BlackWolf38
(?)Community Member
Offline
- Posted: Thu, 01 Mar 2007 22:51:32 +0000
Hey look! The title rhymes!
This is my very first rant, and I’m going to mainly hit up the anime topics here. Like, hard. With a baseball bat. (I need a reason to practice softball) I'll be more than happy to move (or delete) this thread if I'm told to. Thanks in advance for reading. biggrin
Contents:
1. Let's Start With The Names, Shall We?
2. Not Everyone Grows Up To Be A Samurai
3. Most Men Are Not Gay. I Repeat...
4. Cut The Angst, Please, Before I Slit My Own Wrists
5. Other Places Exist Besides Feudal Japan
6. Not Everyone Is Pretty. Or Young. Or Both.
7. "Saving" The World
8. Fear The Archetype
9. Supahpowahs!
10. Lost In Love
1. Let's Start With The Names, Shall We?
Names are a relatively unimportant part of characterization. Needless to say, they can make or break your character. I don’t care if you’ve created a well rounded, fleshed out person, if his name is Suchi Yamamura, I couldn’t give a care about him. Don’t get hung up on Japanese names. They’re not “cool,” they’re not “special,” and you really sort of look like an idiot when you’re white as hell and you give all of your creations Asian names. You…Wapanese…
That aside, you CAN justify a Japanese name. However, you have to meet certain restrictions. Consider his culture- where he came from, and where his parents did. If his parents are Irish and he’s born in America, I think Michael is a bit more acceptable than Yuki. M’kay?
Let’s roll into fantasy names. I’m tired of X’s and apostrophes. Some people abuse them, with names like Xxarrazki and Yxgrbl. There are things known as vowels, people. Many a good fantasy story is ruined by the shitty names people put into it.
2. Not Everyone Grows Up To Be A Samurai
What is with this one? Why is every character I stumble upon a samurai, or an excellent swordsman, or a 16-year old assassin? What happened to the underdog hero? Was she murdered in her sleep by the Mary-Sues and Gary-Stus?
Characters with normal professions do exist. But people are drawn to the ones who are suave, who have mad kung-fu skillz and wield nun chucks like they were born to.
It’s possible to make a character with a mundane job the focus of your story. They don’t have to be special. The barista at the local Starbucks can be just as entertaining as the sword-brandishing half-demon.
And when your story does involve combat, or hand to hand skills, you don’t have to make everyone an expert. I repeat: NOT EVERYONE IS GOOD AT IT. Just because you want to be doesn’t mean your character should be. Giving them superpowers only makes them seem flatter.
Another point- character abilities and flaws are not a plus and minus game. Don’t think, “Well, because my character can fly, s/he has to have a butterfly phobia.” WRONG. Don’t just tack on weaknesses as you see fit. Use them to your advantage to develop your character.
For example, if you had a character undergo a particularly bad operation as a child, s/he could fear doctors and the hospital for the remainder of their life. It helps us relate to said character, while at the same time adding to their depth.
3. Most Men Are Not Gay. I Repeat...
Honestly, this one irritates me the most. Yaoi and Shonen-ai, as they are so affectionately called, are becoming increasingly popular amidst teens nowadays.
And if I were a gay man, I would be offended. Horrified, actually.
Yaoi and Shonen-ai are meant to be plotless smut, in my opinion. And they often feature two angsty characters, both of whom lust for each other.
But it’s these characters that bother me. Not all gay men are feminine. In fact, most are just normal guys. So why does everyone insist on having two men seemingly jacked up on estrogen going at it? Most have long hair, feminine curves, and bat their eyelashes with more expertise than a French whore.
And seemingly everyone thinks that it’s cool to have characters like this. All the gritty, real-life romance is gone from these relationships, even if they are gay. Homosexuality is not a fad. More often than not, it’s a tough thing for people to accept.
