it's dangerous to rp alone! take this!

getting tumblr rp down to a science since 2012.

[ghostflowerdreams]

Writing Research - Victorian Era

In historical fiction it is important to be accurate and the only way to do so is to research the era. What is highly recommended by many writers is to write your story first. While writing your story, mark the parts that you’re not sure are correct and then do the research after you are done. This is to prevent you from doing unnecessary research that may not be relevant to your work. You want to spend your time wisely! Or you can just research as you go, it’s really whatever works for you since there isn’t a “wrong” way to research.

To begin, the Victorian era of the British history (and that of the British Empire) formally begins in 1837, which was the year Victoria became Queen and ends in 1901 — the year of her death. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence for Britain. Some scholars date the beginning of the period in terms of sensibilities and political concerns to the passage of the Reform Act 1832. [1]

Names

1000 Most Popular Victorian Names

Victorian Era Names, A Writer’s Guide

Victorian Darlings - British Baby Names

Society & Life

Victorian Society

The Victorians: Life and Death

The Victorian Working Life

A Woman’s Place in 19th Century Victorian History

Victorian Occupations: Life and Labor in the Victorian Period

Flirting and Courting Rituals of The Victorian Era

Victorian Working Women

Victorian Life

Glimpses of Victorian Life

Victorian Rituals & Traditions

Victorian Etiquette

Etiquette, Manners and Morals

Victorian Britain - Children at Work

Children in the Victorian Age

Collège Sainte-Barbe - Children in the Victorian Age

University of Victoria - Victorian Childhood

Museum of London - What Was Life Like for Children?

Victoria and Albert Museum - Victorian Children (PDF)

University of Strathclyde - Victorian Children

Daily Life in the Victorian Era

How the Mid-Victorians Worked, Ate and Died

The House of Mourning - Victorian Mourning & Funeral Customs in the 1890s

Ideals of Womanhood in Victorian Britain

Etiquette of a Victorian Lady

Going to School in Victorian Times

History of Working Class Mothers in Victorian England

Life of the Victorian Woman

The Working Class and The Poor

VictorianWomen’s Work

Needlework, Knitting and Crohet

Victorian Etiquette - Births and Christenings

Victorian Ballroom Dancing Etiquette

Ballroom Manners and Etiquette

Gresham College - The Victorians: Gender and Sexuality

Victorian and Albert Museum - Sex & Sexuality in the 19th Century

Victorian Homes and Gardens

The Shops and Shopkeepers

Victorian Christmas

The History of British Winters

Top Ten Pet Peeves, or Horse-Related Mistakes to Avoid in your Story

Marriage in the Victorian Era

Victorian Wedding Guide

Victorian Technology

History - Victorian Technology

Gresham College - The Victorians: Religion and Science

Commerce

British Money

Wages and Cost of Living in the Victorian Era

Pricing and Money

Victorian Money

Cost of Living in Victorian England

How Much Is That - Calculating Prices Throughout the Years

Entertainment & Food

Victorian Menu - Cooking and Recipes

A Time Traveler’s Guide to Victorian Era Tea Etiquette (PDF)

