Advice/Help How do you not get discouraged when interest checks are ignored?

[cuzn]

I've been on this site for just over four years now, and whenever I try posting an interest check (no matter what the topic is or how hard I work on it, it could be coded or lazily put-together or anything in-between) it goes completely ignored. Meanwhile, I see almost every other interest check post get tons of viewers at a time, and even when I stylize mine and work extremely hard on my plots, pairings, etc. I've never gotten any messages. The only way I've ever been able to start an RP on here was to respond to other people's interest checks. Is this a common occurrence? Is anyone else going through this? I hate to admit it, but I'm starting to doubt that I have any really interesting ideas at all, at least enough for anyone to respond - how do you keep from getting discouraged by this?

 

[nerdy tangents]

First it’s always a bad idea to compare yourself to others. Whether we are talking roleplaying or real life.

Because other people are not somehow magically better than you or have some mystical power to get the things you want.

For the most part they are suffering the exact same way you are just in ways you can’t see because your not in their mind living their life.

For roleplay specifically having someone post on your interest check means less than nothing.

1. The vast majority of people don’t actually want you to post on their thread. It clutters the thread and (at least in my case) there is a 50/50 percent chance you won’t see the post. They want you to send a PM. Now groups are probably a little different but that brings me to point 2.

2. Just because someone posts in an interest check doesn’t mean they are going to actually join a roleplay. I think I have had three roleplays in the past year last longer than a single post. The vast majority don’t even get to the post portion of the writing process. The other person leaves either due to incompatibility or they just vanish.

3. Your best bet in finding a partner is to actually do exactly what your doing. The two long term partners I found (I mean I ended up writing with them for months at a time) were precisely because I reached out to someone on their own interest check. Now I’m not writing with either one now but that’s cuz I had to take a mini hiatus for IRL stuff. But both have said that whenever I get back into roleplaying they would be happy to write with me again. Because we got along really well and wrote a good story together.

So it is possible to find someone you just have to be patient. Also I have found the key isn’t so much having an interesting story as just making friends with your partner.

 

[BuggaBoo]

Is this a common occurrence? Is anyone else going through this? I hate to admit it, but I'm starting to doubt that I have any really interesting ideas at all, at least enough for anyone to respond - how do you keep from getting discouraged by this?

Hi!

Yes this is a common occurrence and not just on this site so don't worry it's not just RPN.

It's not always your ideas but how you present them and how imited the niche or wide the acceptance is really. Like fandoms for instance can fall prey to this. If it's popular undoubtedly you get bites. Now as for Original settings the sell is harder unless rpers can vibe with the presmise, genre, setting and charrie concept acceptance .

--> can you provide a LINK to your current int CHK so we can give feedback pls?

Cuz like listen I have an RP on here for like 2 yrs now and It is super niche. More of a writing exercise less a RP. It's not popular at all and yet I bump it every so often. The thing it has going for it is that it is ALWAYS open and basically you can post for any OC . The major thing it has against it is that there is no plot nor interaction. So like yeah hard sell and rarely do I get a bite if ever. Bruh in fact the int CHK is just a blurb with a link to OOC.

Why do I do it like this? Cuz the only writers I get actually go to the OOC and say HI!! to me. And all that posted have been amaaaaaaaaazing and sweet, creative people! Like only 5 diff writers and like 20 posts total from them but happy they wrote with me nonetheless. Drop in drop out it's baked in and all goods!

Basically what I'm saying is: keep up, keep tweaking, don't ghost, be engaging and stick to your vision cuz then at least you get a product you happy with.

But like if you want to just run anything that will hit, figure out what's popular and like craft it like a net to capture a wide audience. You may sacrifice what you really wanna run but like you might be able to live with the results and be content cuz like you at least like running a full RP.

Hope this helps but provide a LINK to current int CHK will prolly help even more.

Oh! And I m coming from a group Int CHK perspective k?

