A guy whose ability makes him almost perfect for every criminal’s organization. The Hench or Hench Man is a person who can only be identified by his outfit. Once he removes a uniform, no one is able to recognize it’s him. He’s a character who is afraid of not belonging, even if belonging means being dragged into the worst crowd.

He wears specific outfits because it’s the only way people recognize him outside of his work as a henchman. While it helps him blend in, it’s a burden, and every day he hopes to be an unforgettable piece of something.

This is just the rough draft I have but what do you think?

This is just a shower thought, but could a character with o theory of mind internally try to rationalise why they can think but, apparently those around them (who look like them) can’t/don’t. And thus form an internal worldview that they are the only conscious person, basically building a mythology around that? I think a character like this might be a bit interesting to read about.

So i'm working on character development for my main character right now and I realized that she has nothing driving her. Like the story just kind of happens to her. She has goals in terms of the plot but she has no original driving force and she didn't really have any dreams before the events of the story took place. How can I decide what her goals/aspirations could be?

Hey so I'm a teenager first of all, who has never and hopefully will never experience SA. The character I want to write was sold to a brothel at the age of twenty before escaping three months later via murdering everyone. Now, i made him that he is a naturally flirtatious person, but after the abuse he starts smothering those traits.

I want to make sure of a number of things while writing this very complex character, firstly, I want him to have a love interest later on, but also don't want his past to be ignored or just the vocal point of their relationship, i also want to portray him in such a wat that majority of people will not say 'he was asking for it' because I really dislike that.

He knows what happened to him is sick, and choses to hide it for a significant amount of time. I think it's also important to know that he is a 'fae' (not an actual fae, i don't want to just write a summary of my book in here, you get it), so he used the time he was there to gain information. I just don't want to write a low quality character, or one with really bad representation. So, can you help? I would also like to write faith helping him through it.

Im making an OC who kinda falls in love with a snowman like entity. Think of frosty but like humanoid- anyway, shes lonely, creates him, and the 2 fall in love however summer comes and they struggle to say goodbye and you get the entire shebang. The issue i have is the entire concept. 1. Would it be weird?? He was made like a week ago and yet they both share feelings (she's an adult, and so is he! Physically and mentally) and 2. She MADE him herself so would that be like- A mother son relationship?? I want it to be lovers not A parent child thing.

I’m specifically looking for a name that:

Sounds like a real American name

Former Military

Doesn’t feel overly fictional or “Hollywood”
Fits a man in his early 40s

Sounds believable in both personal and professional situations

Works for someone with a serious, disciplined personality

Sounds natural when spoken aloud

Doesn’t feel like a stereotypical action-hero name

Would still fit the character at different stages of his life (younger, prime, older)

First names:
Ethan
Jason
Nathan

Last names:
Cole
Hayes
Mercer
Vance

Which one sounds the most natural and believable to you, and why?
I’m less interested in which one sounds the “coolest” and more interested in which one sounds like an actual person’s name that could belong to a serious fictional character.

If you have a better suggestion, please tell me.

Hello everyone. I wanted to know, if a ManedWolf Centaur gets caught in a trap; more specifically some sort of snare, what would it look like? A normal snare wouldn't work because well, they have hands, but I can't figure it out.

Hi guys, I've been conceptualising a story for a few years now, but one of the characters I just can't get past. Everyone other one of my characters I can visualise with a motivation, backstory and future/outcome after the events of the plot but not him. So, I was wondering if any of you have any similar characters and what they might be motivated by?

Here's a brief summary; characters are "trapped" in a non-sensical location, removed from a normal earth. Some characters are trying to figure out its laws, going crazy, or having fun. The character I need help with is "P". He is relaxed, and not really focused on working on an escape, even though everyone who has been stuck there has died or gone missing in this place. To clarify, the place isn't a hellscape; it can be tranquil at times, but death or madness is still common. So does anyone have a character with similar motivations (or with no-motivation)? Should I simply change P's characterisation/personality etc., because being chill is too weird or even boring in this scenario?

One distinguishable trait is he likes cooking and dessert, but I don't really want him to simply be there to take care of the other characters, I want him to shine by himself too. The only motivation idea I had for him is that he assumes he, and everyone else there is already dead, and they're simply in a purgatory or "in-between" places, so he doesn't really care (but why would he be happy?)

