So, road_ahead closed yesterday. :( For those of you, and I reckon there are quite a few, who weren't on my f-list when I was nattering about this every other day, RA is an Harry Potter RPG I helped start and run with Inell and Flora, that we were involved in for upwards of 20 months. It was time, I think. When you have a game that takes place post-war and is as focused on everyday life as RA was, the world's bound to reach a sort of equilibrium. Things were settled and activity from players (myself included) had slowed down quite a bit. Most games don't stay active for as long as we did, and it's been amazing -- bit of a rollercoaster at first, but eventually it settled down and became my happy place for a really long time. I met some awesome people and definitely grew as a writer. I'm going to miss the characters I wrote there, both the main ones and the NPCs, so much, and I'll miss reading everyone else's stories. And good lord, I'm going to miss writing Harry. I love that boy to a ridiculous degree.

That said, I think I'm done RPing for a good while. Which is a bigger deal for me than it sounds - I've been in fandom since 2006 and have been RPing in Potter fandom for almost the entire time. It's going to be weird not being in a game. But at the same time, it's become harder to split my time between all the things I want to do in fandom -- and in real life. I want to spend less time at my computer, but I also want to write more fic, make more art. I won't lie and say that new fandoms have nothing to do with it, but the truth is RP has been more of an effort for me since before I got into Merlin and SGA and Trek. RP is a huge time-suck; it eats your brain in the best possible way. But it's got to be fun. It's meant to be a diversion, something to escape to. And when it's a good experience, it's REALLY GOOD.

But when it's a bad experience (and if you have RPed for a long time, you've probably had these to some extent or other) there's nothing fannish I can think of that is less fun. I've made friends that I lost four months later. I've moderated player chats that have made my head hurt. I've been disillusioned by people, and maybe they've been disillusioned by me. I've shed tears and wasted a LOT of time on things that really aren't a big deal. I've learned that people are basically the same from one game to another, and that no game can escape wank completely -- and as such, I've learnt to be very, very zen about the whole thing.

Thing is, road_ahead was an AMAZING experience, on balance -- that's what I've loved about it; that's why I'll miss it, and that's why I'm so, so proud of the world we created together. I'll miss the folks who stuck with us from beginning to end (omg you guys, it's been a looong and bumpy ride). I'll miss those who've joined us along the way and those who've moved on since. And mostly, I hope I won't be missing ya'll too much anyway, because we've become more than co-writers and players -- we're friends, and I'll be in touch. ♥

You know where to find me on YM and gchat, or come poke me on Twitter if you can brave the zombie horde. *g*

Thanks, guys. <3

1. Squee: There is no way Dan and Bonnie will ever look this good together. Oh, you pretty, pretty things. *pets* (why yes, I am filled with OTP gooeyness at the moment; feel free to ignore me. ♥) Y'know, I may love a lot of other pairings. I may write more of them. But I will always come back home to you, BBs. ♥♥♥

*makes a few icons* ETA: nabbed this from ONTD. See for more HBP pics, especially Luna, Ron and Draco. *g*

Side note to WB hair ppl: Stop lightening Emma's hair.
Not yet sure I'll watch the film; we'll see.

2. Pimpety-pimp: We're always on the lookout for characters at road_ahead and I've got a couple recent openings to pimp. Pardon me while I jack Inell's post wholesale:

( snip! )

3. Oh, I dunno. I have to get back to work. :P

*hugs teh flist*

*jacks this post wholesale from inell*

There are limited casting opportunities available at road_ahead! We haven't officially reopened casting for everyone, but, due to RL circumstances, we've lost a few characters that we'd really like to have played. A couple never had a chance to post at all, so they're open for development, and the others posted 1-3 times during the first days of the game. If you've been thinking about joining an RPG or you've been following road_ahead and want to participate, maybe one of these characters will speak to you! The casting list is here, but we are open for applications for the following:

Charlie Weasley, who is the only Weasley we don't have. He has been played a few times right after the battle, has Marc Blucas as his PB, and is a decent bloke who loves his family but also loves his freedom, hence the move to Romania. He's close to Bill, loves all his siblings, dated Tonks briefly back at school, and he's got a brain. He has all the Weasleys and older characters for interaction. Anthony Goldstein, Jewish halfblood with an active Michael and Terry along with quite a few other Ravenclaws. Hestia Jones, mid-20s Healer and Order member who's only posted once, so her background is open for development beyond anything that was mentioned in the one thread. Gawain Robards, 50s Head of Aurors who is needed for Ministry-related plots and has Kingsley, Andromeda, Arthur, etc. for interaction automatically. Theodore Nott, who is a Slytherin Pureblood that left the castle during the Battle of Hogwarts but didn't join Voldemort (though this is open to discussion, we don't want a crazy/psycho undeveloped Theodore) [Note: We have every other Slytherin in his year except Tracey Davis]. Adrian Pucey, who is a Slytherin 1-2 years older than Harry and open for development. Xenophilius Lovegood, who recently was released from Azkaban and is now starting to work on rebuilding his house with Luna.

The game is focused on characterization and interaction, and it goes for realism versus crack or smut. The Mods are actively involved, so if you prefer an environment where they aren't, it's not the game for you. It's only been open three weeks, and it deals directly with the aftermath following the battle of Hogwarts, so there isn't much to catch up on game-wide beyond funerals, escaped DEs, trials, etc. It's an amazing cast of newbies and RP experienced, and just a lovely creative environment.

The application is here, and just needs to be sent to rarmods@gmail.com once complete. I'm emotionalinertia on YM and hnicole83@gmail.com if you have any questions, etc.

:D

/pimp