Good morning, my poppets!  

On today's installment, we will finish up on my little series of creating OC characters that aren't terrible or instantly hated (by logical people, anyway).  Additionally, this lesson can be applied to writing non-OC characters if you're altering them from their original behaviors and giving them new traits.  

Anyway, moving along.

You've named your character.  

You know what they look like.  

Now it's time to add the flavor.

A character's traits are what brings them to life.  They are what makes up the character's personality, mannerisms, and behaviors.  Real people have a wide mixture of different traits.  In order to create a character with dimension, they should also have a mixture of traits.  

To illustrate this, let's look at some examples of how characters fail at being real and, thus, at being successful characters. (None of these are from actual fics but are conglomerates based on characters I've seen in fics)

Characterization No-Nos

1.) The Brainwashed Kumquat

This is a character with pretty much no personality.  They exist, and that's about it.  This is the character that is introduced, kind of stands there, maybe agrees with everything the canon characters say, and then goes away until the next time they're needed.  

Unless this is the personality you're going for (and there'd better be a damn good plot-related reason for it if it is) you've gotta give them something more than "pretend you're a potted ficus" for motivation or no one is going to remember this character, let alone actually like them.

2.) The Rebelliously Angry Honey Badger

This is the OC that comes tearing into the fic with guns blazing.  Like Potatohead from the Toy Story franchise, they've packed their ANGRY EYES, and they're not afraid to use them.  

They argue with everyone about everything.  They're always right and if you don't like it, you can fuck off.  They're often super rude, have issues with authority, swear for the shock value, and are generally asshats.

If someone like this walked up to you and started acting like that, would you actually like them?  Most likely you would not.  And yet these characters often pop up and dominate a story to the point where everyone in the story is absolutely in love with them.

3.) The Perfect Princess of Plum Blossoms

If there's a "good" trait, this character has it.  They're generous, selfless, sweet, kind, caring, non-confrontational, 1950's Stepford Disney Princesses.  They are Mary Poppins in that they are practically perfect in every way, yet they still have about as much personality as a brainwashed kumquat.  

And this isn't just reserved for female characters.  I've seen male characters made of just as much sugary goodness.

No real person is this saccharine without being sarcastic about it.

4.) The Angsty Wet Blanket

But I wanna finish this guide right nooooooooooooow... this is stupid.  I hate this.  No one understands meeeeeeee.  My life sucks because my parents won't let me go out with the guy that just got out of prison.  My parents are stupid and they're so unfair to meeeeeee, they grounded me for a bajillion years because I was caught shoplifting and doing drugs behind the school- *smack*  

Knock that shit off.  

If you want to write an overly melodramatic character that gets on everyone's nerves, then this is a great launching point for making that character.  

You want to write a realistic character that people will relate to and even like?  Then stay away from angsty wet blankets.

5.) The Obvious Bad Guy

I'm planning to do a separate chapter about writing a good villain, so I won't go over much on this one.  The main thing to take away from this is that if your OC is a bad guy, don't give them every bad trait known to man.  First of all, that's overkill.  Secondly, just like in real life, a villain will have a mixture of traits from all over the spectrum.  So maybe your bad guy has anger issues, is super mean, hates everything, and wants to destroy the world.  But maybe they also are fiercely loyal to their friends, considerate of their henchmen's home-life schedules, and are acting the way they are because they honestly think they have the world's best interests at heart.

6.) The Amazing Multi-Talented Unicorn

This character is good at everything.  They can sing.  They can dance.  They can solve astrophysics problems in their heads.  They are also black belts in multiple disciplines.  They can shoot a penny off a fence post 200 yards away with their eyes closed.  They speak twelve languages, including Latin.  Their art is often mistaken for the work of Monet.  They are regularly called by government officials to give their opinion on top secret projects.  They're a secret government agent that is also an assassin for a private company, and they do all their own stunts.  NASCAR has nothing on their ability to drive any vehicle they're handed.  They can fly an airplane.

Oh, did I mention they're 13?

It's fine to give your character a few things they're super good at.  Even better if you explain how they were able to get so good at it.  And if the character is young, it's vital you are able to explain how they're so good at it.  

7.) The Clumsy Kitten

This is Kim Namjoon, the poor guy.  He's a real life Clumsy Kitten.  His ability to break things is legendary.  

You know who else is clumsy?  Almost every single OC character in the known universe.  Why?  Because clumsy has somehow become the go-to trait for fic authors who are trying to make their OC feel real and relatable.

For those of us who are naturally clumsy, it's a little annoying.  I once sprained my knee walking on a flat surface.  I have bruises all over my body and, when my husband asks where they came from, I can only shrug.  I banged against something at some point; it happens so often I hardly notice anymore.  I have a scar on my forehead from where I once sneezed my face into the corner of a coffee table.  I'm a fucking clumsy kitten but it isn't my only personality trait.

That is where authors using the clumsy trait often fail.  For many clumsy OCs, that's all they get in the author's attempt to flesh them out.  It's also often attached to #6 in an attempt to counteract negative response toward that character.

"My OC isn't an Amazing, Multi-talented Unicorn!  They're clumsy!"

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These are just a few of the pits writers seem to fall into when creating OCs.  I hope that, by pointing them out, it can help you recognize what to avoid when putting together a successful OC.

Some key things to remember:  

Real people do things for a reason.  Every character has a motivation for how they behave, and each character has the potential to react differently to the same event.  Someone who is slow to anger won't have a violent reaction to something that upsets them, whereas someone with a short temper might explode from the same stimulus.

Real people are not defined by a single trait.  It's okay to have a clumsy character, but there has to be more to them.  

Real people make mistakes.  If your character never makes any questionable decisions, they're not that realistic.  Everyone makes mistakes; let your character fuck up and then show how someone with their personality handles the mistake.  A character with anxiety will respond a LOT differently than one without it.

Real people don't like everyone.  This one is important.  It's okay if your OC doesn't like everyone in the story.  It's okay if not everyone in the story likes your OC.  Case in point, Six and Hoseok do not like each other.  They tolerate each other, they get along fine and will work together, but they do not like each other.  You don't have to like someone to get along with them.

Real people grow over time.  This is also important to remember.  Characters can change as time goes by.  That's a good thing.  So if your character is insufferable, then have them grow and evolve.  (Just look at Zuko in ATLA; he's a perfect example of an asshat who grew and evolved into something much better than his original form).  Just remember that this growth isn't instantaneous; people don't just change overnight.

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That's about all for today, folks.  I know it isn't super detailed but that's because if I went into great detail, we'd be here all day and this chapter would be longer than the entirety of "War and Peace."

If you're working on creating an OC and want to have a more in-depth discussion about it, feel free to hit me up.  I'm happy to help. 

Otherwise, familiarize yourself with the no-no list and make sure you're not falling into that pit.

Unless you're a clumsy kitten.  In which case, fall right in.  But make sure you react to it accordingly.

Peace!

~Littie~