche, fuck off.)
Enjoy Yourself - (They want you to be happy and if you're not happy, say something. Work on the story until you are both happy.)
Feel Free to Rant/Rave about OOC things, I'll listen - (Same thing as the last one, just more abstract wording.)
If the rp is boring you, tell me - (Are you seeing a pattern? This person CARES about you and your performance.)
If you no longer wish to rp, tell me - (Nice touch, it lets you know that they aren't a complete douche-bag.)
Have a nice day.
Note About Me: I'm over 18, friendly, rational, a science nerd and swear. - (Basically, reinforcing the idea that they are mature and seek people with that common fact.)
YiM Screenname: IrreverentCake - (Contact information, letting your readers contact you should you log out of chat or go offline and they have no means to express their interest to you.)
(End)
Summary - Well put together. Sometimes you make redundant messages in different ways just to communicate what you're trying to say. This person realizes they have to appeal to a wide variety of people and if they keep themselves closed off, very few people will RP with them.
Character Profiles
Now we go into Character profiles...
Using the basics from my post above, you'll now understand why that format is effective. Here are some examples of real RP profiles on Yahoo.
(IrreverentCake's character, not my own.) Example 1:
[photo is displayed]
Name: Avishul Nines
Age: 19
Race: Human
Type of Char: Knight or Soldier, depending on the setting. Also, invariably some form of noble.
Alignment: Lawful Good
Avishul, or Avi as he is affectionately known, is a knight of the truest character. Raised in a good upstanding military family, he threw himself into the family trade of military service from the youngest age he could be sent to the Academy. He is a natural leader being easily likable as well as well trained. He cares for the people around him for more than appearance sake, he cares for them because he feels a great deal of civic pride and patriotism for his country. To him all his countrymen are his brothers.
My Explanation: This character immediately tells me just by reading the basic info, I know that he's a young adult, human, A specialist soldier or elite fighter, and his motives are righteous.
My Evaluation: Do you want to have an Evil character fall in love with this person? Probably not but, lets say you do. You need to form an idea how would your character's alignment will change in order for these two to form a bond; what dramatic change in either of their lives can make a personal exception?
My answer: Create a tougher bad guy so that your character seems like the lesser of two evils, moreover; you may want to change your character from Pure evil to Anti-Hero. These are people who are out for self interest, moral, ethical, principal, etc. If your character has an interest in this character, they would try to change their life style just to include this person. By making subtle changes like Pure evil to Anti-hero, you may actually like the character that way and change it so they are more of a True neutral character or Chaotic neutral.
( Aliene's character, not my own.) Example 2: pulse.yahoo.com/_MVY7LNRMFM4IZA2MX7T4XWDTEE
[Photo displayed]
Name: Lorei Shiren
Age: 19
Occupation: Thrill seeker, Gambler - (Thrill seeker?...She gets paid to seek thrills? This makes no common sense. This can be argued, but I would avoid something stupid like "Thrill Seeker" as occupation. Gambler works just fine.) dictionary.reference.com/browse/Occupation
Bio: Lorei's past is a mystery. The typical memory loss struck her at a young age, waking up in a hospital with only her name to her. Her family was nowhere to be found, her history lost. This meant one single, simple thing. What did her past matter? What did the future matter? Her past and future were lost to some car crash or another...there was one thing that made life real. Gambles. That was what life was, wasn't it? One gamble after another. Besides, every gamble, every thrill, it made life feel right...alive!
So now Lorei walks around, seeking any thrill that comes her way. She greets them head on, happy and eager to see them through.
(End)
My explanation: Good format, a paragraph explaining the character, but where she goes wrong is that "her past life is a mystery." This is a common trait with A LOT of yahoo role players and it basically tells you that they weren't creative enough to explain the background of the character, nor did they want this character to have any REAL personality. I don't care if it has nothing to do with how your character acts now but, you should have an explanation of your past if not leave it blank and don't mention anything about it. Again, this card is played way too often in Yahoo profiles.
My Evaluation: She states what her occupation states. I would make for something like this. Create a "Likes and Dislikes" list and that is where "Thrill seeker" belongs. Because she doesn't get paid for seeking thrills. No one went up to her and said "Hey, I'll pay you if you look for a way of being locked in a cage with 100 King Cobras." It's just stupid to me.
Summary: The basic info was good until "Thrill Seeker," format is good, it has 2 paragraphs that explain enough for you to start RPing but it doesn't give you enough to write a plot or a full story. Basically, you have a Gambler who has no other talents than gambling apparently. And they get high on taking risks.
Closing idea and concept
If you're looking for a quick Cyber-sex, look for someone with basic information and not a lot of creativity.
