Tip #1: Write engaging starters!
Something to keep in mind when crafting a starter: the whole point is to create an excuse for someone to talk to your character. That means that the initial burden of initiating interaction should be on you. People will be less likely to jump on your starter right away if they have to do the work! Don’t write a starter that’s so vague, open-ended, or plain that the whole task of coming up with the interaction scenario falls on the other player. When that happens, they’re the one who’s concocting the starter, basically; all you really did was make a post that said “come and talk to me please?” and hope that someone else would do all the difficult, creative work. Instead, think of something you’d actually like to have your character talk about or do and craft a starter that sets-up that scenario. Obviously the other player’s input will be important in deciding what sort of situation you really end up with, but don’t make them do 100% of the work right off the bat!
When responding to someone, make sure that you’re responding helpfully. Don’t make noncommittal noises or monosyllabic grunts or commentary that basically comes out to being as useful as that; then you are once again putting all the work of maintaining the conversation on the other player’s shoulders. When responding, provide a little more information than you were asked for. That will give them something to reply to when it’s their turn. For example, if someone says, “Gee it’s cold out today,” and your only response is, “yep,” you haven’t given them much of anything to work with. Everything that might potentially come next is coming from them; you aren’t helping at all. On the other hand, if you say, “yep, and I forgot my gloves in the greenhouse yesterday!” then that actually gives them something to respond to beyond just agreeing with the fact that you agreed, etc. This is called “yes, and” in improv-acting games — look it up! It really helps.
It’s no fun when somebody comes along and denies or negates an important aspect of your character, so make sure you aren’t doing the same to other people. It’s only polite! Make sure you know who the character you’re interacting with is, and then take that into account when roleplaying with them. Say the other player describes their character as a smooth-talker, but you decide your character can always see through them. Or they have a character who is good at keeping secrets, but right away your character notices that they’re hiding something and refuses to be misled. Say the other player has said that almost no one can tell their character and their character’s twin apart — you don’t want to be the one person who can always tell when they’ve switched around! If every single strength, flaw, or trait that another character is meant to have you immediately discount or overcome, you won’t be any fun to interact with, because what’s the point? You don’t want to be the person leeching all the fun out of the group!
Now granted, maybe your character has particular traits that make it likely they would notice x or y or b — but not all the time. Balance your character and theirs, rather than just riding roughshod over every trait they mean for their character to have. Of course at the same time, say that their character is described as a smooth-talker but the player themselves is actually really bad at repartee — well, that’s a problem of course, and things like that can happen in roleplay because a player doesn’t (and shouldn’t) always share their character’s strengths or weaknesses. But do your best to find a way to help them make their character work rather than just negating everything they mean to do — or at least talk to them about it ooc and explain your difficulty rather than just discounting their character’s supposed traits. It’s always better to try and work with someone than to just deny their attempts!
Almost any problem that crops-up in roleplay (not all, but most) can be solved if the players involved just talk to each other about it. Be polite and be clear. Remember that since we’re communicating mainly through plain text-based interactions, there is always room to misinterpret with no fault to either party. Remember that not everyone shares the same cultural background or biases, or the same social norms, or even the same language. Leave room for understanding and acceptance. Give the benefit of the doubt. Be honest, be kind, and above all stay in touch!
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