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How do you develop characters?

caliente

Planetoid
Joined
Jan 30, 2018
I'm just curious and thought it might be fun to discuss this.

How do you go on creating your characters?

I've got different approaches for different purposes so to speak.
For short term, smut heavy, basically "just sex" plays, I don't really develop a specific character. I give them a name. A look. And some archetypic character traits. They basically develop along the way. Sometimes, when the short term turns into something that lasts, develops plot and so on... i regret these, cause with no solid base its sometimes hard to "feel" the character. How would "sex crazy shy archetypic nerdgirl" react to this twist of the plot? Ummm... let's fuck?
That's shallow and doesn't amuse me long.

For longterm, plot heavy rps.... oooooh i LOVE creating characters. I usually start with the flaws/fears/weaknesses. I built up from there. What advantages? Heritage? How does the character's past influence him/her? Where do they live? What do they enjoy? Parents? Siblings? Family? I ask myself -so- many things about the character. Things i rarely to never use during rp, but -knowing- the character helps me to "feel" the character. It makes the actions of the character flow much easier. "Badass Brigid" might slap her counterpart right in the face for calling her a "dumb whore", while "Seductive Sally" might laugh it off and "Whiney Wendy" breaks into tears.
But to be able to really get into the character I need a lot of background. Backstory. And so on. I don't usually dice powers and so on out. I pick "reasonable" numbers for my characters. I don't want to powerplay. No need whatsoever for that. A vampire child gets sensible numbers for a child. A 2500 year old vampire will get reasonable numbers for one that old.

:) So... I'd love to hear your input on how you do it. Whats important for you? What do you do if you thought up a really interesting character but don't manage to feel the character?

Edited to say: "Lmao... NO we are NOT talking incestuous relationships here. It's different topics!" in regards to "What do they enjoy? Parents?"
 
I usually try to come up with a “hook” or two, something I can hang a basic description on as the character develops (assuming I’m not playing a canon character, that is). I’ll give the “hooks” for a couple of my characters, by way of example.

Sam Cavendish: tomboyish Texas Ranger who fights hard to be taken seriously in her male-dominated aged profession.
Matthias the Traitor: demonic former Paladin who sold his soul to save his apprentice.
Quentin Hall: unorthodox Jedi ninja assassin.

From there, the characters evolve through a combination of OOC planning with my partner and making up little facts about the character as I post. Sam evolved into a bisexual woman (who’d thought she was asexual) with body and intimacy issues because she was nearly raped when she was 12, and also into a surprisingly competent detective. Matthias turned out to be a chess-playing wizard with a barbed sense of humor. Quentin turned out to be a philosopher.

Hm. I think I’m rambling. So, in brief, I come up with a core concept and let them evolve over time.
 
On the fly, mostly. I go in to roleplays generally with nothing set in stone character-wise besides an appearance and a couple pertinent traits and as a roleplay goes on they tend to just kind of develop a life of their own? I tend to just come up with bits along the way, some not even relevant to what's going on. History develops itself, wraps around the concept for the character while also shaping them at the same time. I find that if I try to plan things like that ahead of time it just ends up going poorly as I eventually come up with something I like more naturally as time progresses.

If I can't get in to a character, I just can't. If that creativity and interest and development doesn't come on its own I don't force it, and those roleplays usually end up dropped as I can't get in to a roleplay if I can't get in to the character.

A character that started as simply "bitchy junkie girl" ended up being one of my favourite characters to write in years just from all the backstory and motive and everything that just developed as I kept writing her.
 
At first is a sparkle.
A name.
A color of hairs or eyes.
The the body takes a shape.
And then the "idea" of the character begin: why is it there? How? Its own ideas and ideale, the way it behaves...

Until there is a fully developed character with its name, its body, its coscience...
 
Very similar to Amaranthine.

Apart from the broad brush strokes required to come up with an overarching plot/theme and provide my characters agency and goals, I don't decide in advance on any specific details in how they'll 'be'. Instead, I'll just throw them blind into the first post, rub my hands together in anticipation and say, "Now, let's see how you turn out, and precisely how you go about things, as I start to get into your head and you interact with the world/people around you."