 

[Chiester]

If you are really REALLY brave, ask someone to review your interest checks.

 

[Bacon is fluffy]

Making the interest check is as much of a skill as running the rp. You gotta take into account not only what you want, but what others may want. And provide enough details and context to show that you have a solid idea and are actively going to lead this endeavor.

I always ask myself:

Is the pitch something people want? (Sadly no one ever wants to do creepypasta rps)
Did you make it clear what you want from your potential fellow roleplayers?
Are you actively working on your hook? You can be running a magic high-school rp and it be the most requested type of rp, but it doesn't matter if you don't have a hook that catches their imagination.

You are creating something from nothing. So take care in how you pitch it to others.

 

[Idea]

This is not a great answer but honestly I just have other stuff I also do. I get into a lot of things and even if I don't have a roleplay I can just go read, watch or play something or work on a million other projects I've got in the back-burner.

At the same time I do have RPs I joined if something really really interests me.

On top of all this I really commit to any RP I've decided to take a part of. So in the end of the day when I do make my 1x1 search threads I don't quite make them with the expectations of many bites especially not very soon, in fact while I go wide with contents I'm not too concerned with a cluttered presentation or demanding requirements because I'm trying to find RPers who are really a great match for me, even if few and far between.

In short I'm not disappointed because I don't usually expect my interest checks to generate much of any interest, at least not in the 1x1 department, and it's not a big loss even if they do not.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

I pretty much strictly only do Group games. It'd take an act of God to get me into a 1x1. The input I have comes pretty much from that lens.

In Groups, I feel as if you generally have to sell your idea. An interest check is a pitch. For all intents and purposes, it is an advertisement. Of course, this is a little different given I'm advertising for games, not my personal involvement (as a 1x1 would be), but this is the mentality I have going into making an interest check.

With that said, if an interest check is comparable to an advertisement, what can we draw from that knowledge?

Advertisements by nature cast a large net and have a huge failure rate.

That's it. That's the whole explanation, nutshell included.

Realistically, though, you can consider what most players are going to do following an interest check.

They might see your interest check in the recruitment forums, but can they see your account? Do they have anything to review? The answer is no: it's limited to who can view it. If someone was trying to do a little research which is a totally reasonable thing before committing to a potentially long term game, they can't. Now this is totally your right and I encourage anyone who feels safer by limiting who can view their account to do so. However, there is a cost to this. That cost is that it will, in fact, be off-putting to some people. I know a good majority of people check out potential partners or players in a group long before they show interest.

Consider that for me to find your interest check to give any direct advice, I would have to either search you by name or dig through the 1x1 interest checks. My normal method is to click on an account and look through recent posts. This creates extra work for me, and if I had to do on mobile (which I hate), I'd probably just move on at that point.

This is all ties into my ultimate answer. The way I avoid getting down about interest checks not getting activity is remember that I am in a sea of thousands of other players all screaming out in a chorus wanting to find someone to write with. Now, I normally pitch whole Group Games, but I have to remember that my games are designed to cater to a specific type of player. I cannot compare myself to others directly or put myself into some broad "category" of fantasy. My games are their own things, as are most others, and again, we're in a sea of people searching for the exact hook they want. Other players are spoiled for choice and sometimes we won't be that choice for the most petty, pedantic thing out there. There are plenty of things you can do to try and increase your odds, but there are even more variables outside of your control.

I don't have any advice on how to make 1x1 interest checks work better because I don't use them, but if you ever feel discouraged about an interest check: remember success is minority outcome and you can still have a fun, fulfilling roleplay by answering someone else. You may even make their day by showing interest after a dry spell.

 

[Bill123456789]

I tell myself. I'm to ahead of the game. People must want something else to do. Maybe next month?

