Hello Rookies, we’re here this week to announce that no activity check will be taking place. Yes, we will have the post up on rkwednesday as usual but everyone will be ‘free’ from getting cleared.
First, it’s come to our attention that something has been said on certain blogs and we want to make it 100% clear that we do not condone anyone antagonizing any of the other roleplays and spreading false information under our name. Do not spread baseless rumors and do not use it as a guise to stoke conflict in the community. There’s already too much happening in the world. This is just a roleplay, calm down.
Furthermore, we thought we should share a piece of important information not just because we, as consumers, are part of a community and industry of artists and companies that constantly market off black culture but because it is the right thing to do to help. With everything going on this week, we thought it important that we put our best efforts into these issues than something like roleplaying. We can always go back to roleplaying, but something like anti-blackness and racism that have been prevalent for too long should not be ignored. Yes, this may be overwhelming for a lot of you and yes, it is okay to take a moment to ‘process’ things but remember that this is something that has been happening for years and is nothing new. Please use your voice, email your state officials, sign petitions, share and educate! Don’t be complacent with silence and remember that all lives don’t matter until black lives matter.
Under the cut are resources about the current movements occurring now and more resources to stay educated and help.
There’s more information in this thread: https://twitter.com/rexhasbelieve/status/1267321509435097088
MENTAL HEALTH
Please be mindful of your health as well during this time. There’s still the COVID-19 Pandemic occurring, stay protected, educated and if you know that you don’t feel good, take a step back and get help.
We hope everyone has been staying safe and healthy during the pandemic. As everyone knows, it isn’t just everyone’s physical health but mental health that’s been affected. Today, we’d like to discuss some things we, as mods, have been keeping to ourselves for quite some time.
Although not an odd occurrence, over the last few months, the mods have seen a startling rise of rude anonymous asks in our inbox as well as in our interaction with those who come to us with out-of-character complaints. More often than not, rather than offer constructive criticism, these anonymous asks do more than ridicule us, they subject many of our mods through pain and frustration, as well as decreasing both our morale as mods and our own mental health as individuals.
While we may appear as moderators of the roleplay to a majority of you, please remember that we are also people, too, and that words do more damage. We are doing this in our free time, asking for nothing in return except to see that our members enjoy their time here at the roleplay. Many of our mods adopted the mantle that is now Rookies from the moderators of the past. And to put it honestly, certain asks have made us re-think our future as moderators here as well as the roleplay’s future as a whole. However, like many of you, we love Rookies so much more than to see it get lost due to these selfish and rude anons. So, we’ve been keeping this to ourselves, hoping that our work as mods can speak for Rookies but as many of you know, there comes a breaking point. Rather than reach it, for our own mental well-being, we’ve decided to address this so that those who do decide to send such anonymous messages to us may re-think their actions and we can all move forward to do better for the community, not just as moderators of the roleplay but as members, too.
Of course, we are happy to help you guys with any problems that concern you and are more than ready to take time to do so, like you all know, we always say we’d love to hear suggestions! But there also comes a point when suggestions and constructive criticisms are no longer suggestive nor constructive but instead bear hurtful, resentful and manipulative language that paint the mods in a narrative that many of us never agreed to.
Before you send a message, please think about who you are addressing these to, what do you get out of sending this message, how would this message affect you, as well as what is the point of sending this message.
Please remember, while we may be mods, we’re also people, too, with feelings, concerns, and a life outside of roleplay. We respect each of our members as people, and we hope you can offer the same respect to us.
Let it be known, we are not making this public to be pitied but to spread awareness that moderators and admins are people too. Roleplay is not our whole life and we make a point to not make it so despite how engaging and time-consuming running a roleplay like Rookies is. All we ask is that you offer the same respect as everyone deserves. Nothing more, nothing less.
If you’ve made it to the end of this post, we thank you for taking the time to read this. If you’d like to share a concern or ask us about anything, our inbox is open or you can message a mod directly.
