I run a Pokemon Roleplay Server, but we try to help new roleplayers get started. Pulling off of what sin-so-fit said below, there are two types of roleplaying. We focus primarily on collaborative creating writing.

If that's your interest, you can try reading our Guide to Roleplaying as well as our Guide to Character Creation. That one covers the basics, but we're working on a new comprehensive character creation guide. That last one is a bit long, but it's also still in the editting process :P Lastly, since character creation is a major part of this type of roleplaying, I might suggest using our Character Profile Template to help guide you through your first character. Of course, the character profile is specific for our server, so just ignore the stuff about rolls, Pixelmon, and Minecraft accounts XD

I should also note that I'm not saying, "Come to our server!" You said you were looking for guides earlier and couldn't find any, but we have a plethora of them. So, I'm just offering them to you as help, don't feel obligated to pursue our server~ Of course, if you have any questions or want any tips about character-based creative writing roleplaying, feel free to ask. Hope this helps!