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Face claims or descriptions?

"Men create gods after their own image, not only with regard to their form, but with regard to their mode of life." ― Aristotle

I generally prefer description to images. That way I can be as specific or vague as I want about a person or setting, and the reader is allowed to make the visuals in their own mind based on my writing. If my writing is good, the reader will picture what I want them to; if my writing is okay, they'll sort-of get my image.

I use images to enhance or supplement a description, not replace it.
 
I usually do a face claim, but I'm perfectly happy with pure description especially if that makes my partner more comfortable. In truth, face claims can be a little limiting.
 
I usually go for descriptions, but that's partly because I really struggle to find what I'm looking for if I go searching for a faceclaim. Which is not because of how weirdly specific I am - quite the reverse! I just can't seem to land on what key words give me a good selection of faces to pick from!
 
I tend to find descriptions are much more descriptive when setting a mood. Pics are fun when you want to take a shortcut but the bespoke effort can be far more rewarding than just tossing up any old image. When I write with a partner I want insight I to thier ideas and that can only go so far when they just post an image. I can understand when it's a bit tiresome after a few ghosting but I still prefer the description.
 
I always do a fair bit of description for my character in the RP but I usually also supply a faceclaim because I think it turns my partner on. Unless they specifically don't want a faceclaim. I always ask. I don't usually want a faceclaim back because the visual side of the thing is not the main attraction for me.
 
I find when descriptions are used there's more detailed description over characters when with faceclaims there's a tendency to skip over appearances and character because the picture showed us. It's led to skipping on smaller details like dress, attitude, stuff like that. I'm not opposed to faceclaims and they absolutely have their uses! I just think they shouldn't be the only thing you give your rp partner.
 
Descriptions for me every single time. Being able to describe appearance is such a nice literary skill to posses for which I'll take any opportunity to practice. It also allows for more freedom away from the constraints of whatever you can find online.
 
I don't mind faceclaims, but having come from a site where I literally never heard that phrase or concept before, it initially freaked me out a bit...like, grabbing someone's face off the internet and attaching it to your OC? I don't know. It doesn't bother me as much anymore, but for me, I prefer to either draw my OCs (note: I seriously lack artistic talent) or describe them myself. I can never seem to find someone who fits my character to a "t" the way I imagine them in my head, anyway.
 
Faceclaims. Only drawn images, though. I have to look at my character to get into their mind, and I tend to have the image right next to my text window while I'm writing a post.

I don't mind if my RP partners prefer descriptions, though. I can describe MC to them, I don't have to show them the picture of MC if they don't want to see it.
But most likely I will also go and look for a picture that matches the description I get from my RP partners of their character (without showing it to them).
I only need the pictures for myself, if that makes sense. ^^;
 
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to be honest, face claims are greatly preferred. if there's no image tho, then keep your description short and easy to digest and remember. Highlight the most prominent characteristics of your character's appearance and leave the rest up to a person's imagination.
plus, when your character gets naked during the rp, that's when you can describe the length, girth, depth, flabbyness, etc because I guarantee I won't remember in advance.
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dark hair, pale skin, 3 foot 5, a lil thick -- k perfect. good enough. show during the rp what else is going on while you describe your character's actions. slowly build a picture. trust me, it'll stick longer.
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long story short, brief descriptions work to introduce a character and the rest of the details can follow after. besides, this is how it kinda works with meeting people irl. legit I'm likely only gonna remember some guy was tall, black, with grey hair and not even notice if he was wearing contact lenses or that his waist was a size 45.
 
as far as face claims I definitely prefer anything that is non irl and the style should reflect the mood and genre of the rp.
 
Descriptions > Any face claim.

We're writers, no? I would rather you write me a vivid description of your character and *make* me see them behind my eyes than shove a photo in front of my face and set it in stone exactly what they look like. It's so much more stimulating to read what someone looks like in text than it is to look at something. I groan externally when I have to find a face claim for a character and that takes longer than anything else for me because FUCK, they exist in my head? It doesn't match?
 
I'm used to face claims as well but I am fine with either. In terms of what the RP partners usually prefer, I see more requests for face claims for sure.
 