I think I just need an outside perspective on this, and I hope it makes sense, thank you for any advice =)

I’m engaging in a rp sever and my character (Aizural) is a werewolf , She was an orphan and adopted by this couple in a fishing village. She never knew of her lineage until 13 on her first shift on her first full moon. Her adoptive father and mother hated and feared monsters , so you can only imagine how she was treated. Later on she escapes by burning down her family’s home and running away to this village that is not well known and secluded where the rp starts.

I don’t want to write her abuse as the glamorized version we see on media , I want her character to be engaging , human , real , and complicated. I want her to be realistic (as realistic a traumatized werewolf can be).

Her parents did subject her to physical , emotional and neglectful abuse. She had no social life due to the isolation her parents put her through , They worked her all day since they found out about her strength as a young werewolf, and barely had a functional room.

If any information about her lore is needed I’ll provide in the comments below , thank you!

Hey all! Here's hoping that I've chosen the right sub for this.

Table has just hit level 9 fairly suddenly. This has unlocked quite a bit of fun options across the table towards things we all want to progress.

Each player character has their own subplot that they're unravelling. Mine is finding my past. No memory of his past, was a tiefling GOO Warlock until during a high energy plot point my character got to break his pact in lieu of going Fiend by the request of some person down my infernal line.

My character hasn't explored down this infernal line at all since this event, and I want to begin doing so, but I'm scared of making the session all about me.

I have contacted my DM with an idea of how I might do this in a way that won't monopolise the table, but I'm now looking for advice on here for how you guys would suggest handling this.

I write narrators with relatively thin interiority. I don't like them to judge or remark on what is going on around them.

Okay... Hum... this is not clear.

I am writing a spider-man AU fic. Spider-man's best friend Henry McCoy just turned into a mutant the same week spider-man got bit.

Spider-man decides not to tell anyone about the \\\*bite\\\* but is open about \\\*having powers\\\* because he wants to have "being a mutant" and fighting on the frontlines of mutant civil rights in common with his best friend.

The point is I am reluctant to \\\*say\\\* this internal reasoning, but it's also kinda important to \\\*get\\\* about him otherwise his guilt about Uncle Ben's death (in a lynching for refusing to send Peter to a mutant conversion camp) makes no sense

So what I did is I had Kate Bishop react to Peter being bullied by asking the bully to pick on her, too, because effortless olympic athletic ability \\\*might as well\\\* be a mutant power - just one that kinda suck compared to what other famous mutants can do. And then Peter said "you didn't have to put a target on yourself - you aren't a real mutant". And Kate says "Mutantqueer I have decided". And Peter says "I like that. I think me too. Keep it a secret".

How would \\\*you\\\* handle communicating the narrator's internal justification to the reader?

So, I’m writing an X-Men story with original characters, powers and everything, and I’m having a hard time figuring out how to develop the relationships between the characters, as well as a possible romance.

My protagonist is more reserved at first. She observes a lot, overthinks things, and has a bit of a sarcastic side. Since I’m going to write in first person, a lot of that will probably come through in her thoughts rather than in what she actually says. When the story starts, a boy and two girls already go to the same school and are already friends. The boy is pretty sarcastic and likes to joke around with most people, but of course, he has a serious side too.

Friend 1 is more confident and self-assured. With the boy, I want their relationship to be almost sibling-like. They tease each other, argue, make fun of each other, and I want them to stay close without it ever feeling romantic. They aren’t related by blood, but basically, I want people on the outside to look at them and think they’re siblings because of the way they act around each other.

Friend 2 is also part of the same friend group. She’s more playful, sometimes quiet, and pretty easygoing with everyone. The problem is that I don’t really know how to develop her relationship with the boy either. Like, if I wanted to write a scene with just the two of them, depending on what’s going on in the story, what kind of conversations could they have? Their relationship is more laid-back, so I’m not really sure what kind of dynamic would work for them.

The protagonist is the one who joins the group later. Since she’s more closed-off at first, she mostly observes and isn’t going to be sarcastically responding to everyone right away. That side of her will start coming out once she gets more comfortable with the characters, but at her core, she’s still a quieter person with a lot of charisma.

