Doctor WCS; or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Whispers
(if you are not here because of warcraftsues, or if you're a RL friend or something, I apologize for this entry and request that you ignore it. I'll write a real update as soon as I've something to talk about)
I really like to avoid writing about WoW in my LJ. I've got a lot else going on in my life, what with the job hunt and the newlywed thing and not knowing if I'll be living here in the next six months and what-have-you. What's more, most of the people who read my LJ don't really care about WoW RP, and I don't want to make them care. There's my real life and then there's WoW. I like keeping the two separate, save for when I make good enough friends to meet them in person, and that is awesome.
That said...
So. If you're here because I posted your character's profile on warcraftsues (henceforth, WCS), let me first say: welcome. This is my LiveJournal, and, as you can see, it has very little to do with ruining your life or making you cry.
The purpose of a community like WCS is about the same as a community created to mock Twilight or a community created to giggle about bad movies; that is to say, the purpose is ostensibly to find RP profiles that are unrealistic, ridiculous, or Mary Sue-ish in some way. Admittedly, some people post on WCS simply out of spite towards players they dislike (and that's been spoken out against). When I do it, it's typically because I've found a profile or RP that makes me either rage beyond belief (people who RP serious diseases for attention tend to get this treatment) or giggle like an idiot (I think my personal favorite--not found by me--was a flag involving someone who literally shat out of their nipples as a kink).
The thing of it is, I don't really mean my postings as a high school sort of "tee hee, let's look at the idiots" sort of thing. Honestly, I don't go for that sort of thing. It's petty and it's boring. When I do post someone on Warcraft Sues, it's meant as what I wish I had when I started RPing: a wake-up call.
To be specific, let me tell you about Selvaggia.
Selvaggia was my second RP character of all time, at least on WoW. She was a warlock, and she had red eyes because she was evil~ and she was super beautiful, but she was evil~ and did I mention that she was evil~? Oh, but she was beautiful, and no matter how low a level she was, she was powerful~. She could totally kill anything that came her way, and because of that, she was smarmy and smug and beautiful and evil~.
(as you can see, I was very deep)
Her history involved the following:
The point of all that is basically to show that I've been there. I wrote characters so painfully bad that nowadays, no one would hesitate to post them on WCS, and with good reason. They were unrealistic, they were overpowered, they were far too perfect, they were ridiculous. And yet, nobody ever told me I was doing something wrong. I gradually got less and less RP, even among my friends, but nobody ever told me what was going on. It's only been recently that I looked back at those characters and said "...damn. I was a bad."
You, if you are here because I posted your profile or your friend's profile on WCS, probably wonder at that I wish someone had posted me there. Why would I wish for people to post my profile on the internet and giggle at it or point out its flaws? Why? Why?
Simply put: because I always want to be a better writer and RPer. That's all it boils down to. And you can't grow unless people tell you what you're doing wrong.
Let me give you a more real life example. This past spring, I was a crazy person and took not one, not two, but three graduate level creative writing workshops. For those of you who've never been in a creative writing workshop, let me tell you how it goes.
First: the professor tells you "write [a poem/a piece of short fiction/a personal essay] and bring it into class for [this date]."
Second: you write something that you're at least moderately proud of. It might not be the best thing you've ever written but you're okay enough with it to bring it into class.
Third: copies of your writing are distributed to all of your classmates, many of whom have taken more creative writing courses than you have and who read authors you've never even heard of like they're the Sunday comics.
Fourth: they start speaking aloud about your writing. They start by saying nice things, like "I really like the way you develop this character" or "this sentence just gave me chills" or the ever-nebulous "there's some great writing here." But then...
Fifth: they tear your shit apart. To be sure, they do it nicely. They say "I'm not sure that this is the right way to put this" or "I didn't understand why you phrased it this way"...at least if you get a gentle workshop. Some workshops can be downright brutal (and I'm sure people who have done more than three or four can tell you stories). And it hurts because damnit, you were proud of what you wrote. You liked it. And now these people are saying that a lot of it--including the parts you liked the most!--sucks.
But you know what happens next?
Sixth: the professor or leader tells you to take all that harsh criticism you received, apply it to your work, and rewrite it for the end of class.
Now look at this process and compare it to the process for WCS:
1. You write a flag or profile, frequently one that makes you proud.
2. People see that flag or profile. It's posted on WCS.
3. The WCS community tears the profile apart and points out its flaws.
And here's where you have the choice. You can either (a) get upset and ask your friends to harass the poster or make hilarious comment threads on the post itself or (b) look at that criticism, think about it, and rewrite your flag or profile accordingly. The power, as Captain Planet would say, is yours.