We love you, Rookies, and we can only go up from here.
hi, rookies! the day is here. did it come as quickly for you as it did for me? i think it was faster than i was ready for, but i always knew from the start that i would never really be ready to take my leave from my mod position. i know in my heart i could probably be a mod for rookies forever, but more than what i do or don’t want to do, i think in leaving, i’m doing what i need to do.
since i’m already crying, i might as well put all of us through it with the best goodbye i’ve got, because rookies has always deserved and will always deserve the very best i can give.
[ tw: mental and physical health issues ]
so many of you know my story here, but given this is an ending of a sort, i want to start from the beginning before it all comes to a proper close. i joined rookies around when it first started: december 23rd, 2013. this was before my chronic lyme disease diagnosis, and before my bipolar disorder diagnosis. at the time, i only left the house to go to doctors’ appointments. needless to say, it was a dark time for me; i didn’t know anything that was wrong with me, only that i didn’t feel well. rookies was very overwhelming for me, and i was convinced i would leave within a week. i was seriously considering dropping a mere few days in.
funny, isn’t it? with all of my memory issues, i don’t know what it is that made me stay other than the hand of god HAHA but rookies really became a bright spot in my life. it was a safe place to take my mind off of the fact that i couldn’t go to school, and couldn’t even focus or gather the energy to do online school work. it was something productive for me to do so i didn’t wallow, and soon i made a lot of good friends.
i got my lyme disease diagnosis at the end of 2014, and i still remember being moved to tears by all of the support i received then. i went through 5 long years of treatment after that, and a week’s hospital stay, and was met with so much love and understanding by so many people in this community, and i can safely say i do not know what i would’ve done without rookies. i do not know who i would be.
this is what compelled me to apply to be a mod at the end of 2015. in my application, i said rookies had given so much to me, and that i wanted to give back half of what i’d gotten. i’d offered to help our then mod piper even before i applied as a mod because she was incredibly busy, so i was happy to apply when she was officially ready for help. i still remember kind of doubting myself afterwards though, like...was it a good choice? could i really handle it? should i? but once i was chosen, my doubts went out the window, and i jumped into my job of dash mod full force.
even back then, i didn’t really intend to end up in the position that i’m leaving now. i don’t know if anyone becomes a mod and expects to run the roleplay. i was comfortable in a right-hand-man, second-in-command kind of role, and as far as i was concerned, i would stay there. the universe had other plans, however, and honestly, i’m so glad it did.
i became an admin without the official title in august 2016, with the creation of the new main, after piper grew too busy to run rookies herself anymore. i felt ridiculously unprepared at the time, but i learned (thanks @ god) and i grew, and i learned and grew some more, and three and a half years have passed so quickly.
i won’t lie and say all of the times have been good. i’m lucky to say some of my worst experiences happened as a rk mod (and that i haven’t dealt with worse), but it’s also been so rewarding. i cannot explain what your trust in me has meant to me. it’s been an honor listening to your worries and trying to problem solve with you, and to hear your concerns and talk with the others about how to improve rookies a little more every day.
leading up to this day, i thought a lot about my legacy, and what i would be leaving behind as an admin in rookies. it felt like nothing at first, especially compared to the staff that left before me, but after more time reflecting, i’m really proud of what i’ve done here. i’m proud of what rookies has made me, and i’m so proud of myself for being healthy now, and for going to school, and becoming so busy that i’m not certain i have time to be the admin i want to be anymore. i’m proud of myself for being able to make this decision, too. rookies helped me so much, and i’m sure it’ll continue to when i’m just a member (don’t worry!! i’ll still be a member, just not a mod!) but the last thing i want is for rookies to become something that holds me back, and i think in the end, with a life i’m finally healthy enough to REALLY live, that’s why i’ve chosen to retire my mod title.
in the end, i think i achieved my goal at the start of all of this, and have given back to rookies half of what i’ve gotten from it. i like to think i’ve given a little more than half, too. i’m ready to go back to the receiving end now, and to enjoy rookies as a member, and to watch what the others grow it into while i’m not with them.
