...But it died soon after I left for camp. >>'
Anywho.
I always do several things that, if everyone practiced, would instantly make them look at least semi literate:
1) Read through your post.
This is possibly the most important step. If you just type something and post it without looking, who knows what you could miss? Just to show what I mean Ive typed this entire scentence without using he backspace key or even looking at the keyboard...which, I admit, doesn't look all that bad...but there are still errors, ones that I could easily fix just by reading it over and noticing my mistakes. (I lose the game! dramallama )
2) Run your post through spellcheck.
Nothing is quite so annoying as trying to read a post that has so many mispelled words and wrong punctuations that it no longer has any meaning. This includes chatspeak. Before I post anything, I always copy the text and put it into Word. Don't have Word or any similar program? Use a dictionary for anything you're unsure of. We'll forgive you for one or two missplaced letters. If we don't, then there's something wrong with us.
The rest of the tips are things that I always remind myself to do when reading over my posts. If you ever read a good novel and you pay attention, you'll notice that they always do these things. By keeping these tips in mind, I guaruntee that your posts will instantly become semi-literate. However, refining them obviously takes practice.
1) Grammar
I'm pretty sure most great novels do not have spelling mistakes. If they do, then something must be wrong with the editors. Proper punctuation and capitalization are also a must, as without them your post looks rather...bland. Think of your least favorite teacher's voice; was it a low, droning teacher that wouldn't shut up and put the entire class to sleep? That's what your run-on sentence looks like--and it has the same effect on the readers.
2) Details
I was actually thinking of labeling this section "post length", but that's definintely a misnomer. Some of the best posts don't have to be ten paragraphs long, and an over-expanded post just tells the reader what they already know. But something too short gives those replying little to work off of. Here's an example:
Clay smiled.
What's the next poster supposed to put? Poor Clay will most likely be ignored. However, just by adding a few adjectives and some dialogue...
Clay stood from his chair, the wood creaking loudly, emphasizing his movement. "Heather, it was certainly a pleasure to meet you," he smiled warmly, then sat back in his chair.
There! Now this post doesn't just take up space, but it also allows the next poster to comment, perhaps asking just why the heck Clay's being so polite. Consequently, something more was added to this post that allowed for this, and it is the most important detail that separates the intermediate RPers with the literate ones...
3) Character Involvement
Don't you hate it when you're talking to a person and all they can do is talk about themselves? It's the same idea when making a post and it's the thing that keeps a roleplay going! Take, for example, this post:
Gary sighed, leaning back in his chair. He pondered to himself about what he would do when he got out of here. Perhaps go to the movies? Well, he didn't really have anyone to go with, apart from Grace, but she was busy talking to her boyfriend on the other side of the room.
Now at first this looks like a good post--it's about a paragraph, it uses some detail, the grammar is good...but what if this were to happen in real life? What if Gary just sat there, pondering to himself, and didn't do much else? It kind of feels like he's leading somewhere: Gary wants to go to the movies with Grace. But if she's doing something else, then she's not just going to randomly ask him to go to the movies, will she? That's not how things work in the real world.
What this post lacks is character involvement. In order to make it so that Gary is not looked over and the thought it complete, I just add a few things to the end:
...He growled, scrunching up his forehead in frustration. Come on now Gary, he thought, stiffly getting to his feet, You can do this. Just ask her. This doesn't have to be a date.
Oh, but it did--but now Gary was already standing, and he knew the look on his face was attracting the eyes of others. He had to do something now. Gary marched up to Grace and her boyfriend.
"G-Grace!" he declared, a little too loudly for the distance which he stood, "WILLYOUGOTOTHEMOVIESWITHME!"
Gary braced himself for the awkward silence and sok in the gut from her boyfriend.
Ta-da! A perfect post. Even if Gary had lost his courage midway through, then even by showing his frustration in the first sentence might've caught Grace's attention, at least making her ask if he had a headache or something. That post would most certainly get a reaction not only out of Grace, but also her boyfriend!
That's the best advice I have to offer. A bonus for those of you posting with multiple characters, text decoration also holds some benifits. By assigning each character with a specific color, you make it easier to differentiate between ideas; also for longer posts, bolding text and other forms of decoration can also help if readers are behind and are forced to skim. There are some types that are bad, though, such as sub/superscript, which can make people go blind, so do do that. Please. It's the reason I wear glasses.
Naturally the best way to get better is simply through practice, which is why I want anyone who wants advice to post an example. Having others helpfully critique your work is the best advice ever, so long as you listen to what they have to say.
Always glad to help! :3
Cheeta
