Online text based roleplay has been around since 1978. It’s been utilized on a multitude of platforms across almost every genre. Often, online text based roleplay spawns from fandom. Online text based roleplay emphasizes collaborative role-play over acquiring levels or skills.
I was introduced to this through IRC (Internet Relay Chat). There were various theme based chat rooms where people exchanged posts to build stories. Currently, I’m actively roleplaying on Second Life, an online virtual world, developed and owned by the San Francisco-based firm Linden Lab and launched on June 23, 2003.
The reason I started roleplaying on second life was to combat my showing versus telling problem. I’m still not great with it, but I’ve noticed a marked improvement. I can see it better during revisions and have strategies to combat the issue.
There’s a lot of appeal to Second Life in general, but for this article I’m going to focus on the roleplaying community, which is thriving. The ideas brought to life through this medium astound me every day. I’ve come across the most creative and fantastic story tellers through Second Life that I’d buy every book they ever wrote were they to choose to publish.
Second Life isn’t strictly a text based roleplay program. There are visuals. It’s no secret that I’m triggered by images and visuals. They spawn a lot of inspiration in me. Second Life offers no only beautiful scenery and settings for storytelling but it also allows you to build a visual of your characters.
I have seven avatars that I’ve created on this platform. Each one looks different and represents a different character. I love creating characters (which shouldn’t be a surprise). Each one has a different backstory and they span several genres. Each one is a story starter. He or she has the potential to get into a plot line and build something, which is the most addicting and exciting part of roleplaying.
When a story happens, I tend to focus on it, which means my other characters get shelved.
Character development is key when it comes to roleplaying. As this is a visual medium, there is the potential to create a beautiful and interesting visual character. This is only part of character development. Just like with the people you meet in your everyday life out in the real world, people are more than just what they look like. Depth comes with the backstory and continuing it into the story. To me, this is equivalent to a prologue. If it’s so important, maybe you’re starting your story in the wrong place.
An interesting avatar and an interesting back story are two of three pieces to development a character. The final piece is using that backstory as motivation for the story that will progress. The backstory will dictate how the character acts and reacts to other. When roleplaying, the story isn’t the backstory, the story is what happens going forward. The goal shouldn’t be to share the backstory, it should be to build off it. Which is why, personally, I steer away from long complicated backstories when creating a new character. I want to use what happened in the past to inform my future plotlines.
Depending on the place you choose to roleplay on, you may be asked to fill out a character card, which will need to be approved, prior to entering the location and engaging with the other players. This happens a lot with the high fantasy genre. These tend to rely a lot on the Dungeons and Dragons model of roleplaying. Some have quests along with their story telling. Others just thrive off the give and take of players present.
While Second Life is visual, roleplay happens via text. You can move the avatar through the world, but you express their ideas, thoughts, emotions, motivations, and spoken word through text. You do so by posting.
Roleplaying has rules. I love rules. There is acceptable roleplay etiquette which helps nurture the give and take necessary for the story telling on this platform. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, Mischief Managed offers the etiquette of roleplay here: https://mischiefmanagedsl.net/roleplay-etiquette/.
When I’m in a slump and just can’t seem to spark any sort of creativity, roleplay has inspired me. Trading posts with the paragraph roleplayers I’ve met through Second Life has definitely ignited the fire in me to build stories.
Just as I do with reading, I have genres I prefer to roleplay within. There are standard rules that apply and worlds that I thrive within. I like to roleplay in the sci/fi fantasy world of Gor based on John Norman’s series. This community is massive and probably the most organized of the genres. However, the genre is not for everyone. I also like to do supernatural roleplay where I play a wolf shifter. I prefer to have the character shift into a quadruped wolf versus the bipedal humanoid form. There are several modern supernatural locations that vary in their lore so it’s always a good idea to review their lore and where they’re drawing their inspiration for their world. Lastly, I enjoy modern urban and playing characters in an outlaw motorcycle club.
Those are my preferences. They are my niche. They are by no means an exhaustive list of what is available across Second Life. I challenge you to explore this 3-D virtual world. You can have a free account, so it can cost you nothing. However, I strongly recommend investing a few dollars to upgrade your avatar. It is a visual medium, so aesthetically pleasing avatars will get you more engagement.
