#bdrpquestionnaire

[oh-phineas]

EMMA’S 2021 QUESTIONNAIRE!

Your Name: Emma Characters: Phineas Flynn, Tiana Truitt, Aquata Triton, Henry Charming, Anna Sommers, Bruce White, Anastasia Tremaine, Tanya Tiwari

Pick one of your characters and talk about their growth (we recommend choosing an older character, but it’s up to you!) What about their story has surprised you? What are you proud of? How have they changed from their original inception to now?

I want to talk about Tiana! Since I talked a lot about her on last year’s questionnaire, and a LOT has happened to her this year, and she was my second character here. It has been crazy to reread last year’s questionnaire and see how many goals I had for her that I actually managed to achieve with her. She’s formed a stronger network with the other business owners in Swynlake (I love her dynamic with Al, Vixey, and Jun), she’s gone through a lot with her roommates, she’s had to step up as a leader for the restaurant, she even has a little bit of a crush! And I think she’s very much still in the middle of her story; there is a lot more Tiana to explore and she is still holding herself back from a lot of things because of her own complexes. 

This is going to sound like a joke but something that has surprised me about Tiana is that she is such an AQUARIUS!! Hahaha but seriously-- she is very opinionated and justice-oriented, but she also isn’t really as confrontational as I originally thought she was. I think Tiana really values her reputation and the way she’s viewed in the community and for that reason she’s actually a lot more private about the way she really feels about things. And for that reason I’m so happy that she’s been able to form these strong connections with other people so that I can explore the contrast between what she’s willing to express in public and what she will confide in people she’s close to.

I’m proud of the petty little conflicts she’s gotten into-- the back-and-forth with Jessica, the tension with Belle on the Knights stuff, not canon but her arc on Regency was so fun! And it’s been really fun to explore how Knights stuff has affected her regular life, especially in her friendship with Vixey. I definitely want to keep exploring how Tiana’s pettiness and her sort of impulsive reactions to things can cause conflict, especially since one of the big themes I love working with is how becoming part of a community is an amazing thing, but it also means you have to be okay with a level of conflict that naturally comes up when personalities clash. And that’s what Tiana’s story is all about to me: becoming part of a community.

Pick another character (or the same character if you only have one) and talk a little about where you WANT them to go. What are your plans for them going into the new year?

Aquata!! She is someone that I struggle with sometimes in terms of muse but over the past year I’ve grown to really appreciate and love who she is and what her deal is. I am so happy that I decided to have her run for Board last year, because it has really helped her grow as a character and it’s given her exactly what I wanted for her: something to be passionate about outside of swimming. I definitely want to keep pursuing political plots with her, and I’m really enjoying her petition and all the moving parts and people involved with it. I’m excited for it to go up for another vote in the new year and see how the new Board reacts/the lines that are drawn in response!

However, I actually do want to circle back on the swimming thing and explore that a little more. Because lately I’ve been thinking about how insane and weird it is that as kids we sometimes have these intense passions and hobbies that take over our entire lives and then you just grow up and graduate college and a lot of times, it’s hard to find an avenue to pursue it?? (See: that tiktok audio where it’s like “god it’s so hard to be good for your age” lol is anyone else on prodigy burnout tiktok??) Especially for athletes, whose careers rely on their bodies and physical shape, and one injury or illness can take them entirely out of something that used to be their whole life. That’s not necessarily what Aquata is dealing with, but it’s not entirely dissimilar. So I don’t know exactly how I’ll go about that, but it’s something I have in mind for her.

I’d also love some DRAMA!! Not that I don’t give Q enough drama lmfao. But with Swynlake being such a small town and Aquata being such a messy bitch I think it’s so fun to explore the tangled web we weave etc. etc. I have some things in the pipeline that I’m notttt sure I can spoil quite yet but that is hopefully only the beginning :)

Pick a thread or a plot that you’re proud of and talk about why you loved it.

I have to talk about the Shark Attack arc. Some people may already know this, but that plot was partially why I got Bruce in the first place, and I am SO SO grateful to everyone who was involved!! It was so much fun to plot something out like that, and I appreciate the RAS peeps for being down for me causing trouble with Bruce right out of the gates, and the admins/the group as a whole for being down for letting me wreak some havoc at Atlantis Lake.

I think the main thing I’m proud of is just bc like I was not feeling super confident about my plotting abilities last year and this gave me a lot of confidence?? And it also checked off one of my big goals for Henry, which was to give him a mission. I also like how this brought Gabriella and Bruce together (one of my fav friendships I just think they are so sweet tbh) and how it forced Henry to combine his two worlds by introducing Eric and Rose to one another. (And ok minor tangent everything that happened with HERIC this year oh my god... childhood friends becoming strangers, the intensity and heartbreak of losing a childhood friend, being divided from people you care about because of ideological differences... man I could go on and on about Heric forever).

TLDR it was so fun to work with everyone involved, I’m proud of myself for pulling it off, and I love that the fallout is still ongoing six months later.

In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 strengths and talk about why you think it’s one of your strengths.

I talked about this last year but I’m going to talk about it again because it is important to me. I’m proud of my characterization and my work with character flaws in particular, and I think I do a decent job of walking the line between characters you hate to love and love to hate and everything in between. I really enjoy writing good people who lean into their worst impulses and hurt people on accident or on purpose, and I think conflicts where both characters are right AND both characters are wrong are the most interesting to me. 

I’ve also been noticing lately that when I feel really strongly about a plot or a thread, I surprise myself with how much I like my prose!! I’ve been thinking about this and imo the reason prose exists (and poetry etc) is because there are some emotions that you have to get creative to describe. When I feel like I’m writing an emotion or situation that is unique but also very grounded and real, it forces me to steer away from cliches. I don’t know if that makes it objectively GOOD but I like it. For example some of my favorite writing I’ve done lately has been that Phinnip AU thread for wrimo (and I seriously don’t even usually gravitate toward romance tbh!) and it’s because I was just so excited about the weirdness of the situation and the motivations involved that it really forced me out of my box. So I really want to keep pushing myself in that way.