The Victorian Pantry

Victorian Era Food Recipes

Victorians Food Facts - Cookbook

Food, Recipes and Tea

Victorian Tea Time Recipes - Sandwich and Cheese Straws

Victorian Era Recipes

Victorian Food, Party & Recipes

Victorian Dinner Parties

19th Century Food and Drink

What the Poor Ate

The Arts in Victorian Britain

Victorian Art, Literature and Music 

Music, Theater, and Popular Entertainment in Victorian Britain

Victorian Entertainments - We Are Amused

19th Century Hobbies and Daily Activities

Victorian Pastimes and Sports

Victorian Fun and Games & Other Pastimes

19th Century British and Irish Authors

Gresham College - The Victorians: Art and Culture

Hygiene, Health & Medicine

Health and Hygiene in the Nineteenth Century

Victorian Diseases and Medicine

Health & Medicine in the 19th Century

19th Century Diseases

Victorian Health

Five Horrible Diseases You Might Have Caught in Victorian England

Alcohol and Alcoholism in Victorian England

A Look Back at Old-Time Medicines

Victorian London’s Drug Culture

Victorian - Medical Breakthroughs

Victorian Hospitals

Victorian - Baths and Washhouses

Medicine and Health in Victorian Times

The Victorian Revolution in Surgery

Victorian Science and Medicine

Victorian Health and Medicine

Women’s Health

Victorian View on Menstruation

Reusable Menstrual Products

Childbirth and Birth Control in the 19th Century

British Maternal Mortality in the 19th and early 20th Centuries

The Historical Horror of Childbirth

Contraception: Past, Present and Future Factsheet

History of Contraception in America, 19th Century Artifacts

UCLA School of Public Health - Anesthesia and Queen Victoria

Science Museum - John Snow (1813-58)

Science Museum - Chloroform

University of Liverpool - The Demography of Victorian England and Wales (PDF)

Gresham College - The Victorians: Life and Death

Colton History Society - Village History in Staffordshire, England (Victorian Health)

Fashion

Dressing the Victorian Woman

Victorian Hats

Victorian Jewelry

Victorian Hairstyles & Headdresses

Hair of the Nineteenth Century

How to Dress for Travel in 1852

Victorian Men’s Clothing

How to Dress Like a Victorian Man from the 1860s

How to Dress Victorian

Victorian Era Fashion

Royal Fashion

Victorian Fashion

Boy’s 1860s Fashions

Dressing the Victorian Girl of the 1890s

Victoria’s Real Secret — The Victorians Knew Underwear

How to Undress a Victorian Lady in Your Next Historical Romance

Early Victorian Undergarments; Part 1, luxurious silk hose, colorful stockings, & socks

Early Victorian Undergarments; Part 2, Chemises and camisoles

Early Victorian Undergarments; Part 3, Pantalettes, pantalets, drawers, and bloomers

Victorian Ladies Shoes & Boots

Victorian Swimwear

Victorian Men and Woman Swim Wear

Dialogue

Victorian Language

The Language of Flowers

Victorian London - Words and Expressions

A Dictionary of Victorian Slang (1909)

Victorian Slang

19th Century Swears

Victorian Slang - Lower Class and Underworld

Cliches and Saying of the Victorian Era

The Dictionary of Victorian London

Justice & Crimes

How Safe Was Victorian London?

Crime and the Victorian Household

Danger inside the Train: Crime on Victorian Railways

Railway Mania

How Widespread Were Concerns About Prostitution?

Fallen Women

The Great Social Evil: Victorian Prostitution

University of Massachusetts at Boston - The Great Social Evil: Victorian Prostitution

BBC History - Child Prostitutes: How the age of consent was raised to 16

University of Minnesota - Victorian Era: There are Two Kinds of Women…

University of London - The Real Rippers Street: Pathology, Policing, and Prostitution in Victorian London

University of Brighton - The Fetishization and Objectification of the Female Body in Victorian Culture

University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law - Homosexuality and the Law in England

Sexual Violence in Nineteenth Century England

Victorian Poisoners

Crime and the Victorians

Victorian Crime

Victorian Crime & Punishment

Victorian Women Criminals’ Records Show Harsh Justice of 19th Century

Sentences and Punishments

Types of Punishments - Hanging

Types of Punishments - Imprisonment

Victorian Children in Trouble with the Law

Child Prisoners in Victorian Times

Victorian Crime

Victorian-era Serial Killers

The Development of a Police Force

The Metropolitan Police

A Work-Life History of Policemen in Victorian and Edwardian England (PDF)

How The Victorians Cracked Crime

Tracking a 19th-Century Serial Killer

[referenceforwriters]

Best resources to improve your grammar and writing

[jessicaclemnts]

referenceforwriters:

The hardest part about finding grammar and writing guides is finding ones that are actually correct. As you may know, a lot of content on the Internet is severely misinformed and wrong. It is hard to tell which websites were created by genuine experts and institutions, and which were created by people wanting to add their contribution to the net.

After months of research and fact checking, here is a list of some of the best and most genuinely correct grammar and writing guides and resources. These are either from academic institutions with a good reputation, or are websites that are filled with accurate and usable content. The websites and guides have not been rated as they all offer something slightly different and useful.

