Hi everyone. I have an idea for a long-term, slice-of-life roleplay whose story begins in the mid-20th century and continues through the decades. I have the main character arc for one of the characters, the one that I plan to play, pretty well thought-out, but the other one is pretty wide open. I have a few ideas, which I will list below.
The story really begins with the characters meeting one another. I'm thinking that there's a diner or coffeehouse near where he lives that he frequents during the days when he's writing, bringing a portable typewriter and writing a few thousand words over a cup of hot coffee or tea. Your character could be wait staff, a cook, or another regular at his favorite spot, and they would become friendly with one another. They'd likely begin talking over the mystery of what my character could possibly be writing so much about, and eventually it would morph into something more.
The writer character is an American expatriate who has left his home country to avoid compulsory military service. He works as a freelance science-fiction writer, cranking out stories for any of the many genre fiction magazines that graced newsstands in this era. As for the time period, my main idea is that it would begin in 1964, coinciding with the beginning of the draft for service in the Vietnam War in the United States. The most obvious choice for place is Canada, but it could realistically take place in any country, especially in the anglophonic world. The important thing is that he is living abroad in order to dodge the draft. When in this new city, he is exposed to the hippie counterculture movement. Being from a small town, this is all new to him. I'm thinking that the other main character is fully immersed in this world and is the one who opens my character's eyes to it. Another option is that they discover it together, which could also be fun.
My ideas for the other character are mostly rough outlines. They can be a woman or a man, I don't have a great preference. I think being a stay-at-home spouse would make the story revolve completely around the writer character and not leave enough room for development of the other, but if you have a great idea for this, I'm all ears. I think if they were to be a creative as well, it could make for some interesting dynamics between them, like envy over successes in bad times and difficult critiquing of the other's creations. Actor, filmmaker, visual artist, etc. If they were to be a sci-fi or other genre fiction writer as well, that could be cool. Or even a more "literary" writer who doesn't achieve the same level of fame despite being better-educated and writing in a more traditionally-respected medium. If they're an illustrator, they could do the covers for the writer's books, or they could even have a comic together where one does the script and the other does the art. At the beginning, when they work in the diner or cafe, they could be a student studying anything and go into the line of work that goes along with their field of study. Maybe they work in the diner because they're training to be a chef. I'm really happy to brainstorm about this, it's wide open.
The writer's career would be one of the principal focuses of his story. My thought is that he would have already been a published writer prior to relocating, initially as a hobby but by the time the story picks up he's able to pay for about half of his expenses through writing. If you prefer it could be something he picked up to make ends meet after finding himself underemployed in his new country. As the years go by, he sees himself become a full-time writer of stories for the sci-fi magazines, then a writer of cheap paperback novels, then occasionally getting published in nicer places like The Saturday Evening Post, graduating up to hardcover novels for a major publishing house, and finally being respected as a great author beyond the world of genre fiction. This success is not lightning fast, but has its downsides. This brings us to the other side of his story.
The success he finds in his work has a profound effect on him emotionally. He sometimes lets his work consume him. After moving into longer-format works like serialized stories and novels, he has times where he never leaves his typewriter, working for dozens of hours on end. He goes through periods of bravado, his ego inflated from the increasingly positive feedback he receives, which may be annoying to those around him. Though he never becomes completely and permanently detestable, all this leads to him struggling to form and maintain friendships, and takes its strain on his romantic relationship. But fear not, I want this to be a tale of healing and growing, and he will work on himself and right all the wrongs he commits in his younger days.
Some other notes I have to add:
The initial setting would be a bigger city, maybe Vancouver, and the writer would have moved from a small town, creating an urban/rural divide between the main characters.
The writer could work in the same place as the other main character, either from the beginning or after they know each other a little bit.
My ideas for his "day job" before he's able to become fully professional include: librarian, bookstore clerk, record store clerk, grocery store clerk, mailman, and cook.
A bit about me:
I'm James, I'm 24 years old, and I live in the Pacific Coast timezone in USA. I usually write about 500-1500 words or so per message, depending on how much my partner writes. I'm fine with either first- or third-person. I've been writing like this for about nine years now, and I studied English in college, so rest assured that I can write.