If you’re going to write a gay man or woman, please, don’t think that they’re any different from a heterosexual person. They go through the same ups and downs, they feel the same- the only thing that’s different is their sexual preference.
4. Cut The Angst, Please, Before I Slit My Own Wrists
Why is everyone so sad?
All the characters I read about have their parents murdered, followed by the best friend, and then the mentor. And then they go on a quest to avenge their lost loved ones. While angsting.
Seriously, if I read one more story about the poor little girl who gets raped, angsts, and then turns lezzie, I’ll scream. People do grieve. But not every teenager is a wadded ball of depression sealed with eyeliner and lots of black clothes.
Some people seem to just throw it into the mélange just for the hell of it. Unless your character has a severe reason for depression, why ARE they depressed? Or is everyone besides myself addicted to Prozac?
As for your clinically depressed characters, be they rape victims or whatnot, are they getting help? Or are they acting sullen and rebelling, skipping therapy and thinking they can handle it on their own? Because, truthfully, most people who are depressed want to end it. They don’t like feeling mopey all the time, and neither should your character.
5. Other Places Exist Besides Feudal Japan
Take. Geography.
Or history. Whatever floats your boat.
If you read a fantasy story, odds are, ‘tis set in Medieval Europe (gasp!) or feudal Japan. Why? Because that’s the norm.
Well, I’m challenging you. Do your research, and find some interesting place besides those two spots/time periods. What about Africa? Or South America? Maybe even Aborigine? So many rich and beautiful cultures, which provide more than enough inspiration for a decent storyline, go ignored.
Granted, there are a few stories that break the mold. A Girl Named Disaster, as well as The Sea of Trolls, both by Nancy Farmer, an excellent writer in my opinion, are both set in rarely-used cultures. (Disaster is in Mozambique, and Trolls is Norse)
6. Not Everyone Is Pretty. Or Young. Or Both.
It must be good to be sixteen, because it seems to be the hot age for people. I mean, getting sucked into magical worlds, gaining superpowers, learning to be an expert swordsman- that’s a lot for one year. You can only expect so much.
Time after time, I see it. The magical hero who is…eighteen. HOMG. I wish I had those mad skillz at that age. Forget college.
But seriously, wouldn’t it take years upon years to gain that kind of skill/knowledge/power and to master it? Why does everyone have to be eighteen? Is it like the character AARP is coming for you if you’re any older?
Try making them older. In anime/manga, there seem to be two age groups- the young and the old farts. And the main character always falls into the first category. There’s never the thirty-five year old; he’s always 18, and he’s always “gorgeous.”
Another thing- not everyone’s pretty. Just because you want your character to be a dreamboat does not make me or any other person like s/he any more.
7. "Saving" The World
If you haven’t read Veive’s thread on “Your Ideas are not special”, go now. Here’s a convenient link for you: HERE.
So many stories out there now have the main characters “saving the world.” Jezum, is our world in constant danger or something? Seriously, we as humans need to get the act together.
Also, the fact that saving the world was entrusted to your 16-year old character seems about as likely as the face of the Virgin Mary appearing in grilled cheese. Wouldn’t the supernatural pick someone a bit…older?
And we certainly don’t save the world by putting together a magical crystal to activate the Staff of Destiny. No, just…no. You save the world by helping cure disease, end world hunger, fix poverty, and stop wars. Not super-gluing some rock back together and fighting off hoards of demons.
Another thing to avoid- prophecies. *gag* We don’t want to hear how your character was specifically selected from billions of others to go save the world/find the magic crystal.
8. Fear The Archetype
Every anime/story/plot has them. Archetypes. While these can be a great start to spring off of, don’t follow them word for word.
Your standard hero archetype is something like this: He’s angsty, and broods, but is still the hottest thing to walk the earth. He won’t accept help from anyone, save for the girl who wins over his heart and softens him up. He’s brash, and daring and bold, ruthless toward his sworn enemies, but treasures the object of his affections, and vows to complete his quest/goal or die in the process.
