3 posts tagged “stasis”

So hit a slight snag in my plans to start having Rahne maybe led a little more down the path to becoming a somewhat more normal (read: not quite such an uptight goody-goody) teenager, in that I've done such a convincing job in making her a goody-goody that it looks like both she and I are just completely shut out from normal teen events taking place in the school.

I suppose I can't really fault folks for not thinking of Rahne when it comes to these things.  And it's not just one isolated incident, but rather something of a trend I've been noticing, where she's just ... not getting included with the other kids very much.  In fact, I dare say the teachers tend to include her more than the other students.  Which does sort of make sense for the character, I guess, but there's only so much can be done in teacher-student RP.

The problem is, if the other kids don't exert even minimal peer pressure to sway her ... not even a bad influence, per say, just ... a normal teenager influence.  The only thing I can think is that she comes off so situated in her little world of being good that no one even thinks of putting these options so much as in front of her, let alone trying to entice her to take them.

Thing is, she's not really good by choice, exactly.  It's a big part of her background, why she is the way she is.  It's a symptom of a somewhat tumultuous past and it might actually do her some good to be taught how to loosen up a bit.  I doubt she's ever going to be going all Cayote Ugly or anything, but it probably wouldn't kill her not to do all her homework on a Friday night so that she'll have time on Saturday for revisions and self-editing.

Anyway, just ... feeling a bit stuck and bleak again.  I suppose I really can't blame anyone but myself for making her such a convincing teacher's pet that the other kids don't even think to play with her, but it does leave me with minimal options.  I suppose I figured if they wouldn't see her as a peer, I would at least be able to work the little sister angle, or heck, even have them on her case for being a bookworm.  I'll have to give this some thought to see if I can't come up with some sort of solution that can come from within, since I've learned it's not always best to count on others to 'fix' stuck characters.

No, this isn't another whiny rant about how my characters are stuck or anything, don't worry.  I'm sure there will come a time when I'm back to that again, but right now I'm trying to be all master of my own destiny, working through the treading water stage to get back to where it feel more like my characters have stories that they need to tell and I'm just a slave to that.

Rather, I was just reflecting back upon my MU*ing career.  It's been almost seven years now.  And I think I used to enjoy it a lot more when I first began, because I didn't have all these expectations for good RP.  I didn't really notice a good RPer from a bad one, and I was pretty much content so long as I had some reason to be out RPing, no matter with whom.

But of course, we grow and learn.  Aside from having seven years experience at this now, I'm also seven years older than I was then, and my tastes have no doubt matured in most respects.  I'm more aware, both of self and others.  The downside of this is that I find less and less RP fulfilling.

Don't get me wrong - when it's good now, it's lightyears better than my best was back when I was first setting out.  It's just that I, personally, have become, well, I might as well admit it: an RP snob.  I notice flaws; I have minimal patience for idiots; I've developed a whole arsenal of pet peeves; and I get antsy very quickly when I feel like a character isn't developing and going anywhere.

Now, this doesn't mean that I think everyone sucks.  Really, chances are, if you're actually taking the time to read through all this, you're exactly the type of person I value most in RPing.  And it doesn't mean that I've stopped having fun RPing.  I don't find RP less fun, but I find less RP fun. 

This isn't a crisis of faith or anything, and it's nothing new.  Just that I was given cause to think back over my RPing career (and boy, it had a bleak start where my tastes couldn't possibly have been less discerning), and I was even remarking what a horrible MU*er I was, when I first started (coming from a medium where you tossed out one-liners as quickly as you could type them, it took me a few scenes to fully adjust my style to the more sedate one of the MUCK I was on at the time; I can only imagine the headaches I gave to those first few who had the honour of RPing with me there.  Sorry!).  More than anything, this is just an observation, and perhaps a note to self to try to have a little more patience for those who might not have the same lofty RP goals.

But also, it's just ... waxing nostalgic.  I miss those days when RP was such a simple pleasure, such an addiction.  I couldn't get enough of it, and it didn't matter the stripe, so long as I was RPing.  I didn't worry about characters stagnating or shallow storylines or a complete and utter lack of plot.  We made our own fun.

How about you?  Do you find your tastes have changed over time?  Do you miss being more easy-going, or do you think having more discerning tastes forces you to seek out a higher-quality end-product?  Because, I suppose that's partly what it is in the end, the choice of quality over quantity.  I may not book the sheer number of scenes I used to, but - I like to think when I do RP, I always bring my A-game.  I might not be the best there is out there, but I know I'm evolving towards becoming the best writer that I can be.  And if nothing else, a career in MU*ing has done wonders for my WPM!

Where things stand

Right now, Rahne feels to me in a bit of limbo.  Not necessarily for lack of things to do, mind; she's been plenty busy between the field days and X-Men stuff.  Though, granted, the X-Men stuff has only just been picking up.  However, a lot of what I've been doing with Rahne lately has felt more like maintenance.  She's not really doing anything that's building or leading anywhere.  Still, with all the new characters around the school, it at least is giving her a chance to get out there and make friends, which she does love to do.

Plot-wise, though, she's mostly just following orders in the X-Men.  She trains with others, and I make reference to her running around in the woods to do some additional training on her own (since I don't imagine she'd be allowed to run the Danger Room by herself right now; nor would she want to, being a bit of a technophobe).  She's meeting people, but that's felt more like I'm doing random meet and greets and then nothing more.  I mean, I'm quite happy to be helping people get settled into the school, but that's not really for Rahne, is it.  Still, this isn't exactly a complaint, just a note that, right now, Rahne doesn't have a whole lot driving her.

Things I'd like to see happen

I've thus been giving it some thought for directions I could take my little Scottish girl.  I have to admit, I think some sort of relationship stuff could be interesting for her.  Not that I find romance RP the be all and end all, but - it is definitely an angle I've yet to explore with this character, and considering her incredible innocence and her repressed upbringing, having her suddenly discover boys would probably lead to much interesting development for this character.  And I imagine it would be amusing to see how the rest of the school reacts to the idea.  Of course, I imagine the poor lad would have some trouble what with her Saint Rahne status and all.

Newmutants2-10

I have to admit I've toyed with the idea of her perhaps even just developing a crush on a bad boy type.  I could see it happening, given how hard it can be to be so well-behaved all the time.  Rahne might be in awe of someone who just does whatever he wants.  Of course, I suppose I could get similar effects just by having her make a new friend with someone of that sort, male or female.  Just seems that adding the relationship aspect (or even just a crush, as said), would give her extra impetus to maybe start throwing off a bit of her good girl image, as she tries to impress or fit in with said boy.

Because, really, it all comes down to the fact that she's going to need to fall from grace at some point.  I enjoy playing the precocious little saint, but - it's a somewhat limited archetype.  She needs to find out that there is more to life than rules and homework.  She may choose to return to that sheltered life, but I think she does at least need to spend a little time seeing what it's like to be bad.  Plus, let's face it, it'd be fun to RP.