And now, some frequent questions/complaints
lightandwinged, what you're doing is cyberbullying and that's illegal!
Well, let's look at the definition of cyber-bullying, shall we?
Cyber-bullying is the use of the Internet and related technologies to harm other people, in a deliberate, repeated, and hostile manner. (from here)
Now, as I've no interest in harming anyone (but rather, wish to help them), and as my posts may be deliberate but are neither repeated nor hostile, that seems to speak for itself. What I am doing is criticism, which has a very different definition:
Criticism is the judgement of the merits and faults of the work or actions of an individual or group by another (the critic).
...
Negative criticism means voicing an objection to something only with the purpose of showing that it is simply wrong, false, mistaken, nonsensical, objectionable, disreputable or evil. Negative criticism is also often interpreted as an attack against a person (ad hominem).
Constructive criticism aims to show that the intent or purpose of something is better served by an alternative approach. In this case, the target of criticism is not necessarily deemed wrong, and its purpose is respected; rather, it is claimed that the same goal could be better achieved via a different route. (from here)
Specifically consider that in criticism (which is what WCS does), the focus is on the work produced rather than on the individual. In cyber-bullying, the focus is on the individual, regardless of any work produced.
I should note here that, in the past, people on WCS have harassed, stalked, and cyber-bullied characters posted there. If this happens to you, don't go vigilante on them. Report the player for harassment (that little red question mark? That's what it's for), ignore them, and report again to the WCS maintainers. They have no patience for that shit.
I feel wronged and harassed by you! I'm going to complain to you about it in game!
Please don't. I'm a very busy woman and I haven't got all day. If you want to talk about why I posted you, you can do so in a comment to this post or the thread where the profile in question was originally posted. I make no secret of who I am on WCS and refuse to hide behind alts or sock puppet journals because I'm not really ashamed of saying "Hey, this isn't good. Fix it." And if your RP, profile, and writing are something you're really proud of, you should be brave enough to defend it publicly.
Not to mention that whispering on level 1 alts in game (or level 2, for that matter) technically constitutes harassment and is a reportable offense.
You're tarnishing my reputation on this server and I demand that you stop!
I'd agree with this, if anything I posted about characters was somehow made up by me. Sadly, none of it is. Sadly, everything I post either comes from RP, MRP profiles, or OOC tells. Now, if I've misinterpreted something, please feel free to clarify in a comment on that post. But everything I post is what I observe and nothing more.
...well. Maybe a rant or two thrown in if something enrages me enough (diseases =/= good attention-getting devices, nine-year-olds don't fight on the front lines and shouldn't be followed around by 30 grown men into dark alleys, and your cat druid is not a small kitten).
You're a mean and horrible person and you're not perfect and I'll bet your MRPs suck!
Thank you for that assessment. Feel free to post my MRPs on WCS. It's happened before. I welcome the criticism.
You've ruined my life and I'm going to kill myself!
Now. If you're truly depressed and wanting to kill yourself, I'd suggest calling 1-800-273-8255 or visiting The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to talk to someone. No matter what's going on in your life, it's not worth it. This goes doubly for words about an RP character that can't be traced back to anything about your actual real life. If you are taking WCS posts so seriously that you feel the need to take your life over them, I'd suggest that you need to get your priorities in order and please do call that hotline or visit that website.
Seriously. I'm not posting anyone's RL phone numbers or addresses, I'm not stalking or harassing anyone, and I'm not ruining your credit score. Nothing posted on WCS affects your real life in any way. These are words on the internet posted in a singular place that you probably wouldn't know about if someone hadn't pointed you there. Don't take them that seriously.
So. In conclusion, I'm sorry if your feelings were hurt by my WCS posts, but I stand by the criticism I wrote. Please do the mature thing and look at that criticism seriously, consider it, and consider applying it accordingly.
(if you are not associated with WoW and read all of that, I am really sorry. It's been one of those weeks)
I really like to avoid writing about WoW in my LJ. I've got a lot else going on in my life, what with the job hunt and the newlywed thing and not knowing if I'll be living here in the next six months and what-have-you. What's more, most of the people who read my LJ don't really care about WoW RP, and I don't want to make them care. There's my real life and then there's WoW. I like keeping the two separate, save for when I make good enough friends to meet them in person, and that is awesome.
That said...