And we’ve seen him a million times.
What about the handicapped hero? The one in a wheelchair or with autism? Or the one who isn’t too good looking? Maybe the one who acts like a coward once in a while? Or did these people all hide under rocks?
Your standard villain is just pure evil. And oddly feminine looking. Your sidekick is solely for comic relief. Your mentor is old and wise. Your damsel in distress is a total nimrod with size D cups. Your macho gal is one who can do anything, and certainly doesn’t need men.
Bottom line: Develop your characters, not your stereotypes. Don’t make a person solely for one of these roles.
9. Supahpowahs!
This one, I’m sorry, does a bit of tying in with number 2.
Bear with me here. (As a Chicago native, I am now required to sing “Bear Down, Chicago Bears) If you’re going to give your character a power, be original about it. Flying’s great. We can all agree on that. But shouldn’t there logically be some repercussion from it? Like flying straight into a window at fifty miles an hour?
Don’t just tack on some flaw because your character has a power. Be realistic. Your character can control the elements (rather cliché, I know)? Perhaps they would get burned if they used fire too much/long. Or would start to get soggy from too much water.
Creativity with superpowers is virtually unlimited. You can think up any ability you want, as long as it doesn’t make your character too powerful and morph into a Mary-Sue.
10. Lost In Love
Not everyone falls in love.
And those who do know that it is a long, slow, harsh process. Things just don’t “click.” You don’t both wake up one morning and say, “Boy, golly gee, I sure do love you.” Love is a constant uphill battle, littered with fights, disagreements, and strife.
Not everyone is made for someone, either. People strike out. People do die single. It’s a fact of life. We’re all looking, but some of us don’t find it.
When you do find someone, however, it’s not just one-two wham-bam love-kids-growing old together. It’s learning about that other person, step by step, bit by bit. And there’s a lot of drama in that. There’s a lot of confusion, muddled thoughts and actions, tossed together with some curiosity.
Point is, your character shouldn’t fall head over heels for another person. It’s not realistic. True love relationships take months, if not years, to develop.
This is my very first rant, and I’m going to mainly hit up the anime topics here. Like, hard. With a baseball bat. (I need a reason to practice softball) I'll be more than happy to move (or delete) this thread if I'm told to. Thanks in advance for reading. biggrin
Contents:
1. Let's Start With The Names, Shall We?
2. Not Everyone Grows Up To Be A Samurai
3. Most Men Are Not Gay. I Repeat...
4. Cut The Angst, Please, Before I Slit My Own Wrists
5. Other Places Exist Besides Feudal Japan
6. Not Everyone Is Pretty. Or Young. Or Both.
7. "Saving" The World
8. Fear The Archetype
9. Supahpowahs!
10. Lost In Love
1. Let's Start With The Names, Shall We?
Names are a relatively unimportant part of characterization. Needless to say, they can make or break your character. I don’t care if you’ve created a well rounded, fleshed out person, if his name is Suchi Yamamura, I couldn’t give a care about him. Don’t get hung up on Japanese names. They’re not “cool,” they’re not “special,” and you really sort of look like an idiot when you’re white as hell and you give all of your creations Asian names. You…Wapanese…
That aside, you CAN justify a Japanese name. However, you have to meet certain restrictions. Consider his culture- where he came from, and where his parents did. If his parents are Irish and he’s born in America, I think Michael is a bit more acceptable than Yuki. M’kay?
Let’s roll into fantasy names. I’m tired of X’s and apostrophes. Some people abuse them, with names like Xxarrazki and Yxgrbl. There are things known as vowels, people. Many a good fantasy story is ruined by the shitty names people put into it.
2. Not Everyone Grows Up To Be A Samurai
What is with this one? Why is every character I stumble upon a samurai, or an excellent swordsman, or a 16-year old assassin? What happened to the underdog hero? Was she murdered in her sleep by the Mary-Sues and Gary-Stus?