i want to take a moment to thank the other mods. i love you with my soul. thank you for always supporting me and backing me up. i would not have survived the work i did without you, and i could not have survived if i did all of the work you do, too. i know i’m biased, but i’ll probably always think rk has the best staff team in the history of krp. thank you for taking such good care of me and for all of your love. you’re going to do amazing.
to the members: thank you, thank you, thank you. surely you know how i feel about you by now, but thank you for all of the love you gave me as mod carly, and for the challenges, too. each and every one of you has made me better. i want you to know that running rookies has been the most important experience of my life so far, and that you will always, always be a blessing that i am so glad god gave me.
it’s strange knowing that this is the last announcement i’ll ever write to you, but i think this is my favorite one so far, even for as bittersweet as it is. for the last time, thank you rookies; i love you.
x rkdungeonmaster, dash mom, mod taemin, head of relations, carly.
So, we’ve had several asks come in the last few days about idol contracts and idol schedules so we decided to make a small announcement. While it’s nothing major, it does build off of several things that are already written in the Idol Guide we have as well as other things that have been decided through several asks but never really addressed in a single place. This is why we have decided to draft and finalize idol contracts for each company that you can now find under the ‘Contract’ tab on the company pages.
We have also taken into consideration your guys’ suggestions about idol schedules, and since we agreed that we wanted them to stay flexible, there is minimal notation of them in the contract except for one:
After debut, artists are required to practice for ~ 8 hours at the company building for at least three days a week during non-promotion months, if schedules permit. Attendance at the Seocho building can be applicable to one of these three days but is not mandatory.
Like the last ask we had answered, the idols are meant to follow a modified schedule that is similar to the trainee schedule but is up to the discretion of the idol and what they want to continue working on. (As these lessons should correspond to the achievements they gain during that month.) This should also give your idol ample time to do things outside of their structured schedule!
Make sure you read your muses’ company contracts carefully as several of them may differ depending on the company. The contracts may also change as time goes on and we may adjust them, but we’ll let you know when the time comes!
MOOOOO. Howdy Rookies; yes, if our new theme isn’t obvious, Rookies is now a cattle RP! All of your muses will become cows, and now it’s your mission to become the most prized cow on the farm. You want to be the type of cow that would win a ribbon at the state fair. We believe in you!
JUST KIDDING, APRIL FOOLS! Even more obviously, Rookies will remain the same, and your characters won’t be becoming cows anytime soon, unless they want to go as a cow for Halloween in about six months. We’ll continue as usual. However, our cow theme will remain up through the weekend for full enjoyment (and so Ume’s hilarious work can remain on display for a little longer.)
MORE IMPORTANTLY, and perhaps equally hilariously given the day, we have our new mod! This one is not an April Fools prank, we promise. Before we introduce her, we just wanted to thank everyone that showed interest in helping us. You’re always so, so appreciated, and we love you! Without further ado, however please welcome your new mod:
MOD SIYEON ( mir - dash mod ): As the title suggests, Mir will be picking up Carly’s old and often abandoned title of dash mod. She’ll be the eyes and ears of the dash from now on, looking out for potential scandals as well as rule-breaking. She’ll also have involvement in rknetizens posts and rkidolators posts! Perhaps most importantly, however, she’ll also deal with relations as well, working alongside Lari for our now publicly named Relations Team in Carly’s departure.
We’re really excited to start working with her, and Carly wholeheartedly believes in Mir’s ability to help the team in picking up Carly’s responsibilities. She’s always been so willing to offer her help to us, and we’re so happy to take her up on that offer. We hope you can feel her excitement to be in her position, and that you’ll show her as much love as you’ve shown us.
Taking into account the concerns and suggestions left in our suggestion box, regarding the rules and guidelines for transgender muses in the roleplay, we have come to the decision that we will allow transgender characters to be played, however, we will only allow characters that identify as transgender to be played using faceclaims that also identify as transgender. This means that in-real life faceclaims that do not identify as transgender should not be used to play a transgender character. This is to avoid invalidating both the faceclaim's preferred gender and as well as the insinuation that persons who identify as transgender look a certain way when transgender people can look like anyone and can choose to look however they want without the need of society's expectations beating down on them. We don't agree with these stereotypes and do not wish to further push them even in a roleplay setting.