English Practice

This is a truly great resource for learning the rules of grammar. It starts with the most basic concepts and moves all the way up to advanced rules and exceptions to the rules. It is very easy-to-understand and is perfect for children, younger students, students with gaps in their knowledge and people with English as their second language. It works as both a starting point and a refresher course, it is free, and navigation of the website is fairly easy.

Using English - The English Reference Section

This is a website for people with English as their second language, and it has an English reference section that will help you avoid the most commonly seen errors when it comes to English grammar. If you want to improve your writing skills in general, where you have no specific weakness you want to improve, you should try the English reference section on this website.

Guide to Grammar and Writing

This is a website set up by a community college. They have clearly filled it with very accurate information on grammar and writing, but sadly, they have put it on a website that is hard to navigate. If you are looking to improve your writing and grammar in a serious way, then reading through this entire website will totally help you a lot.

Essaymama Essay Writing Guide

Essaymama Essay Writing Guide can truly help you improve the quality of your written work. It suggests well-structured and informative tips on writing starting from topic selection and finishing with editing and proofreading. Besides, who knows how to improve writing skills better than people that write essays for a living? They are the ones that come up with the essay writing guide and offer the fruits of their knowledge in this way.

Grammar Monster

You may have a few weak spots when it comes to grammar and writing, and may even have a few holes in your current knowledge. This is a website resource that you can pick up and drop in order to fill the holes in your knowledge. It is broken up into sections – so all you need to do is find the concept you are weakest on and read up on it. You do not have to read the entire website or massive articles in order to understand what it is trying to convey – which is what makes it a great reference website.

Writer’s Workshop - Writer Resources

If you want to improve your grammar and writing, then go to the writer’s workshop section on this website and look for writer’s resources. It covers some foundation principles in very simple and easy-to-understand terms. The grammar handbook gives you foundation principles that help you avoid basic errors, which then helps you avoid making repetitive mistakes (which is the sort of thing why you may lose points on writing contests).

Quill Free Learning Tools

This is a website that offers both free and paid learning services. You can use a few of the tools and improve your writing and grammar skills, or you can take more intensive courses and become a real expert on writing and grammar.

Owl - Online Writing Lab

This should be your port of call every time you have a grammar, style or formatting question. It is probably the most accurate resource for such things as grammar, style and formatting on the Internet. Their style guides incorporate the differences between various interpretations and they give you links to further resources if you want to do more research.

Oxford Dictionaries

Word misuse is a common grammatical error, and this website will help you lower your error rate if you use it correctly. Once you have finished your writing, you need to go over the words that look correct but that may be incorrectly used, such as principal or principle. Pop the word into the dictionary search engine and find out if you have used it correctly.

You can improve your writing skills only by learning

It is pointless trying to rely only on your spelling and grammar checker to improve your writing for two reasons. The first is because no current spelling and grammar checker can understand the content of your paper, which means each checker can only work based on mathematical probabilities that what you just wrote was incorrect.

The second reason is because spelling and grammar checkers cannot say what is “actually” right and wrong grammatically within your text. They can only offer suggestions, and if you do not know the rules of English writing and grammar, then there is no way you can use spelling and grammar checkers with any degree of success.

[taptrial2]

writing an autistic character when you are not autistic - a masterpost

completely double spaced version on google docs here – this post is more blocky for the sake of people’s dashboards, but still long so people will be less likely to glaze over it. my apologies if that makes it hard to read

things to look for and avoid in an autistic character

• symptoms only manifesting as “nonverbal and rocking” • super smart / living calculator • super dumb / doesn’t understand anything • all the symptoms you can come up with for them are “awkward” and “has special interest(s)” (please do more research) • trains, technology, and/or math as special interests • acting like a child • getting treated like a baby • unreasonably cruel and uncaring about others’ reactions to them being cruel • if they’re comparable to sheldon from the big bang theory, start over • animal comparisons • a lack of feelings • please no stories about what it’s like to be autistic told by allistics

