(04-03-2015, 11:51 AM)Graeham Ridgefield Wrote:(04-03-2015, 11:42 AM)Warren Castille Wrote:(04-03-2015, 11:06 AM)Graeham Ridgefield Wrote: My main concern is that all too often those who organise such things tend to just grab their friends or anyone perceived as popular and then when they run out they just stop taking the initiative to find fresh blood.
(04-03-2015, 11:38 AM)Graeham Ridgefield Wrote: So when I do do such things it's usually for a handful of individuals that my character has gotten to know in-game which allows me to indulge in what I enjoy best: role-play with a heavy focus on character interaction and development rather than a stereotypical social event where people just sort of mingle with each other. I get my dose of that elsewhere so attending such gatherings consistently would make them very stale for me.
I want you to reread what you've written and then explain to my why it's okay when you do it.
I think you're reading too deeply into what I posted. In my case I was stating a preference for the sort of role-play I enjoy organising the most. I was specifically referring to private events between friends in my case - whilst my criticism was directed at public events that are simply glorified fan-wanks for the same select few individuals.
That might not even be the intention behind them but as I've said in other threads that often is how it feels from the perspective of someone looking in from the outside. In short, I think if people are going to organise some sort of interview/newspaper it needs to have a healthy mix of unknown and known people. Otherwise it's just a recipe for drama and another route to making yet another thread about the same group of role-players.
Most of the perceived "fan wanking" though isn't done intentionally - As established, most of the Populars who show up to date auctions do so of their own volition, and word spreads and money gets made. The recurring social events aren't done with self-congratulation in mind, they're done as mingle spots or to serve a specific purpose (I can only speak for the Grindstone, which is a completely RNG-based writing exercise with a paltry sum of gil at the end).
I understand completely how it might look, and I understand completely how the worry about things turning incredibly insular would be warranted, but I don't think there's any sort of malevolence or vapid shallowness to anybody stepping up to run something. Everyone wants to host a successful event, but that's not the same as wanting recognition for running a successful event. I think sometimes your concern with people intentionally circling the wagons is preemptive.
In my limited experience, I've never seen a public event make the uncool kids wait outside in the rain while the friends of the leader got to have all the fun. Maybe I'm just lucky, though.