Being a "Literate Roleplayer"
Many role-playing forums and groups have request boards. When you browse through these, you likely will have seen the phrase "literate roleplayers only."
This refers simply to basic understanding of the English language (or whatever language you are using for the roleplay). Grammar, spelling, and sentence structure are all things that most people learn in school, but many don't use once they leave, either for the day, vacation, or after graduation.
However, it isn't hard to pass as a "literate roleplayer," so long as you keep track of some basic rules.
Most often forgotten
- Capitalize the start of sentences, and character names. Even if there are other proper nouns in the post, such as places or brands, they aren't as vital. Try to get them, but the reply will still work without.
- Break up sentences with punctuation. Run-on sentences in posts make it very hard to understand what's going on, so use commas and periods to separate ideas.
- If you have multiple characters in a post, make sure to go to a new paragraph when you switch who's talking, again, to prevent confusion when your partner reads it.
- Give a complete character bio to your partner when you set up a roleplay. The more effort you put into it, the easier it is to draw ideas from that bio throughout the RP.
- Pick a point of view and stick to it. Writing in third person is often easiest to allow the conveying of detail, but some people prefer to use first person instead.
- Use proper etiquette with your partner. If you're polite, you'll come across as a more desirable partner.
For more information on writing and roleplay literacy, you can visit the Grammar and Literacy tag on the RP Evolution blog.