Sometimes this role-playing business can be over-whelming for a person new to role-playing.
What? I can't role-play that character. I'm not the creator, so I don't know what that character would do in that situation.
No need to think like that! Of course you can role-play any character in any situation, just use your imagination and read a few of the helpful tips from everyone at the Galaxy Cauldron below!

I'll get the ball rolling by asking a few questions. Feel free to talk about anything, though.
What scared you most about role-playing and how did you overcome that fear?
What do you wish you knew about role-playing before you began role-playing?
If you had one piece of advice to offer to a newbie, what would it be?

Well, I don't mind starting this conversation.

My number one piece of advice: do not be afraid to role-play. You will only improve by doing.

I participated in my first role-play in elementary school and, oh boy, do I wish I had a copy of the first thing I wrote. Rather than fearing my inexperience or worrying that role-playing was too complicated, I dove right in. Sure... as an eleven-ish year-old, I'm sure what I wrote... probably sucked, but no one ever criticized me or stopped role-playing with me. We just all had fun and helped each other get better. Besides, it's not like that role-play is still accessible on the Internet, so no one will ever know!  

I really wish I could find evidence of my first role-playing. I just spent about twenty minutes looking, but got as far back as 2007.

I first became interested in role-playing on GC since I wanted to explore the different sections of the forum and I hadn't role-played in quite awhile, even then it was on and off. I didn't know what to expect and it took me awhile to learn how to do it to my fullest potential, however even now I still have a lot to learn. But I have really enjoyed role-playing here and being able to do it with such amazing people. ^^

My best advice I can give is somewhat similar to Venus's message. Dip your toe in the water, practice with a storyline idea that you're comfortable with. The RP'ers here have various interests and most likely, you'll be able to find people you can do your RP with. The staff are more than willing to help you with character profiles and storyline summaries. Just give it a try and maybe you'll find that it's something that you can enjoy.

Roleplaying can seem scary at first, but once you get into it you will be hook!  

I have a tip when playing as a canon character! Usually newbies are scared of playing an establish character in a series:
* What if I play him/her out of character?:
I think this is the biggest fear for newcomers (even veterans). Don't let this fear hold you back from playing your favorite character in any series! As long as you understand the general make up of the character you will be fine. Also try imaging how the character would handle each situation presented to them. Look up scenes from the series as references. Then make up your own scenarios in your head. Also keep in mind people in real life change so can fictional characters. If the roleplay takes place in the future the characters could have grown since where the series ended. But keep in mind the changes need to be reasonable. There is no way a tough character like Vegeta will change into a person who loves to hug bunnies and go frolicking through the fields. 

Another tip for newcomers:
*How do I write a post?
Treat roleplaying like you would when you're writing a story. That's what roleplaying basically is. It's a group of people coming together to write a story in their role's viewpoint(s). If you never written a story try reading fanfics or an actual book (XD) to get some ideas. Work off the other players post. When a roleplay is about to begin let someone else make the bold move and start it off. Reread the post a few times and think about where and what you're character is doing. As the other players begin to the post then the group will be able decide how all the characters will meet up and interact. Use the OOC thread! It's there for a good reason! If you are stuck with a post your fellow players can help you out or you can tell them to move on which will give you more time to think of a post. 

That's it for now! Happy rping!!  

What scared me most about role-playing was the fact that everybody seemed to know what they were doing and I didn't. But what's wonderful it that generally people were more than happy to help me out and answer questions that I had.

I wish I knew what a Mary-Sue was before I started role-playing. Looking back I know I had a ton of Mary-Sue characters, and even now I get paranoid sometimes. It's important to remember that no character should be perfect and the ultimate character. At the time I was new to role-playing and writing creatively so everything I did was pretty much awful haha.

Major piece of advice to newbies: Don't be afraid to ask questions! People are generally going to be more than happy to answer your questions, and they're also generally not going to make a big hullabaloo if you make a mistake-- especially if they know that you are new to roleplaying. When I'm helping a newbie out I do my best to answer any and all questions you may have, and I'm pretty patient. That's what most people are like too.
 

Thanks to everyone for offering your tips and tricks. I've enjoyed reading them and can't wait to read more.

If you are having trouble finding your muse, participating in an accountability challenge with the Writing and Role-Playing Guild can keep you motivated.

Try dedicating fifteen minutes a day for role-playing. You'd be surprised how much you can write in fifteen minutes.