I tend to bounce back and forth. Some times I have a character come to mind and a face immediately pops into my head that I can find easy, other times I got a good description but can't find the right picture to go with it
 
faceclaim fan; for me it's like having an artistic doll model for someone who's trying to use a source for anatomy. i like having one or two initial images to get an idea across or to stick in my mind that i can then use to paint the rest of the picture with my words. this is largely a personal thing for me though, and not something i require or request of my partners.

the flip side is it's a personal pet peeve of mine when it is or becomes an expectation to have a new image or gif of your faceclaim constantly; that's when i get into the frustration of needing to hunt down images rather than spending my time writing. especially because i do a lot of writing from my phone these days, and maneuvering image results around back to bmr feels particularly frustrating compared to doing the same thing on a desktop pc.
 
vaporwave vibes said:
the flip side is it's a personal pet peeve of mine when it is or becomes an expectation to have a new image or gif of your faceclaim constantly; that's when i get into the frustration of needing to hunt down images rather than spending my time writing. especially because i do a lot of writing from my phone these days, and maneuvering image results around back to bmr feels particularly frustrating compared to doing the same thing on a desktop pc.
Click to expand...

May God help me but this hits close to home. I've designed entire scenarios around a couple of pictures. I sometimes wonder if it's a form of self-sabotage, or at least elaborate procrastination. But that's probably me not giving my ADHD enough credit. I am indeed guilty of spending hours scrounging for the right image when I could have just been writing.

Consequently, I tend to be much more relaxed about it these days, usually only using a couple of images to illustrate the characters/sets. I've become quite partial to using fakes/deepfakes, especially when they're really good or inspiring. I've also forsworn my celeb fixation to some extent, and I now regularly use adult entertainers and internet models. They tend to come with the perfect gallery already installed, as 'twere.

That being said, I am (among other things) trying to build a concept around Amy Adams' character from "American Hustle" by the means of various webms from the movie. Some habits die hard.
 
If I can find the right one (or a good one), I really like to include them. At the same time, if not, it's no dealbreaker to describe them through text.
 
I find face claims to be a convenient short cut and it can help everyone stay on the same page, so if the person is blonde then with a picture reference everyone knows which shade of blonde without have to resort to colour charts. But those reference pictures are also not the end of story, I once had a story where I'd found an appropriate face claim for the story but in the picture they didn't have the right clothing on, so I went the process of describe their outfit during a post only for the other person to ignore what was written and go with the outfit that was in the picture. So that time the shortcut of the face claim ended up driving the story off the road and into a ditch.
 
I'm a big fan of image searches primarily over on Discord. However that being said if me and my rp partner are doing ocs say who use the likeness of a canon character then that face claim as it were would serve on how the character would look but the rest of it would be written out in the oc sheet itself. A canon character would just have the visual. I usually do things differently though with nsfw images over like sfw to spice things up. If it is here onsite through pm description is big but often it isn't discussed much in pm as a lot of the details will happen in the rp itself.
 
Faceclaims, drawn-ones and more specifically anime and adjacent art, however I can usually work with anything that is not realistic or AI.

If perfect ref can't be found then I usually just fill-in the blanks with words and encourage my partner do the same. As long as the picture gives me general idea about the characters look I am fine with it.

I also generally don't accept famous canon-characters as refs, since I have hard time separating them from their canonical selves, especially if I happen to like said character. If the ref is just some random gacha character or some shoujosei villainess lady from a series I've read and effectively forgotten afterwards I am fine with them.

Description-only are usually a reluctant last resort. I am a visual person and enjoy visuals, so anyone willing to work with them has huge advantage over someone who does not, but if we seem to click otherwise then it's never a definite dealbreaker.
 
I'm someone who needs visuals to help me picture something (I think it comes with being on the autism spectrum but I can't be sure). Descriptions are fine for me for physical traits (such as a person's build and height), but when it comes to, say, the face I need a picture. And as far as face claims go, I strongly prefer anime/manga style, art, or characters from games. I find that using pictures of real people (such as models) makes me uncomfortable for some reason.
 
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