My FC and I roleplay as though the story has happened, and any new developments will be added to it over time. We have used a system in another game before where we allowed 1-2 months to pass before accepting new things as happenings, it gives people room to experience the story developments themselves, and also decreases the risk of the new developments to ruin any ongoing plots. There are means to get around people who roleplay in what is the past to us, even without going ooc, which is something we make sure everyone knows. Only within the FC do we strongly encourage that everyone is on the same page of the book, so as not to alienate some players from others, which is a thing that also applies to other areas of RP - such as fighting style, and other expectations that may vary greatly from player to player.Â
Playing with the development of the story can be a lot of fun, especially when it is not predicted too easily what comes next, it may induce things that are hard to induce on your own (such as wide-spread famines and other larger disaster elements) that in turn helps develop characters further and even in directions even the player did not expect. Not to say that isn't possible with anything else, but it's something I personally enjoy with it ^^Â
As with all things RP, not everyone will be in the same agreement. Focus on finding a group that suits your desires, and otherwise remember that there is no "right" way, only different ways.
Playing with the development of the story can be a lot of fun, especially when it is not predicted too easily what comes next, it may induce things that are hard to induce on your own (such as wide-spread famines and other larger disaster elements) that in turn helps develop characters further and even in directions even the player did not expect. Not to say that isn't possible with anything else, but it's something I personally enjoy with it ^^Â
As with all things RP, not everyone will be in the same agreement. Focus on finding a group that suits your desires, and otherwise remember that there is no "right" way, only different ways.