My Observations

[Shuck]

yes please let us ask deeply personal questions from strangers on the internets.

 

no i won't be answering that.

 

especially since the context was explained in the other line you omitted. people ain't been around is all.

 

The specifics of why you want to feel wanted by a faceless mass of strangers on the internet is deeply personal?

 

Ok. We can roll with this. Remember when I was speaking about egos before? And how roleplayers are weird as hell with them? We're basically knee-deep in introverted egocentrists. Let's reflect on your own admission here:

 

You've stated you feel unwanted because people aren't around when you would like them to be. This is a pretty intense reaction.

 

I'm sorry, but isn't it perfectly natural to want to feel wanted?

 

To a degree. This next post sums it up pretty well.

 

I feel wanted by my friends and family, maybe a gaming guild I've been in for awhile for Star Citizen, but I don't understand wanting to be desired by a huge body of isolated authors that may very rarely interact with me. These sorts of communities seem to be resources, gateways, etc. to find more intimate communities with which to feel wanted. Maybe the linkshells or Free Companies may provide what you are looking for, but I find it difficult to understand wanting to be validated by so many people on a community site such as this. 

 

Nothing against the wonderful people that populate this site, but there's far too many for me to think of personally investing in everyone here.

 

I would disagree that the people here are wonderful. I don't know them. But, for close, personal connections? It's totally natural to want to feel wanted and welcome. This is a crowd on a street, though. The majority of people don't know you, and don't care to.

 

See, I think these responses are awesome. We have ourselves a clearing picture of what the problem is: Some people seem to have it in their heads that these little hubs are like extended friend's lists and are their own great big families.

 

They're not. If looking for acceptance and validation is one of the motivators to registering a free account on a roleplaying hub, you are quite literally looking for love in all the wrong places, and are bound to find disappointment.

 

Second practical suggestion: Let's put up a disclaimer that says this horde of strangers is not your family, and that the typical connotations that exist in the term "community" just aren't here. We're not your neighbors. We're not your friends. We're not your surrogate family. We don't know eachother. Relationships are yours to forge, and with several layers of anonymity in the way, you may never hammer out a believable one.

 

Particularly not within one who's primary focus is grownups playing pretend.

[Kellach Woods]

The specifics of why you want to feel wanted by a faceless mass of strangers on the internet is deeply personal?

 

Ok. We can roll with this. Remember when I was speaking about egos before? And how roleplayers are weird as hell with them? We're basically knee-deep in introverted egocentrists. Let's reflect on your own admission here:

 

You've stated you feel unwanted because people aren't around when you would like them to be. This is a pretty intense reaction.

 

how is that "no i will not be answering that" or a proper reaction to "no i will not be answering that".

 

hey i know this guy wants me to stop talking about this, LET'S TALK EVEN MORE ABOUT THIS IN A PUBLIC CONTEXT!

 

but w/e you do you i suppose.

[Shuck]

how is that "no i will not be answering that" or a proper reaction to "no i will not be answering that".

 

hey i know this guy wants me to stop talking about this, LET'S TALK EVEN MORE ABOUT THIS IN A PUBLIC CONTEXT!

 

but w/e you do you i suppose.

 

Dude, any response you give me is information that proves pretty useful. I don't know what to tell you.

[Dravus]

I kind of sympathise with the idea of wanting to feel part of something. It's something that I think we all want to experience when it comes to our hobbies. Yes, nobody is obligated to interact with anybody else but it doesn't hurt to go that extra mile and try to be cordial, friendly and inclusive...within reason.

 

One of the main obstacles I've noticed - and been given reliable accounts of - is that quite a few people on this site send mixed messages. They'll rush to greet newcomers and be very vocal about how much they love the community and helping people out. They'll eagerly express a desire to be approached in-game for role-play and then when someone does approach them they're always busy, distracted or don't respond at all.

 

Sometimes the reasons for that are perfectly valid. Life happens after all and the real world is a priority! Yet if someone is new or shy and is unlucky enough to experience that multiple times when they've plucked up the courage to try and forge some connections then it should be obvious as to why they end up growing frustrated and taking their leave of the role-playing community.

 

On the other hand I think more people need to realise that the RPC is only part of the broader role-playing community. Quite a few role-players don't come here at all and forge all of their connections in-game.