Characters with normal professions do exist. But people are drawn to the ones who are suave, who have mad kung-fu skillz and wield nun chucks like they were born to.
It’s possible to make a character with a mundane job the focus of your story. They don’t have to be special. The barista at the local Starbucks can be just as entertaining as the sword-brandishing half-demon.
And when your story does involve combat, or hand to hand skills, you don’t have to make everyone an expert. I repeat: NOT EVERYONE IS GOOD AT IT. Just because you want to be doesn’t mean your character should be. Giving them superpowers only makes them seem flatter.
Another point- character abilities and flaws are not a plus and minus game. Don’t think, “Well, because my character can fly, s/he has to have a butterfly phobia.” WRONG. Don’t just tack on weaknesses as you see fit. Use them to your advantage to develop your character.
For example, if you had a character undergo a particularly bad operation as a child, s/he could fear doctors and the hospital for the remainder of their life. It helps us relate to said character, while at the same time adding to their depth.
3. Most Men Are Not Gay. I Repeat...
Honestly, this one irritates me the most. Yaoi and Shonen-ai, as they are so affectionately called, are becoming increasingly popular amidst teens nowadays.
And if I were a gay man, I would be offended. Horrified, actually.
Yaoi and Shonen-ai are meant to be plotless smut, in my opinion. And they often feature two angsty characters, both of whom lust for each other.
But it’s these characters that bother me. Not all gay men are feminine. In fact, most are just normal guys. So why does everyone insist on having two men seemingly jacked up on estrogen going at it? Most have long hair, feminine curves, and bat their eyelashes with more expertise than a French whore.
And seemingly everyone thinks that it’s cool to have characters like this. All the gritty, real-life romance is gone from these relationships, even if they are gay. Homosexuality is not a fad. More often than not, it’s a tough thing for people to accept.
If you’re going to write a gay man or woman, please, don’t think that they’re any different from a heterosexual person. They go through the same ups and downs, they feel the same- the only thing that’s different is their sexual preference.
4. Cut The Angst, Please, Before I Slit My Own Wrists
Why is everyone so sad?
All the characters I read about have their parents murdered, followed by the best friend, and then the mentor. And then they go on a quest to avenge their lost loved ones. While angsting.
Seriously, if I read one more story about the poor little girl who gets raped, angsts, and then turns lezzie, I’ll scream. People do grieve. But not every teenager is a wadded ball of depression sealed with eyeliner and lots of black clothes.
Some people seem to just throw it into the mélange just for the hell of it. Unless your character has a severe reason for depression, why ARE they depressed? Or is everyone besides myself addicted to Prozac?
As for your clinically depressed characters, be they rape victims or whatnot, are they getting help? Or are they acting sullen and rebelling, skipping therapy and thinking they can handle it on their own? Because, truthfully, most people who are depressed want to end it. They don’t like feeling mopey all the time, and neither should your character.
5. Other Places Exist Besides Feudal Japan
Take. Geography.
Or history. Whatever floats your boat.
If you read a fantasy story, odds are, ‘tis set in Medieval Europe (gasp!) or feudal Japan. Why? Because that’s the norm.
Well, I’m challenging you. Do your research, and find some interesting place besides those two spots/time periods. What about Africa? Or South America? Maybe even Aborigine? So many rich and beautiful cultures, which provide more than enough inspiration for a decent storyline, go ignored.
Granted, there are a few stories that break the mold. A Girl Named Disaster, as well as The Sea of Trolls, both by Nancy Farmer, an excellent writer in my opinion, are both set in rarely-used cultures. (Disaster is in Mozambique, and Trolls is Norse)
6. Not Everyone Is Pretty. Or Young. Or Both.
It must be good to be sixteen, because it seems to be the hot age for people. I mean, getting sucked into magical worlds, gaining superpowers, learning to be an expert swordsman- that’s a lot for one year. You can only expect so much.