the right way to write an autistic person

• lots of symptoms, including secondary ones not included on a general diagnosis requirement list (here’s a list i rather like that was made by an autistic person – their blog is also a good resource) • having a good amount of general knowledge and actually talking about it (i cannot believe that i have to say this) • talking about things outside of special interests (again…. come on……….) (special interests are usually the default things our brains go to when theres no stimulation or we want to entertain ourselves – it isn’t literally all we think or talk about ever. if a conversation has no connections to a special interest, reconsider having your autistic character bring it up in a context that is not an introduction.) • explicitly expressed to be capable of attraction and romantic feelings – if your character is an adult, add sexual feelings to this point • capable of general functioning, just with a disability that makes it more difficult – not a walking disability (….sigh) • a wide amount of feelings and emotional turmoil (but perhaps only being able to express it in limited ways) • we’re people • just people whose brains are wired differently

things to avoid in research for an autistic character

• autism moms / autism blogs and websites not run by autistic people • any affiliation with autism $peaks means you should walk away and never look back • a scientist trying to create explanations for what autistic people do without actually asking / not mentioning asking autistic people • anything about a cure for autism • a person that “worked with autistic kids” phrased in the same way as “worked with animals” • talking about autistic people as if they are mysteries, are like animals, or are otherwise othered weirdos instead of people

things to look for in research for an autistic character

• actual autistic people talking about their experiences and symptoms • just stick to that and you’re good but it’s hard to find sometimes ngl. just look for the above red flags

things i would personally like to see in an autistic character

• less easy to swallow sadness and more destructive anger. i would love to see a canonically autistic character who was frustrated easily by small things and had trouble communicating why • not a story about being autistic, a story that happens to have a character or characters who are autistic – it isn’t pointed out or questioned, they’re right at home with the rest of the cast and not othered (a la symmetra from overwatch) • intensive sensory issues / small sounds making large reactions • clear communications about not liking x sensory thing (for example being touched) • poor motor skills / clumsiness and not being laughed at for it • walking funny (body bent downwards, walking very fast, walking slowly, big strides, shuffling, stiffness, etc)  – no one treats it as if it’s funny or something totally strange • a big personality that has a presence so they can’t be cast aside (but feel free to have quiet characters too) – if this was along with being nonverbal they would probably leap to being one of my favorite characters ever • a fear of asking for clarification on sarcasm or jokes because of past experiences and an arc about the character becoming more comfortable asking questions

>> if any fellow autistic people want to add something, feel free <<

allistics are encouraged to rb this

[katnissresources-blog]

as requested by bridgetcatherineregan [Bolded = favorites]

[katnissresources-blog]

creativemarket – compfight – dealjumbo – death2stock – foter – getrefe – gratisography – imcreator – invision [on occasion] – isorepublic – littlevisuals – new old stock – picjumbo – pixabay – publicdomainarchive – rgbstock – snapographic – stockvault – unsplash | unsplash.it [Place Holders] – webdesignernews [on occasion]

[chanqwooks]

A MASTERLIST OF 70+ NOT-SO COMMONLY USED MALE FACECLAIMS OF EASTERN ASIAN DESCENT ( because there’s more to east asian faceclaims than just the same few pretty-faced kpop boys )

faceclaims are listed in order of age as of february 2017 (oldest to youngest) in the format “NAME (AGE) | OCCUPATION | ETHNICITY”. SURNAMES are capitalised. feel free to ctrl + f to narrow the faceclaims down by ethnicity.

IMPORTANT NOTE & PSA BEFORE PROCEEDING: use the faceclaims for characters who are the same ethnicity as them, please and thank you. sounds simple enough? you’d think it should go without saying that you should use a chinese fc for a chinese muse right? so many people are still to this day getting it wrong ( yes, casting a korean fc for a chinese muse still happens ! ), and as an east-asian poc in the rp community it aggravates me to no end that people are still finding excuses for racist behaviour. “oh but it’s not racist !” you say? thinking it’s okay to use one ethnicity in place of another completely different ethnicity is, in essence, implying that they’re perfectly interchangeable and saying they’re ‘practically the same thing’ - recognise that this is offensive. 

i’ll say it once again: please use this list accordingly and use the faceclaims for characters of their respective ethnicities. if you can’t find one that matches or fits, hold off on adding a faceclaim until you do. you’ll live without using a faceclaim and icons for the time being, trust me, and it’s far better than being lazy and racist. 

there’s also plenty of other resources out there available for you to find a suitable faceclaim. additionally, please don’t whitewash your icons/graphics. for more guidance on how to recognise and avoid this, refer to this handy post !