If this sounds like your thing, I would love to hear from you. I'm open to most ideas for the role.
The story really begins with the characters meeting one another. I'm thinking that there's a diner or coffeehouse near where he lives that he frequents during the days when he's writing, bringing a portable typewriter and writing a few thousand words over a cup of hot coffee or tea. Your character could be wait staff, a cook, or another regular at his favorite spot, and they would become friendly with one another. They'd likely begin talking over the mystery of what my character could possibly be writing so much about, and eventually it would morph into something more.
The writer character is an American expatriate who has left his home country to avoid compulsory military service. He works as a freelance science-fiction writer, cranking out stories for any of the many genre fiction magazines that graced newsstands in this era. As for the time period, my main idea is that it would begin in 1964, coinciding with the beginning of the draft for service in the Vietnam War in the United States. The most obvious choice for place is Canada, but it could realistically take place in any country, especially in the anglophonic world. The important thing is that he is living abroad in order to dodge the draft. When in this new city, he is exposed to the hippie counterculture movement. Being from a small town, this is all new to him. I'm thinking that the other main character is fully immersed in this world and is the one who opens my character's eyes to it. Another option is that they discover it together, which could also be fun.
My ideas for the other character are mostly rough outlines. They can be a woman or a man, I don't have a great preference. I think being a stay-at-home spouse would make the story revolve completely around the writer character and not leave enough room for development of the other, but if you have a great idea for this, I'm all ears. I think if they were to be a creative as well, it could make for some interesting dynamics between them, like envy over successes in bad times and difficult critiquing of the other's creations. Actor, filmmaker, visual artist, etc. If they were to be a sci-fi or other genre fiction writer as well, that could be cool. Or even a more "literary" writer who doesn't achieve the same level of fame despite being better-educated and writing in a more traditionally-respected medium. If they're an illustrator, they could do the covers for the writer's books, or they could even have a comic together where one does the script and the other does the art. At the beginning, when they work in the diner or cafe, they could be a student studying anything and go into the line of work that goes along with their field of study. Maybe they work in the diner because they're training to be a chef. I'm really happy to brainstorm about this, it's wide open.
The writer's career would be one of the principal focuses of his story. My thought is that he would have already been a published writer prior to relocating, initially as a hobby but by the time the story picks up he's able to pay for about half of his expenses through writing. If you prefer it could be something he picked up to make ends meet after finding himself underemployed in his new country. As the years go by, he sees himself become a full-time writer of stories for the sci-fi magazines, then a writer of cheap paperback novels, then occasionally getting published in nicer places like The Saturday Evening Post, graduating up to hardcover novels for a major publishing house, and finally being respected as a great author beyond the world of genre fiction. This success is not lightning fast, but has its downsides. This brings us to the other side of his story.
The success he finds in his work has a profound effect on him emotionally. He sometimes lets his work consume him. After moving into longer-format works like serialized stories and novels, he has times where he never leaves his typewriter, working for dozens of hours on end. He goes through periods of bravado, his ego inflated from the increasingly positive feedback he receives, which may be annoying to those around him. Though he never becomes completely and permanently detestable, all this leads to him struggling to form and maintain friendships, and takes its strain on his romantic relationship. But fear not, I want this to be a tale of healing and growing, and he will work on himself and right all the wrongs he commits in his younger days.
Some other notes I have to add:
The initial setting would be a bigger city, maybe Vancouver, and the writer would have moved from a small town, creating an urban/rural divide between the main characters.
The writer could work in the same place as the other main character, either from the beginning or after they know each other a little bit.
My ideas for his "day job" before he's able to become fully professional include: librarian, bookstore clerk, record store clerk, grocery store clerk, mailman, and cook.
A bit about me:
I'm James, I'm 24 years old, and I live in the Pacific Coast timezone in USA. I usually write about 500-1500 words or so per message, depending on how much my partner writes. I'm fine with either first- or third-person. I've been writing like this for about nine years now, and I studied English in college, so rest assured that I can write.
If this sounds like your thing, I would love to hear from you. I'm open to most ideas for the role.