Self-inserting caveats
Consider the concept of given circumstances, borrowed from the Meisner school of acting. No, roleplaying and acting are not the same thing. At least, I don’t think. I might be persuaded otherwise. I’m still up in the air on that.
Allow me to attempt an explanation, likely convoluted and inaccurate, about what given circumstances means, and how it follows from Meisner. At the heart of it, Meisner, a guy who taught acting, believed that acting is
“…behaving truthfully under imaginary circumstances.”
Instincts and impulse, stemming from human behavior, coming from personal experiences and unique psychological and historical and individual traits—coming from you.
They do an acting exercise that’s all about removing preconceptions of line delivery and how you look or how you’re supposed to act or talk on stage; it’s the one where you just repeat observations and feelings and thoughts to another person. Yes, it’s kinda weird. I don’t know though, there may just be something there (shoutout to Miss Angeli and the class I attended earlier this year).
Eventually you start thinking about your relationship to the other person, the last time you were with them, and then proceed with an improvised scene, where you’re still just making observations. It’s odd-sounding, I know, and it likely doesn't help trying to imagine it from a blogpost; these concepts are best introduced by watching or, better yet, experience. But if the self-conscious actor gets over themself, it can lead to some pretty surprisingly intense scenes.
Connect this to roleplaying games. It might end up, in a circular manner, being the equivalent of considering the psychology or backstory of your character and detaching from them1. However, my proposition is to still ask yourself “what would I do in this given circumstance,” but instead of merely self-inserting, insert the character’s given circumstances; how were they raised? What’s their natural stats? What’s their background? If I was brought up that way, if I was naturally inclined or gifted in some way, if I grew up in these places with these people, how would I act? What would I do, right now? What do I probably look like?
But instead of getting intellectual about it, just let those factors ruminate organically, then narrate and do the most natural thing during the game. Present tense, first person, where you are and what you’re doing and what you’re saying2.
How does that sound? I wonder what that would be like? Is this a good idea or is there risk of bleed?
On the topic of bleed—it might be best to avoid it. It’s just a roleplaying game. You are not the character. Though, I don’t know if it’s an entirely bad thing to feel something in the moment, but maybe don’t let it stick around after the fact. Still—what would you do, given the circumstances?
In Mr. Max’s video, self-inserts are good gateways but not the only way to make characters.↩
Advertising the 4D community, hehe.↩