I imagine many would immediately assume such form of conduct as "strict", but for me that term is exclusive for people who excessively cavil regarding their own material...
I too feel limitation is, to a light and likely subconscious degree, "stigmatized" here, if only because I've just shifted priorities from a different site where the prevailing opinion was total opposite. On a discussion thread regarding open-world sandbox-type roleplays, many people
preferred linear roleplays, to the point where they pushed back against sandboxes; they seemed too open-ended to them, and the game master's role too minuscule. Foreignness would have played a part, simply because sandboxes were little to none there, compared to here on PC where I think it's safe to say the vast majority fall into that category. Nevertheless, it's easy to compare the pushback against open-world roleplays and their scarcity
there with the more timid disassociation with linearity
here. I'd say, in both environments, variety would help. The best way to get people to appreciate a sort of roleplay is to really just make the roleplay! And some increased prevalence of non-sandboxes on PC would just help to add diversity to the Theatre.
But limitation can be essential in maintaining motivation. A lot of the sandboxes I've dropped were because I didn't have the muse -- you described the sensation very well: "...writing a novella for the person in charge," combined with the fact that the novella doesn't even need to be read, and there's no acknowledgement that it ever was. And "muse," in my opinion, shouldn't be a concern in what is inherently collaborative writing; roleplaying keeps me engaged and creative when I'm
not solo-writing, so bringing the qualms of solo-writing into roleplaying with complete open-endedness (i.e. a writing prompt, really, except I need to submit an app for it) contradicts me indulging in the hobby at all. In summary, I can definitely sympathize and agree with your opinion on full plot flexibility coming round to bite a roleplay in the ass!
And as for Stars, I'm glad you didn't immediately label my outlook on the RP as harsh; I feel as though I may have a bit too hard, when in reality I wanted to really point out the things I liked while addressing the issues that irked me and ultimately hindered my motivation from continuing. And yes, I honestly do think Journeys should have some reassessments. For all the endless jokes people seem to make about them (prior to my sign up for Stars, literally everyone and their moms told me Journeys suck), it's really odd that this format still gets recycled without any real revision.
Feedback should never be automatically associated with severity; it oftentimes comes from a good place.
And journeys in their present state are really the fast food of this forum; they're mass-produced, everyone knows it's bad for them, and they consume it anyway because there's nothing better on the way home. Or they're the poor saps who treat every visit to the drive-thru like an event because they haven't learned the hard way yet, lol.
Of course, I did join 'Past of the Past,' despite it being a roleplay that relies on muse which I
just said I hated, despite it being a journey which a paragraph ago I compared to low-effort, sloppily-prepared, guilt-full indulgence. Maybe my will to write overwhelms reason. Maybe it's masochism?
But finally, going back to the 'character subplots vs. overarching plot' idea again, I'm working on a project at the moment that would benefit from hearing perspectives on the topic, and responses would surely fall in line with the sort of "theme" of the thread. Basically,
what's the best way a balance can be stricken between a plot that's player-driven and game master-constructed? How can characters' actions feel organic while ensuring progression, and
how can a game master craft a story without dragging their players into reenacting forced scenarios?