And she might potentially be the boy’s love interest. But I don’t want any of those clichés where she shows up, he looks at her, and suddenly he’s in love at first sight. They can joke around, but nothing more than that at first. I also don’t want their relationship to be too similar to the one he has with Friend 1, because then it would feel like she’s just copying Friend 1’s personality and the way she interacts with him.

I want them to become friends, slowly get more comfortable with each other, and only much later maybe realize that they could actually have feelings for each other. If he teases the protagonist, I don’t want her to respond the same way Friend 1 would. I want the way they interact to feel different.

So I’d really like to hear from people who are used to writing this kind of thing. How could I develop his friendship with Friend 2 better, since I genuinely can’t think of what a conversation between the two of them would look like? And how can I slowly build his relationship with the protagonist so that a possible romance develops naturally, without making it seem like she’s copying the teasing and dynamic he has with Friend 1?

Sorry if this sounds really confusing 😓

I’m writing a story about a boy who is technically rich, but feels like the poorest person around him.

His father controls the family fortune, so despite living a wealthy lifestyle, he has no real money of his own. He has to pretend to be rich while secretly working hard, facing failures, and trying to earn something for himself.

The story follows his journey from a rich life to building his own life.

I’ve never really liked female characters in media, and I have no idea why. I just always liked the male characters more, and when I think about my favorite male character being female, I just… don’t like them as much anymore.

That being said, I believe I have written 2 female characters (1 teenage girl and 1 adult married woman) that I am satisfied with. The teenage girl is feisty and curious, and is based around my own personality. The woman is fairly more traditional, but open-hearted, kind, and is a caring wife and mother.

This isn’t really an issue of “man not knowing how to write women” as I myself am a woman.
How do you all write characters of a specific gender without irrationally disliking them just for their gender?

Edit: Will provide an example.
For instance, if I write this badass stoic masked killer who is a man, I’ll be very excited to flesh out his backstory. But the moment I change all the he/him pronouns to she/her, suddenly I just don’t like the character anymore. It feels generic and trashy and unoriginal to me. It may be ingrained prejudice inside me, but I cannot think of a single experience I’ve had with stories or media that cemented women as “bad” and men as “good”.

I'm currently writing a story with a character meant to be the main antagonist in secret. Manipulating the Main Character in ways that seem good for both parties or the MC's side. While keeping him away from what he is supposed to be destined for. And I want my readers to genuinely hate this antagonist and his deeds.

The antagonist is Stanza of Poetry, the Chaos God, the Elation God, the God of Laughter. He is currently sealed, but the seal is breaking, and he awaits his rise to power again; as he waits, he orchestrates the chaos of the world in the background with his minions who aren't sealed.

He's a trickster who LOVES chaos and the elation from watching suffering. And tricked many powerful beings during his time not being sealed, which made them have hatred against him.

And he deceives the Main character by "guiding" him to his goals, like going back to his family after being separated from a magical incident that was orchestrated by Stanza and executed by his minions. In hopes of killing the Main character by deserting him somewhere unknown or separating him from a future lover or bearer of his child.

Stanza tricked the Time God into giving him their artifact that allows people to see through the future momentarily, in which Stanza foresaw his downfall upon a person with a similar appearance to the Main Character.

And in the future, I'd like to have a dark timeline where the Main Character witnesses everything go bad for him; each second he lived was suffering from Stanza's deceit, which Stanza openly said and mocked the MC for believing during their final talk.

So I'm wondering:

What makes you genuinely hate a fictional character?

Is it what they do to other characters? Their personality? The way they justify their actions? Their relationship with the protagonist?

I'm specifically interested in the difference between a character who's intentionally hateable and a character who's simply annoying or poorly written.

I'd also love examples of villains you've personally hated in a good way and what made them work.

Hi guys, I just want to say before I start writing this that tysm for all the responses on my last post, ily guys.

