opalinesque (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
opalinesque) wrote2009-06-17 04:18 pm
opalinesque) wrote2009-06-17 04:18 pm
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YE HUGE AUDIENCING GUIDE ver 1.0
Those of you who are very new to CFUD may be wondering... what exactly is audience? Well, one of the (many) ways CFUD is unique in comparison to other roleplays is in that we both allow and encourage OOC interaction with the players. Those who partake in this activity are called "audience," and the activity itself is called "audiencing." Audiencing usually involves such joys as: heckling the campers and laughing at their pain, giving terribly obscure advice, marrying new campers, marrying each other, and providing witty commentary on whatever's going on at the time. While this is can be a lot of fun, it also opens up the possiblity for misunderstandings and stepped-on toes... which is where the rest of this guide comes in.
The main thing you want to keep in mind while audiencing is to have fun! The whole point of the role is to give the readers the ability to add this indescribably something to the RP (by which I mean the element of humor, crack, and metatastic fourth-wall mauling that many of us think so fondly upon). That being said, there are a series of guidelines to help keep your heckling amusing for all parties involved:
First, and most importantly, player preferences come first. If you say something and a player is uncomfortable with what you said? They are totally allowed to ignore it or even ask you to delete/change the comment. Just as audience participation is optional, so is reacting to it. Fortunately, a lot of people have those lovely Stats/Permissions memes posted in their journals! These usually have a lovely little section titled "What's okay to mention around them," which is intended just for all of you lovely fourth-wall breakers, audience and campers alike.
Second, audience is not physically present. Think of what we see of Camp as a streaming video feed. We can reply to what's going on, similar to comments on a YouTube video, but we can't do things like actually hugging the campers. (As far as I know, you can still be like *hugs you* or whatever, but... it'll show up as an action tag in the "comment," rather than it actually happening in Camp, so to speak.)
...and actually, that's about it! Those are the two unbreakable rules for audiencing; pretty much everything else is up to your common sense and the preferences of the particular player you're harrassing. However, that doesn't mean there aren't other things you may want to keep in mind, so what follows are various things I've noticed in my time here (and whatever doesn't fit anywhere else).
Originally, audience was welcome just about everywhere. However, this was back in Ye Very Olden Days of CFUD where pretty much every character interaction was filled with crack and seriousness was nowhere to be found. Nowadays, most people prefer to keep the audience interaction to the crackier threads; having a random watcher during SRS BZNSS or when there is ~romance~ going on can be a little off putting. (However, others are just fine with getting relationship advice of the "SHUT UP AND KISS HIM" type. As with all things, common sense and communication with the players are both wonderful tools that should be used :Db)
Sometimes, your comments will be ignored. This could be for a number of reasons, like if the players can't think of an IC way to respond, they're being postraped and don't have time, or if the character is amongst those who dislike the audience. Don't worry about it unless the player tells you it wasn't cool or something.
Infodumping! In some cases, it can be okay. In most others, it's not.![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
therikkster summed it up the best: "If it's going to, in any way, shorten the rp or conversation going on, don't do it." Common camp knowledge is almost always okay; for example, telling new campers about some of the more common camp hazards is fine (as long as you remember to marry them first 8D)
Which brings me to a much-beloved topic: AUDIENCE MARRIAGE! Even if this phenomenon is no longer as prevalent as it once was, I don't think any player here dislikes it (FEEL FREE TO CORRECT ME LOUDLY AND WITH BOLD FONT IF I AM WRONG). Marrying each other and random events has all happened too. DON'T BE SHY WITH YOUR LOVE! Sparkles, hearts, and subsequent squabbling over who got them first is encouraged. HELP ME BRING BACK THE DAYS WHERE EVERY INTROPOST HAD AT LEAST ONE.
A while back, we had an audience ask if they could be friends with a character. The answer to this is no. Part of the rule of audience is being the ~mysterious anon,~ and while you can certainly be friendly with a character, you are still just some faceless being from that bizarre place called the internet. (Also, the thought makes some of the players uncomfy, and no one wants that.) However, some players may choose to have their characters recognize you and go either "YOU AGAIN" or "oh hi there :D" depending on their disposition/what you've hassled them about previously.
For an in-depth look at some of these topics (as well as some that I didn't bring up), I leave you with three links to similarly themed posts here, here, and here.
As a last note, you may have noticed I emphasize communication with the players quite a bit. Generally, the easiest way to get in touch with us is through IRC. Now, some of you are probably thinking "But Opal, I am but an audience member! I don't belong in there..." This is a HUGE LIE. IRC LOVES YOU, CAMPER AND AUDIENCE ALIKE. If you don't believe me, I spent like 3 years in there before actually apping, and we've got audience who have watched for even longer that that who do not plan to app as well (HI TELLY!). We've got a couple of "how-to" guides up already, and I have a newbie's tutorial for how to set up mIRC and Chatzilla to connect you automatically in the works :Db I am also willing to walk people through connecting, if anyone needs help.
To sum it up, I leave you withsocchan's words of wisdom:
"As an audience member, my self-imposed guidelines are as follows:
* Offer advice/suggestions when I can
* Mock/heckle when I can't resist
* Don't take over threads/posts (for example, if I notice I'm being too active in a post and replying to just about everyone, I try to cut back)
* Stay out of locked threads/posts unless it's OOC or open to audience heckling; likewise, I am unable to lock posts myself (if a player does it it's okay, though I've yet to see "Locked to Audience" in any form)
* Don't give out spoilers unless a) the character(s) involved are okay with it, b) the character who wants to know can't find out any other way, or c) the character asks anyone who knows including audience/audience directly. Even then I try to avoid direct answers or only hint at them."