If someone has a lot of creativity, you gotta express yourself and try not using filler words ("Like," "you know," and "stuff" are filler words)
You want to be creative, best way to do that is read books or online stories. Read others profiles and build a strong vocabulary. If you don't understand a word research it so that you do because that word will fit in your mind and stay with you for the rest of your life. Outside of Yahoo and Role play, you've educated yourself to be a smarter person.
In the real world, it never hurts to do something that will be helpful such as enhancing your writing and reading skills!
If you need any help creating a profile or writing one, feel free to message me and ask for such help.
If you have any comments or feedback, I appreciate them and will adjust accordingly.
Ever seen those characters that look really attractive? Not just the photo, but everything from their writing style, format of Rp, first person or third person, para or one lining?
You want to RP with them but you don't know if they have a character that is compatible with yours or maybe they're checking out your profile and you're not sure if you can sell the deal. Here you can find out some tricks to use when looking for someone to RP with. Hopefully you will become a better writer and learn to analyze key words that should give you warnings if your RP will work in the first place.
If you read my post "How to create a Role Play profile," you already know how to make an effective and rather basic profile. But now you're reading other peoples profiles and don't know what to look for.
I'll use some examples of REAL role players and show you what throws me off and what attracts me. I'll explain why and allow you to make the decision.
Websites
Typically, websites have a rules page. You can learn A LOT just by reading the rules. Here's an example of someone who sent me a message with no idea what they wanted to RP but they had a website to share with me.
Parenthesis are my commentary / reaction.
Role player 1 Rules:
If you would like to RP with me, please read these before hand:
(The Header is too long! Its a subject line not a damn sentence.)
You MUST be over 18 - (Ok, she's looking for a mature audience.)
No Anime!! - (She doesn't like cartoon characters.)
Please have a profile for your char(s) or at least an idea in mind. (She wants you to care about your character as she does hers)
Please take the time to have of looked over my chars before you PM me. (Again, she wants you to message her with some substance and material.)
I'm not a hard-ass with grammar/spelling, just make it readable. (Now this is retarded. You don't ask for people to give substance and then say "Do whatever the fuck you want with writing the damn thing.")
Semi to Paragraph, but I'll multi if I'm feeling inspiried. (This makes me feel...uncertain...Do I want to RP with someone who might care about the RP but then again they might not??)
I'm friendly and sometimes just want to chat rather then PM you all the time with "Hey! Wanna RP?". If you are not into chatting please tell me before hand. (Perfectly said. She states that she doesn't want to log in, RP herself to death and then log out. She wants to understand her partners and get to know them better; nothing wrong with that. Just keep a professional attitude and atmosphere and you'll stay on the right track.)
(End)
My Summary and evaluation - She builds up to be rather intelligent and she seeks partners who are as intelligent, but she can care less for substance, material, and story.
In my opinion, if you're going to make demands like "Please take the time to have of looked over my chars before you PM me" you had better damn well care about story and content otherwise, you're wasting my time. I want a fruitful RP not some mindless text that has no meaning.
Lets look to another rule list. Last one, I promise.
Role player Rules 2:
This is your default character website. Tabs are for genres, each hold multiple characters. I'm also inclined to make up on the fly given my mood. Rules are simple.
(This one has no header, just a small box explaining everything.)
Creativity - (They enjoy using their minds and understanding the minds of others. They are an abstract thinker.)
Depth - (Intellectual stimulation. They don't want just writing, they want the writing to mean something.)
Focus on Dialogue over Thought - (More depth, they want the writer to put effort into this.)
Interaction over Mindless Cyber - (Once again, more depth and not just mindless sex.)
Keep it Tense, Contentment is Boring - (Once again, they want to keep their brain active, they don't like sitting around twiddling their thumbs.)
No Canon - (They enjoy seeing players with their own characters using their own intellect to make a character.)
Third Person Only - (I understand this. First person RPers are really bad, I've met a lot and none of them can RP efficiently when compared to a third person RPer.)
Be Polite - (They put time into their website and characters, if you're gonna be a douche, fuck off.)
Enjoy Yourself - (They want you to be happy and if you're not happy, say something. Work on the story until you are both happy.)
Feel Free to Rant/Rave about OOC things, I'll listen - (Same thing as the last one, just more abstract wording.)
If the rp is boring you, tell me - (Are you seeing a pattern? This person CARES about you and your performance.)
If you no longer wish to rp, tell me - (Nice touch, it lets you know that they aren't a complete douche-bag.)
Have a nice day.
Note About Me: I'm over 18, friendly, rational, a science nerd and swear. - (Basically, reinforcing the idea that they are mature and seek people with that common fact.)
