Escapism is only really a bad thing when it begins to effect how you perceive your actual reality. I'd say there's nothing inherently bad about wanting something to be different than it is. Hell, I'd go ahead and call that a good thing. The problem arises in roleplay, for example, when it's something less rooted in black and white (like your wheelchair and running example) and far more nebulous a quality.
For example, someone playing a "charming rogue" archetype when the reality is the person is nothing of the sort. It takes a certain amount of skill to write that kind of character and it's not infrequent that people grow frustrated when the perception of their character doesn't match up with their internal wishes for said character. That frustration tends to--as the article states--bleed into how you the person begins to interact with people on an OOC level. It's the difference between someone that's writing purely for a story they find interesting and writing to fulfill some kind of wish of theirs.Â
Roleplaying is a collaborative effort and you simply can't make things be true if you're unable to convince others of it. Another example: You want your character to be in a relationship with someone because you're seeking an escape from a potentially lonely reality. There's absolutely nothing wrong with seeking that kind of thing out until you start behaving differently when someone isn't interested in that character or if you take it as a personal slight. The number of people I've seen flip their goddamn lids at other people because they weren't interested in the character but still wished to remain OOC friends (or even an IC break up destroying OOC friendships) is absurd.
For example, someone playing a "charming rogue" archetype when the reality is the person is nothing of the sort. It takes a certain amount of skill to write that kind of character and it's not infrequent that people grow frustrated when the perception of their character doesn't match up with their internal wishes for said character. That frustration tends to--as the article states--bleed into how you the person begins to interact with people on an OOC level. It's the difference between someone that's writing purely for a story they find interesting and writing to fulfill some kind of wish of theirs.Â
Roleplaying is a collaborative effort and you simply can't make things be true if you're unable to convince others of it. Another example: You want your character to be in a relationship with someone because you're seeking an escape from a potentially lonely reality. There's absolutely nothing wrong with seeking that kind of thing out until you start behaving differently when someone isn't interested in that character or if you take it as a personal slight. The number of people I've seen flip their goddamn lids at other people because they weren't interested in the character but still wished to remain OOC friends (or even an IC break up destroying OOC friendships) is absurd.
