Something To Consider: Your Use Of '...' In Rp

[MrHappyTinkles]

I hate '…'. And I think you should to. Here's why:

It is a disgusting, lazy literary element that is constantly misused. Most often, the three dots indicate an unfinished thought or lingering assumption that is supposed to be picked up on the reader.
"You could go check the back of the tavern…".
See, it seems like a suggestion. Its good like this; there's no other way to put it. It should only be used in this form. So whenever I see someone type '…' in roleplay, I feel as though it is a waste of a great way to enhance the atmosphere of your dialogue.

So next time your character is stunned, or simply disappointed (Like I am whenever I see you type '…' as a replacement for silence), remember that you have options!

Character looks up from his cup, a look of sheer disbelief glaring out from his glazed eyes.

Character's jaw drops open in shock.

Character sighs, her disappointment made clear without so much as a word.

You can convey emotion and posture easily by making one new sentence, and aid others in establishing a heated conversation! So stop with the '…'! You can do much better, I bet you. In fact, I'll give you a few emotions and possible replacements for '…' below:

Deadpan:
Character ceases any expression, staring dolefully at the jester's awful pun.

Glaring:
Character's face twists into one of disdain, as he spots a common '…' user enter the tavern.

Anger:
Character silently appears to boil with fury.

Peeved:
Character stops grinning, the actions of his peer irritating him greatly.

Confusion:
Character's brow scrunches into an expression of doubt.

A simple pause:
Character stops speaking, to let the weight of her words sink into all that listened.

 

[Brycea111]

I like it...

 

[Percuriam]

So, uh, Elipses Crusades, Eh?

 

[ApatheticLlama]

Aposiopesis is only acceptable when you're dying dramatically and are about to unveil key or shocking information, only for your final words to catch in your throat before you succumb to death's sweet embrace.

 

[Cyclone114]

How . . . Poetic.

Now, when I said that then, is that, I must ask, acceptable in role-play? Searching for a better word? Of course, I could add more detail and say;

"How"
Character is silent for a moment, searching for a better word to convey his speech
"Poetic."

But that fragments the sentence badly, does it not? Thoughts?

 

[ApatheticLlama]

How . . . Poetic.

Now, when I said that then, is that, I must ask, acceptable in role-play? Searching for a better word? Of course, I could add more detail and say;

"How"
Character is silent for a moment, searching for a better word to convey his speech
"Poetic."

But that fragments the sentence badly, does it not? Thoughts?

Click to shrink...

It doesn't fragment it, but sometimes out of respect to your interlocutor it's a good idea to not add another two lines to your emote just to portray something that could have been just as easily expressed with an acceptable abbreviation (Ellipsis, in this case).

When your multi-line emote goes from expressive detail to looking like early-modernist prose, you're just making other roleplayers look at your imitation of James Joyce's writing style.

 

[Cyclone114]

Sort of what I thought. Multiple lines aren't the best, especially when the place you're roleplaying in is crowded, so someone else's role-play could be posted just before the next line of your own.

 

[ApatheticLlama]

Sort of what I thought. Multiple lines aren't the best, especially when the place you're roleplaying in is crowded, so someone else's role-play could be posted just before the next line of your own.

Click to shrink...

Oh, don't get me wrong; multiple lines are great, and confining yourself to only one will really restrict your roleplay. All I'm saying is that meticulously describing something that is already obvious is pedantic. That said, it's kind of personal preference. One might want to describe exactly how long the pause is, why they're pausing, what prompted the pause, and so on. It's often great to go into that level of detail, and you won't be judged if you don't, but knowing why and when one should go into said detail is admirable.

Also, you might want to look into getting the mod TabbyChat if other people's lines dissecting your emotes is an issue for you. It functionally removes the character limit by splitting up what you write into segments within the limits and posting them in rapid succession. It might not be updated for 1.8 yet, but you should give it a shot when it is.

 

[MonMarty]

Ellipses hate fist.


Ellipses are the single worst literary error anyone can make. Ellipses are a sign of omission of information, not of a pause or an emotive statement.

Though in part I feel it is possible to simply write "..." as a single phrase, though I will agree it's nigh impossible to figure out what a person means with that, because it can mean so many things. It's almost at the top of the annoyance ladder together with emotes from people's mind that cannot be replied to like "sudden thinks character X is the dumbest person in the world".

Roleplay should really be about evoking reactions and role playing with other people. Not an inner monologue about how awesome your character is compared to others.

 

[Party_Penguin27]

What if your character is in the middle of the sentence and they see a hot person and they just are like
Well I certainly believe that the Fongs mean no ha....
The teen trails off, distracted by the Nelfen that has just walked into the tavern.