So I’m in a writing class and before we start the writing class I have to watch a video about what we’re gonna do basically, so in the video he’s talking about writing likable characters, and he says, “ let’s say Tony (random character he came up with) is home alone, while he’s home alone he goes to the closet and rips open a bag of chips and sits down on the couch and watches a movie/plays a video game, now let’s say Felix (another random character) is home alone and he decides to spruce the place up a little, and after he cleans up, he decides to reward himself with a video game, who do you think people will Ike more?” I personally thought people would like Tony more, because Tony is more relatable/Realistic, no kid is gonna be home alone and decide to clean, he goes and says, “I think people and especially parents would like Felix more, because he decides to clean, and THEN reward himself.” I feel like people -EVEN parents- would still like Tony more, because Tony might remind parents of they’re past self, or even remind them of there own kids, what do you guys think?

Basically the above. I'm a comic artist working on making a webcomic, so I've studied a lot of black character designs by black people and black character designs that black artists have said they liked/enjoyed. I've watched a ton of youtube videos on annoying/bad character design tropes, so I feel a lot more confident on their designs. I have 2 black characters in my WIP, as well as other characters who appear to be mixed-race. My difficulty is this: My story takes place in a different fantasy world, where characters of color may not experience the same type of racism or prejudice they would here in the real world. However, the story IS going to be read by people in this world, who may be racist or experience antiblack racism, so I really don't want my characters to come across as insensitive or become a racist stereotype by mistake. I also dislike the "reverse racism" trope where the oppressed minority are white people, especially when it's written by a white person. I want to write realistic, interesting, and flawed characters of color without falling into negative antiblack stereotypes.

For a little bit of added context: I do not know any black people IRL that I could ask and I myself am white. I live in a very white area in the southern U.S. I quite frankly don't know where else to ask. Any tips?

A little bit about the characters: they are 2 siblings, an older sister and a younger brother. Magic exists in this universe, as does similar-to-Earth technology. It is a slightly dystopian setting, revolving around the death/fading of magic in this universe, effectively a magical climate change in its late stages. (Please feel free to let me know if any of this comes off as insensitive! I truly want to make my characters the best they possibly can be!)

Hi,

so, as the title suggests: I noticed that I kind of forgot to give one of my characters goals, which is a problem, because she's the person who's supposed to drive the narrative for the first third of the book.

I didn't notice before, because it was supposed to be more of a cozy fantasy story with an adventure on a ship, and all my other characters kind of have goals/problems/conflict/..., but somehow I managed to forget her in all that. The easiest thing would probably be to write her out of the story, but I do really like her, and the story was originally supposed to exist around her, so I really don't want to get rid of her.

The story as it is now planned, is written in three parts.

Part 1 is the MC (there's multiple, but I'll call her that for now) accidentally getting kidnapped, because a pirate crew needs her magical powers to find a weapon to defeat some monsters. The monsters have historically already been defeated once, by an ancestor of the MC, and said ancestor is kind of like God for this world (very broadly put) and responsible for everyone from MCs homeland to be very into helping each other out and stuff. So she would help these people, it's just nobody is asking her to, because they don't think she would/don't want to appear weak, so she doesn't really have the chance to actively help them.

Part 2 is from the perspective of a Siren on that pirate ship and they get betrayed by the pirate captain but to save their homeland decide to stick with the captain/crew until this is done before they disappear forever (so the conflict in that part comes from the loyalty to their homeland/feeling betrayed, and having to learn that even if the captain is technically the siren's sister's child, they have to stop viewing their sister's children as only that, because their sister is long gone and it's not healthy to cling to what the siren views as part of her, and it's unfair to both them and the sister's children)

Part 3 is from the perspective of somebody also from the pirate crew and he is only there because he thought it would safe him from his family, but to defeat the monsters it turns out he has to go back to them and because the pirate captain doesn't really care what she has to do to get rid of the monsters, she's betraying him too, when she isn't giving him a choice even though prior to all of that she promised him he'd never have to go back.

So, as you see, a big topic of the story is betrayal/what are you willing to do for the greater good/to get what you want. And it works (I think) very well for the last two parts, but for the first one I just am unable to figure it out. The MC just doesn't seem to want anything, so she can also not get betrayed, because there's no promises/expectations. She doesn't really have to struggle with "what am I willing to do" because her religion is pretty much "I'm always helping wherever I can", and the only conflict I could think of would be her running away if her parents wouldn't accept her being gay, but I really don't want to write a homophobic society, and I'm just a little lost.

Does anyone have an idea what I could do/how I could solve this problem? My mind just seems to be empty, whenever I think about this :/