That's the fun of it, getting to know them myself in real-time as they take on a life of their own, without needing to put a lot of conscious effort into worrying about how they 'should' act or overthinking it. I like to let them develop organically, dependent on what makes sense for each as an individual and in the context of the story, character relationships and writer dynamics. I could (have) start with the same opening premise with two separate partners, but the main characters in each would end up poles apart in terms of personality, background, history and the way they'd act in identical circumstances. Resulting in the story itself taking a wildly divergent and unpredictable path as well.
 
I wholeheartedly agree with needing room for development during the story. Without that you wouldnt need to play the character. So while i put a lot of thinking into my characters i always send them into rps as works in progress.

I come from live playing... in a larp group you -have- to fill in a character sheet, you have to blend your desired backstory into the greater picture of the groups story. So I am used to thinking about character's before hand. You have to pick something you can portray. So... the sexbomb in micro skirt isnt for me. Im chubby and I hate microskirts. The first wouldnt keep from trying... the latter? Makes no sense to try that chara at all. The treacherous bitch trying to gain power in a business costume? Hell yes!

One of my best charas ever was a malkavian. her only goal was to find other peoples triggers, just for rhe fun of it. She ended up being the most complex and powerful character i ever played... and she taught me most about how "being ic" can feel. She got angry fast. She striked at enenies without remorse. She was capable to torture the living shit out of people. She was sadistic and hotheaded. I could -feel- her loosing her humanity over the course if months, only one vampire trying to stop the process. It was -very- intense play. Bit of romance and all.... i had to give her up because I couldnt get into her beyond a certain point of turning a monster...

And yes... i agree that the partner has a BIG influence either... i too tried "same story, same characters" with two different partners... and characters and stories differed BIG TIME after the first few posts.
 
I'm not as literate as many of my fellow roleplayers. My characters tend to resemble myself or my RL Mistress.....since she's very.....uh, 'creative' when it comes to our sex play, usually involving bondage, clamping and gags
 
I kind of make up characters as I go. Sometimes, they’re based on a feeling or craving at the moment, sometimes they’re based on a partner’s wants. Usually, i start with a picture that inspires me, then I come up with a name for them. I don’t usually give much thought to a back story in the moment, so I kinda BS it as I go. If it fits the mood of the RP, then I go with it.
 
They start out as an idea. Moody dragon. Seasick pirate. Charming plague doctor. Pissed off hit woman. Exiled princess.

From there I figure out what their purpose is. Why did they come from? Where are they now? Where are they going?

Quirks? Obsessions? 'Default' personality? Are they attentive? Forgetful? Overeager? Careless?

If anything doesn't have a reason to be defined, I don't define it and let the story build them from there. I don't see a reason to figure out their life story, I let the way they respond to things tell that story for me.
 
-slams down a mug of...Sparkling apple juice because beer just grosses me out-

Lemme tell you about my absolute favorite and annoying thing ever to do in writing.

Character creation.

It's like spontaneous for me, it just happens when I don't want it to happen and it doesn't happen when I try to make it happen, its stupid.

Usually I get something going from a song I hear, a book or concept in the book and need a face for it. However recently as I'm progressing through my core college classes, I've noticed ancient history and stuff like that will for some reason...Help with character creation? I made an ancient Greek character >.> that was fun ugh...

My most recent just sort of happened because I was...Well still am going through a rough time but its plateaued right now. This character is just...He's all over the place, hyper, optimistic, but still clever and a bit manipulative.

I just think that the most unexpected times when characters are created make the best and most diverse ones. -shrugs- But its different for everyone.
 
An idea, usually involving a song, or a color, or something they want (and invariably couldn't get/have). Then I start roleplaying/writing/thinking about them to develop the story further/ to know more about them and how they function and react. I usually can tell when I finally find their 'key'; something that defines them as a person/ their life quest. I come from forum roleplaying/tabletop and they're usually long, involved RPs so I have the time to approach the characters this way.
 