Keep reading

[itscolour]

.pack fonts 04 // 09 fonts script brush if you make the download, please like or reblog.

[thewritershandbook]

© (c ) copyright 1990-2011 Rebecca Sinclair

See the original HERE

[ninpen]

Things that have helped me (coding related)

jsfiddle - Helps you test out your code instead of using tumbr’s shitty customization page

cssportal - offers a variety of services,including: testing out your css code (gives you a live demo), generators (box-shadow etc) and others

dirtymarkup - Cleans up your code. Basically makes it legible

patternify - creates small patterns (it’s what I use to create my icons). This is honestly my favorite tool.

w3schools, codeacademy, learn-shayhowe, learnlayout - all of these websites help you learn the fundamentals of html/css and more

google - it is literally your best friend. It’ll answer any question you have no matter how vague

stackoverflow- very helpful website. Helps you answer any questions you may have (code related). BUT PLEASE, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE SEARCHED YOUR QUESTIONS BEFORE ASKING. These are actual people who are taking their time to answer your questions, and they will take your “question asking” privilege away from you if you abuse it

tutorialzine  codrops- tutorials to help you with coding. It can go from very simple, to “that’s way too much time investment for me”

css-tricks - it’s like a combination of helping you code, to asking questions, to tutorials (this is my favorite website)

behance, dribbble, awwwards - great place to find inspiration

 validator - checks the validity of your code

iconfinder - holy grail of icons. Some are free some aren’t

fount - it can identify any font that a webpage is using

colourcode - just check it out. 

colorlovers- color palette galore 

caniuse- says in the name

Now if you’re trying to see how your code/theme etc looks on different screen resolutions this is how you do.

Google chrome

right click on page then click on inspect or (Ctrl + Shift + I) look for this (it’s the two ipad looking icons)

All you have to do now is input in whatever specs you want If you don’t want it anymore, just click it again and it’s gone.

Firefox

click on the menu icon (the 3 lines in the right hand corner)

click developer then responsive design view or (Ctrl + Shift + M)

I hope you found this helpful. Enjoy your day

[elementoffabulousrarity]

So yeah i finally made this

again, thanks to thecelestialruler for helping with the examples!

[allerasphinx]

fic writers i promise you–on my life–that readers remember that finn’s skin is dark brown. 

i promise that if you use a descriptor besides “the darker skinned man” in relation to all the characters around him, people will know who he is in your sentence.  

e.g. the sun’s golden rays made his dark amber skin glow as it slid lower in the sky.

e.g. the harsh white light surrounding his body roughened the soft lines of his face and made his skin appear greyish as though he were a wraith. 

e.g. the only imperfection marring his skin was the raised brown scar that slashed jaggedly across his back. (finn’s skin’s rich with melanin, so even if his fresh scar’s initially raw and pink, eventually it’ll heal to a brown shade–either slightly lighter, same tone, or slightly darker)

i promise that you can describe him as you do rey or poe and your readers won’t forget that it’s finn you’re talking about. 

i promise you, you can describe poe without making him sound like a white dude.

n.k. jemisin’s a master at writing her characters, who are predominantly people of colour. for this reason, she usually describes them in relation to each other and doesn’t rely on their skin tones. she explicitly describes her white characters’ skin tones to flip the dominant perspective that assumes white as default. here are some of her tips: 

describing characters of color

describing characters of color pt. 2 (some of her rowling thoughts are ehhh, because rowling does otherise her characters of colour, but this is an old post)

describing characters of color: other people’s poc

other resources: 

7 offensive mistakes writers make 

writing with color: poc and food comparisons (john boyega can call himself chocolate and black people might describe him as such, but you probably shouldn’t)

writing with color: words for skin tone 

words to describe hair (i’ve read a couple fics where y’all are clueless about finn’s hair)

describing natural hair 

writing with color’s colorful critiques 

describing poc and avoiding caricatures

writing authentic characters of colour in first person pov

in depth guide to drawing different ethnicities 

[wnq-writers]

Detailed Writing Tips on How to Describe Eyes

Originally posted by ifeelperry

Dear poets and aspiring novel writers, we’ve all heard the cliche, “eyes are the window to the soul.” They are one of the most important features and characteristics when describing a former lover in a  poem to ignite passion within the reader or to portray the beauty and fire of your protagonist in your story. Now you won’t need an online writing course with these tips. 