If you choose to play a transgender character, please come to the mods first as we do expect to be kept in the loop of these decisions. This reason being because while identifying as transgender while in the 'rookie' stage of the roleplay may not raise any negative treatment in-character, once these muses are scouted and signed to companies, and the realism of our roleplay is put into play, we want to be as sensitive and forthcoming about this realism without belittling, romanticizing, and/or adding to the struggles transgender people face.
Please realize and understand, if you choose to write a transgender muse to do your research! We would welcome and love to have a transgender muse, as we would welcome and love all muses that come through the doors of Rookies. But please understand the implications, the bad and the good, that may come by putting a character into the setting that we have built Rookies upon as Rookies tries to portray the struggles and grit of the industry rather than the sunshine and rainbows that we are often sold.
By the end of the week, this rule will be added to our existing guidelines page.
If there are any further concerns regarding this topic, please feel free to send them to our main inbox, off-anon, to be discussed and/or our rksuggestion blog.
As you’ve noticed last week, we’ve undergone quite a few staff changes and if you’ve snooped around our staff tab, you’ve probably already seen the changes. Alongside the departure of our beloved Head Mod Carly, we’ve recruited the wonderful dash mod, Mir, to help us! But these aren’t the only changes that will be coming to our staff, as currently we have our amazing Kyle as a Head Mod, we are promoting two of our current mods to Head Mod positions to join him.
Of our current mods, these two will be one of our event mods, Bianca, and our graphics mod, Ume! After three years of hard work, they will be promoted to Head Mod positions. Bianca will take on the mantel of our ‘Head of Happenings’ (our version of Head of Development), she will still oversee the majority of our events and the development of the roleplay so if you have any questions regarding events, evaluations or schedules, feel free to reach out to her! While Ume will take on the role of ‘Head of Design’, like Bianca, she will still continue with her duties as the primary force behind our graphics and aesthetic design while also managing the idol shop, so if you have any questions about either of those, she’s happy to help!
Please be sure to send your congratulations to the both of them!
Yes, you heard it here first! We’ve added new senior artists and updated the descriptions of our old ones. With this comes some cool updated graphics, too. The title says it all, and this is very straightforward. If you noticed the changes to the company blogs, that was just preparation for this change! This is something that’s well overdue, and something we’ve had on our minds for a long time, but haven’t prioritized much when there’s so much else to do. This is the first one of my (Carly’s) long-intended projects I was really determined to finish before I left the staff team, and we’re all excited to bring it to fruition. (Yes, this does mean that there is more to come.)
The changes are officially on the company pages already, but let’s run over the most exciting part: the new sunbaes.
SPHERE
BTOB!
(four members of) SPICA as MAMAMOO!
ROYAL
MINSEO as IU!
HONG JINYOUNG!
SEVEN O’CLOCK as GOT7!
KT
BOA!
UNIT BLACK as EXO!
NOVA
BERRY GOOD as LOVELYZ!
MADTOWN as BTS!
TRC
SIMON DOMINIC!
BOLBBALGAN4!
B1A4 as WINNER! (with a little difference; see their description)
You’ll see when most of these artists debuted and/or signed to their respective companies in their descriptions. We’ll say these artists have been under our companies IC the entire time, even though they’re new additions to our pages. There are some other changes, such as artists that left the company since the pages were last updated, and extra info on what the seniors have been up to since the sunbae pages were first put in place (2014 or so). We hope you have fun checking them out!
With this comes something you may have already noticed in Rookies, judging by how all of our IC groups chart: there’s no longer a real gap between the popularity and success of our five companies. The funding of the Samsung buyout has aided in this, aside from some luck (especially for NOVA) in the past five years. They now all have powerful, active artists in the scene, and competition is naturally fierce with each comeback, both between our characters’ groups and the senior artists. We’ll have to see how things unfold from now on 😉
