Post by ALEX on Jan 13, 2011 0:02:55 GMT -5
In the role-playing world people often talk about 'having a lot of muse' or complaining because they don't 'have any muse' or blaming their inactivity on 'a lack of muse,' etc., etc. So what is this elusive muse that everyone is in search of or desperately looking to find?? I think I know!
WHAT IS MUSE?
There are several ways to describe it.
A) It's the feeling you get when your character is just in your head. You can see them, feel them, understand them and you just know them. You know all about the things that make them tick and tock, you're figuring it out as you
go along - but that character is alive in you and you are channeling it completely.
B ) It's when you're in a thread or you're actually RPing and you read a reply to your character and out of nowhere - it hits you. You know exactly what that person is going to say, how they will react, how they got in that situation in
the first place, everything comes to you - right down to how that character is gonna roll their eyes. It all happens fairly quickly, but the big picture is there and it fuels you to get the job/post/reply done.
C) It's inspiration. The thing that makes you think about that character or get into that characters head - which is the opposite of A, in a way. You're the shrink, he or she is the patient and you're determined to figure it out, analyze it even, just so you can better understand.
Muse comes and goes. Sometimes it lasts for hours, other times it lasts for much shorter than that. Muse is pretty uncontrollable, but you can always find ways to better understand how your muse works.
HOW DO YOU GET IT?
Well, there are lots of ways to get muse. Thinking of the character is the most obvious. But thinking of the character's friends, their family, a current thread or even re-reading their application (if they have one) helps. Here are a few of my favorite tips that aren't so obvious.
1. Force it out! By listening to music that makes you think of that charrie or puts you in their general mood. You can look at pictures of the character's face claim or make graphics for him/her if you have the skills. This
usually helps put you in the perfect mindset, especially if you find pictures that really reflect your character's... well, character.
2. Lure it out! Keep note of some of your favorite threads with this character in it. It can be your best work, something you're most proud of, etc. Anything that you read and it just sucks you back into the moment all over
again. Whenever you feel uninspired, go back and reread that material. Tell yourself that you can write something that good again! Then do it!
3. Talk it out! Not literally, but the best way to get muse for a reply is to go over it in your head first. Yeah, free writing or just doing it randomly helps your creativity flow... but when you get stuck, your muse gets stuck with it.
Reply to all the quotations first, by then you should feel a little inspired. Then go back and fill in the spaces with actions/thoughts/etc. Once you're done you'll have all kinds of muse and not even know it.
These are just a few ways though - there are many, many other alternative ways to get muse.
HOW DO YOU LOSE IT?
Procrastination. Boredom. Buzzkills like one-liners. And when you're sitting around forever waiting for a reply to a post, it can (and will) slowly kill your muse. Some people lose their muse after being with a game for a long time and
feel that they need a break. Others have been with a game for a short amount of time, get bored (or the novelty of the new game wears off) and then a loss of muse follows. Unfortunately, this happens to everyone.
HOW DO YOU KEEP IT ALIVE?
Losing your muse or it dying off somehow is unpreventable. It happens to everyone. And you can't just be jacked up on muse all the time. That would be awesome for the RP-world... horrible for our real lives. So how do we make sure we get the most out of our muse while we have it?
1. Stick with the character. If you really, really, really love that charrie and you want to explore it and develop that mindset, personality, persona, etc. -
don't give up on him or her. Continue to play that character - but only if you really love him or her and you usually can get big amounts of muse to play that person. If you don't, then your muse is gonna be minimal at all times, which just sucks and really isn't worth it.
2. Stay active at your game. If you're online a lot and you like the game and you like the interactions you have going on with other characters and players - that's good! Keep doing that! They help drive your muse too. So be active and your muse will keep on coming back to you.
3. Be honest with yourself. Admit when you have no muse. Don't try and force out crappy posts when you know you're in the muse-negative. Don't say you can, when you know you can't. You'll only end up discouraging yourself and that's not cool
WHAT IS MUSE?
There are several ways to describe it.
A) It's the feeling you get when your character is just in your head. You can see them, feel them, understand them and you just know them. You know all about the things that make them tick and tock, you're figuring it out as you
go along - but that character is alive in you and you are channeling it completely.
B ) It's when you're in a thread or you're actually RPing and you read a reply to your character and out of nowhere - it hits you. You know exactly what that person is going to say, how they will react, how they got in that situation in
the first place, everything comes to you - right down to how that character is gonna roll their eyes. It all happens fairly quickly, but the big picture is there and it fuels you to get the job/post/reply done.
C) It's inspiration. The thing that makes you think about that character or get into that characters head - which is the opposite of A, in a way. You're the shrink, he or she is the patient and you're determined to figure it out, analyze it even, just so you can better understand.
Muse comes and goes. Sometimes it lasts for hours, other times it lasts for much shorter than that. Muse is pretty uncontrollable, but you can always find ways to better understand how your muse works.
HOW DO YOU GET IT?
Well, there are lots of ways to get muse. Thinking of the character is the most obvious. But thinking of the character's friends, their family, a current thread or even re-reading their application (if they have one) helps. Here are a few of my favorite tips that aren't so obvious.
1. Force it out! By listening to music that makes you think of that charrie or puts you in their general mood. You can look at pictures of the character's face claim or make graphics for him/her if you have the skills. This
usually helps put you in the perfect mindset, especially if you find pictures that really reflect your character's... well, character.
2. Lure it out! Keep note of some of your favorite threads with this character in it. It can be your best work, something you're most proud of, etc. Anything that you read and it just sucks you back into the moment all over
again. Whenever you feel uninspired, go back and reread that material. Tell yourself that you can write something that good again! Then do it!
3. Talk it out! Not literally, but the best way to get muse for a reply is to go over it in your head first. Yeah, free writing or just doing it randomly helps your creativity flow... but when you get stuck, your muse gets stuck with it.
Reply to all the quotations first, by then you should feel a little inspired. Then go back and fill in the spaces with actions/thoughts/etc. Once you're done you'll have all kinds of muse and not even know it.
These are just a few ways though - there are many, many other alternative ways to get muse.
HOW DO YOU LOSE IT?
Procrastination. Boredom. Buzzkills like one-liners. And when you're sitting around forever waiting for a reply to a post, it can (and will) slowly kill your muse. Some people lose their muse after being with a game for a long time and
feel that they need a break. Others have been with a game for a short amount of time, get bored (or the novelty of the new game wears off) and then a loss of muse follows. Unfortunately, this happens to everyone.
HOW DO YOU KEEP IT ALIVE?
Losing your muse or it dying off somehow is unpreventable. It happens to everyone. And you can't just be jacked up on muse all the time. That would be awesome for the RP-world... horrible for our real lives. So how do we make sure we get the most out of our muse while we have it?
1. Stick with the character. If you really, really, really love that charrie and you want to explore it and develop that mindset, personality, persona, etc. -
don't give up on him or her. Continue to play that character - but only if you really love him or her and you usually can get big amounts of muse to play that person. If you don't, then your muse is gonna be minimal at all times, which just sucks and really isn't worth it.
2. Stay active at your game. If you're online a lot and you like the game and you like the interactions you have going on with other characters and players - that's good! Keep doing that! They help drive your muse too. So be active and your muse will keep on coming back to you.
3. Be honest with yourself. Admit when you have no muse. Don't try and force out crappy posts when you know you're in the muse-negative. Don't say you can, when you know you can't. You'll only end up discouraging yourself and that's not cool
