Other What's the hardest thing for you when creating a character?

PhoenixMire

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When you're creating a character, what part of the creation process makes you struggle the most?

Sometimes coming up with magical powers or abilities can be slightly hard for me, but weirdly enough, the absolute hardest part about a character for me is their freaking name. :') I can come up with detailed information about their backstory, personality, their appearance, and absolutely everything else except a name. I dunno why I struggle with names so much.

What about you guys?
 
Appearance I think is the hardest. The basic backstory and overview is super easy. The powers are usually the starting point of the character in the plot.

But ask me to describe them or find a picture and it’s like D':
 
Makes sense, it can be hard to settle on an appearance.
The 'appearance' part is always fun for me though, since I draw my characters first, and while I'm drawing them everything else about them falls into place (like their personality and abilities and backstory and such), everything except the name lol
 
I think coming up with a name is difficult too! It's usually one of the last things I do when creating a character because most of the time I already have their background done. It's more of "What name would work well with what I've established with the character so far?"

Sometimes creating special abilities/powers is difficult too. If it's for a fandom RP, I don't want my character having powers that are similar to what a canon character already has. If it's for an original RP, I don't want my character having a powerful ability/god-tier powers unless I give them lots of limitations. (Ex. I gave one of my characters the power to manipulate time, but she can only do it within a very limited range. The more actions she does within that space, the more pain her body's going to go through. Etc, etc). I like the idea of making them inexperienced/weak so they can develop and grow throughout the RP.

More than anything, unless it's a fandom RP, I think the hardest thing for me is when people want me to make/fill out really detailed character sheets. I see nothing wrong with wanting as much information and detail for your characters. For some RPs, it's extremely valuable and very much needed. It's when it's down to the really specific stuff that sometimes makes me go "Wow, I guess I didn't think this out as well as I should have. Good thing the GM/mods gave me a detailed character sheet to fill out." Then actually going into it... What are their likes/dislikes? Do they have any scars? What are some quirks and habits they have? What's their favorite food/drink? I know some of these are more important than others towards shaping the character, but then I start to feel tied down to it. "Since it's so clearly defined that my characters are like this, then I should stick to following this."

Personally, I think having a more basic character sheet is a better fit for me. If I get into too many specifics, sometimes it'll make me think, "Oh, well, I gave them a scar on their left shoulder because that question of "do they have scars" on the character sheet made me feel like I should have one even though it was optional. I mean, everyone else in the group RP has a scar somewhere on their characters. I don't want to feel like my character is completely different from them?? And now, should I bring attention to that scar? Did they get it from some traumatic event? Is this scar so significant that I have to mention this again in their backstory? Or was it something that just got there by something that wasn't even a big deal? Why am I spending so much time thinking about something like this when I should be focusing on the rest of the character sheet???" Again, I know some people enjoy filling out as much information as they can when creating characters. Not my style though. As long as I have a rough idea of what kind of character I'm writing, I'll let things unfold as the story goes on.

Oof, sorry for the rambling! I guess this was something that I've been thinking about a lot lately, haha.
 
Backstory. As in, I know what I want to write but picking the right words to convey what's in my mind and conjuring it into a written form is incredibly hard, grinding work. I am a messy thinker, the kind of person whose mind builds things up piece by piece in a whim and without a nexus, leaving it a jumbled mess of ideas, headcannons and what-ifs.

Sometimes I write them all down into a list but separating what is good information for a backstory and what isn't, then chaining things coherently takes a lot of effort, not to mention that I need to be in a really good mood for something like that.

It's so intimidating that I end up putting off CSs longer than I should sometimes because the thought of having to write the backstory is a bit terrifying, or my mood isn't the greatest for such a job ^^'
I also normally leave the backstory for last, as a way of avoiding it the most I can... *sigh*
 
Deciding and typing are the hardest parts for me.

