So, I need to know what you'd do in this situation.

Around two weeks ago, I started a forum. I had the skin, some of the sidebar, some of the forums and the rules up and I decided I needed some help so I made a staff search - not on this site - and someone replied. Thinking perfect, I gave her the board link and made her an admin.

She offered to do the sign-ups and a board for character types and I happily agreed. But five days later, I had the plot done, more of the sidebar, more forums and a header and still no sign-ups. A week and a half later, the girl signed on and said she had been busy with finals but she was ready to go now. I was pretty relieved.

But it's three days after that and she's still done nothing whereas I've done absolutely everything. Would it be rude to talk to her and if not, what would I say? Has it ever happened to you and what did you do?

Well, I must say, I've never been in that kind of situation when it comes to roleplaying.

I've only been a Mod before, so I don't have that much experience. I can't imagine how annoying your situation must be...

But I must say: If that girl said she'd help you out and hasn't done none of her part yet, making you work all by yourself, you have all the right to get angry at her. You should definetly talk to her.Real-life is more important than role-playing, yes, but she has no right to leave you hanging like that.

In my opinion you should tell her exactly what you think. If she tells you that her life has been really busy, then it's time to get some more help. I think you should tell her exactly what's on your mind...after all, she has to understand how you're feeling. =)
There's nothing to fear or be ashamed of...After all she's the one who's not helping.

Go ahead and contact her.

If you still think that's not the right idea, find more people to help you out. If she doesn't work, she can't have a word about your decisions.

Ah okay thanks! [=

Does this sound alright everyone,

Hmmm... swap the bit asking her if she's had a hard time in RL with the beginning so it looks like...

Now that way, it sounds a little more smoother, your previous one sounded pretty blunt XD.

This is the big problem with publicly advertising to staff and giving positions to people you don't know. It seems incredibly unwise to me to give a position like this to just anyone and for you to then expect them to completely pull their weight. If you have tried to contact them by numerous methods other than on the site, if they are non-responsive and not doing things you are asking them to do, then yes, get rid of them. Be forward, explain your reasons and so on. You can't avoid looking like a villain, however nicely you put it so you'll basically have to suck it up.

In future, I suggest only giving staff positions to people you know well.

What I typically do now seems to serve me best. I develop and create the entire forum on my own. No co-admins, not even any mods. They're useless. If I want things to get done my way I have to do them.

Then, after the site is opened and it slowly grows, I choose moderators and administrators from the group. It's smart because you can see them interact in the community, they're writing ability, and their activity. It's not fool-proof, but it works. :)

I agree with Madman Mike about softening the email.

Maybe instead of focusing the email on her absence, you could talk about what needs to be done. Remind her of what she needs to get done. If you have to, put in a deadline. Like, "Hey, can you get those sign ups done by Saturday? I really want to get ready to open quickly. And where are we with the Character Types Board?"

I think part of the problem with getting outsiders in to help, is that oftentimes they aren't sure where the boundaries are or what they're supposed to be doing. The best thing you can do is to be as specific as possible in what you want her to do. It's much easier to jump in and get things done when you have a crystal clear picture of what you need to do.