User blog:Northstar1012/Northstar's Blog Corner - Guide to creating characters



As the name suggests, today's blog has to do with creating characters. Now what is the difference between this character creation blog and the other character creation's blog? Absolutely nothing lol This blog is merely to give an explanation of how I, personally, create characters and what's the thought process behind it all. So take none of what I say seriously :)

For easier reading, I'm breaking this blog down in sections in the order that I structure my articles in: Introduction, Appearance, Personality, History, Plot, Equipment (If it applies), Magics & Abilities, Trivia (If it applies). I'll try and give a good explanation for each, detailing what I do in each step.

But before I begin...
There's a few things that you need to figure out before you even start the article, and this comes down to a very basic question: Who is this character?

What's funny is that if you couldn't answer this question right away, then you're a good writer because you're really asking yourself that question. You're thinking about the details and not the overview. You're thinking about a backstory and not just the magic. And to me, that sort of thinking is crucial.

Now, if you answered this question almost immediately, the answer is usually something along the lines of: "I want to make a badass character with a badass magic that can beat anyone because go Team Natsu." And there's nothing wrong with thinking that way. Just don't kid yourself into thinking that its something else to justify you simply wanting a powerful character. But you have to understand that the characters you write will only be lumps of words together unless you focus on more than just one area.

The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.
This brings me to another important note before beginning any character: MAGIC doesn't define a character. You need to fight the urge to just want to create a powerful character. We all want a badass character. We all want someone that can take on anyone and be at the top of the pedestal all the time. But, unfortunately, there isn't a place for that on this wiki. What happens is new users come here wanting to create a Quad Elemental Dragon Slayer or a World-Maker that can mold anything from anything. And its mainly stemming from the desire to be the best, the almighty, the OP. Then admins do their job and explain the rules and how you can't have that kind of stuff. And then, POOF, they disappear because they were being "limited" on a fanfiction site. Characters are so much more than just magic, and the sooner we realize that, the better our articles will be.

Sure, you can have powerful characters, but everything has a limit, everything needs be in moderation and you need to explain very well why this character is powerful. Are they an antagonist your main character is trying to defeat? Then sure they should be powerful. But if your character right off the bat is super powerful and you don't have any direction yet for them, then you really just wanted to create a powerful character. And then it turns into a one-off character that just lives on the site but doesn't do anything.

If everyone has Slayer Magic, is it Lost Magic anymore?
Another note, and the admins can't stress this enough, is the Slayer Magic. Why is Slayer Magic limited on this site? Simple. Because it's Lost, meaning RARE. If everyone is a Slayer of some sort, then you're ordinary. Not special. Not rare. Not lost. Not powerful. And another thing. There is this massive misconception that being a Slayer automatically means your power level shoots up above everyone else. Do you know what being a Slayer really means? Being a Slayer means that your character has a list of unique spells that no other characters have access to. Thats really it. They are powerful because the person wielding them are powerful, not the other way around. Slayer magic doesn't grant you extra power. There are so many characters in Fairy Tail that are so powerful and not Slayers: Erza, Markarov, Hades to name a few. Why is Slayer Magic so specail in canon Fairy Tail? Because it truly is rare. There are only a handful of them. And some of them only have it because of Lacrima implants. I have to agree with the admins on this one. There are so many other magics that get overlooked that can just as awesome. But get overlooked because you want a Natsu ripoff. Any why is Natsu so strong? Because he is the protagonist. Meaning, he'll always be strong with no explanation. Either his enemies don't do any damage (Sting and Rogue, two Slayers, did really nothing against him) or he finds himself accessing some level of strength never seen before until convenient. He's by no means a good example of a great character.

Anyways, I've gone off on a tangent and won't be able to finish this blog in one shot. So I leave it here and will update as soon as I can.

In closing...
Let me know what you guys think and what are your thoughts and I'll check you later!

North.