true blood roleplaying communities

Earlier this year, I began following True Blood RPers on Twitter. At first I thought it was a clever marketing scheme of HBO’s (would any of us be surprised?), but I quickly realized that none of these RPers (not even @SookieBonTemps) are on HBO’s payroll. They are loyal fans that all have real lives and real jobs. 

@SookieBonTemps is not a waitress. She just plays one on Twitter.

After my realization that there weren’t any ‘real, official’ character accounts, I began following multiple Sookies and other canon characters (and more recently original characters as well).

But I wondered how do characters know who their Sookie is? How does each Sookie know who her Bill, Eric, Sam, Alcide, Lafayette, Tara and Jason are?

I discovered that HBO endorses a group of characters (among them @SookieBonTemps) and features them on their website under "Truebie Characters." In addition, there are countless other RP groups.  

@BarmaidSookie explains it nicely, “I tend to see groups basically as a cast of characters. It helps keep plots organized to know that, if you’re in this group, this is your Sookie, your Alcide, your Sam. That’s all a group is, really, the cast you work with.”

Like anything, all groups are different. Some have multiple sets of canon characters. Some allow original characters (OCs). Some follow the Southern Vampire Mysteries and the TV show closely, while others deviate significantly. Some groups have planned, structured storylines (SLs) and others rely on improv only. Regardless of the each group’s differences, they all contribute to the True Blood fandom and add to the story.

I learned about these communities by asking questions. Everyone I've chatted with so far has been helpful and friendly. Even though we all know Lorena has a reputation, @LorenaTheMaker doesn't bite (too hard).

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Blog | Twitter | Email: billsbelles@gmail.com

 

Tell me about BillsBelles. 

@smeykunz Well for starters, it's a fanclub for @VampireBill. Yes, I am painfully aware of how bizarre that sounds, but there is a reason. All the people that know me are thinking "here we go again.....". Not only is he a really wonderful Bill, but he's a fantastic person, has done a lot for me and is a good friend, so I show the love. Follow him, he is an extremely popular tweeter, you'll see why the Belles are long time and extremely loyal followers. We love the character, we love the actor and we love the RPer.

That being said, I tend to follow and watch the people he tweets most, which are in a variety of groups. I just like good characters and showcase them on my blog no matter what group they tweet with.

I try and keep my fan love to Stephen Moyer, Bill Compton from True Blood & the Southern Vampire Mysteries, and the Twitter characters that I enjoy.

What is your connection with BillsBelles?

@LorenaTheMaker: I have tweeted with many different characters in the last two years, but have stayed mostly with the original HBO group that started the frenzy. I will tweet anyone who approaches me, but I have certain loyalties as far as stories go. I have not, will not and do not wish to ever tweet another William other than @VampireBill. He is my partner and no one will ever replace him. I may be biased, but I do believe we are an excellent team. I also enjoy tweeting my good friends @JessicaHamby, @WereCoot, @VampireMagister and @WerewitchHallow.

Do you plan narratives with other RPers? 

Or is it all improv?

@LorenaTheMaker: That depends. For the most part, we have a good idea of what we are planning on doing when we embark on a story line, an outline of sorts. I used to do longer story lines with @VampireMagister, but we never had any sort of script. In fact I detest them. I rather enjoy the free form way that RP was meant to be. Get into the head of your character and react as they would.

When I play with @VampireBill we virtually never have a plan and if we do, we most likely change it along the way based on something one of us has said or done. There is a peculiar maker and child bond in our brains that I cannot quite explain. He anticipates my tweets. I swear the man is psychic. Must be the blood. *smirk*

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Website | Twitter | Email: Sookie@YieldToMe.com

Many of the RPers are affiliated with a group they tweet with. Did you start YieldToMe? How is it different from other fan communities?

@BarmaidSookie: @SheriffNorthman and I started YieldToMe as a message board back in September of 2009. I definitely can’t speak for other fan communities or groups out there, and there are some absolutely terrific ones that I enjoy following myself, but what we try to do is come up with lots of new and original material while still staying true to the spirit of the books and show. We’ll use a lot of the elements given to us by both and try to find ways to do new things with them, to try stuff we haven’t seen done before. It’s a lot of fun.

Do you plan narratives with other RPers? 

Or is it all improv?

@BarmaidSookie: There’s definitely a mixture of both. For bigger plots involving more people, we tend to plan things out, at least in outline form, so everyone knows what’s going on and no one gets lost in the mix. Big plots can be an organizational nightmare, so there’s some element of planning, but within a very open framework, there’s a lot of improv. We’ve never had any sort of scripts or anything more than a basic outline, and then only for bigger storylines involving more people. For smaller narratives or just day-to-day interactions, it’s all improv. That’s usually what ends up leading to the plots. The smallest comments or jokes can spark whole storylines that can go on for months, and it’s always a wild ride.

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 Website | Twitter | Email: mailto:OnceBittenRP@live.com

Tell me about the Once Bitten community.

 

@SookieSC: Once Bitten came about because a group of my friends and I were trying to figure out what to do with ourselves. I try to keep as hands off with the group as I possibly can. I don't force members to do SLs and we clearly allow pretty much anyone into the group or else we wouldn't have four sets of Canons. I try and make it a very relaxed environment and not ask too much from my members. I would rather have members who are having fun and enjoying RP then worry about SLs. SLs come on their own terms even if you don't try for them. Truthfully I believe every group on Twitter is different for the next in their own way. It's really hard to describe the differences, it's just something you have to observe. I can just say I am proud to be part of such a talented and wonderful group of RPers and to be amongst the several other groups out there in Twitter RP.

Do you plan narratives with other characters? Or is it all improv?

@SookieSC: Sometimes we plan the general outline of how we want a SL to go and then at others, it's a complete last minute thing. Though usually we have a goal in mind on where we want to get.

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Check out my list of True Blood RP Communities on Twitter. I know I’m missing lots, so let me know about your group via Twitter, email, or in the comments below.