Time after time, I see it. The magical hero who is…eighteen. HOMG. I wish I had those mad skillz at that age. Forget college.
But seriously, wouldn’t it take years upon years to gain that kind of skill/knowledge/power and to master it? Why does everyone have to be eighteen? Is it like the character AARP is coming for you if you’re any older?
Try making them older. In anime/manga, there seem to be two age groups- the young and the old farts. And the main character always falls into the first category. There’s never the thirty-five year old; he’s always 18, and he’s always “gorgeous.”
Another thing- not everyone’s pretty. Just because you want your character to be a dreamboat does not make me or any other person like s/he any more.
7. "Saving" The World
If you haven’t read Veive’s thread on “Your Ideas are not special”, go now. Here’s a convenient link for you: HERE.
So many stories out there now have the main characters “saving the world.” Jezum, is our world in constant danger or something? Seriously, we as humans need to get the act together.
Also, the fact that saving the world was entrusted to your 16-year old character seems about as likely as the face of the Virgin Mary appearing in grilled cheese. Wouldn’t the supernatural pick someone a bit…older?
And we certainly don’t save the world by putting together a magical crystal to activate the Staff of Destiny. No, just…no. You save the world by helping cure disease, end world hunger, fix poverty, and stop wars. Not super-gluing some rock back together and fighting off hoards of demons.
Another thing to avoid- prophecies. *gag* We don’t want to hear how your character was specifically selected from billions of others to go save the world/find the magic crystal.
8. Fear The Archetype
Every anime/story/plot has them. Archetypes. While these can be a great start to spring off of, don’t follow them word for word.
Your standard hero archetype is something like this: He’s angsty, and broods, but is still the hottest thing to walk the earth. He won’t accept help from anyone, save for the girl who wins over his heart and softens him up. He’s brash, and daring and bold, ruthless toward his sworn enemies, but treasures the object of his affections, and vows to complete his quest/goal or die in the process.
And we’ve seen him a million times.
What about the handicapped hero? The one in a wheelchair or with autism? Or the one who isn’t too good looking? Maybe the one who acts like a coward once in a while? Or did these people all hide under rocks?
Your standard villain is just pure evil. And oddly feminine looking. Your sidekick is solely for comic relief. Your mentor is old and wise. Your damsel in distress is a total nimrod with size D cups. Your macho gal is one who can do anything, and certainly doesn’t need men.
Bottom line: Develop your characters, not your stereotypes. Don’t make a person solely for one of these roles.
9. Supahpowahs!
This one, I’m sorry, does a bit of tying in with number 2.
Bear with me here. (As a Chicago native, I am now required to sing “Bear Down, Chicago Bears) If you’re going to give your character a power, be original about it. Flying’s great. We can all agree on that. But shouldn’t there logically be some repercussion from it? Like flying straight into a window at fifty miles an hour?
Don’t just tack on some flaw because your character has a power. Be realistic. Your character can control the elements (rather cliché, I know)? Perhaps they would get burned if they used fire too much/long. Or would start to get soggy from too much water.
Creativity with superpowers is virtually unlimited. You can think up any ability you want, as long as it doesn’t make your character too powerful and morph into a Mary-Sue.
10. Lost In Love
Not everyone falls in love.
And those who do know that it is a long, slow, harsh process. Things just don’t “click.” You don’t both wake up one morning and say, “Boy, golly gee, I sure do love you.” Love is a constant uphill battle, littered with fights, disagreements, and strife.
Not everyone is made for someone, either. People strike out. People do die single. It’s a fact of life. We’re all looking, but some of us don’t find it.
When you do find someone, however, it’s not just one-two wham-bam love-kids-growing old together. It’s learning about that other person, step by step, bit by bit. And there’s a lot of drama in that. There’s a lot of confusion, muddled thoughts and actions, tossed together with some curiosity.
Point is, your character shouldn’t fall head over heels for another person. It’s not realistic. True love relationships take months, if not years, to develop.
