Creating Original Characters - Tumblr Posts
H-How do you come up so many idea for your ocs?? I have one OC and they’re basically my self insert but I didn’t give them a name yet let alone a backstory and personality lmao 🧍🏻♀️😭
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Bruhhh it took me SO LONG to come up with these ideas. If it makes you feel better, I’ve been working on (most) of my OCs for ten years. It just takes time. Think about the world/setting they’re in, and go from there. Give them good and bad traits. For example;
In my world magic is illegal and Mages are either killed or taken away by Royalists to an unknown location. John is a really good fighter, which is useful against Royalists and other such problems. However, John is also a hothead who loves to CAUSE fights as much as he loves to finish them.
Blake is an ok fighter, but he spends wayyy too much time forming plans. Like, he can’t fight unless he has a game plan, and when you’re a wanted man who runs the risk of getting cornered wherever you go, that’s not a great quality to have. However, his plan-making skills are extremely good and can be useful at the right times. He’s also AMAZING at reading/making maps, while John is awful. Their differences are exactly why they’re such a good team. They balance each other out.
These are basic characters qualities, but they’re a great place to start. Once you have a basic character, it becomes easier to add on to them and made them interesting, complex people! Do they struggle with inner demons? Chronic pains? Mental illnesses? Do they have children or other loved ones? Are they loners? Do they have pets? A favorite food? A least favorite color? It’s all up to you to round them out, but trust me, as daunting as it seems it’s also really fun :)
seeing everyone's oc made me realize how plain my ocs are damn 😂
It took so long for me to create interesting OCs, I promise 😭 I’ve been working on most of my OCs for years. The best thing you can do actually is try filling out like, template sheets for giving OCs personality. Things like “favorite food, favorite color, biggest pet peeve, favorite hobby, least favorite chore, etc”. It may sound silly but that was what really helped me add more to my characters. Just remember to add strengths and flaws. All the best characters are imperfect in some way. And give characters opposing personalities too (Blake likes to think things through but John likes to tackle things head-first. They have opposing personality traits)
The only thing harder than giving them personality is giving them good outfits 😐