It's this web site. You can put a request in and get nothing. However you can copy and paste it on an app or other roleplay site and within 10 minutes, get over 100 replies. Some of those replies might be no, or maybe later or interesting, but at least you know people don't want to play it now. But it doesn't work on this web site. Maybe people think it's disrespectful to post no. Some people however don't take no for an answer and just keep "bumping" instead of accepting rejection.

 

[chaotic cat cutie]

Generally for me, I didn't have this digital avenue to develop my backbone for writing, I had to write for myself and find people who would find my work interesting enough to read. It certainly is discouraging having an interest check ignored and I will say this is the largest reasons I've lost my creativity. I love roleplaying when it works well but creatively it has absolutely ruined my stamina.

For me, I think interest checks are a waste of time and yes are incredibly discouraging. It kills creativity. Instead look for people : your age, live in the same area, have the same hobbies as you, anything but an interest check. Find people who interest you and you will then find the best creativity there.

My first collaborative work came from a classroom. So, I have a really diligent work for my creativity too. Routine really helps. Though, find people who align with your general vibe and you'll find people who will want to write a story with you.

Keep in mind there are people who are just as nervous as you are to apply to any roleplay. Then some people don't even get a slot in a roleplay because their standards don't match. OOF another huge blow.

I believe roleplay sites are going into search's all wrong.

 

[nerdy tangents]

Generally for me, I didn't have this digital avenue to develop my backbone for writing, I had to write for myself and find people who would find my work interesting enough to read. It certainly is discouraging having an interest check ignored and I will say this is the largest reasons I've lost my creativity. I love roleplaying when it works well but creatively it has absolutely ruined my stamina.

For me, I think interest checks are a waste of time and yes are incredibly discouraging. It kills creativity. Instead look for people : your age, live in the same area, have the same hobbies as you, anything but an interest check. Find people who interest you and you will then find the best creativity there.

My first collaborative work came from a classroom. So, I have a really diligent work for my creativity too. Routine really helps. Though, find people who align with your general vibe and you'll find people who will want to write a story with you.

Keep in mind there are people who are just as nervous as you are to apply to any roleplay. Then some people don't even get a slot in a roleplay because their standards don't match. OOF another huge blow.

I believe roleplay sites are going into search's all wrong.

I’m genuinely curious how you would go about finding someone in real life to write a roleplay with, unless I’m misunderstanding your advice?

Cuz it sounds like you are looking for people in real life to collaborate with stories and I’m genuinely curious how that works. Do you exchange physical manuscripts? Do each write your own individual story and then just beta read for the other?

Not trying to be nosy but it’s not a version of writing I have come across before so I’m interested to know how it works.

Also out of curiosity how do you find the people you write with? Do you have some kind of writing group at a local library?

 

[chaotic cat cutie]

I’m genuinely curious how you would go about finding someone in real life to write a roleplay with, unless I’m misunderstanding your advice?

Cuz it sounds like you are looking for people in real life to collaborate with stories and I’m genuinely curious how that works. Do you exchange physical manuscripts? Do each write your own individual story and then just beta read for the other?

Not trying to be nosy but it’s not a version of writing I have come across before so I’m interested to know how it works.

Also out of curiosity how do you find the people you write with? Do you have some kind of writing group at a local library?

There is nothing as beautiful as face to face creativity. I've thought of brining this to my community.

What I'm talking about is connection. I mean, I grew up in a extremely isolated area. I'm talking party phone lines and a dial up so bad it would take several hours to load a page. The type of rural where actually just a few weeks ago bell went out to my homestead intent on setting up rural fast speed internet. Nah nah nah. They got out there and was like... nope...

So I was forced to be creative with people. Even if that meant traveling a few hours to talk to someone about it haha though in all seriousness I got into writing in school. So I connected with a bunch of people that way and yes there were clubs and groups. Sometimes heck yes I would go up to someone in real life and be like " you want to write with me?" I've done this plenty of times and sometimes the people were like "HECK YES I'LL WRITE WITH YOU".