Keep reading

[cdwalker]

A Guide to Tumblr Fight RPs~

Please reblog this as a link in order to spare people’s dashboards from a huge post!

———-

Alright so it’s been a while since I’ve seen any sort of helpful guide to fight roleplays on Tumblr, and I think it’s desperately needed, especially with the amount of people who are afraid to RP them for fear that something will go wrong! So when it comes to throwing your character into the fray, here’s a list of things to remember and to employ in order to make sure you don’t upset someone else during your character’s rumble.

———–

DISCUSS THE OUTCOME BEFOREHAND IF YOU’RE ABLE TO. It makes things flow a little better when you know who is going to come out the victor (even if it’s going to be a mutual victory!) and you can write your character’s response accordingly. Sometimes you can’t discuss things beforehand, and that’s alright.  But it does come in handy to know!

YOUR CHARACTER IS NOT JESUS. Unless they are, they really shouldn’t be able to dodge every single attack that’s thrown at them. Nor should they be able to land every hit on the other character (given that the other character is actually making an avid effort to evade/fight back). Along with that…

ATTEMPT EVERYTHING. Regardless if you’re the one hitting or dodging, inferring that your character is making an attempt to do either leaves the outcome open for the other person to bounce off of. But refer to rule two. No character should be able to land every hit or dodge everything. If it’s a part of your character to be “faster” or “stronger” than any other character, you may need to reevaluate just who your character is and whether or not it’s fair to actually expect someone to be able to fight with them. Every character should have flaws.

YOUR CHARACTER’S INJURIES ARE UP TO YOU. Yeah sometimes there’ll be another character that brutally rips off your character’s arms, and while it makes sense and is fair to keep that injury, in the end, it is YOUR character. You don’t have to keep whatever debilitating injury your character adapts. However, this is where rule one comes in handy! If you discuss the outcome beforehand, the other character will know where to stop so you won’t have to retcon injuries. Even sending a quick ask letting the other person know that you don’t want anything too severe to happen is fine! But remember, the appearance of your character is your choice. But…!

TALK BEFORE MAKING QUICK ESCAPES. If your character is backed against a wall and about to be stabbed in the chest, it’s logical to assume that it’s something they wouldn’t be able to avoid it without some sort of Houdini magic. If you’d rather keep your character from getting hurt in that situation, TALK TO THE OTHER PLAYER. If your character suddenly vanishes or just zips out of the way in what would be a non-escapable situation; that is not fair. Keep it realistic. Keep it believable. Make sure the other player knows what’s going on before your character cops out of a situation like that. They can help you make it easier for your character to escape by offering you an out. But make sure if you intend to have your character escape and only escape, you don’t turn around and use the opportunity to launch an attack without letting the player know. That is a serious breach of trust between RPers and can guarantee that no one will ever attempt a fight RP with your character ever again.

EXPLAIN ABILITIES. If your character employs magic or otherwise non-physical abilities like telekinesis or something to that degree, it REALLY helps to have a page somewhere on your blog explaining how they work. It gives the other person a better insight on how to properly react. Or if you don’t have a page, at least do your best to be extremely descriptive when RPing! The more the person knows about how the ability works the better they’ll be able to respond to it. It doesn’t give anyone a “leg-up”. Just gives the player a better understanding. But then that moves onto…

YOUR KNOWLEDGE IS NOT YOUR CHARACTER’S KNOWLEDGE. If there’s information on your opponent somewhere on your blog, like their weaknesses or how to “get around” their abilities, employing that player knowledge in your character’s actions is not fair. Your character needs to discover that knowledge for themselves! Have them mess up a few times before they do! Keep it realistic. (Unless, of course, you have a character whose ability IS to pinpoint weaknesses. In which case, make sure the other player is aware of it before you start!)

