Hey guys! Yes, it's been forever since I posted a lesson and I am terribly sorry for that. I promised to update weekly, but I couldn't do it because of uni. I could barely update my fanfics, all the more the extra books I've committed myself to update. I hope 2019 would be a better year for me and for you guys, as well.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! And let's get this lesson started!

Lesson 5 || How to Keep the Original Characters of the Anime from Getting OOC

Okay, so in the past some people have asked me tips on how to keep characters from getting OOC or out of place. For novice writers, this is a mandatory act. You can use the characters from the anime, but you have to keep them in line or else you're going to trigger your readers.

Accounting for what I have written, this may prove to be difficult and I continuously struggle at this, especially when the character is complex. If your story is set in an alternate universe--so obviously the character might be a little different because of the circumstances, or like what I do, the story is a post-story--it is set after the anime/game/manga/whatever, so things may have happened.

An example of this would be Ayato Sakamaki in my book Terror In Resonance: Beginning of Sorrows.

We all get that he and his bros are all sadists, all hungry, perverted vampires. He's an arrogant dick who's addicted to takoyaki and hates his parents with his entire soul (though that includes all his brothers). Imagine a setting where his love for Yui has become genuine and pure, that he has saved enough to get him and Yui a decent apartment. Imagine how he would be like after her influence on him.

So I manipulated that and changed him. His core is still there, but the change is justified. By the way, y'all are more than welcome to read it, hehe.

This is a possible excuse for an unfamiliar attitude for an anime/game/manga/whatever character that you do not own. I don't know any other reason why the personas shouldn't be true to their origin.

Then getting to the point of this lesson, I have a few tips that I would list down that I hope will prove worthy of your time here, and that I hope would prove itself actually helpful.

1) Read the wiki's description of the character

This is the number one thing I do first before starting a fanfic. This allows you to understand the character second-hand, because the description is obviously written by a fan. And it's easier in the sense you don't need to keep analyzing the character by watching how he or she acts. But often, reading the description is not enough.

Doing this is like reading a manual--a guideline to how you could keep the character true. After all, you can't write the character if you don't know their likes, dislikes, and etc. They even list down the punchlines each character has, including trivia that they found beyond just the anime/game/manga whatever. 

2) Watch the anime/read the manga again and again if you have to

Actually, this is the best way to understand the character. And that's because you get to see the character interact with other characters, so you don't have to exactly scratch your head wondering how the character might act towards other characters. 

When you watch an anime/read the manga you would be able to see the habits the character unconsciously displays: like fidgeting fingers, restlessness, or even chewing of sugar cubes like Yuma. You'll even catch punchlines and see when and why they say. It's easier and more efficient.

 You'll get to see when and how and why the act like that, so it gives you a better understanding of the character instead of just trying to get the idea. In the previous chapter, we discussed what origins the character may be and why it is fundamental to understand their core.

Understanding the character is more than reading their personality, it comes with understanding their backstory. Being able to relate would really help you.

3) Search up the horoscopes the character is under

I kinda relate to Subaru because he is a Scorpio like me. 

Being a Scorpio doesn't mean that everything you do is like what was listed, but the character's personality should dominantly be like that of a Scorpio. It helps you see what you could possibly do with the character, and see what they might like or dislike even if it isn't listed in their bio. It could also help you see if what you have in mind is possible. For example, is it possible for Subaru to ask MC on a date? If so, how could he do it or not depending on the situation? Depending on the horoscopes of the character, how they act or approach a certain situation is different.

Stuff like this helps, and you should do whatever means possible to keep the character from getting out of hand. Doing a bit of research really helps.

Then lastly,

4) Check if there are characters similar to the character/Check the character stereotype

Ok, so this is my ideal type: the brother type. If you guys don't know him, he's Makoto Tachibana from Free! and is the leader type who does the motivating. In this kinds of cases, he is the big bro stereotype, and in almost every sports anime, there is that big bro stereotype. Though yeah, big bros exist in a lot of anime if not all.

If you're having a hard time understanding, you could just check other stereotypes the character is under. For example, other big bros would be:

Kiyoshi Teppei from Kuroko no Basket

Kaiji Kiyose from Run with the Wind

Basically, it is possible to further understand the character by searching for his counterparts in other anime. Though they are not the same person, they have similar characteristics that may help you in understanding another character based on the stereotype.

♣.♣.♣.♣

I hope you wonderful people found this helpful, comment your thoughts, suggest ideas, and good luck on your writing~♥

*gives you a bear hug*

See you at the next chap~!! And please comment if you found this helpful because I want to know what you readers think. Also, if you want to learn anything else, don't hesitate to comment either ^^

On second thought, REQUEST IDEAS FOR LESSONS.