I find the internet in general, like how it's been structured lately, is really a disservice to creativity. It's all expectations and nuances and rules. People's wants and dislikes end goal satisfaction but rarely do I see a really active out of character chat anymore. Perhaps people find it creepy? Intrusive? Though, I mean, isn't that how anyone digests a book. A really good piece of writen work should act like a conversation. You can't have a one sided wall of conversation. And that is what most interest checks seem to me. It's not the beginning of a conversation One huge monster pimple of a dead end. Just brewing there.

As for finding people to write with. Roleplay sites are just not doing it for me lately. I've thought of putting an ad up at work for collaborative projects. That worked for dungeons and dragons so it might work here too. Though, if you've never tried to straight up as someone in your circle to write with you, I highly advise you try it.

You may be pleasantly surprised they could say yes

to add: you can swap manuscripts easily on google docs, go chapter by chapter, or scene by scene

 

[nerdy tangents]

There is nothing as beautiful as face to face creativity. I've thought of brining this to my community.

What I'm talking about is connection. I mean, I grew up in a extremely isolated area. I'm talking party phone lines and a dial up so bad it would take several hours to load a page. The type of rural where actually just a few weeks ago bell went out to my homestead intent on setting up rural fast speed internet. Nah nah nah. They got out there and was like... nope...

So I was forced to be creative with people. Even if that meant traveling a few hours to talk to someone about it haha though in all seriousness I got into writing in school. So I connected with a bunch of people that way and yes there were clubs and groups. Sometimes heck yes I would go up to someone in real life and be like " you want to write with me?" I've done this plenty of times and sometimes the people were like "HECK YES I'LL WRITE WITH YOU".

I find the internet in general, like how it's been structured lately, is really a disservice to creativity. It's all expectations and nuances and rules. People's wants and dislikes end goal satisfaction but rarely do I see a really active out of character chat anymore. Perhaps people find it creepy? Intrusive? Though, I mean, isn't that how anyone digests a book. A really good piece of writen work should act like a conversation. You can't have a one sided wall of conversation. And that is what most interest checks seem to me. It's not the beginning of a conversation One huge monster pimple of a dead end. Just brewing there.

As for finding people to write with. Roleplay sites are just not doing it for me lately. I've thought of putting an ad up at work for collaborative projects. That worked for dungeons and dragons so it might work here too. Though, if you've never tried to straight up as someone in your circle to write with you, I highly advise you try it.

You may be pleasantly surprised they could say yes

to add: you can swap manuscripts easily on google docs, go chapter by chapter, or scene by scene

You got lucky then. I have never lived in a place where people where that friendly in real life.

It doesn’t help that I’m an introvert but even if I wasn’t (both my sisters are significantly more outgoing) we just weren’t a place where folks where really interested in helping with hobbies.

I think at best our library has a writing club but everyone in it is 50 or over.

If your young enough to be on this site than you made the bulk of your creative friends online. (Where I grew up).

Not to say I had no friends or anything, nor that they would have been unwilling to help with reading through a manuscript.

Just that would not be the thing that we did as friends. It would be more of a favor I asked one of my besties.

 

[chaotic cat cutie]

You got lucky then. I have never lived in a place where people where that friendly in real life.

It doesn’t help that I’m an introvert but even if I wasn’t (both my sisters are significantly more outgoing) we just weren’t a place where folks where really interested in helping with hobbies.

I think at best our library has a writing club but everyone in it is 50 or over.

If your young enough to be on this site than you made the bulk of your creative friends online. (Where I grew up).

Not to say I had no friends or anything, nor that they would have been unwilling to help with reading through a manuscript.

Just that would not be the thing that we did as friends. It would be more of a favor I asked one of my besties.

This has inspired me to do a creative project. I have been wanting to for a long time , sorry for derailing thread slight, but ive wanted to start a hub where people create connections over creativity. Im pretty inspired to give lectures and tools which help me analyze writing and improve confidence.