Forums » RP Discussion » Is there anything wrong with certain reply lengths

Just curious about this, because lots of people ghost me when I say I like shorter post lengths.

I've been writing for three years now, and I've always had the same problem with this. I don't like a lot of fluff to my posts, and it's kind of hard to drag on what could have been a sentence or two to a few paragraphs, so I get straight to the point. Is there anything wrong with this method?

No, there's nothing inherently wrong with it. But different people will always have different preferences.

As Rain said, there's definitely nothing wrong with it! Different people do have their preferences.

I think the reason a lot of people might be ghosting you about you preferring shorter posts is because they don't wanna go through all the time and effort of writing a long, detailed paragraph, only for their RP partner to pull out a one-liner and that's it. (They might fear you're being 'lazy' when in reality you just like being concise.)

Again, nothing wrong with shorter posts (they certainly go a lot faster!), it just might not be everyone's cup of tea, y'know?

Different role-players, different perspectives. So long as folks are upfront about their posting style sooner rather than later in a conversation, a point of agreement - or deciding not to proceed - can be reached earlier.

I think the platform that your roleplay on has a lot to do with it too. There is nothing wrong with a short post. Like others said before me as long as you and your partner are open and agreeing.

But I think platform of finding someone who also enjoy short post too is something to think about. Those type of roleplays are usually quick and fast paced so instant messenger like discord my be better suited for that type of roleplay rather than PM on here.

Also it depends what kind of story you are looking for. Sometimes my post get lengthy because I don't just describe was is going on between me and my partner but also the scene around. For example of they were out interacting in public like at a bar or in town. There is other elements and npc characters to the story.

Overall nothing wrong with short posting. Just be clear when discussing preferences.

More isn't always better. Often it's just more.

Different lengths have different pitfalls. A concise style may not result in bloated and sloppy walls of text, but it also may not leave others with enough to work with or look forward to after a wait. Adding some writing to your pages might help reassure new partners you're "straight to the point" in a way that won't force them to carry a scene.

It can take me over an hour to match the kind of length common on here, which is why I prefer short posts. I also, admittedly, prefer shorter posts to read. I feel like when everyone is posting multiple paragraphs, things move at a snail's pace.

I definitely prefer instant chat for this reason too. I like to work on semi-mindless craft hobbies while RPing in Discord because it means getting a bit done, then reading a reply, then writing a reply, then doing a bit more on a craft. It's relaxing, and relatively low stress compared to having to write the length of a chapter.
But I suppose I am also hardly a writer. I just like a bit of improv and escapism.

Aye. I'm fine with long or short post lengths. Although i'm not a writer myself...

I mostly prefer medium to short post lengths myself. But everyone is entitled to their preferences.

To each their own, but I get bored super quick if the posts are too short. I love detailed description. It's important to me I think to have a degree of immersion offered by a clear image of what's going on. Detailed settings, body language, descriptions, that sort of thing. I can generally handle shorter posts with instant message RPs, but for forum RPs, I approach them like I approach books, I guess.

I'm with Riik, but I would never ghost someone for giving me short posts. Though I might end it if it fails to hold my interest. My muse is better fed with longer, more detailed posts and that's just how it is.

Imo short replies show a lack of interest. If you aren't willing to write a detailed, well crafted reply it tells me you don't really care about the rp which immediately makes me lose interest.

I understand the thought process behind this. I'm sure, in some cases, it's true. That being said it absolutely is not always a correct assumption. Of course, as most others have pointed out, this is why it's important to communicate and have expectations set up beforehand.
For me personally, I'm not sure if my replies would be considered "short", but they're also not as long as they could be. I get overwhelmed very easily when trying to write a very long post. I worry that it's not detailed enough. I worry that it's too short, and then I worry that in my efforts to make it better, I just ended up adding useless filler. I procrastinate on writing posts like these because I often can't finish them in one sitting, and then I feel to anxious to come back and finish. For these reasons, it's a lot easier on me to write shorter posts for the most part, with the occasional longer post sprinkled in. When it comes to other peoples' posts, honestly as long as it's more than like.. a couple of sentences? Good enough for me.
I also think shorter posts keep my interest more, not only because they're less stressful for me to write, but also because they're quicker to send and can get the story rolling faster. I'd rather have the characters get on with their story and interactions than spend a long time describing exactly how every inch of the room looks. In that regard, I do not approach roleplays the same way I do with books. I like detail when I'm reading, but when I'm creating a story I'd rather focus on just that- the story itself, rather than every tiny detail.
Another thing is that different people will also have different opinions on what is a "long" post and what is a "short" post. When I think of a long post I think, generally, more than 3-4 big paragraphs... ish. When I write it's usually 1-3 more.. medium-sized paragraphs? I don't know, I don't even format my paragraphs very "correctly" but that's a whole other kettle of worms. I put in as much detail as I can without making myself feel like I'm trying too hard. But I've talked to people who think my posts are really long, so, yeah, it varies from person to person.
Anyway, this all boils down to what I said before: no post length is inherently wrong, but everyone prefers different things for different reasons. Just communicate your expectations and preferences as best as you can, and hopefully you'll get what you want.