Having trouble writing? Open a fresh word document and type whatever comes to mind with no corrections or revisions. Keep typing until a designated time limit has finished, even if you just find yourself typing utter nonsense. At the end, you have something on the page.

Wanted to add something!

If you're in a lot of rps especially on different boards. It's nice to have a schedule! I have one! It makes my life easier.

A quick something that I've found that can be helpful are little challenges like take one piece of info and stretch it to be a paragraph or vice versa, don't use certain words, how fast can you type in 5 minutes with a spark idea.  I will also use Pinterest for ideas, there a lot of pins about word usage and grammar and cleaning your work and lots of ideas as well!

I try roleplay but I'm always afraid I'll look stupid

I know how that feels O.O, especially when there are many veteran roleplayers that just blow you out of the water!  But just remember that everyone starts somewhere!  I'll repeat what VBabe said in her first post:

VBabe wrote:

My number one piece of advice: do not be afraid to role-play. You will only improve by doing. 

Experience is key when roleplaying, and no worries if you do make a mistake! No one is here to judge you, only to help you grow as roleplayer!  If you want to, talk to me, the mods, the admin, or any of the roleplayers and get a small rp going that can teach you how!

Anait Zelleire wrote:

I know how that feels O.O, especially when there are many veteran roleplayers that just blow you out of the water!  But just remember that everyone starts somewhere!  I'll repeat what VBabe said in her first post:

VBabe wrote:

My number one piece of advice: do not be afraid to role-play. You will only improve by doing. 

Experience is key when roleplaying, and no worries if you do make a mistake! No one is here to judge you, only to help you grow as roleplayer!  If you want to, talk to me, the mods, the admin, or any of the roleplayers and get a small rp going that can teach you how!

I'm almost embarrassed to roleplay. Don't want to look like an idiot. My biggest fear in life is looking stupid lol

Reicheru wrote:

Anait Zelleire wrote:

I know how that feels O.O, especially when there are many veteran roleplayers that just blow you out of the water!  But just remember that everyone starts somewhere!  I'll repeat what VBabe said in her first post:

VBabe wrote:

My number one piece of advice: do not be afraid to role-play. You will only improve by doing. 

Experience is key when roleplaying, and no worries if you do make a mistake! No one is here to judge you, only to help you grow as roleplayer!  If you want to, talk to me, the mods, the admin, or any of the roleplayers and get a small rp going that can teach you how!

I'm almost embarrassed to roleplay. Don't want to look like an idiot. My biggest fear in life is looking stupid lol

Noo, don't be embarrassed! I promise we don't bite and no one will make you feel stupid! Roleplaying on GC is open to all levels an we're super encouraging! We love helping people grow.

Addelyn wrote:

Reicheru wrote:

Anait Zelleire wrote:

I know how that feels O.O, especially when there are many veteran roleplayers that just blow you out of the water!  But just remember that everyone starts somewhere!  I'll repeat what VBabe said in her first post:

VBabe wrote:

My number one piece of advice: do not be afraid to role-play. You will only improve by doing. 

Experience is key when roleplaying, and no worries if you do make a mistake! No one is here to judge you, only to help you grow as roleplayer!  If you want to, talk to me, the mods, the admin, or any of the roleplayers and get a small rp going that can teach you how!

I'm almost embarrassed to roleplay. Don't want to look like an idiot. My biggest fear in life is looking stupid lol

Noo, don't be embarrassed! I promise we don't bite and no one will make you feel stupid! Roleplaying on GC is open to all levels an we're super encouraging! We love helping people grow.

is there a "practice" thread? lol or tips and good examples for beginners?

We do have a RP mentor system which you can sign up for if you are part of the Writing and Roleplaying Guild
Super easy to join you should totally do so!

Honestly the best bet is just to dive right in! We host various events (Casual for beginners and more advanced for those who love challenges!) almost every month. 

We're actually having a town hall meeting tonight at 6pm CST in the chat box, you should come! We'll be announcing this months themes and its a great place to meet other Rpers, get to know the roleplaying staff etc. If you can't make it, all the announcements will be posted here in this thread!

I have been role playing since I was back on Neopets years ago. From there I graduated to Gaia Online and am now currently on IMVU and GC. I have done roleplays on Sailor Moon, My Little Pony, fairies, x-men type roleplays, and pretty much every other RP you can think of. I love it all. Each roleplay is unique and while many are similar, there are always things that make it different. Each one has its own rules and people. And each one has the potential to be great.

