IWSG Question of the Month: Let’s play a game. Imagine. Role-play. How would you describe your future writer self, your life and what it looks and feels like if you were living the dream? Or if you are already there, what does it look and feel like? Tell the rest of us. What would you change or improve?
Um… I’m going to pass on this one. Mostly because I’m drawing a blank.
However, let’s talk about role-playing and character generation. This conversation mostly comes up when I talk with other gamers at events. Have I played any of my characters at the table? Yes, but probably not who you think.
Retanei, Lockonis, Savanas, (younger) Lindale, Sparky (he was after being written in a book)… I need to check and see who else. There are others who are in books that are not yet published. And for those wondering why all my tavern-type places have the initials WD, it’s a nod to my first D&D group who suffered through me developing the first three on the list.
I find role-playing them helpful, even if it is in a completely different setting (Mystara does not equal Terra), to get a feel for their personalities and skill sets. The dice and whatever else we’re using brings in that chaos factor.
Granted, if it’s the Deck of Many Things, most of my characters have an aversion to it.
Do I find out everything about them this way? Nope. I have one coming up in book 6 who surprised me with a secret she had been keeping.
About the Insecure Writer’s Support Group
J.C. Jackson 
I’ve never played any of my characters, though I do channel them from time to time. Do I need to act super confident? Then I’ll just put on my Cera smile and remind myself, “I’m awesome”. Do I need to pretend I’ve got it together and I can handle it all? Then how would MaTisha approach it? She certainly wouldn’t lose her cool in high stress situations.
Makes me wonder if I have a personality disorder, though…