So. If you're here because I posted your character's profile on warcraftsues (henceforth, WCS), let me first say: welcome. This is my LiveJournal, and, as you can see, it has very little to do with ruining your life or making you cry.
The purpose of a community like WCS is about the same as a community created to mock Twilight or a community created to giggle about bad movies; that is to say, the purpose is ostensibly to find RP profiles that are unrealistic, ridiculous, or Mary Sue-ish in some way. Admittedly, some people post on WCS simply out of spite towards players they dislike (and that's been spoken out against). When I do it, it's typically because I've found a profile or RP that makes me either rage beyond belief (people who RP serious diseases for attention tend to get this treatment) or giggle like an idiot (I think my personal favorite--not found by me--was a flag involving someone who literally shat out of their nipples as a kink).
The thing of it is, I don't really mean my postings as a high school sort of "tee hee, let's look at the idiots" sort of thing. Honestly, I don't go for that sort of thing. It's petty and it's boring. When I do post someone on Warcraft Sues, it's meant as what I wish I had when I started RPing: a wake-up call.
To be specific, let me tell you about Selvaggia.
Selvaggia was my second RP character of all time, at least on WoW. She was a warlock, and she had red eyes because she was evil~ and she was super beautiful, but she was evil~ and did I mention that she was evil~? Oh, but she was beautiful, and no matter how low a level she was, she was powerful~. She could totally kill anything that came her way, and because of that, she was smarmy and smug and beautiful and evil~.
(as you can see, I was very deep)
Her history involved the following:
- Fell in love with a paladin, became pregnant with his child, was going to marry him.
- Simultaneously fell in love with his warlock rival; since I couldn't figure out a reason for her to love such polar opposites, I decided she had ~multiple souls in one body because she was that special~
- Took a potion from a ~mysterious stranger~ to separate her two souls into two bodies.
- Became basically a fire elemental shoved into a human form (god, that hurts me to write) who then fell in love with a shadow ascendant in human form.
- Tried to do a ritual to bond her soul to said shadow ascendant. When this failed, spontaneously impregnated... herself.
- Married and started boning an ~evil~ tauren (which is okay except I rolled her as human).
- Gave birth to a child of pure ~darkness~ and ~evil~. Did I mention ~evil~?
- When tauren husband was killed by the Scourge, proceeded to solo Icecrown Citadel to get her soul taken and body killed by Arthuuuuuus (hence icon).
- Brought back to herself by the Old Gods, of whom she was a construct(!).
- And then I stopped playing her because people lost interest. I wonder why?
The point of all that is basically to show that I've been there. I wrote characters so painfully bad that nowadays, no one would hesitate to post them on WCS, and with good reason. They were unrealistic, they were overpowered, they were far too perfect, they were ridiculous. And yet, nobody ever told me I was doing something wrong. I gradually got less and less RP, even among my friends, but nobody ever told me what was going on. It's only been recently that I looked back at those characters and said "...damn. I was a bad."
You, if you are here because I posted your profile or your friend's profile on WCS, probably wonder at that I wish someone had posted me there. Why would I wish for people to post my profile on the internet and giggle at it or point out its flaws? Why? Why?
Simply put: because I always want to be a better writer and RPer. That's all it boils down to. And you can't grow unless people tell you what you're doing wrong.
Let me give you a more real life example. This past spring, I was a crazy person and took not one, not two, but three graduate level creative writing workshops. For those of you who've never been in a creative writing workshop, let me tell you how it goes.
First: the professor tells you "write [a poem/a piece of short fiction/a personal essay] and bring it into class for [this date]."
Second: you write something that you're at least moderately proud of. It might not be the best thing you've ever written but you're okay enough with it to bring it into class.
Third: copies of your writing are distributed to all of your classmates, many of whom have taken more creative writing courses than you have and who read authors you've never even heard of like they're the Sunday comics.
Fourth: they start speaking aloud about your writing. They start by saying nice things, like "I really like the way you develop this character" or "this sentence just gave me chills" or the ever-nebulous "there's some great writing here." But then...
Fifth: they tear your shit apart. To be sure, they do it nicely. They say "I'm not sure that this is the right way to put this" or "I didn't understand why you phrased it this way"...at least if you get a gentle workshop. Some workshops can be downright brutal (and I'm sure people who have done more than three or four can tell you stories). And it hurts because damnit, you were proud of what you wrote. You liked it. And now these people are saying that a lot of it--including the parts you liked the most!--sucks.
But you know what happens next?