I think I’m pretty good at dialogue as well. Sometimes I have to go back and edit because I think I use TOO many fillers and stuff, but I think I do a pretty good job of having ppl talk the way they would sound in real life/out loud. And I think I do a good job of adapting to different mediums, like people would talk differently out loud vs. over email vs. on Twitter vs. over text. 

In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 areas of improvement.

I don’t know if this necessarily counts as writing, but it’s plotting, so I think it does. I really think I need to be better at communicating with people about plots/threads. I don’t know WHY I get in my head about messaging people but I do, and sometimes it impacts my writing in that I’m worried about my character having too much knowledge or doing something i’m unsure about so I just hedge when I can very easily just message the mun and say “Would my character know this”/”Is this okay.” But I think I can introduce so much more drama and intrigue if I just ask and go for the thing once I get the clear from the mun! So I just want to be better about that.

I think also in the vein of plotting I think I’ve been trying to pump the brakes a little bit more in terms of chaos/drama? We all know I love drama and sometimes I’m a little troll lmfao but I also want to make sure I’m being 1. respectful of people’s limits and 2. not derailing the story I’m trying to tell. It’s like, it’s good to have the creativity to think of all the ways something can blow up, but it’s even better to discern when it’s time to blow it all up and when it’s time to take a beat.

In terms of actual craft, I want to push myself a little more when it comes to lore and worldbuilding. I’ve dipped my toe into it with Bruce and Tanya, but I think sometimes I gloss over backstory stuff that can actually be really interesting to explore. I’m pretty open about the fact that this is not necessarily my strength and I’m kind of okay with that, but I think pushing myself as a writer is always a good thing. I’m thinking about picking up a character next year who I think will really help me challenge this. And I also want to incorporate it more into my existing characters, like Anna with her heritage and of course I’m always trying to build more into the Order world with Henry lol.

Pick one of your plots, or even just a character, and come up with a list of 3-5 “mentor texts” where you can look for inspiration or research, then write a short (2-4 sentences) why you picked those texts. (They don’t have to be books, either!)

I am going to talk about HENRY because I really have been getting such good inspo for him from a lot of different places lately (this is about to be so self-indulgent lmaooo)

First I need to talk about Succession because I lowkey started watching it thinking it would probably be good Henry inspo and it's given me so much to think about. I’m still only on the second season but I really think this show is all about what happens when you give people with the same insecurities and complexes and insane whims as any old person an insane amount of wealth and privilege and tell them they deserved it. And while Henry is nowhere near as rich and privileged as the Roy family, he has been given a lot of power in that he’s been told it’s his job to decide who gets to live and die, and he also has a lot of money and privilege he just thinks he’s entitled to. And that show. is just full of toxic interpersonal relationships that are such clear manifestations of selfishness and obsessive ambition, and I think as things heat up with the Order this is going to be a really good text to use as inspiration.

Next: Six of Crows!! I’ve reblogged some Matthias inspo on Henry before and I really do think that Matthias’s journey with untangling his relationship to his value system and the druskelles is going to be really useful in helping me write some stuff with Henry coming up. Henry has had his beliefs challenged a lot but he is still very stubborn, and if/when he ever does change his mind I want it to be slow and realistic and earned. I think Leigh Bardugo did a really good job with that in Six of Crows and that’s something I want to emulate. 

Finally, Jane Austen’s work has always been good inspo for Henry (regency AU was his time to SHINE yo) partially because he is an uptight old fashioned british boi but also because I think Austen does such a great job of untangling intent vs. impact and pointing out the subtle ways that people behave badly and hurt each other in society. I know that Darcy is such a meme at this point, but I really do think there’s something to be said about the way Austen points out that just because a man is kind and devoted (Bingley) or charming (Wickham) his prejudices, entitlement, and upbringing still will lead him to treat women in a way that they do not deserve!! And I think that’s a really important idea, because Henry in a lot of ways fits the sort of stereotype of kind/caring/devoted/respectful, but he also has a lot of misogyny and upbringing and entitlement to untangle and I just appreciate how subtle and smart Austen is about that stuff. My friend just got me Mansfield Park for my birthday so I’m looking forward to reading it and seeing if it sparks any ideas.

And now, a wishlist! Jot down a few themes or stories or genres etc that you want to maybe pursue in the upcoming year! (i.e. a good ol’ fashion forbidden romance, maybe you want to dig deep into racial identity etc) This doesn’t have to necessarily be attached to any characters or stories you have now– it’s just meant to help you see for yourself what kind of stories call to your heart.

So many things! 

I want some doomed relationships. I want to get my characters into relationships with people that are not compatible with them and I want it to end in flames!!

I want to solve a mystery or help solve one. 

I want more RIVALRIES! 

I want Annie to get cancelled on Twitter 

I want to reconnect Tiana with the knights 🥺

I want to PARTYYY

I want an unrequited crush

I want a rumor to spread through the school

Idk that’s all I can think of for nowww but there will be more on my New Years’ Resolutions I’m sure!

OPTIONAL: Why do you RP?

I love writing and I love when I can do it in a collaborative way. I don’t necessarily need an audience for my writing but I do think I do my best work when I can play off of other people and get inspired by their ideas too. And to reiterate what I said last year, it’s even more true this year that everything is way more fun when you can’t sell it or monetize it or get a grade on it. I’m just here to have fun and be creative and maybe even a little self-indulgent, and I think a hobby that allows me to do that is so important for me to have. Love u all thanks for an amazing year <3

#bdrptask #bdrpquestionnaire #<3

[labellerose-acheron]

Your Name: Clementine

Characters: Belle Rose Acheron, Onyango “Simba” Bonfamille-Lyons, Toulouse Henri Bonfamille, Mei Qin, Thomas Richard Edward Harrington III, Candace Gertrude Flynn, Vishaka Chakraborty, Daniel Edward Daisuke Darling, Prince Thistle of the Fenlands (Theodore Barrie), Elinor Aisling DunBroch, Gem Morey, and Abigail Wren Gabble.

Pick one of your characters and talk about their growth:

Man, so many new baes--I had a huge turnover this year, which is exciting, but also sad. It means that a lot of my characters are getting set up for growth, but haven’t exactly quite gotten there yet. I think I shall try to stay with just one or two for this. (I always do that and then I lie.) 

To start us off: Thomas!! A character who has had a lot of growth, but who still has a lot more growing to do. Obviously, he left the Order this year. That’s pretty big. I dunno if I’ve really done enough with Tom’s feelings on the matter, but in both our defense, we immediately got thrown into other stuff and weren’t really able to decompress. I think the brio are all in a bit of shock and the ripple effects are going to take a while to fully blossom. It’s not all gonna happen at once, but in little moments probably. 

But just getting to the point of leaving the Order was a lot of growth! It takes a ton of strength and courage to turn your back on something you’ve built your whole life on. Especially in the way that the Order sinks its claws into the men. Tom did a lot of horrible things on the word of the Order, and I think that is one of the brilliant things about it: you stay in so that you can convince yourself that those bad things were actually good. If you leave, it means holding yourself accountable for the actions you took. Tom is still in that phase, but I think he has done more soul searching about What It All Meant than the other two. He feels at peace with his decision, even if it means not having to speak with his family again. (Though, he is holding out hope for them.)

And I can even talk about a little bit of his growth as a bit of a playboy. Tom was, obviously, a hapless fool and broke a lot of hearts, including his own. As he has learned to take responsibility for his actions as a Prince, he has learned to take responsibility for his romantic life. This was happening for him even before Annie and the baby, because Tom really was happy with Arista and saw something with her that made him realize like “oh, I’ve been a total ass, haven’t I?”

Unfortunately, this happened post-babymaking and I am actually very proud of him for not immediately diving into the arms of the first woman who looks at him after things ended with Arista. *insert growth gif here*

Pick another character and talk a little about where you WANT them to go. 

I am gonna talk about a few because I have a lot of fun ideas and plots coming up for all my new baes. 

Gem: I am really excited to have him become friends with people. To let his walls down some. Explore his relationships with his brothers. It is my goal to, obviously, have him lay down his baggage and to gain control of his magic. Obviously, I am not gonna make this easy on him and I believe there will be a lot of backsliding, but it’ll be totally worth it in the end. I also want to have him consider like...what he wants to do with his life because right now, he’s just kind of resigned to going back to jail at some point and doesn’t think he has an actual future. :(

Abigail: I cannot wait to start getting into the mystery of the Gabbles and all that good stuff. I really want to roll that out in 2022. I think it will be super fun. Kit and I have not designed it yet, but I am super interested in making it twisted, complicated, full of surprises and setbacks and magic! I also just want to mix Abigail into the town more, she is very shy but I think she will be such a fun addition to the town as a whole. I love her sm. <3 

Candace: It is no secret that I am building Candace up to something and I am really close to getting there. I can’t wait to actually do it. It’ll be a great path change for her and I love doing these kinds of arcs. I just have to get my shit together and organize the actual arc for it, lol. 

Pick a thread or a plot that you’re proud of and talk about why you loved it. 

This might be cheating, because it is ongoing, but Whistle!! I love everything we are doing with Whistle. It is super fun to do all these flashback threads interwoven with current time. Their relationship is super complicated and interesting. Ashley and I are being incredibly indulgent with their backstory (we have the trope-ist shit lined up to write, I am so excited to get to it.) We have it all planned out and it’s basically it’s own fantasy book. And then having the current stuff going on is great. 

Thistle juggling his cousins, his grandma’s demands, his own wishes, and trying to protect Wendy. It is just so fun and unique. One of those stories that this RP can be so indulgent about because you can blend the mundane with the fantastical and it has been a while since I’ve really been able to get my hands in some fun magic and alternate dimensions. I am enjoying it so much! 

In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 strengths and talk about why you think it’s one of your strengths.

Characterization. I think I have really strong characterization. Not voice necessarily, but in terms of actions/feelings/reactions. Sometimes, it takes me a few months to get to know my characters, but once I get it down and they click, I write them consistently. I feel like I really know my characters, almost like they could be real people and I like to think I do a good job making them 3-dimensional and human. It is always the most intriguing thing to me to analyze how different people will react to different stimuli, and how all these messy pieces of us make us human. 

Plotting. I never realized until recently how hard they can be to do. I really enjoy helping people organize them. Even if I’m not super involved and someone comes to me asking for help structuring it or for advice, it makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. Especially when I then see that plot executed! It makes me feel like a proud mom. I have been doing this for a long time at this point and I feel like that is a strength. I enjoy passing along my wisdom, so please ask me for help if you ever get stuck with a character or a plot!!

Group. On that same note, sorta, I like to think I do a good job including multiple people in my plots. If I ever make a slightly-big plot I always try to think how I can include multiple characters or muns. Trying to think about the ripple effects of plots is always really satisfying. How X could happen to this character but because of it, their friend does X--and then it is just a snowball effect. This is always really fun to see happen and I wanna definitely work on doing it more in the upcoming year.

In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 areas of improvement.

Plotting, lol. Right now, I think my biggest weakness is for some reason I feel really timid about plots. Does that make sense? Like pitching them, doing them, creating them. I want to do fun, exciting, dramatic stuff...but as soon as I feel like I want to talk to someone about them...I just don’t. I feel like my ideas are dumb or tired or people don’t want to hear from me. It’s really weird, but I know I just gotta push through it. 

Metaphor. This is something I’m kind of stealing from Lauryl, but I feel kind of similarly. I feel like a lot of my writing has gotten a bit...lazy--I just write what is happening and I haven’t indulged in flowery language, or metaphors. Sometimes I go back and read my old threads and I’m like damn  that was such a beautiful line what the fuck? And I feel like I haven’t written anything really...artistic or beautiful in a while. So, I want to try to be more intentional moving forward. Try to include more imagery, metaphor, themes, etc.

Confidence. This year has been really hard on me. I’ve taken a lot of hits professionally, have been struggling with money. I worry about my purpose and that I’m wasting my time. What does that have to do with my writing? It has made me feel similarly towards it. Like no one likes it or me and that I should just stop. Several times I’ve quietly contemplated dropping a ton of my characters and just withdrawing slowly because I don’t feel like I am...adding anything to the group. I hope in the new year, I can be more positive and work towards feeling good about my writing again!!

Pick one of your plots, or even just a character, and come up with a list of 3-5 “mentor texts” where you can look for inspiration or research.

Hmm...I will go with Abigail!

Nancy Drew: I’ve never actually read the books, except for the first one when I was very young. I’ve played the games, but I think the books could be super fun. They’ve inspired, aesthetically, a lot about Gail and the Gabble girls, so I think actually reading the books would be fun. They could influence my writing or how I go about the plot pitch for Uncle Waldo. 

Morbid Podcast: Now, for the record: I actually have stopped listening to True Crime podcasts because they were seriously affecting my mental health. And, to be honest, I was not super comfortable with the whole culture surrounding true crime--how the crimes and victims are spoken about. However, it is no secret that these podcasts influenced Gail and I definitely think it would be interesting to have to confront that at some point. 

Knives Out: I need to watch this movie. I’ve heard great things. I feel like it would totally be something Gail would be into. I hate horror movies, but this feels like it is more crime-mystery vibes. It’s giving me Clue, it’s giving Nancy Drew. So, I’m interested to see what it’s actually about because I literally don’t know. It would be fun to check out and would give me some nice inspo. 

Agatha Christie: The queen! Okay, the hella problematic racist queen, if we are being honest. But there is no denying that she revolutionized the way a mystery novel was written. I have read a few of her stuff, mostly the shorter things, but I’d love to read Murder on the Orient Express and such. 

Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Specifically Chronicle of a Death Foretold. I read this book in high school and I loved it. It is a murder mystery that is told out of chronological order and it has this layer of magical realism to it that I think would be fun to incorporate into my own writing with Gail. I should give it a revisit and take some notes!

And now, a wishlist!

Romance! I have a few things in the works, but I just love a good romance. I have complained about this several times, but I just think it’s so fun. There is so much good drama. I am looking for angst! For will they won’t they! Pining! Maybe forbidden romance or starcrossed lovers for whatever reason. 

Petty Drama! I want people spreading rumors about my characters. I want people to fight over a table at the library. More conflict. I need to...just relax and let it happen, actively seek it out. 

Messiness! I want my characters to get dragged through the mud. I want them to make stupid comments or be assholes, even if they don’t mean to be. I have been weirdly shy about this lately, worried that people will hate my characters lol, so I just need to remember it doesn’t matter as long as I like them!!

#swyntask #bdrpquestionnaire #questionnaire #questionnaire2021 #why do i have so many tags for this

[mighty-mitte]

BDRP QUESTIONNAIRE | 2018

Your Name: Chloe

Characters: Mitte, Perry, Deb, Babette

Pick one of your characters and talk about their growth (we recommend choosing an older character, but it’s up to you!) What about their story has surprised you? What are you proud of? How have they changed from their original inception to now?

 Perry! I actually went and found my questionnaire from last year and found that I’d talked about him in my answer to the next question. Here’s what I originally wrote:

“Perry, my baby, my nerdy sad little detective. I want him to spend more time making friends and less time drinking scotch, I want him to get his head out of his ass and admit that human company is good for him and that sometimes the world is fun. He seems to think that because he has his own agency now that has to be his whole life and that is Not True. Next year, I want him to find a hobby and a solid friendship. He’ll probably have a lame hobby tho like idk finding spelling mistakes in the newspaper or learning a lot about bridges. Go outside, Perry.”

WELL. He doesn’t have much in the way of hobbies yet, honestly. But he DOES have more friends! Maybe even a girlfriend, even if he hasn’t quite figured that out yet. I’m so proud of him, honestly. He’s getting out there, he’s campaign managing and detecting and going out on walks AND trying to learn more about his asexuality. What a good year for my nice young man. I’m really excited, I kinda feel like he’s flourishing this year as he settles more and more into life with his curse, and life in the unpredictable Swynlake.

 Pick another character and talk a little about where you WANT them to go. What are your plans for them going into the new year? 

 BABETTE! #breakthecurse obviously, long term goal is partner and family- like, I don’t like using the phrase ‘endgame’ too much bc you can never be sure, but I want her to find love fUck she deserves it okay. But I also want her to think a little more about this obsession she’s got with having the perfect family- to be honest, I only started to think about the unhealthy slant to it recently myself. Her desire for unity and love is a strength, but it’s not rare for circumstance to turn that into your biggest weakness. True it began as nothing more than an honest desire- Babette and her parents didn’t have much, but they had each other and she grew up knowing that those relationships could sustain you more than anything else. But she was scared, and she lost herself in other peoples’ families for so long. Then she fell for Emily, a woman so absolutely unobtainable she became the safest option. Their eventual break up wasn’t because she was boring and domestic and predictable. It was circumstance, bad timing, bad luck. That curse, too, is obviously a huge burden. It’s the personification of her shame, her poor decisions. How could she possibly deserve a family when she makes decisions like that?

 Yikes, that was a lot. It’ll probably take her a while, and like, some real drama. I want her to argue with more people too, that whole thing with Attina was so fun.

 Pick a thread or a plot that you’re proud of and talk about why you loved it. 

 Does Mitte and Tibbs’ blossoming father/daughter relationship count as a plot. Like pretty much all of her good relationships it was born out of an alternate reality, wherein her real life was forgotten. I definitely want to explore Mitte’s problems with defending her morality more and this is actually a really interesting way to do that. Tibbs encourages her to take better care of herself, even if it’s not obvious.

 LET’S TALK ABOUT ___ The best dragonfish thread. To be honest, their relationship surprised me. Like Deb I worry about the future of it, teenage relationships aren’t easy to navigate and these two have a whole host of outside challenges against them. I expected Deb to be more resistant to it all, but I think the fact that Jake is so calm and capable at handling the madness of the magickal world she has been thrown into really helps anchor her. He’s her tether to a reality she only found out existed like two years ago. Even the average young couple talking about having sex for the first time tends to be a sweet, but awkward, and retroactively hilarious time. It’s actually a thread I dearly love because it’s something so normal, and that’s exactly what Deb wanted.

 In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 strengths and talk about why you think it’s one of your strengths.

I’m not the best with these two questions. Like I said last year writing is pure hobby for me. Roleplays and lyrics are the extent of my writing really and I don’t often look at it with too critical of an eye, but here’s a chance to give that a try.

I think the way I like to sneak it little bits of back story is a strength. I have lots of little snippets about my characters’ pasts tucked away- I write them on a note on my phone when they come to me lol- and tend to slide them into paras where I think they’ll work nicely. A recent example is from the ‘like before, but better’ thread with Perry and Helene- I briefly touch on Lucy Burbank, an ex-girlfriend of Perry’s.

I’m getting better at putting more variety into the ways my characters react to the world. Like I think for a while I got kind of stuck in ‘this is how Mitte thinks and this is how Perry thinks’ etc. But lately I’ve been swinging their moods about a bit more, because you know, that’s how people are.

 In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 areas of improvement.

 I’m bad at critically evaluating my own writing!! That kind of is a roadblock to improvement to be honest. If anyone fancies offering me some tips they think I’d like I’d be grateful lol.

I’m also still bad at proofreading, not too much more to say on that.

I still ramble too much, have a tendency to get caught up in the heads of my characters rather than actively responding to the things laid out in the thread- I’m getting better with that though. Sometimes I’ll write it all out and then just erase the parts I think make the reply too busy.

 Pick one of your plots, or even just a character, and come up with a list of 3-5 “mentor texts” where you can look for inspiration or research, then write a short (2-4 sentences) why you picked those texts. Advances in Lockpicking from Skyrim for Mitte

So I’m gonna throw some books for Perry down here.

Killers of the Flower Moon: the Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, by David Grann. The title says a lot about it. In the 1920’s oil was found beneath the land of the Osage Indian nation in Oklahoma, making the members of that nation incredibly wealthy. They were gradually getting killed off, and it became one of the FBI’s first major homicide investigations, eventually leading to the discovery of a huge conspiracy. Of course as a detective Perry would love to read about one of the biggest moments in the history of the FBI. Plus as far as research goes it’d be real interesting look into how you go about such a huge undertaking.

How do Private Eyes do that? By Colleen Collins. Another non fiction work but this one more instructional in its approach- Colleen is actually a private eye herself, and while I’ve done research for Perry’s work a lot of it was just as I picked him up as a character, this could be a nice refreshment course kind of deal. I’d like to talk more about Perry’s work, so it’d be good to have a more general knowledge of it.

The Invisible Orientation: An Introduction to Asexuality. By Julie Sondra Decker. Yep, more non-fiction. What can I say, Perry is a facts and figures kind of bloke. I can actually imagine him reading something like this. Googling ‘why don’t I want to have sex’ in the middle of the night and stumbling upon this world, immediately rooting for academic and stoic resources to pad his knowledge, to make him feel more grounded.

 And now, a wishlist! Jot down a few themes or stories or genres etc that you want to maybe pursue in the upcoming year! (i.e. a good ol’ fashion forbidden romance, maybe you want to dig deep into racial identity etc) This doesn’t have to necessarily be attached to any characters or stories you have now– it’s just meant to help you see for yourself what kind of stories call to your heart.

 Kiss Babette, find out what happens.

Get conned by Mitte, just for the fun of it, ruin your muse’s life by letting Mitte break their heart and/or steal their money!

More #FIGHTS in general. Physical or just arguments, I want more FRICTION baby, fight me.

Do science things with Perry!!! Invent something together!!!! Talk to him about sexuality when you see him at drag night in Pixie’s!!!!!!!!!!

Romance Mitte, seriously, for realises. I issue a challenge; trick the trickster.

More freaky weather mishaps, just because I like it when all of our characters are forced to share a small space for days on end.

Find out about Babette’s curse. Use it to blackmail her somehow- she doesn’t want anyone knowing!

Deb’s parents basically drugged her. She could probably sue them for emotional damages. Someone tell her that. Help her figure out what to do with her life too lmao.

Pls take all ur mysteries to Perry Flynn.

I’m always down for fake dating, I don’t think I even really need to say that.

 OPTIONAL: Why do you RP?

Because I’m in too deep now!! Y’all mother fuckers got me in this prison for life!!

Idk, I like having an outlet that gives me opportunity to put emotion into words and confront issues while allowing for a certain sense of detachment. Helps me process things. Plus I love the creativity it requires, and the chance to be part of such a wonderful community like BDRP.

#bdrpquestionnaire #inspo #wow i got real deep here lmao #if anyone wanted to see me in my feelings about babette here it is

[labellerose-acheron]

Name: Queen MK

Characters: Belle Rose Beauton, Onyango Simba Lyons, Copper Thomas Russell, Drizella Catherine Tremaine, Toulouse Henri Bonfamille, Bambino Daryl Basurto, Perdita Mariel Faye, Joshua “Strongbear” Sweet, Maui, Urania of Hesiod, Attina Morgan Triton, Hercules Odysseus Persaud

**i just want to note that i wrote the vast majority of this at the beginning of the month before we got all our lovely new members, so just shout to everyone for being lovely writers and lovely people and making this community special!

Pick a thread from the past six months that you’re proud of and talk about why. Ugh, fuck, okay. I’m gonna try to go character by character bc so many good ones??

Belle: “Letter of Recommendation” - Beautibbs. Man, this thread straight fucked me up. It was supposed to be just something really chill, because Belle was a huge Charms nerd and she totally would’ve been a teacher’s pet to Tibbs. In HP world, I took advantage of the fact that Belle’s father left more recently than in current canon, and wanted to explore that and, surprisingly, Beautibbs was where I got to actually feel it the most. Belle is normally so composed, and the fact that she broke down--well, it was so real. She’d been putting so much pressure on herself and to see her crack was kind of cathartic for me, and for her. The fact that it was totally unexpected was what made it feel even more natural.

Simba: “Stays in Vegas” - Simber. I loved “Stays in Vegas” because the whole marriage thing was something I’d wanted to explore for a while. There are a lot of things about Simba and Ber’s relationship that are not what Simba anticipated in a relationship, and as someone who has spent his whole life thinking about the person he’s going to be with and what that relationship is gonna be like--it’s interesting to break that down. And I like exploring Simba’s insecurities too. Not his whole “I Killed My Dad” thing, but the fact that he is really always afraid of people leaving him in relationships, or that he is “too much” or pushes for things too soon. So, yeah, idk, that was really fun.

Copper: “Pixie’s Stalker” - Coperi. This thread was so good for me, because it had so many layers. It was Copper at his purest. He wanted to help Peri and give her good advice. At the same time, he was trying to think of Tink too, who he has kind of a special bond with. Then, thinking about his own mother, which he never really does, so that was nice too, because he does have some unexplored abandonment issues.

Drizella: “The Perfect Dress” - Double Trouble. What I really love about RPing with Kiara is that she has this natural instinct about the way a thread should go, and it just makes threads with her so pleasant. The chemistry that Zella and Ana have is so good, too. This thread was great because both of them were dealing with things that they weren’t talking about, it was all underground, but they still knew that the other person was dealing with things. It just felt really natural and totally sisterly.

Toulouse: “Miscalculations” - Berlou feat Roscoe. Big shout out to Lauren for this one, because when I first brought her the idea I wanted a duel, I didn’t mention anything about unforgivable curses or anything, but then she brought it up and I was really excited (especially because we didn’t tell Lauryl, sry lauryl.) It was just so great, because I always say Lou would be entirely ruthless if anyone ever hurt his siblings and I mean it. I finally got to show that, and it was so thrilling to write. Getting to write a really dark side of Lou was so great, and the fallout was lovely too.

Bambino: “On the Edge” - Merfawn. FUCK. This thread was so great. Like, I loved it because we didn’t have a plan for it. We just wanted them to RP together and they both run around in the woods, so it would be a good spot for them to meet up. It was Reanna who took it in such a great direction by having Ariel bring up the Prince. It was just such a good instinct and since this was one of my first threads with Reanna, it really impressed me and I just had a lot of fun with it.

Perdita: “Isn’t There Any Hope?” - Fate. How could I not talk about this thread? It started in December, but I can’t help it. The first time Paul and Perdita see each other in 4 months and it was just so full of emotion. I loved that Lauryl and I had discussed kind of the entire timeline of their backstory because it made it really easy to draw from and their chemistry felt really natural. It’s always a worry with relationships that are pre-established, there is going to be no chemistry, but man, do Paul and Perdita have it and you could just feel the love they have (had) for each other and the struggle that they were going through.

Sweet: “A Code in Process” - Sweet Mouse. Ugh, this one was just so good. Mostly because I actually got to perform surgery!! And that was just so fucking fun, and Kiara made it a blast. It really kind of solidified Minnie and Sweet’s relationship during this high stress environment and I just thought that was super rewarding. (Shout out to the Mr. Crowley arc with Nala, Tibbs, and Minnie. It’s been so much fun and I’m excited for the conclusion.)

Maui: “Helping Hand” - Celaui. I think Katie listed this one as well, and well, yeah, totally makes sense because this is the thing that everyone wants out of a starter. The relationship that was built after this initial thread was so beautiful and nuanced and is continuing to grow, and I just love that.

Urania: “Follow Up Interview” - Star Destroyer. Fuck me, I love this thread so much. It was kind of a random idea that just steamrolled into what it is now, and it’s another one of those plots that just feels really natural to me. And I love the dynamic of both Urania and Dornan thinking that the other is below them. They’re totally underestimating each other and I’d love to play with that power dynamic more and dig deeper into it.

Identify a challenge you’ve faced in this rp. Reflect on why this is a challenge for you. Are there any strategies you can develop to overcome this challenge?

Like many people, I struggle with plotting. A lot of times I have an end goal in mind, but I struggle with how to get there. For me, I don’t have a problem approaching people, I love talking and I don’t mind bothering more shy people to talk to me, but I have a problem sharing my ideas, because I worry that people won’t like them.

I’ve just tried becoming more confident with my ideas. I get characters now with secrets, or an end goal that I can kind of use as a jumping off point for plots. It has really helped because I feel like I can almost always find a reason or a thing that my character is grappling with.

Pick one of your characters and talk about their growth (we recommend choosing an older character, but it’s up to you! ) What about their story has surprised you? What are you proud of? How have they changed from their original inception to now?

Copper. Copperrrr. My lil honey. So, lots of people know that Copper is my hardest muse. I really don’t know what the problem is, but it’s just always been that way. Recently, though, he’s come so far, and I’ve kind of finally unstuck him from his shitty thought processes. I think that was the problem, now that I’m writing this lol. He was so resistant to change, but I just completely broke him down. Between Tod and Rajah and Shego, I managed to break him and now I’m building him back up, and that’s really satisfying to me.

He feels much more malleable, which is kind of where I wanted him to start with. So, that’s really nice. And making him a dad was really the right move because now he has this thing that reminds him to stay grounded and to be patient and understanding and more open, because his daughter is going to have magic and he loves her so much, so how could it be bad or wrong?

I am curious to see what he’ll be like as a single dad. Should be interesting.

Zella, also, has been so great. I really wanna push her more, but I’ve loved what has happened with her the past few months. She’s made a lot of mistakes and she’s trying to distance herself from them and start being serious about her future and she’s growing so much (even if no one but me can see it lmao) and I’m excited to see what happens.

Pick another character and talk a little about where you WANT them to go. What are your plans for them for the rest of the year?

Well, like a good mother, I have plans for all my beebs.

Belle: she is growing so much and getting so strong. I want to continue that thread for her. I want her to go back to school (I’ve started planting the seeds for that already.)

Simba: ugh, my babe. He has some hard times coming up based on a plot that will come to fruition at the end of summer. Through that I really want to explore Simba’s plurality of independence and doing what is expected of him and how that will affect his relationships and, in turn, affect how he views his “duties” to his family name.

Copper: be a dad. That’s p much it. I think Copper has had a really hard life, and he deserves to just enjoy being a father and be as good of one to Isabel as he can be.

Drizella: I want her to have everything stripped from her (in the process of doing so.) I want her to become more of a champion for women and move away from her mother’s toxic thinking. I want her to grow closer to both her sisters and to embrace her own path.

Toulouse: ugh, i just want my baby to be happy. I don’t know what it will be that makes him happy, but I know it won’t involve painting, at least not as a career, and I want him to accept that and realize it doesn’t make him a bad son for wanting something different. Also, I do want him to find love again, because tbh I like him better in a relationship lmao.

Bambi: explore his sexuality more. Embrace himself. And definitely get closer with his dad. That’s super important and I want it really badly, because Prince is really the only one who can help Bambi heal from his mother’s death.

Perdita: Well, she knows about her post-partum now, which yay! So, now I want to work on her relationships. I want her to start mending the town’s image of her, because she’s really not as crazy as everyone thinks she is, lol. Like, she is a normal person, I promise. She won’t be having any more manic episodes or huge explosions. (Unless something goes real wrong, lmao.) I also want her to get a better job, that’s more in line with her long term goals for herself.

Sweet: MORE SURGERY. Also I want to explore his past more. I want him to open up to someone about his magic. I also need him to make friends outside of the hospital, pls and thanx.

Maui: I want him to fall. I want him to totally crash and burn. I want someone to steal his hook and leave him with nothing. (Before that, though, I want him to get risen up, and to help a few people so that when he crashes, they can come to his aid and make him realize that he’s good enough without his hook.)

Urania: She wants to take over the world. I want her to take over the world. Simple.

Attina: As one of my new babes, I have a lot of plans for her. I want to explore her relationship with each of her sisters. I want her to go on lots of dates and to get herself crushed and to have successful dates too. Also, long term, I want her to like re-examine her life and figure out that she really is not happy and wants so much more.

Hercules: UGH my lil babe, I have so many plans. I need him to learn to control his strength, though I want this to be a slow process. And I definitely, definitely want him to figure out where he is from. (I have a whole idea set up, but I just need him to get there. It’ll also be a slow process, probably.)

OPTIONAL (REQUIRED FOR THOSE WHO DIDN’T DO THE LAST QUESTIONNAIRE): In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 strengths and talk about why you think it’s one of your strengths.

Setting: I have a very visual memory. Like--I can remember where on a page something was, even if I don’t remember the exact wording, and I almost always remember what people were wearing during important events. So, I know details about where someone are can be really important and I love describing like the things around someone. All my characters’ homes (and their other spaces, like Chapter Three), I have the entire floor plan of.

Action: I was always taught that movement was really important in a story. And my teacher was big about character quirks, so I just naturally incorporated it into my own writing. Body language is super fascinating to me and I love including it into movement for my characters.

Character Detail: I’ve become obsessed with charting out my character’s lives. It might because I’ve gotten older characters recently, but, I find it really important to know like--everywhere my character has lived and their families (including uncles/aunts/cousins). So, I really feel like I know my characters as people. Which makes it easy for me to slip into their skin and know how they’d react to a situation. I know their little ticks and what their motivations are.

OPTIONAL (REQUIRED FOR THOSE WHO DIDN’T DO THE LAST QUESTIONNAIRE): In terms of your own writing, identify 1-3 areas of improvement.

Rambling: Sometimes I feel like my posts have a point in the beginning and then the middle is a mess and then I’m like oh crap I gotta like do an action/dialogue/have a point to this lol. I think that kind of thing can work when you have a point, go on a tangent and weave the point through the tangent, but I don’t think ahead in my posts, so that always falls flat. It’s always a happy accident if I can find a way to draw it back.

Proofreading: I know it’s RP and we all write a lot so missing a word here or there or something isn’t a big deal. But, I feel like if I read back through my posts sometimes, I could incorporate later ideas in my post. That’s just something I wanna kind of work on, so I can be more thoughtful with my posts.

OPTIONAL (REQUIRED FOR THOSE WHO DIDN’T DO THE LAST QUESTIONNAIRE): Reflect on other writers you love– in the rp or out! How have they influenced you? What do you love about their writing that you want to bring to your own?

Man, I love all y’all. Shout out to some of our new babes: Silv does so great with backstory, I’m always so intrigued, and like I said above, I love planning that kind of shit out, so I always get hype when other people do it too. Also Reanna puts so much enthusiasm into everything she does, it makes me excited to RP, and I love that. Bee also cranks out some lines sometimes where I’m like umm?? Wtf?? That was so good?? Chloe too, just, ugh her writing sometimes. It’s so minimal but not in an obnoxious hemingway-way. Her one shots are so succinct. I love reading them.

I can’t wait to get to know our new-new babes tooo!

IF YOU DID THE LAST QUESTIONNAIRE: Alright, now pick an item from the Wishlist you completed in January that you’ve started to pursue. How far are you from completing this goal? Talk about the steps you took to make it happen.

I’m getting ready to (and have started to) explore race/sexuality in an off dash kenya thread w simba and kiara and ber and that’ll be interesting bc they all relate to their race/sexuality differently. It’ll be interesting putting them in an entirely different worlds. Of course, Simba and Ber have been lots of places, but mostly pretty liberal. Kenya is a place where sexuality is not really talked about and there is a bit of hostility towards white people. It’s basically the reverse of everything they’ve known.

I think it’s really interesting to explore Simba’s relationship with his race and sexuality through this, since he loves his family so much and he doesn’t like to lie; but he knows a good bit of his family doesn’t approve. And then, with Kiara, who is half-black/half-white and gay herself, and Ber who is white and queer--it’s gonna be really interesting to see them all navigate that space and still try to find a sense of belonging within it.

Oh, as for making it happen, I have mostly Lauryl to thank, though, I mean I orchestrated some of it myself. Simba was cut off from his family (voluntarily). He reconnected with his mother in July but didn’t reconnect with everyone else until around December, when one of his cousins had a baby. Which led to Simba connecting with all of his cousins again. And then, after everything that Kiara has gone through, Simba wanted her to realize that she does have a place that she belongs, and a family who love and support her; hence why they made the trip to Kenya.

IF YOU DID THE LAST QUESTIONNAIRE: Pick another item on your wishlist that hasn’t happened yet. We’re gonna do a MOCK-PLOT!!!

Zella Follows her Dreams:

This might be cheating, since one thread has already started, but we’re gonna use it anyways.

Milla confronts her daughter about not having any plans for after school. Zella confesses she wants to be a stylist. Milla cuts her off financially.

Zella throws a fit about this and disowns herself from the family, bumming around places. (Marie’s, Jenny’s, etc.) They start asking questions Zella doesn’t want to answer sooo

Zella finally shacks up with Ella.

Ella encourages her to #followherdreams and in return Zella tells Ella to get a fucking backbone (but hopefully she’ll be nicer at this point.)

Zella applies to a few internship programs and gets one!! Then she goes to follow her dreams!!

(I would also like to include Ana in this plot but idk how Ana will react so that is something I’ve got to discuss w Kiara.)

Finally: write a NEW wish list for the upcoming half of the year. It’s fine if you use a lot from your previous wish list if you still haven’t completed them and you still want to!

Smut – well, i still haven’t bottomed as a male; but i’ve done some hetero from the female perspective so that’s fun. My new smut goal is: different positions!! Different places!! Missionary is fun and all but;; gets borin and i like body positions so it’d be interesting to try some new stuff (i am talking about this like it is my actual sex life lmao)

Slow Burn – who doesn’t love a slow burn romance? i think it makes a ship feel so much more real when characters are angsting and pining and things keep them apart, whether it be timing, one of them dating someone else, miscommunication, or just general fear of hurt–ugh just give it to me (but not for months). This hasn’t happened yet and that is #rude someone get @ me.

Murder – i want to kill someone. i want someone to kill one of my characters. either one. both. who knows. Okay seriously; Urania needs to kill someone. 

 Kidnapping – someone kidnap one of my characters. ← still relevant

Abortion – i mean, i just think it would be interesting to have a character go through/have to contemplate getting an abortion. from either male or female perspectives. i have several possibilities /eyes zella in particular or tbh lou /eyes lou too ← also still relevant

Surgery/Illness – i love me some good ol’fashion hurt/comfort. also, sweet loves surgery, so if anyone’s characters need surgery, you want them to get hurt or sick, sweet is your guy. but, i mean we all know i love fucking up my characters (gave simba appendicitis, had lou get impaled, copp got shot like forever ago who remembers that eh?) so if you wanna beat up/attack my characters get at me ← always down for this if u wanna injure ur babe

Travel – i’ve had a few characters (lou, zella, simba) take trips to other places; but i would love to get out of swynlake for some threads. why not? ← always down for travel too

Race/Sexuality – i have a couple of characters who i’d love to explore their racial identity in a negative situation. swynlake is pretty free of, like, blatant racists (excluding magick-ists), so i would be curious to see how simba/sweet/etc deals with that. same with sexuality, swynlake is pretty accepting but i’d love for them to confront some homophobia because both that and racism, is, unfortunately realistic and prevalent. ← this is always something interesting

Big Plots – i LOVE big plots and i want to do them with more than just lauryl sorry lauryl i love u. but i want big plotty plots with EVERYONE! stuff that’ll fuck up your characters or my characters or both or they’ll GROW by the end, just stuff that will be an uphill battle. who wants to fight with meee? ← still RELEVANT

In more specific terms:

I want Belle to go back to school.

I want Simba to also go back to school lol

I want Copper to learn how to be a dad, even if that journey eventually takes him out of Swynlake to somewhere he deems “safer.”

I want Zella to go to her internship or w/e and embrace her differences and unlearn the toxic behavior her mother encouraged.

I want Lou to figure out that painting is not what he wants to do w his life. I also want him to date bc I like him better in a relationship lol

I want Bambi to kind of shed his reservations about being who he is and embrace it (both as the Young Prince and his sexuality.)

I want Perdita to continue to recover from her post-partum and mend her relationship with Paul so that they can successfully coparent their kids (and fall in love)

I want Sweet to make friends outside of the hospital. I also want him to mess up and have his hubris catch up to him.

I want Urania to take over the world.

I want Maui to get bolstered up and then I want him to crash and burn and then I want to raise him up again.

I want Attina to find love, but more than that, I want her to accept that she’s not gonna be able to control her sisters and learn to do her own thing.

I want Herc to learn where he’s from, but even more importantly I want him to accept himself for who he is.

#inspiration #questionnaire #bdrpquestionnaire #y'all hmu pls #tho im sure no one is reading this #if u r skimming pls go to the end at least #plot w me #also sorry i went extra on my banner love me