I'm not one to shy away from roleplays, in fact I tend to get in over my head with too many. When playing canon characters, I feel really nervous. I do my best though and go with my gut. There are times I will ask others if I am doing that character justice, just to check myself.

My advice to newbies and anyone else is...remember details. Details can make any roleplay come alive. A setting adds a great layer to the story. You don't need much but a few extra things in ypur paragraph can really help.

Do you want a challenge that will cause you to focus on descriptive role-playing? Trying role-playing a character that is unable to speak, such as an animal (Phobos or Deimos are my go-to Sailor Moon animals).

SentinelOfSilence wrote:

I'm almost embarrassed to roleplay. Don't want to look like an idiot. My biggest fear in life is looking stupid lol

My advice for that would be to realize that everyone has done something stupid at some point or other - whether it be in the way they role-play or in something else in life.  It is one of the main ways people learn how to do something (again, no matter whether that something is role-playing or something else entirely), one of the main ways they grow as a person.  I have certainly done something stupid many times before - probably more than my share of times.  Also remember that, as others in this thread have pointed out, virtually all of the other role-players here, even the veterans, are nice when they notice a mistake and won’t make you feel stupid for doing it.  I don’t think I’ll ever forget one experience I had in the very first role-play storyline I played in here on GC.  It was in an Event where the role-players were to participate in unique 1X1 storylines.  My randomly-picked ‘other half’ was Sailor Mercury, who I quickly got the sense was a veteran even back then.  Partway through the event, when I made a post that she felt was unrealistic for the scenario we had been given, all she did was have her character act like my character had just become delusional or something like that.  I then PMed her with a polite explanation of why I did what I had done in the Event, as well as asking her why she had her character act that way.  She sent me back a nice PM explaining why she felt it was unrealistic.  She handled it all so well that, even though I had had some role-playing experience on other sites, I decided to defer to her judgement.

So I would advise to prepare first, by reading any newbie guides you happen to come across.  But as soon as possible after that (so that hopefully what you learned from your preparation is still fresh in your mind), go ahead and "Dip your toe in the water, practice with a storyline idea that you're comfortable with,” as Silence Wall stated in the third post in this thread.  Put your best effort into your post, then post it up on the board and pay attention to how the other role-players react to your post.  Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, but learn from them (so that you hopefully don’t make the same mistake twice).  There are two or three main ways I have improved as a role-player over the years, and one of them has been paying attention to how my posts are replied to.

For example, :

Sailor Elysion also had a great piece of advice when she said “Don't be afraid to ask questions! People are generally going to be more than happy to answer your questions[.]”  So find the OOC thread for the role-play storyline you have (a) question(s) about, and ask it!  And if your question is more about role-playing in general than it is about any storyline, first read over the Role-Playing FAQ and the info in The Galaxy Cauldron Roleplaying Section .  If, for some reason, your question is not answered anywhere there, then probably your best bet is to contact an Administrator or Moderator of this role-playing section (see Meet the RPG Staff if you don’t know who they are).

Roleplaying is not an innate gift.

You will see a lot of people say the opposite, but really it's not (some find it easier from the start though, but it doesn't mean it's innate). You can learn to roleplay as much as you can learn to write. It's practice, it's motivation, it's discipline and sometimes you can want to give up because nothing seems to work, but it's possible to learn, to improve, to be better. One thing a lot of roleplayers forget is: we all start at the bottom.

So don't be afraid to roleplay, to participate, to join. Don't give up at the obstacles, ask for help, help yourself. If you don't do anything to improve and then think you cannot do it and stop, you are punishing yourself.

In a lot of places (here too) you can find people who will be there (and happy) to help you, to guide you. Use that. Don't just throw yourself in, then leave when it seems to not be working. Asking for help doesn't make you seem as a noob, a loser, or anything pejorative I can't think of right now. Asking for help can only help. I cannot say for elsewhere, but here, you won't be mocked because you asked for it.

Read about writing. Sometimes, knowing how others write can give you an idea of how you are comfortable writing. Try writing a bit every week (and if you can, every day), try creating characters, try making bigger, longer posts than you usually do. Push yourself, your limits.

Writing as no boundaries but those you give to it.
And, most importantly, have fun doing it.