YiM Screenname: IrreverentCake - (Contact information, letting your readers contact you should you log out of chat or go offline and they have no means to express their interest to you.)
(End)
Summary - Well put together. Sometimes you make redundant messages in different ways just to communicate what you're trying to say. This person realizes they have to appeal to a wide variety of people and if they keep themselves closed off, very few people will RP with them.
Character Profiles
Now we go into Character profiles...
Using the basics from my post above, you'll now understand why that format is effective. Here are some examples of real RP profiles on Yahoo.
(IrreverentCake's character, not my own.) Example 1:
[photo is displayed]
Name: Avishul Nines
Age: 19
Race: Human
Type of Char: Knight or Soldier, depending on the setting. Also, invariably some form of noble.
Alignment: Lawful Good
Avishul, or Avi as he is affectionately known, is a knight of the truest character. Raised in a good upstanding military family, he threw himself into the family trade of military service from the youngest age he could be sent to the Academy. He is a natural leader being easily likable as well as well trained. He cares for the people around him for more than appearance sake, he cares for them because he feels a great deal of civic pride and patriotism for his country. To him all his countrymen are his brothers.
My Explanation: This character immediately tells me just by reading the basic info, I know that he's a young adult, human, A specialist soldier or elite fighter, and his motives are righteous.
My Evaluation: Do you want to have an Evil character fall in love with this person? Probably not but, lets say you do. You need to form an idea how would your character's alignment will change in order for these two to form a bond; what dramatic change in either of their lives can make a personal exception?
My answer: Create a tougher bad guy so that your character seems like the lesser of two evils, moreover; you may want to change your character from Pure evil to Anti-Hero. These are people who are out for self interest, moral, ethical, principal, etc. If your character has an interest in this character, they would try to change their life style just to include this person. By making subtle changes like Pure evil to Anti-hero, you may actually like the character that way and change it so they are more of a True neutral character or Chaotic neutral.
( Aliene's character, not my own.) Example 2: pulse.yahoo.com/_MVY7LNRMFM4IZA2MX7T4XWDTEE
[Photo displayed]
Name: Lorei Shiren
Age: 19
Occupation: Thrill seeker, Gambler - (Thrill seeker?...She gets paid to seek thrills? This makes no common sense. This can be argued, but I would avoid something stupid like "Thrill Seeker" as occupation. Gambler works just fine.) dictionary.reference.com/browse/Occupation
Bio: Lorei's past is a mystery. The typical memory loss struck her at a young age, waking up in a hospital with only her name to her. Her family was nowhere to be found, her history lost. This meant one single, simple thing. What did her past matter? What did the future matter? Her past and future were lost to some car crash or another...there was one thing that made life real. Gambles. That was what life was, wasn't it? One gamble after another. Besides, every gamble, every thrill, it made life feel right...alive!
So now Lorei walks around, seeking any thrill that comes her way. She greets them head on, happy and eager to see them through.
(End)
My explanation: Good format, a paragraph explaining the character, but where she goes wrong is that "her past life is a mystery." This is a common trait with A LOT of yahoo role players and it basically tells you that they weren't creative enough to explain the background of the character, nor did they want this character to have any REAL personality. I don't care if it has nothing to do with how your character acts now but, you should have an explanation of your past if not leave it blank and don't mention anything about it. Again, this card is played way too often in Yahoo profiles.
My Evaluation: She states what her occupation states. I would make for something like this. Create a "Likes and Dislikes" list and that is where "Thrill seeker" belongs. Because she doesn't get paid for seeking thrills. No one went up to her and said "Hey, I'll pay you if you look for a way of being locked in a cage with 100 King Cobras." It's just stupid to me.
Summary: The basic info was good until "Thrill Seeker," format is good, it has 2 paragraphs that explain enough for you to start RPing but it doesn't give you enough to write a plot or a full story. Basically, you have a Gambler who has no other talents than gambling apparently. And they get high on taking risks.
Closing idea and concept
If you're looking for a quick Cyber-sex, look for someone with basic information and not a lot of creativity.
If someone has a lot of creativity, you gotta express yourself and try not using filler words ("Like," "you know," and "stuff" are filler words)
You want to be creative, best way to do that is read books or online stories. Read others profiles and build a strong vocabulary. If you don't understand a word research it so that you do because that word will fit in your mind and stay with you for the rest of your life. Outside of Yahoo and Role play, you've educated yourself to be a smarter person.
In the real world, it never hurts to do something that will be helpful such as enhancing your writing and reading skills!
If you need any help creating a profile or writing one, feel free to message me and ask for such help.
If you have any comments or feedback, I appreciate them and will adjust accordingly.