Sixth: the professor or leader tells you to take all that harsh criticism you received, apply it to your work, and rewrite it for the end of class.
Now look at this process and compare it to the process for WCS:
1. You write a flag or profile, frequently one that makes you proud.
2. People see that flag or profile. It's posted on WCS.
3. The WCS community tears the profile apart and points out its flaws.
And here's where you have the choice. You can either (a) get upset and ask your friends to harass the poster or make hilarious comment threads on the post itself or (b) look at that criticism, think about it, and rewrite your flag or profile accordingly. The power, as Captain Planet would say, is yours.
And now, some frequent questions/complaints
lightandwinged, what you're doing is cyberbullying and that's illegal!
Well, let's look at the definition of cyber-bullying, shall we?
Cyber-bullying is the use of the Internet and related technologies to harm other people, in a deliberate, repeated, and hostile manner. (from here)
Now, as I've no interest in harming anyone (but rather, wish to help them), and as my posts may be deliberate but are neither repeated nor hostile, that seems to speak for itself. What I am doing is criticism, which has a very different definition:
Criticism is the judgement of the merits and faults of the work or actions of an individual or group by another (the critic).
...
Negative criticism means voicing an objection to something only with the purpose of showing that it is simply wrong, false, mistaken, nonsensical, objectionable, disreputable or evil. Negative criticism is also often interpreted as an attack against a person (ad hominem).
Constructive criticism aims to show that the intent or purpose of something is better served by an alternative approach. In this case, the target of criticism is not necessarily deemed wrong, and its purpose is respected; rather, it is claimed that the same goal could be better achieved via a different route. (from here)
Specifically consider that in criticism (which is what WCS does), the focus is on the work produced rather than on the individual. In cyber-bullying, the focus is on the individual, regardless of any work produced.
I should note here that, in the past, people on WCS have harassed, stalked, and cyber-bullied characters posted there. If this happens to you, don't go vigilante on them. Report the player for harassment (that little red question mark? That's what it's for), ignore them, and report again to the WCS maintainers. They have no patience for that shit.
I feel wronged and harassed by you! I'm going to complain to you about it in game!
Please don't. I'm a very busy woman and I haven't got all day. If you want to talk about why I posted you, you can do so in a comment to this post or the thread where the profile in question was originally posted. I make no secret of who I am on WCS and refuse to hide behind alts or sock puppet journals because I'm not really ashamed of saying "Hey, this isn't good. Fix it." And if your RP, profile, and writing are something you're really proud of, you should be brave enough to defend it publicly.
Not to mention that whispering on level 1 alts in game (or level 2, for that matter) technically constitutes harassment and is a reportable offense.
You're tarnishing my reputation on this server and I demand that you stop!
I'd agree with this, if anything I posted about characters was somehow made up by me. Sadly, none of it is. Sadly, everything I post either comes from RP, MRP profiles, or OOC tells. Now, if I've misinterpreted something, please feel free to clarify in a comment on that post. But everything I post is what I observe and nothing more.
...well. Maybe a rant or two thrown in if something enrages me enough (diseases =/= good attention-getting devices, nine-year-olds don't fight on the front lines and shouldn't be followed around by 30 grown men into dark alleys, and your cat druid is not a small kitten).
You're a mean and horrible person and you're not perfect and I'll bet your MRPs suck!
Thank you for that assessment. Feel free to post my MRPs on WCS. It's happened before. I welcome the criticism.
You've ruined my life and I'm going to kill myself!
Now. If you're truly depressed and wanting to kill yourself, I'd suggest calling 1-800-273-8255 or visiting The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to talk to someone. No matter what's going on in your life, it's not worth it. This goes doubly for words about an RP character that can't be traced back to anything about your actual real life. If you are taking WCS posts so seriously that you feel the need to take your life over them, I'd suggest that you need to get your priorities in order and please do call that hotline or visit that website.
Seriously. I'm not posting anyone's RL phone numbers or addresses, I'm not stalking or harassing anyone, and I'm not ruining your credit score. Nothing posted on WCS affects your real life in any way. These are words on the internet posted in a singular place that you probably wouldn't know about if someone hadn't pointed you there. Don't take them that seriously.
So. In conclusion, I'm sorry if your feelings were hurt by my WCS posts, but I stand by the criticism I wrote. Please do the mature thing and look at that criticism seriously, consider it, and consider applying it accordingly.
(if you are not associated with WoW and read all of that, I am really sorry. It's been one of those weeks)