KEEP COMMUNICATING OOC. The more you guys are talking to each other (whether in the tags or through asks or Skype) the easier things will flow. You don’t have to give away any of your character’s moves or what they’re about to do, (spoilers!) but making sure that the other person is aware that you’re alright with how things are going is always good! You’ll stay on the same page and everyone will be happy. Problems can be hammered out OOC instead of waiting for something to go wrong and then no one is happy. Just keep talking! Keep things fun and friendly! It makes the RP go that much smoother.

EDITING IS A-OK! If your fight partner sees an issue with something you did, or you’d like to change something, editing is ALWAYS okay! Just make sure the other player knows what you changed if you did it without their prompting.

WEAKNESSES AND FLAWS. Every character should be susceptible to something. And, if they’re a character who is canon-ly overpowered, then keep in mind that people may not want to fight with your character. It’s no fun going up against a character who is going to just lay yours out flat (unless that’s what you want), and the majority of players want a varied experience. They want something more or less realistic and changeable. Your character should have exploitable flaws that the other players can use to create a more realistic encounter. (However, refer to rule seven! It’s important!) Having your character fall because of their weaknesses is also a good way to segue into some character development! They don’t always have to lose because of it, but it helps them recognize their flaws and get stronger because of it. (Mentally or physically!)

DON’T BE A SORE LOSER/ANNOYING WINNER. If you weren’t prepared for your character to lose, you shouldn’t be entering fight threads with other characters. (Stick to fighting NPCs, maybe). By the same token, if your character wins, don’t let it go to your head! Berating another player due to either circumstance is NOT COOL. And will instantly guarantee that no one will want to RP with you because you have shitty post-RP etiquette. And don’t completely ignore another RPer’s request for a rematch, if that’s the case. Claiming victory and then ignoring the other player after that because you want to keep your pride/dignity as a successful winner of a fight RP is stupid and pigheaded. Be polite and kind and talk out issues.

HAVE FUN! The point of RP is to make YOU happy! And if you’re not happy or having fun, then you’re not doing it right. If you’re having a major issue, just stop for a bit, take a few deep breaths, and talk out your problems! Staying quiet about it will solve nothing. Make sure you’re happy with everything that happens or else you’re defeating the purpose of roleplaying. 

————

Don’t know fight terminology? Here’s a few useful links so you know the bare basics!

- Punches

Different Types of Punches

The 5 Types of Jabs

The Four Main Types of Punches

- Kicks

Different Types of Taekwando Kicks

List of Martial Arts Kicks

4 Ways to Kick in Martial Arts

 - Wrestling/Grappling

Professional Wrestling Attacks

Professional Wrestling Throws

Grappling

- Knives, Guns, or Blunt Objects

The Knife Fighting Tactics of the US Marine Corps

Knife Fighting Tips

The C.A.R. System of Gunfighting

How to Combat Ready Yourself With a Pistol

How to Defend Yourself Using Household Items (Video)

How to Turn Every Day Objects Into Weapons

- Poisons

Index of Poisonous Plants

Poisons and Antidotes

Deadly Poisons, Ingested or Inhaled

————–

Happy Fighting! 

[rplaboratories]

voltaire quotes meme

(the philosopher, not the musician) (feel free to change pronouns/wording as needed)

Common sense is not so common.

Prejudices are what fools use for reason.

It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.

Every man is guilty of all the good he did not do.

It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong.

Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her: but once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.

Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.

The best government is a benevolent tyranny tempered by an occasional assassination.

A witty saying proves nothing.

Let us read, and let us dance; these two amusements will never do any harm to the world.

‎Life is a shipwreck, but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats.

The more I read, the more I acquire, the more certain I am that I know nothing.

Oh Lord, make my enemies ridiculous.

I don’t know where I am going, but I am on my way.

Somehow I am still in love with life.

Dare to think for yourself.

This is no time to be making enemies.

The secret of being a bore is to tell everything.

Doubt is an uncomfortable condition, but certainty is a ridiculous one.

Ice-cream is exquisite. What a pity it isn't illegal.

We never live; we are always in the expectation of living.

It is not enough to conquer; one must learn to seduce.

Don't think money does everything or you are going to end up doing everything for money.

Men will always be mad, and those who think they can cure them are the maddest of all.

