Forums » RP Discussion » How To Move Forward With One-Liner Partners?

I am not a one-liner myself, but plenty of my RP partners are, and I have trouble replying sometimes because I can't respond well to one-liners. I try to write a lot, but I end up writing one-liners myself. I have no issue with people who do one-liners, so don't take it that way, but does anyone have advice on how to push forward, get interested again, and write more with one-liner partners?

I’ve had a few RPs that start out with maybe a paragraph, then decline into one liners, then sometimes into one liners. If I put something out there with a small bit of detail and get short/one liners back, I get lazy with it and return the favour. I usually don’t continue it for long.

I see... yeah, I've thought about saying something to the people, but I don't want to try and force them to write longer, more detailed stuff if they're not able. Like how I don't want to be forced to write one-liners.

I don't have much advice on dealing with them now, but rather not getting yourself into said situation again, per say. Search via 'paragraphs required' in the 'find RP' section, and in any LFRP's you post, mark the 'paragraphs required' check box. I always do this and do not write with people of whom our preferences don't align, or else it's not fun for me, and what's the point in that?

The now: The hard truth is that if you prefer paragraph style, you're just not gonna have much fun with one liners. As hard as it may be, ending those RP's before you feel even more underwhelmed and frustrated, is most likely the answer. You're not a bad person for having preferences, RP is meant to be fun, and writing with people who match your preferences is always more fun than not.

Nobody can be forced by another to write any particular way really. If the styles don't mesh, then it's best to amicably end it.
MIR give the best advice here.

Well, forced was the wrong word. I only mean that it's gotten to the point where I just can't write paragraphs. Sorry for the misunderstanding. And yes, thank you Mercy for that

There used to be this classification of RP writing known as "chameleon." This referred to a person who could write a long response, but could also write a short one, and will fairly seamlessly switch between the two depending on who they were RPing with and what the particular moment in the RP called for. I have long thought of myself as a chameleon RPer, equally comfortable doing long or short but mostly balancing somewhere in the middle, but over the last decade I've seen the term and the concept just about vanish in favor of strongly typed RPers who try to always write a ton, or those who don't.

If you're having fun with these RPs but feel a little ashamed that you are replying to short posts with short posts because you consider yourself a long poster, one solution here is to just work on being okay with writing short posts sometimes. It doesn't mean anything about you or your skills. If you are enjoying it, try to just enjoy it instead of wincing that you are not living up to some mythical long-poster requirement.

If the problem is that you do not enjoy these RPs, then the answer is to not move forward and as nicely as you can end the RP relationship.

Chameleon? Ooh. I have not heard this term before. I usually say flexible or versatile to describe the way I do the same, but I do sometimes find myself writing with people who are stagnating the plot with smaller posts. I find it helps if I'm using a character with a lot of connections to the plot or a very outgoing personality so I can really move things forward.

Ie: We're just sitting at the table doing nothing? Let's go try to do the karaoke! You didn't really respond to my question? That's fine because I like to talk so I'll just ask another.

It ends up not working if my character is a more passive type because then...yeah, the rp doesn't move forward. But in the end, I'll always enjoy it more if I find someone I really jive with. Learning how to functionally respond to one-liners and enjoying it are two different things so you've got to figure out where your line between those are.

I’ve learned a new term today! I think I’m a chameleon, when it comes to RP.

I generally write medium/long posts, but shorter posts have their charm as well. I think my shortest posts were still two paragraphs, reacting to a one-sentence post of dialogue from an RP partner. I always try to describe my character’s train of thought, and their actions that turn based on that train of thought, and if they have anything to say, there’s their dialogue in another paragraph.

But! I always keep in mind that dialogue and action are the most important, because those are things your partner can respond to. Train of thought is nice for the fluff, for character development and exposition, but train of thought is NOT something that is functional or helpful for your partner to react to, because they can’t, because that would be meta-gaming. So if the balance in your long post is tipped towards train of thought and not much toward dialogue/action, then you shouldn’t be surprised you get a short post in response, because although your post was long, there wasn’t much in it to work with.

Two paragraphs usually is as short as I can go, and I still find that enjoyable. I don’t know how people go for long stretches of RP with just one-liners. I don’t think you can tell a story that way, but you can write intensive, snappy back-and-forth dialogue with those. I think it’s fine when used sparingly, when it has a function, but sooner or later you’re going to need some paragraphs to actually do anything, right?

If I have an RP partner who really doesn’t seem to know what their character would do beyond one line of dialogue, that’s really their problem, not mine. I always know what my character is doing and where they’re going, because they’re fleshed out enough for me to know. If I don’t get anything to work with from a partner for several posts in a row, my character isn’t going to stick around. They’ll just go off to do their own thing, because we all got places to be and things to do, right? For me, the RP ends there, then, and I generally take it as a sign that I just don’t mesh with that person and it’s better to just move on.

Like people have said in this thread already, the point is to have fun. If you’re not having fun with your partner’s one-liners, then you’re under absolutely no obligation to keep going or to try and drag some more interaction out of them. That’s not your job. We're not at work. No one's getting paid. Much better to move on, and hopefully find someone whose writing style meshes nicely with yours!