What are you thinking RIGHT NOW?

[S1mb4 D4 L10n]

Funny how these military marches sound like they could be played at Disneyland.

[Tsuki]

Maggy-This is true! Plus it's almost 2am

[FireAndSun]

I don't want to go to school tomorrow. Kill me.

[Gemini]

GeminiGemelo Quote: show

Nice discussion going on here, guys! I think I'll weigh in.

Anyway, trying to separate plot from characters is one of those things that I honestly think is easier said than done. In my experience, the plot affects the characters and they affect the plot. In the past, I feel like I mostly made plot-centric stories, and the characters were kinda developed in tandem with what was going on and tweaked as the plot needed (my fanfiction, Trampled, is a prime example of that. People still like it after four years but looking back it was really just the strength of the prose in places and the suspense/plot twists, etc. that mostly kept people interested. And the character development kind of went alongside that. But there are plot holes and weird inconsistencies in places for sure when I look at it now).

In my current project, though, I feel like (especially since we are planning out the whole story before we go) the process is a little different. We kind of ended up making and tweaking the plot around the characters, and not the other way around. The result is something that's a lot more grounded and character-driven, and that honestly helps 1) make better characters and 2) make sure everyone is in character and acting consistently through the course of the plot, which helps make the plot better, too. In other words, I feel like we are getting a better and more compelling story all around by tackling it this way, which makes me question why I didn't do it earlier.

Like I may have said before, I feel more attached to this original universe/set of characters/plot than any of the other ones I ever created. Sure, I may have tried to make up worlds and such, but that spark that comes with having a good, solid, developed character simply wasn't there.

Last night me and my friend tried to develop one of our characters and it honestly almost felt to me, in a weird sort of way, that we were uncovering her instead of merely creating her. We kinda came up with a back story that matched her personality, and that further validated those personality traits and then... IDK. Everything just kind of came together.

So yeah, back story is definitely important, too, as it explains who the characters are and allows you to really get into their heads.

In short, our process has been along the lines of visual design -> name -> basic info/personality -> back story -> more personality (and more back story as needed) -> finished character. Seems to work pretty well, as I like these OCs far more than any others I've made in the past.

Wow This is seriously nice. I've learned some stuff with this. I may try it next time

Thanks! Happy to know that you found it helpful.

[S1mb4 D4 L10n]

I'm thinking about how cute that girl is above me ^^

[it means no worries]

Get a room

--

I simply dont have enough time to do everything I want to

[Marizzle]

Ohhh, I can't believe I guessed it right!

[Braveheart]

I dream one day the TLK RPs here will take flight.

[SimbasMate]

I'm tired but I don't feel like sleeping.

[S1mb4 D4 L10n]

Zootopia was awesome