There is nothing wrong with the short (concise?) posts, just be clear up front that it is your style of roleplay so people who prefer a paragraph or more don't respond to your RP prompts.

Likewise, people who prefer para+ RP need to make it clear up front that it is their style so the short/concise style people don't respond. The worst thing is to go through an OOC exchange with someone only to find the writings styles don't mesh. Been there and have done that a few times.

To go off what everyone else is saying, it certainly has to do with preferences however there's nothing inherently wrong with shorter replies.

For example, I have one rp that's one of my longest and the vast majority of the time, our replies are a paragraph or two at most. Sometimes, they are just 2-3 sentences - usually if the plot is moving along at a quicker pace. Now compare that with my other long-running rp, and that one regularly has at minimum 3-4+ paragraphs each and every time - sometimes, we go 5-7.


Every rp is different, every partner and their preferences are different.
I'm sorry you've had a lot of experiences being ghosted - that's never fun.

But yeah, absolutely nothing wrong with it, you just have to find your crowd.

I'm probably a bit late to provide my take on this matter, but...here it goes anyway.

To answer the main aspect of this question: no. There is absolutely nothing wrong with shorter posts. I'm a big believer in quality over quantity. Shorter posts can be just as impactful and interesting as longer posts - as long as they're written the "right" way, and that's the catch.

Everyone has a different take on what they think a good response is, in terms of detail and length. So finding a writing partner that shares your preferences takes a lot of time and patience. And everyone has a different posting range. I can vary anywhere between three and six on average, but if the muse is flowing I could send upwards of eight paragraphs. For me, it all depends on what scene is being written and how 'dramatic' it is as to how much I write. I think a lot of people feel the same way, and that's why it's important to discuss all this OOC ahead of time.

That way, you and your writing partner both know what to expect before an rp even starts. For me (and this does not represent everyone else at all, just my own thoughts and feelings) if I'm writing with someone and we've both stated we can send at least three paragraphs per post, and I send a seven paragraph post - full of detail and ways of moving the plot forward, but I get a two paragraph response in turn that doesn't address half the points I made, move the plot forward in anyway and just mirrors what I put previously...it can be quite upsetting. It makes me feel like my time and effort in writing that post hasn't been appreciated. I would have been perfectly happy if those two paragraphs addressed those points and made me feel like they'd read the whole post and contributed to the plot. This happens a lot, unfortunately, where someone will state our writing styles match by they resort to sending very bare, basic and minimal posts a few replies in which makes it hard for me to respond to them.

Consistancy is crucial. My advice is whenever you make an ad, or reach out to someone be very clear about your writing style. You might get people decline, but once you find someone who says yes, it's worth it. Wishing you the best of luck in your rp searches!

That's a difference of opinion. You just need to find someone with similar writing style to your own. My partner is the "short and sweet, to the point" type. He describes the bare minimum and I prefer to detail everything, even what my character is thinking and/or feeling to situations and people. Essentially I'm a fan of purple prose. I enjoy rp much better when someone has the same, or similar, writing style.

i like to write 2000+ word posts. sometimes i go to 5000. other people like to write 200 word posts. sometimes they go below 50 words. end of the day, who cares. different strokes for different folks.

just don't try to shoot uncomfortably above or below your post length preferences and you'll be fine. it's obvious if someone is trying desperately to fluff up their post to meet another's standards, or the exact opposite where they're trying to restrict themselves to hit under a certain target. as a novella writer, i only stick to ads that also advertise as novella. i encourage others to do the same: look for ads that specify a writing style similar to your own (script, single para, idfk what all the terms are these days).

probably the most important thing is that if you fall on either end of the "post length extremes" (i.e novella or script) you should make that very clear in your ads and the ads you respond to. showing up to what was advertised as a multi-para rp with 2 sentence posts or 20 paragraph posts is a recipe for disaster, and not at all what the advertiser asked for.

But, hang on... porque no los dos??

Long posts for intro and scene-setting, or tense introspective moments, short posts for conversation / dialogue and brunt action?

I cannot stand paragraph bloat during character conversations -- normal people just sit down and talk they don't really put the jazzhands on just for some gossip, right?? But I also feel super gutted when setting, senses, action/progession is skipped over, because now I have no visualization of the physical space or what's going on in the scene or what emotional gravity we're working on.