Deciding: My brain is often operating at either 8 or 80, so it takes me a little bit to get a bit to actually get going, but once I do it just starts flooding ideas into me and I can't do them all. I have to pick and choose what to discard, what to mix and how to mix it. Characters are one of the few things where I really let myself wait for inspiration, as while I don't trust that it's healthy to rely on inspiration, I find that a character concept is something I need to be extraordinary to properly motivate me to play it. Which is also why I can be a little touchy about people outright rejecting a character's concept instead of trying to fix the details.

Typing: After deciding what direction I want things to take though, it's usually a relatively fast process to decide the rest about the character. The problem then becomes actually typing it out. More often than not I have the entire character in my head, I will often have imagined entire scenes for them even, but then I sit down to type and it just doesn't come for whatever reason.
 
I think coming up with a name is difficult too! It's usually one of the last things I do when creating a character because most of the time I already have their background done. It's more of "What name would work well with what I've established with the character so far?"

Sometimes creating special abilities/powers is difficult too. If it's for a fandom RP, I don't want my character having powers that are similar to what a canon character already has. If it's for an original RP, I don't want my character having a powerful ability/god-tier powers unless I give them lots of limitations. (Ex. I gave one of my characters the power to manipulate time, but she can only do it within a very limited range. The more actions she does within that space, the more pain her body's going to go through. Etc, etc). I like the idea of making them inexperienced/weak so they can develop and grow throughout the RP.

More than anything, unless it's a fandom RP, I think the hardest thing for me is when people want me to make/fill out really detailed character sheets. I see nothing wrong with wanting as much information and detail for your characters. For some RPs, it's extremely valuable and very much needed. It's when it's down to the really specific stuff that sometimes makes me go "Wow, I guess I didn't think this out as well as I should have. Good thing the GM/mods gave me a detailed character sheet to fill out." Then actually going into it... What are their likes/dislikes? Do they have any scars? What are some quirks and habits they have? What's their favorite food/drink? I know some of these are more important than others towards shaping the character, but then I start to feel tied down to it. "Since it's so clearly defined that my characters are like this, then I should stick to following this."

Personally, I think having a more basic character sheet is a better fit for me. If I get into too many specifics, sometimes it'll make me think, "Oh, well, I gave them a scar on their left shoulder because that question of "do they have scars" on the character sheet made me feel like I should have one even though it was optional. I mean, everyone else in the group RP has a scar somewhere on their characters. I don't want to feel like my character is completely different from them?? And now, should I bring attention to that scar? Did they get it from some traumatic event? Is this scar so significant that I have to mention this again in their backstory? Or was it something that just got there by something that wasn't even a big deal? Why am I spending so much time thinking about something like this when I should be focusing on the rest of the character sheet???" Again, I know some people enjoy filling out as much information as they can when creating characters. Not my style though. As long as I have a rough idea of what kind of character I'm writing, I'll let things unfold as the story goes on.

Oof, sorry for the rambling! I guess this was something that I've been thinking about a lot lately, haha.
lol I totally understand the whole thing about some forms asking for too many details. I kinda find it fun sometimes to fill out super detailed character forms, just because I think it can be enjoyable to make new characters and ponder on all the little things about them. It gets my creativity going. But as for actually RPing those characters? That's a huge pain. I feel like I have to constantly reference back to my character form to make sure I'm getting all the details right. So yeah, for characters that I actually plan to RP, I prefer to omit some of the finer details and let myself figure those out in the RP itself.
 
Usually I have a lot of trouble coming up with a name. I leave it for last, unless a sudden good idea pops up early on (that rarely happens!).
Appearance probably is the second hardest.
I can make up an interesting (for me to rp) backstory and personality, but then deciding how the character looks like and how it's called is the absolute worst XD
 
Appearance, because I freaking suck at describing parts of the body.
 
Glad I'm not the only one who has a hard time with names, I'm currently struggling hardcore to name an OC lol
 
It seems we all have trouble with names. Sometimes I honestly just use a name generator resource (I know of many) when I struggle with it.

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Oddly enough, I find making characters pretty easy. Obviously it’s not quick, it takes me time, but aside from being a task that takes time, I don’t find it all that difficult. My brain just...cranks em out. It’s been that way since I was a kid. There’s just always people and worlds in my head that don’t actually exist.