Mixture of what I enjoy, who I wish I could be, myself or others can be found in my characters. For stories/plots, I draw from movies, books and just life in general because there is inspiration all around us.
 
I usually have a basic plot in mind before I create my characters. What's going on in the plot, what do I want to happen when I know these things then I come up with my character. What pivotal role they will play, who they are, and where they come from what type of life they have lead so far. What motivations, if any, do they have. The minor details aren't as important to me as what type of role my character will play or if there is a driving force behind their actions whether they are good or not.
 
My characters usually grow from a general idea. It could be exploration and researching in a fantasy setting, or being a doctor in a futuristic world with advanced medical knowledge and alien diseases.
From there, it usually takes a long time to get the character together. I start with the personality of the character and especially their quirks and habits to ensure a more full and interesting character. Along the way, thoughts about appearance and background story pops into my mind. I write them down into a list of crazy ramblings, which eventually is slimmed down to a full character profile.
I do, however, often leave out most, if not all, of the background. This is because many people don't seem to care about it, and because I come from the LARP environment, where you have to figure things out as you roleplay.

I guess that's it... It really is something that happens slowly as ideas pop into my head.
 
Norell said:
I do, however, often leave out most, if not all, of the background. This is because many people don't seem to care about it, and because I come from the LARP environment, where you have to figure things out as you roleplay.

That might be why I have an immediate aversion to writing a backstory on the spot when I make a character. I started out doing LARP myself (albeit a childish, playful version rather than a serious one), and I never made up a backstory unless I absolutely had to.
 
I start at the eyes. The shape, the coloration, whether they're dull or sharp, the cast of the brow surrounding them; eyes, in fiction, can express more of a character in a single page than any amount of exposition. What do these eyes look like, and what do they see in the world? What would someone feel if that gaze fell upon them, met their own? That's how it starts, for me.

From there, it depends. I develop their appearance based on who the story needs them to be, but their personality is who the story causes them to be; the rare exceptions are characters I've used elsewhere, most likely in D&D, who have already taken on significant personae of their own. Those, I use when I know what I want to see in a story, if only vaguely.
 
It all comes from a feeling, for me.

Just a general wisp of thing that you feel kind-of alongside where your muse resides. Just a sudden fleeting energy and pull of an idea, and you let it go. It's like a giant knot, and you just unravel the thing; in doing so, unknowingly weaving a tapestry.

Now, some tapestries can be flawed, others, perfect. Some can be powerful, others weak. The wear and use on the tapestry can create different textures, shapes, and patterns upon it.

To me, a character isn't something that's created. It's something that is just pulled into the literary world from somewhere else; your imagination. They exist in their entirety, with a purpose and being behind it all, it is up to you, as to how well you read and how deep your peer; that their incarnation is whole, or but a fragment.
 
I'm sure we've all had a moment where we develop a character based on a single, cool snapshot idea. Maybe this character has a particular power, backstory, or quirk that inspires us to shoehorn them into our RP. But for the betterment of our RP's, I always think it's a better idea to take a step back and evaluate whether or not this character would contribute to the RP.

Sure, having a character that has plot influence is important, but characters can also be used as a conduit to better personify the world of our RP.

Producing a character that can interact with other characters well is important for me. This isn't to say that every one of my characters has to be sociable, but I think that readers should definitely become interested in the character interaction dynamics. If I believe a character has the potential for interesting character interactions, then they'll most likely be added.

Also, I agree with Umbra - a character should be a living entity in itself. While we control these characters as the RPers, the character's actions should come off as natural. We shouldn't ever feel forced to make a character act a particular way. It's simply up to us to write out the feelings of these characters. When a RP starts, we are gods. But as the RP continues, we are demoted to simple messengers.
 
I find sometimes just creating characters to throw into plots later is fun, and I probably do this more than creating characters for plots that are actually there and being played. I love creating characters, and I usually will scour the internet looking for pictures of people, and then I will ask, what could their story but, what are they thinking behind those dark brown eyes? What put them in the position they are in. More than just, what is there name, and their age although those things are important.
 
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