That's pretty much it! Remember to use common sense and your communication skills, and have a good time~ ♥
If you've got any suggestions, questions, or would like to point out how I terribly misworded/forgot things (which it is inevitable I have), just leave a comment and I'll make amendments wherever they're needed |D
The main thing you want to keep in mind while audiencing is to have fun! The whole point of the role is to give the readers the ability to add this indescribably something to the RP (by which I mean the element of humor, crack, and metatastic fourth-wall mauling that many of us think so fondly upon). That being said, there are a series of guidelines to help keep your heckling amusing for all parties involved:
First, and most importantly, player preferences come first. If you say something and a player is uncomfortable with what you said? They are totally allowed to ignore it or even ask you to delete/change the comment. Just as audience participation is optional, so is reacting to it. Fortunately, a lot of people have those lovely Stats/Permissions memes posted in their journals! These usually have a lovely little section titled "What's okay to mention around them," which is intended just for all of you lovely fourth-wall breakers, audience and campers alike.
Second, audience is not physically present. Think of what we see of Camp as a streaming video feed. We can reply to what's going on, similar to comments on a YouTube video, but we can't do things like actually hugging the campers. (As far as I know, you can still be like *hugs you* or whatever, but... it'll show up as an action tag in the "comment," rather than it actually happening in Camp, so to speak.)
...and actually, that's about it! Those are the two unbreakable rules for audiencing; pretty much everything else is up to your common sense and the preferences of the particular player you're harrassing. However, that doesn't mean there aren't other things you may want to keep in mind, so what follows are various things I've noticed in my time here (and whatever doesn't fit anywhere else).
Originally, audience was welcome just about everywhere. However, this was back in Ye Very Olden Days of CFUD where pretty much every character interaction was filled with crack and seriousness was nowhere to be found. Nowadays, most people prefer to keep the audience interaction to the crackier threads; having a random watcher during SRS BZNSS or when there is ~romance~ going on can be a little off putting. (However, others are just fine with getting relationship advice of the "SHUT UP AND KISS HIM" type. As with all things, common sense and communication with the players are both wonderful tools that should be used :Db)
Sometimes, your comments will be ignored. This could be for a number of reasons, like if the players can't think of an IC way to respond, they're being postraped and don't have time, or if the character is amongst those who dislike the audience. Don't worry about it unless the player tells you it wasn't cool or something.
Infodumping! In some cases, it can be okay. In most others, it's not.
therikkster summed it up the best: "If it's going to, in any way, shorten the rp or conversation going on, don't do it." Common camp knowledge is almost always okay; for example, telling new campers about some of the more common camp hazards is fine (as long as you remember to marry them first 8D)Which brings me to a much-beloved topic: AUDIENCE MARRIAGE! Even if this phenomenon is no longer as prevalent as it once was, I don't think any player here dislikes it (FEEL FREE TO CORRECT ME LOUDLY AND WITH BOLD FONT IF I AM WRONG). Marrying each other and random events has all happened too. DON'T BE SHY WITH YOUR LOVE! Sparkles, hearts, and subsequent squabbling over who got them first is encouraged. HELP ME BRING BACK THE DAYS WHERE EVERY INTROPOST HAD AT LEAST ONE.
A while back, we had an audience ask if they could be friends with a character. The answer to this is no. Part of the rule of audience is being the ~mysterious anon,~ and while you can certainly be friendly with a character, you are still just some faceless being from that bizarre place called the internet. (Also, the thought makes some of the players uncomfy, and no one wants that.) However, some players may choose to have their characters recognize you and go either "YOU AGAIN" or "oh hi there :D" depending on their disposition/what you've hassled them about previously.
For an in-depth look at some of these topics (as well as some that I didn't bring up), I leave you with three links to similarly themed posts here, here, and here.
As a last note, you may have noticed I emphasize communication with the players quite a bit. Generally, the easiest way to get in touch with us is through IRC. Now, some of you are probably thinking "But Opal, I am but an audience member! I don't belong in there..." This is a HUGE LIE. IRC LOVES YOU, CAMPER AND AUDIENCE ALIKE. If you don't believe me, I spent like 3 years in there before actually apping, and we've got audience who have watched for even longer that that who do not plan to app as well (HI TELLY!). We've got a couple of "how-to" guides up already, and I have a newbie's tutorial for how to set up mIRC and Chatzilla to connect you automatically in the works :Db I am also willing to walk people through connecting, if anyone needs help.
To sum it up, I leave you with
socchan's words of wisdom: "As an audience member, my self-imposed guidelines are as follows:
* Offer advice/suggestions when I can
* Mock/heckle when I can't resist
* Don't take over threads/posts (for example, if I notice I'm being too active in a post and replying to just about everyone, I try to cut back)
* Stay out of locked threads/posts unless it's OOC or open to audience heckling; likewise, I am unable to lock posts myself (if a player does it it's okay, though I've yet to see "Locked to Audience" in any form)
* Don't give out spoilers unless a) the character(s) involved are okay with it, b) the character who wants to know can't find out any other way, or c) the character asks anyone who knows including audience/audience directly. Even then I try to avoid direct answers or only hint at them."
That's pretty much it! Remember to use common sense and your communication skills, and have a good time~ ♥
If you've got any suggestions, questions, or would like to point out how I terribly misworded/forgot things (which it is inevitable I have), just leave a comment and I'll make amendments wherever they're needed |D
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