ROLEPLAYER TIP: STARTERS.

Everyone’s experienced a time, or seen someone else experience a time, where their starter gets zero replies. I know this can be a little disappointing, but no fear; there can be ways to try to avoid that and fix the issue.

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01. -- MAKE IT INTERESTING,

First off, no one likes a boring starter; so try and stay away from common things. Something that actually kind of irks me is when people just say “hi” or “hey” or something like that, then complain when no one replies. Honestly, it’s hard to build a fun conversation off that and replying to it can actually just be more of a chore than something anyone wants to do. Also, try not to talk about food (unless it’s a cute story that involves food). Something common in starters is talking about how much the character loves a certain food. Okay, I get that you’re attempting at a good starter, but it’s just so typical. The conversation will go nowhere. 

What I do is think of things that happened to me in real life (Dropping my phone in the toilet, running out of my favorite perfume, seeing a really cute boy/girl on the street, etc). It could be anything, really. Just make sure that it’s not too common, that’s all.

02. REPLY TO OTHERS,

Another thing that’s really highly recommended is to reply to other’s posts (if all else fails). Essentially, what you wanted was a conversation, correct? So who cares if no one replied to your starter! That doesn’t mean there’s no opportunity for a conversation. Plus, if you do this, your character will build relationships and it’ll make people really want to reply to your starters next time.

03. THE TAGS,

Next, you have to think about the tags. I know it doesn’t seem like a big deal, and it really isn’t– it just helps. In the tags, say a quick hello to everyone in OOC. It’ll make you appear more welcoming, and as if you really wanna be there. I know when I’m on the dash, I’d rather reply to a starter where the person is saying hi in the tags rather than someone who isn’t, because I feel like they’re really inviting and welcoming to everyone.

04. LET THEM KNOW,

If still no one is replying to your starter, what I usually do is make an OOC post telling people they should reply to my starter. This makes people aware of your starter, and that you really want replies. To be honest, some may not have seen your starter, or some may not think you’re upset over zero notes. Let them know!

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Typically, people don’t reply to starters because they’re in too many conversations as it is; and adding another voluntarily would just make it harder on them. Don’t blame yourself, and don’t take it personally! It’s truly not a big deal, so don’t beat yourself up over it.

I guess really just needed to make this post because I was in a rp once, and someone had made their starter “Hey.”, and no one replied. Then they posted the same starter again, and still nobody replied. They got upset, yes, but never did they once reply to someone else’s starter. Never did they once change their starter. Never did they once say anything in the tags about it. They did nothing to try and fix it, so I felt the need to list some suggestions for others in this situation.