The only way to comprehend what mathematicians mean by Infinity is to contemplate the extent of human stupidity.

If this is the best of possible worlds, what then are the others?

I loved him as we always love for the first time; with idolatry and wild passion.

I should like to know which is worse: to undergo all the miseries we have each of us suffered -- or simply to sit here and do nothing?

May God defend me from my friends: I can defend myself from my enemies.

The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us.

[notringwinner]

ON THE AESTHETICS OF A BLOG:

[rplaboratories]

cleverindeed:

It is definitely okay, and encouraged, that you make your blog your own.  Roleplaying is about your comfort and your enjoyment and no one should take that away from you.

HOWEVER – that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t make small considerations for those who follow you to navigate your blog!  Even if a person enlarges a blog to fit their resolution, 8pt font ( and/or font that BLENDS INTO YOUR BACKGROUND??? why ) is not acceptable if you expect people to read your rules and about pages.  You must also consider that many people on tumblr are visually impaired, often near the state of blindness.  If you should choose to make your font smaller than 10px, or to blend your fonts into your backgrounds, then be prepared for others to come to your askbox asking you to send a copy of their rules.

As well, please make sure your links are VISIBLE.  I know there’s a trend going around where people blend them into the background, and it may be aesthetically pleasing, but it’s also annoying for others who are trying to navigate around your blog.  If you expect other people to put the time and effort into finding your links, then at least put a shadow around them so that they stand out and are easily found.

Remember: your blog is your blog, but a blog is meant to be READ as well as SEEN.  An aesthetically pleasing blog means nothing if none of your followers can navigate it. Readability is an important part of creating your blog, and as a roleplayer and/or theme maker you should be conscious of that fact.

[rplaboratories]

Heya, welcome to the blog. Still under construction, but I am taking questions now. I’ll be posting guides soon.

[looktotheants-a]

[rplaboratories]

looktotheants:

Hnak’s Quick Guide to Running Lots of Blogs

My major claim to fame in RP land is that I have, to put it mildly, a lot of blogs. Most people’s response is “how???”, so here’s the answer. I could probably talk more at length on each of these points, but these are the basics. Hope you enjoy!

[rplaboratories]

1776 starter sentences

"Well, think of it, to be married to the man who is always the first in line to be hanged!"

"A second flood, a simple famine, plagues of locusts everywhere, or a cataclysmic earthquake, I'd accept with some despair. But no, You sent us Congress! Good God, Sir, was that fair?"

"I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is called a disgrace; that two are called a law firm, and that three or more become a Congress!"

"A whole week! The entire earth was created in a week!"

"A rebellion is always legal in the first person, such as "our rebellion." It is only in the third person - "their rebellion" - that it becomes illegal."

"She is your wife, isn't she?"

"Must you start banging? How is a man to sleep?"

"Must you start speaking? How is a man to stay awake?"

"Not everybody's from Boston."

"What are you staring at? Haven't you ever seen a great man before?"

"Most men with nothing would rather protect the possibility of becoming rich than face the reality of being poor."

"Treason is a charge invented by winners as an excuse for hanging the losers."

"Will you be a patriot? Or a lover?"

"Is anybody there?... Does anybody care?... Does anybody see... what I see?"

"There are only two creatures of value on the face of this earth - those with a commitment and those who require the commitment of others."

"At my age there's little doubt that the pen is mightier than the sword."

"Incredible, we're free and he hasn't even left yet!"

"Good God, consider yourselves fortunate that you have me to abuse, for no sane man would tolerate it!"

"Dear Sir, you are without any doubt, a rogue, a rascal, a villain, a thief, a scoundrel, and a mean, dirty, stinking, sniveling, sneaking, pimping, pocket-picking, thrice double-damned no-good son of a bitch."

"Good God, what a bastardly bunch we are."

"I have such a desire to knock heads together!"

"It's the latest thing from Europe. It's called music."

"Why have you joined this... incendiary little man, this radical? This demagogue, this madman?"

"Well, in all my years I ain't never heard, seen nor smelled an issue that was so dangerous it couldn't be talked about."

"They speak very fast and very loud, and nobody listens to anybody else, with the result that nothing ever gets done."

"This is a revolution, dammit! We're going to have to offend somebody!"