 

[Absinthe]

What if your character is in the middle of the sentence and they see a hot person and they just are like
Well I certainly believe that the Fongs mean no ha....
The teen trails off, distracted by the Nelfen that has just walked into the tavern.

Click to shrink...

Most people use
"Hey it's blee-"
then the explanation for the cutting off in E:

 

[Mecharic]

Personally I think that using "..." to show a pause within a single sentence is acceptable, but not to represent an actual statement or opinion or thought.

That said, I also think that using descriptive "I feel this emotion right now" statements are also stupid, because a) they clutter chat, and b) emotions aren't always understood by others. Limit the emotes to something like "narrows his eyes somewhat as he hears the statement calling him a Qadir" rather than "narrows his eyes in annoyance as he hears someone call him a Qadir". It just makes roleplay more realistic (aka, allowing for different interpretations of an action) than if people know what emotions you're feeling.

 

[DrFong]

I have always heard that using an ellipsis represents a pause in spoken speech. Perhaps it is used too often and incorrectly, but it's really just a style choice and according to what I have seen it's grammatically correct.

http://grammar.yourdictionary.com/punctuation/when-to-use-ellipses.html
"Stories and novels use ellipsis to a very different effect. An ellipsis can demonstrate a pause in dialogue, a pause in narrative, or a character or a narrator trailing off."

"I'm not sure what to do…" he stammered" is a perfectly acceptable use of an ellipsis in such a case because it demonstrates the inability of the character to make up his mind.

 

[Suzzie]

I use it when I can't think of anything to say, or if the character is being silent.​

 

[Beetletoes]

I use it when I can't think of anything to say, or if the character is being silent.​

Click to shrink...

Then just say in emote that you are being silent.

 

[Cyclone114]

Also, you might want to look into getting the mod TabbyChat if other people's lines dissecting your emotes is an issue for you. It functionally removes the character limit by splitting up what you write into segments within the limits and posting them in rapid succession. It might not be updated for 1.8 yet, but you should give it a shot when it is.

Click to shrink...

Ah, very interesting. The main reason I don't use multiple-line role-play, as a general rule, of course, is because of the splitting. I'll certainly take a look at it.

Most people use
"Hey it's blee-"
then the explanation for the cutting off in E:

Click to shrink...

In my mind, a hyphen at the very end of speech is meant to simulate an abrupt pause, like if the tavern roof came crashing down, or a bunch of Qadir walked into the tavern, weapons drawn. The ellipsis, however, in my mind, of course, is trailing off, as Party_Penguin said.

As the Nelfin is not viewed as an immediate threat, unless, of course, there's weapons involved. Ellipsis, for me, is making an emotion shorter, but then also alerting the reader that I'm about to elaborate.

"That's actually quite funny, but . . ."
Character is suddenly distracted by a strange figure entering the room.

 

[Sven_Tu]

@Kammyboo XD

Joking aside, personally I see that particular use of ellipses as stemming from comic and consequently anime/manga culture. Also known as a beat or pause when used in scripts.

 

[Shayin]

I'm guilty of using it when my characters trail off, then using emote to specify that they trail off. I think using it... Every... Other... Word... Comes off as edgy and totally puts me off when trying to have an ordinary conversation with their addition of additional drama. While it is useful to an extent if used correctly, it isn't used correctly nine times out of ten and so it isn't at all useful.

 

[G0atfather]

I agree. my problem is I used to purposefully do it a lot and now it's a habit. god dang it. need to improve my writing but this isn't helping.

 

[Vivamente]

I must say, a very useful post and most informative. I look forward to reading any other thoughts you post as an addition to this "Clip-it"

~Firefighter5
<--|=========> You have my sword!

 

[Beetletoes]

And my axe! (Although I'may an Elf.)

(=l=)
I
I
I

 

[Gwyndo]

Well I'd like to know if I'm over using it / using it wrong, because I do use them.

Sometimes during a stutter of a character, or when a character is afraid I'll use it as follows -

e: took a small step back; their eyes slowly widening with fear.
l: Look- Please I... I have nothing!

Is that at all acceptable, or should I stop it immediately?

 

[Party_Penguin27]

Well I'd like to know if I'm over using it / using it wrong, because I do use them.

Sometimes during a stutter of a character, or when a character is afraid I'll use it as follows -

e: took a small step back; their eyes slowly widening with fear.
l: Look- Please I... I have nothing!

Is that at all acceptable, or should I stop it immediately?

Click to shrink...

I find that is the best way to symbolize a pause or trailing off.