Oh my gosh, St. Owl! I'm so sorry! I always try to have good spelling and grammar, and my heart soars whenever another RP gets going, yet every time I read this type of post I feel like it's my fault! I came into the Chatterbox recently, unless you count my late crowd sorcery villain post last year. I don't hate you, but the letters might be guilting me into leaving the CB. It irritates me when people just have careless mistakes and make excuses for them because I'm a natural born editor. If there's anything I can do to help you, please let me know!

I'd like to say I feel this most acutely. I am painfully aware that I am the last of my kind. Every day I come on here hoping the BlueFairy, Nina, NoratheSinger (I miss you very much Nora, you were like an older sister to me), BHR, Butterfly, True, YoungWriter (if you still didn't pop on here, I think I'd go insane), Everinne and all the rest of them have reappeared, even for a second....

SE? SC? MagFan? I miss you....

And when I see these threads... the newbies aren't the thing that is bad. We jsut don't have a lasting community on here anymore. I sometimes feel like I try too hard to be the older sibling to the lot of you, and I fail miserably. Because there's no one for me to lean on when I need help.

I love you guys. Just... take care of each other, take care of yourself and take care of this place, okay?

I'm gonna go cry now. 

Yes, Scylla, please don't go! Like I said, I'm new, but you seem really nice!

Thank you so much for not leaving!! You scared me so bad!!

I know how you feel. I miss all the old people so much, and all the new people are so... different. I've always had a hard time with change, even when it's good change. But imagine what it would be like if the generation before our generation of CBers all just left because of us. I have only been on CB for like two years, so I don't know what it was like before that, but what if there was an old old CB and the same thing that happened that is happening now? Please, everyone, stop leaving. Try to embrace change. Welcome the new people. Mourn for the old. Please just try to have fun on here. Fun is not just there, we have to CREATE it. Create fun. Trust me, I've had so many hard changes in my life. I know how it feels. But if everyone from the old CB leaves and I'm here with the new CBs (which, by the way, are awesome!) then I will stay.

I'm sososososososo sorry if this offended you. Please don't be mad at me, I'm losing too many friends in real life to lose any on CB.

I decided to go ahead and put in my two cents whether anyone reads or not, but here we go.

I've been on the CB for about four years now. I've seen it change. A lot. Chatterbox is a special place. For those who become accustomed to routine, change is hard. The CB becomes like a safe, quiet, judgment-free refuge in an ever changing and demanding world. People become attached, emotionally attached, when that haven is changed, added or taken away from, people are naturally going to feel things, like sadness and frustration. On that point, you really can't blame people. On the same point, those people can't react badly to it. Change is inevitable. 

Too often, I think these things go to extremities. One person tries to make a point, next thing you know people are attacking and saying it either has to stay exactly how it is or you should just be happy with how things are and act perfectly okay with every single thing a new person does. There has to be balance, and understanding to make this the place everyone wants it to be.

To newbies, it's okay to be a newbie. Everyone was at one point. The difference between being a newbie forever and becoming part of the society is respect. No, you don't know everything about the cb yet, and you can't be expected to. The point is you are watchful and mindful of what everyone else is doing and saying. You want to keep the integrity of the cb. Double check your posts for proper grammar and spelling. Try not to make typos or use slang. The CB isn't just a run of the mill chat site, it's a place where we come to have genuine conversation. When you write properly, it shows respect for your fellow writers. Read over the rps, and try to get an idea of the format they commonly go by. Try to write a decent length, not overly long, just enough to give your fellow rpers something to go off of-that's what makes an rp work. And again, just follow basic rules of etiquette and grammar. Over all, just keep your fellow man in mind whenever writing anything, and you'll never have any problems.

To people who have been here longer, newbies are going to come. That's okay. When you get a massive flood of them, it can be overwhelming. But don't let that anger you, try to be an example. They're not sure of what they're doing yet, they don't know the ways of the CB society. It's up to you to show them, gently, through what you say and do, how to write and act. Give them tips and welcome questions when they introduce themselves. Be friendly, and open. Let them feel and know they are welcome. That right there will greatly reduce any friction y'all may have. Get to know these newbies, they'll often surprise you with how alike y'all really are.

To all CBers, I see y'all have a lot of differences of opinions. But many don't try to talk these differences out. You get your hackles raised and are ready to defend what you think without listening to others. Respect is the core of all relationships, and in order to show that, you need to hear each other out. And compromise. 

As I stated earlier, CB is not a run of the mill chat site. Think, first, on what it is based on. A literary magazine for kids with excellent stories from authors we can look up to. Now think how the chat site should reflect that. Here we don't talk slang, or in all caps or bolds all the time. We're here to discuss the world, the arts, express thoughts, creativity, and carry on decent conversations. AEs for instance. These aren't all bad, or all good, things, despite the conflicting arguments you get on both sides. AEs can be fun, interesting, and imaginitive ways to vent creativity. But like everything, there needs to be a line where enough is enough. I personally agree on them having their own designated threads, or even the occasional rp in which they can participate. That's not bad. But they can't go around on every thread, or even have a ton of threads. That creates confusion. Being crazy, wild, and letting go of absolute proper grammar and spelling can be fun too, but they should go along with the AEs, and stay in designated realms, and be used relatively sparingly. Too much creates a negative view of you to people.

Point of all this is you can prove you have a fun crazy side, but also show you have what it takes to be the mature, thoughful writer, artist, fangirl or whatever you consider yourself to be, that everyone else knows you can be. Always show respect to the site, the Admins, and each other, and you'll get along splendidly, okay? Trust me.