Is less more when it comes to TRPs?

Moon Guard
61

I started off by writing giant bio, appearance, and personality sections for my characters, partly because it was my way of developing them. Eventually though, I discovered what many of you have said. It’s just too much text for someone to read through. I love reading and read others’ profiles for fun all the time, but even I thought it was too long.

The solution I found? Each of my characters has a Google Doc where I’ve written their full profile plus all kinds of notes about their little details. Tidbits that come up in conversations, quirks, memories. That’s their past and present.

For the TRP3 profile itself, I try to focus on present and future. What should people know about who my character is now and what could be accomplished with them in the future? My TRP3s have gone through so many revisions to make them smaller, but the full context of my character is always available in the outside document when I need it.

62

Though I usually only main one character at a time, I like to have longer TRPs full of information that both the casual glancer and the heavy reader can enjoy.

I think it’s a preference type situation and seeing as though my main will always be my baby giving it anything less than I feel is adequate is not the way I want to approach RP.

I put a short list of things that describe my character pretty well for those who only wish to glance through my TRP and for those that wish to read further on I’ve included both a description and biography. :sunglasses:

63

your TRP should give basic info about your character. It shouldn’t go into detailed history and personal information that people should otherwise learn through actual RP.

2 Likes
64

I’ve typed up many replies to this thread but can never bring myself to post them. Usually because they’re too long, but also because I don’t want anyone to feel like they’re writing their MRP/TRP incorrectly. You’re not!

Edit: This still came out way too long and possibly gave the wrong impression on how I think about MRP/TRP. Shoot!

I think good descriptions on appearance and things such as Hunter pets are a good thing in MRP/TRPs. Scars and such can be conversation starters. Missing a limb can alter actions. But! I like when people include a nice “At a Glance” section that forgoes the need to have a detailed description.

I also think having some pseudo-warnings in your profile if you RP a niche character is also good. My Forsaken would make some people uncomfortable. I don’t explicitly say that, but I do try to include the more crazy things in her MRP so that people can at least have an idea on what to expect. The last thing I want is for my RP partner to not have fun.

Long and detailed history sections tend to not bother me since the odds of my finding out about your character’s history is fairly low. Not because I’m not interested in your character. But, because I haven’t really done the style of RP that leads to that in many years. Just doesn’t come up!

65

I thought size didn’t matter?! oh no…