The Witch of the Prophecy
The Prophecy Trilogy Book 1
by Victoria Jayne
Genre: Paranormal Romance
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Having a choice and having a good choice are two very different things…The players of the prophecy are all in place. The vampire, the werewolf, and the witch. The fate of all paranormal beings hangs in the balance.Too bad Divina, the witch in question, wants nothing to do with any of it.She’s not about to let some ancient prophecy dictate who she’s going to love. She’ll be the master of her own destiny, thank you very much.But the intense connection she feels to each of her sexy prophecy counterparts is making it difficult to avoid potential magical disaster.And as everything continues to get more and more complicated, she’s starting to wonder—is she really the witch of the prophecy? Or is she something else entirely?The Witch of the Prophecy, book 1 in THE PROPHECY TRILOGY, features a strong heroine, an angsty love triangle, and plenty of spicy, supernatural goodness. Download today and let the exciting journey begin!
The Wolf of the Prophecy
The Prophecy Trilogy Book 2
Mistakes were made. Now it’s time to pay the price.Werewolf Aric is losing his mind—literally. The incomplete mate bond with Divina is slowly killing him, and soon, it’ll become unbearable for her, too. He’s determined to do whatever it takes to make things right with his one true love.Now all he has to do is find her.But when his witch slips up and risks exposing the paranormal world to humans, Aric will need to do the unthinkable to save her and every other magical being on the planet.He’ll have to work with the vampire of the prophecy, who just happens to be his mate’s ex.Mistakes were made. He made them. And if the price of atonement is more than Aric’s able to pay?Well, he’ll destroy that bridge when (and if) he gets to it…The Wolf of the Prophecy continues this paranormal romance series: THE PROPHECY TRILOGY. Download today to continue this exciting journey. If you enjoyed this story about a second chance at true love for a werewolf and a witch, you should check out the rest of the series.
The Vampire of the Prophecy
The Prophecy Trilogy Book 3
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A choice was made. Now it’s time to reap the rewards…or suffer the consequences…It was all happening according to plan. Rori chose power over love, and as a result, put himself in the running to be the next emperor of all vampires. Then someone threatened to expose his witch (along with all other paranormal creatures) to humans…unless he gave up his claim to the throne, that is.That’s when everything fell apart.The Council has no idea what Rori did to keep Divina safe, and if they find out, the consequences will be deadly. It’ll take all his power, connections, and the help of his loyal guard to protect everyone and everything he holds dear.But with time running out and enemies circling, can Rori survive long enough to complete the prophecy and maybe—just maybe—get a second chance at true love while he’s at it?The Vampire of the Prophecy is the conclusion of this paranormal romance series: THE PROPHECY TRILOGY. If you enjoyed this story about enemies forced to work together while getting their second chance at true love, find out how this sizzling series began.
Victoria Jayne is the epitome of a Jersey Girl. She doesn't [know how to] pump her own gas, enjoys pork roll, and grew up on the Jersey Shore. The only daughter sandwiched between two brothers, she was a bit of a Tom-boy as a child. As an adult, she's lived throughout the state of New Jersey.
She graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and from Walden University with a Masters in Marriage, Couples, and Family Counseling. After getting her undergraduate degree, and while getting her Masters, Victoria worked in the human services field for non-profit agencies providing services for adults with traumatic brain injuries and/or developmental disabilities.
In an online audio/visual chat room, she met her husband, a sports journalist. After dating for several years, they got married, and now have two darling daughters (below the age of five).
Victoria writes contemporary romance. Currently, her published works are of the paranormal romance variety. The world of alpha men, wolf shifters, and vampires have titillated her since high school when she read Anne Rice for the first time. She devoured books by Suzanne Wright, JD Tyler, and Dianne Duvall.
Branching out, she became obsessed with motorcycle club romances when she discovered the works for Joanna Wylde, Madeline Sheehan, Tillie Cole, and Kim Jones. She's currently working on her own motorcycle club series.
When not writing, Victoria enjoys being the play-by-play announcer for her daughters when they run obstacle courses. Baking is a hobby she hopes to pass down to her children as they grow up. She spends most of her evenings unwinding while role-playing on second life. When hockey's in season, she roots for the New Jersey Devils.
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