Keeping Your RP Alive

RPs & SGs Announcements & Tips
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Keeping an RP alive is no easy task, even for the most popular RPs. Even when things are still going well it can feel like a losing battle.

There can be any number of reasons why an RP might be at risk of dying, so it can be difficult to know how to counteract inactivity. Here’s some ways that should help reactivate/keep your RP active.

Tip 1:

Keep the plot moving forward.
Though this doesn’t necessarily apply if you have an RP that has no overarching plot, this applies to most RPs. You need to move the RP’s plot forward, especially if there is a lull in activity. People may lose interest if they feel like the plot isn’t going anywhere.

Tip 2:

Provide events for the characters.
Whether it happens to bring activity up, or just because it was planned to happen anyway events can be great. It can be a reason for different characters to interact, or the events can help move the plot forward. An interesting event can push RPers to be active and want to know what will happen next.

Tip 3:

Don’t be afraid to create a larger time skip for everyone.
Sometimes, things just have to move forward more than just a few hours or a day. This can be particularly helpful in school based RPs. A skip of a couple weeks or longer can allow for RPers to plot amongst each other for what may have happened between their characters during that time skip, which can lead to different dynamics and other individual plots between characters later on that the RPers can look forward to.

Tip 4:
Be understanding.
Sometimes RPers will have to take a break, or may just be slow to reply for some time. Remember that will happen, so then you can adjust for times when activity will be less or where certain characters will be unavailable. The same applies to the RPer for when the RP’s creator is unable to be active. Sometimes things have to slow down, but soon enough things will return to normal.

There are plenty of other tips and tricks for keeping an RP active, so feel free to add some that you know of!

@RPers

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Very nice! Love all the tips, especially the reasoning for them

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As well, you should be thoughtful when planning the start date of your RP and some important events. You don’t want your RP to start in the middle of exam season, that’ll obviously have a huge impact on your initial activity, since the majority of RPers here are high school or college/uni students. For the dates of crucial events, you should look for the opinion of the RPers in your RP, because if the majority of them can’t be active then what’s the point of having the event?

And be transparent. By that I mean tell your RPers if you, the owner, are going to be inactive for a period of time—don’t just drop off the face of the earth without letting anyone know. And if the inactivity is unforeseen, then I encourage you to let your RPers know you will be inactive for a period of time as soon as possible. If you just leave without a word, it can be offputting to people who were willing to put the time and effort into your RP.

Lastly, listen to what your RPers are saying—or not saying. As an RP creator, it’s a good idea to read all the posts, though this might seem daunting. Keeping up with the other characters can help you to plan appropriate events surrounding them, and reading what the RPers are talking about on the general chat can help you to know what they like and want to see more of. If your RP has tasks, open up a suggestion form. Your RPers need to feel heard 'cause RPers that feel like they’re being ignored will likely not want to continue participating in your RP.

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Just added some tags :blush: