Role-playing groups are a lot of fun. You get to RP together, plan out storylines, and usually get to know a little about each other in real life. RPG’s are especially fun if you get writers to join – it’s like having your storytelling walk, talk and breathe.
Once you start to RP on Twitter, you’ll inevitably draw others in the to RP with you (if your RP is interesting and others can tell that you have fun doing it, of course). This is one of the great things about RPing on Twitter – building a group.
But having multiple people in a group inevitably means there will be conflict in that group – and the larger the group, the more potential for conflict. Why? Different personalities, different beliefs and different approaches to RP – all combined with the relative anonymity of the Internet – make conflict unavoidable. (There can also be conflict between 2 or more RPGs. )
Preparing in advance to handle conflicts in your RPG is like preparing for Hurricane Season in Florida: you hope you don’t need to use it, but you know you will eventually – and to be unprepared is going to bring disaster.
Here are a few guidelines to consider:
Guideline #1 – ALL Conflicts Are to Be Handled in Private
Let’s give an example of why.
Susie Q and Johnny B are having a spat. You have 20 people in your group, and when Susie and Johnny start going at each other, everyone takes sides and jumps in. Now you have 20 people arguing where only 2 people should be – and often these 18 other people start arguments that take on a life on their own and can even be worse than the original spat.
In addition, what about the followers? Followers follow RPers so that they can read original sci fi fiction (or other genre) – they don’t want to see a bunch of squabbling on the feed. It’s a huge turnoff.
Finally – what about those trying to RP? It’s hard to focus on what you’re doing when there is a heated argument going on in the feed. Not only that, but RPers don’t want their storylines ruined by a dramafest – followers will skim over the whole thing and could miss an excellent SL amidst all of the clamor. Other RPers just signing on only to see a conflict in full force will often not even attempt to RP – they’ll simply leave for the night.
Contrast this with a spat handled in private – via DMs, email or chat – between the two parties. It stays (for the most part) between the two parties; and if they need a mediator, that’s what the group leader is for. No drama, no cluttering up the feed, and the conflict is addressed. No one else is discouraged or bothered by it.
In my opinion, this is the main rule. If someone doesn’t want to abide by it, then they obviously love the drama and they will poison your RPG if allowed to stay in it.
Guideline #2 – Don’t Get Involved on the Feed in Other People’s Fights
This is a hard one. You see a friend and fellow RPer getting attacked or accused, so you want to jump in and defend this person.
But – think for just a minute – why do you want to jump in and defend him or her? Is it because you want to argue, or is it because you want to the person to know he or she has your support?
More than likely, it’s because you want the person to know you support him. This can be handled by sending a private message/DM and telling him you support him, and to encourage him to either handle the conflict privately (“Take it to DMs” is my mantra) or to ignore/block the person who is arguing with him (if the argument truly is pointless or simply too mean-spirited).
Another option is to use your personal blog in order to voice your opinion or your support.
The main thing is to keep the drama that is occurring off of the feed.
Guideline #3 – Stay Professional
You would be very surprised who is looking at the tweets of RPers – and subscribing to their RSS feeds and blogs. There are people looking for the next “big” writer on Twitter – and if you don’t believe me, that’s your loss.
Also, I’ve never met a serious RPer that didn’t want people to enjoy their portrayal of their character.
While we’re not “professionals” in the sense of being paid, we do need to maintain a sense of professionalism during RP. Yes, we can kid around and such, but drama simply has no place in front of all of the followers. It detracts from your character portrayal.
This doesn't mean that you don't mention it at all - just that getting into an all-out drama fest in front of the followers isn't a good idea.
Guideline #4 – If You Can’t – or Won’t – Follow the Guidelines, You Need to RP with Another Group
Kind of self-explanatory. If someone can’t or won’t settle issues in a quiet, non-dramatic way, they are either too immature, thrive on drama, or are unstable. They need to go.
The Bottom Line
Role-playing groups can be a lot of fun – but also can be a huge headache if the inevitable conflicts aren’t handled with a minimum of fuss and drama. Take steps to insure you are prepared in advance to handle them.