Maybe this will come off as a humble brag. Honestly, it’s probably just that my characters aren’t very good or thought out. Whatever the case, that’s my experience with character creation. Everything just tends to fall into place for me.
 
It seems we all have trouble with names. Sometimes I honestly just use a name generator resource (I know of many) when I struggle with it.

This is so incredibly relatable
I'm slowly coming to realize that backstories are hard to come up with
 
Names aren't THAT difficult. Sometimes they come easily, sometimes I gotta whip out a generator but appearances can be a different story completely. Lot of threads either ask for or expect a picture to describe the character and before I even start typing I have something of an image of what I want the character to look like and then it's HOURS of just crawling online for an image that seems suitable and that brings the entire creation process to a grinding halt. Seems kinda dumb considering pictures aren't that big of a deal unless you're plugging it into your posts.

That problem with pictures applies differently depending on the thread though.

Pure fantasy / sci-fi characters - finding an image that displays the right amount of gear / theme / feeling that's both appropriate for the character I want as well as the setting.

In general/more slice of life - I'm going to be kinda rude here but, in general, a lot of players choose very attractive face claims so I'd go out of my way to find a more average looking face claim while still adhering to my previous concerns and... yeah not easy. I tried to create an older gruff, kinda tubby, Mediterranean/Middle Eastern space miner... took a looong time.

Should just get off my butt and try my hand at drawing them myself but I suck...
 
Names are insanely hard for me lol, I'm nitpicky beyond all reason and there are very, very few names that I like for my OCs. idk it's annoying
Appearances are fun for me to come up with since I love drawing my OCs, but yeah, art is hard. Nobody really starts out as a good artist, so hey, give it a shot if you'd like
 
Interesting how each person works differently. Names and appearances are easy, along with personality.

But it's the backstory/history that takes me a bit. But then again it depends if I'm doing something original or connecting into a fandom.

I really don't like making OCs for fandoms so I seldom do it because it's so difficult to make something balanced. I just struggle to connect to new characters in a setting I'm rather passionate/protective of. I think Pokemon and dot hack are the only two fandoms I could create an OC easily. Everything else, I just struggle with so I do try to stick to canons if possible.

But for a pure original setting, it's not that bad making OCs. I tend to play 2-3 personality type characters, the only thing I change is the appearance, origin, purpose and some little hobbies here and there depending if it's modern or fantasy or something else. So if it's a true, original character in a true original setting, it doesn't take long save for the history and even then, it's usually something typical/ordinary in terms of upbringing and lifestyle. I like me some normal, sweet characters haha. So I guess in that same idea, I'd struggle to make someone edgy or dark or mysterious or anything like that.
 
Backstory and personality can be hard for me. One, I'm not good at coming up with fictional life stories, and two, these two things tend to tie into each other and then I run into problems separating them into two sections again and making sure they neither conflict with each other nor stop making sense when read on their own.

Another thing I'm really bad at is finding face claims, both for realistic and anime/cartoon ones. I've actually reached the point where I don't really decide on a character's appearance anymore beforehand if I need to provide a picture, but just browse aimlessly through either portrait photos or illustrations until I find something where I feel it kind of fits with the character's concept and then maybe describe anything needed on top of that.

I used to struggle with names too (especially last names), but I tend to use a name generator for that by now. It actually often comes up with better combinations than I did, haha.
 
Find a pic that gets close to what i have in mind. I like to use brown skin female characters anime or other art styles but it's so hard to find a good model for the character.
 
I think for me, in general, it's probably determining the strengths and flaws. I can come up with an appearance okay, and the backstory but when it comes to strengths and flaws i get writers block and can't settle on things because my character either ends up too strong or too weak.
 
The backstory and strengths/flaws. I always have to really think about what strengths and flaws with fit the character and their personality. As well, as how their backstory made them who they are and what (or who) really shaped them. Finding the perfect appearance for the character can takes some time too.
 
I would say the personality of the character. Espeacially a new character I just created, one I am not attached to or invested in yet. It takes a while for their personality to become fixed if you get my meaning. Until then it’s just me throwing words and dialogue on a page.
 

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