Yeah, roleplay, especially out in the open where griefers can possibly stumble in on you, can be a bit daunting sometimes. I've done a lot of roleplay before, and currently head a roleplay linkshell on Siren in Final Fantasy XI, but we kept it all within a linkshell and do relatively no roleplay in /say. It's very much different here, where people for the most part roleplay in /say, at least from what I have seen.
I will say this though, I haven't ever been griefed for roleplaying; actually, when I have RPed in public areas I have gotten compliments from people around who I didn't realize were roleplayers, or whom are interested in roleplay but haven't ever done it before. That's one of the really wonderful benefits that the RPC brought with it; a server where people could all hang out that is for roleplayers.
Personally, I think the best thing for character development and overcoming shyness is to just throw yourself out there. The shyness will fade with time, as for the character... I know from personal experience it takes time to get into a new character's head. You can write out their entire backstory but still not feel them yet, so it is natural for you to feel like your character may be a little rough, as you say.
My character, Blade, was very much the same way. More or less, I drew up a brief outline for him, established a general personality, but it was all very vague, but things that answered some important questions: where he came from, why he's doing what he is doing now, and so on. After that I just started roleplaying with him and over time, I got a little bit more into his head, roleplaying as him became easier, and much more interesting and over time, gradually fleshed out a more definitive backstory for him (which, well, I think is awesome).
So I think in terms of readying your character, getting some roleplay in, whether you count it as canon or just practice roleplay, would help to cement your character a bit more. It might be easier to draw up a backstory though after 2.0 comes out, but if you need some help, send me a PM.
I will say this though, I haven't ever been griefed for roleplaying; actually, when I have RPed in public areas I have gotten compliments from people around who I didn't realize were roleplayers, or whom are interested in roleplay but haven't ever done it before. That's one of the really wonderful benefits that the RPC brought with it; a server where people could all hang out that is for roleplayers.
Personally, I think the best thing for character development and overcoming shyness is to just throw yourself out there. The shyness will fade with time, as for the character... I know from personal experience it takes time to get into a new character's head. You can write out their entire backstory but still not feel them yet, so it is natural for you to feel like your character may be a little rough, as you say.
My character, Blade, was very much the same way. More or less, I drew up a brief outline for him, established a general personality, but it was all very vague, but things that answered some important questions: where he came from, why he's doing what he is doing now, and so on. After that I just started roleplaying with him and over time, I got a little bit more into his head, roleplaying as him became easier, and much more interesting and over time, gradually fleshed out a more definitive backstory for him (which, well, I think is awesome).
So I think in terms of readying your character, getting some roleplay in, whether you count it as canon or just practice roleplay, would help to cement your character a bit more. It might be easier to draw up a backstory though after 2.0 comes out, but if you need some help, send me a PM.
![[Image: 51f7fee1a068d6073b38115a.jpg]](http://cdn.guildwork.net/albums/images/51f7fee1a068d6073b38115a.jpg)
