A Comprehensive Guide to Not Making Your OC Suck

This could get a part two-

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Henlo!

Before I get started on this, a quick disclaimer: this post is not intended to attack or insult anyone or their characters. It is supposed to be a gentle (but snarky) nudge for character creators to hopefully improve and flesh out their creations.

Now we can get down to business.

Tip #1 : Balance is key

I'm sure you're already aware that no one is perfect - which is definitely just a plain simple fact in the real world that we live in. However, when it comes to creating our own characters, it's easy to get carried away with giving them powerful abilities and amazing personalities. You've likely already heard the term "Mary Sue", and for the people who live under a rock: a Mary Sue is essentially a character that is perfect or very close to perfection - they can do no wrong and cannot lose.

For each good trait that your character has (such as brave or honest) try giving them a bad trait (such as obnoxious or short-tempered). I should point out that unless these bad traits can/will cause problems for your character, there is no point in you adding them and you should rethink what negative traits to give them. For example, listing "perfectionist" as a negative trait is pretty pointless if this means your character won't show any signs of this aspect of their personality, eg by refusing to do a task that needs doing straight away to complete a more mundane task that they already started.

Flaws are just as necessary as attributes in characters - so don't forget them! Let your character lose fights, lose arguments and be in the moral wrong sometimes.

Tip #2 : Outline their quirks

No one wants a boring character, right? This is why it is important to give your characters unique or perhaps strange features, mannerisms and habits.

Whilst your character doesn't have to be extremely eccentric - even small, subtle quirks help your character feel three-dimensional and fleshed out. You don't necessarily have to give a reason for their quirks (maybe they just like doing those things) but giving a reason behind why your character has these quirks is not a bad idea.

For example, maybe your character uses made-up words for certain things, or maybe they enjoy collecting bottle caps because it reminds them of a deceased loved one. It can be as random as you like, of course. Just be careful not to overdo this, unless you want your character to be eccentric.

Tip #3 : Establish what they want

Every character, regardless of their stance, needs some form of motivation, need or desire in order to allow a story to flow naturally. Some characters may only have one primary goal (e.g. wealth, power, revenge) but this is usually not a very effective way to write a well-rounded, compelling character. For a rule of thumb, try to give your character at least two goals.

Allowing your character's aims to explain why they do the things that they do in their story is extremely crucial. Having your character carry out actions just for the sake of them is not good story telling at all! For extra spice, try to have your character's goals conflict with each other - for instance, your character wants to and protect a vulnerable loved one, but also wants to travel the world to hunt down a specific person for revenge.

Tip #4 : Choose a charming name

Now, this one might seem a bit ridiculous - but bare with me here. Your character's name is a pretty important choice, as it can influence what readers will assume your character is like before delving any further.

It goes without saying that your character's name needs to be realistic in of where they are from. Having a character from Medieval whose name is "Sakura" would be really out of place, wouldn't it? It wouldn't hurt to have a look through baby name websites and search by name origin, then select the country that your character is from. There is name generators for characters from fictional cultures as well.

Whilst the meaning of your character's name doesn't have to be deep, having a name with a meaning that describes your character (or ironically is the opposite of them) is definitely a bonus. Give a reason as to why they were given this name! Were they named after a deceased loved one? A celebrity from their parents' time? And do they like their name, or do they cringe at it?

And that's everything!

For now.

I hope this bspires some people to expand on their characters and stories.

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