#characterisation

anomalously-written:

“Creating one interesting character is hard enough — but when it comes to writing a whole novel or series of books, you have to create dozens of them. How can you keep your supporting cast from seeming like cookie-cutter people? There’s no easy answer, but a few tricks might help you create minor characters who don’t feel too minor.” [x]

10 Secrets to Creating Unforgettable Supporting Characters

1. Give them at lease one defining characteristic. “…lots of people have one or two habits that you notice the first time you meet them, that stand out in your mind even after you learn more about them.”
2. Give them an origin story. “…Your main character doesn’t necessarily need an origin story, because you’ve got the whole book to explain who he/she is and what he/she is about. But a supporting character? You get a paragraph or five, to explain the formative experience that made her become the person she is, and possibly how she got whatever skills or powers she possesses.”
3. Make sure they talk in a distinctive fashion. "…you still have to make sure your characters don’t all talk the same. Some of them talk in nothing but short sentences, others in nothing but long, rolling statements full of subordinate clauses and random digressions. Or you might have a character who always follows one long sentence with three short ones.” "…One dirty shortcut is to hear the voice of a particular actor or famous person in your head, as one character talks.”
4. Avoid making them paragons of virtue, or authorial stand-ins. "…People who have no flaws are automatically boring, and thus forgettable.” "…Any character who has foibles, or bad habits, or destructive urges, will always stand out more than one who is pure and wonderful in all ways. And nobody will believe that you’ve chosen to identify yourself, as the author, with someone who’s so messed up. (Because of course, you are a perfect human being, with no flaws of your own.)”
5. Anchor them to a particular place. “…A huge part of making a supporting character “pop” is placing her somewhere. Give her a haunt — some place she hangs out a lot. A tavern, a bar, an engine room, a barracks, a dog track, wherever. It works both ways — by anchoring a character in a particular location, you make both the character and the location feel more real.”
6. Introduce them twice — the first time in the background, the second in the foreground. “…You mention a character in passing: “And Crazy Harriet was there too, chewing on her catweed like always.” And you say more about them. And then later, the next time we see that character, you give more information or detail, like where she scores her catweed from. The reader will barely remember that you mentioned the character the first time — but it’s in the back of the reader’s mind, and there’s a little “ping” of identification.”
7. Focus on what they mean to your protagonists “…What does this minor character mean to your hero? What role does he fulfill? What does your hero want or need from Randolph the Grifter? If you know what your hero finds memorable about Randolph, then you’re a long ways towards finding what your readers will remember, too.”
8. Give them an arc — or the illusion of one. “… You can create the appearance of an arc by establishing that a character feels a particular way — and then, a couple hundred pages later, you mention that now the character feels a different way.” “…A minor character who changes in some way is automatically more interesting than one who remains constant…”
9. The more minor the character, the more caricature-like they may have to be. “…This one is debatable — you may be a deft enough author that you can create a hundred characters, all of whom are fully fleshed out, well-rounded human beings with full inner lives.” “…some writing styles simply can’t support or abide cartoony minor characters. But for your third ensign, who appears for a grand total of two pages, on page 147 and page 398, you may have to go for cartoony if you want him to live in the reader’s mind as anything other than a piece of scenery.”
10. Decide which supporting characters you’ll allow to be forgettable after all. “…And this is probably inevitable. You only have so much energy, and your readers only have so much mental space. Plus, if 100 supporting characters are all vivid and colorful and people your readers want to go bowling with, then your story runs the risk of seeming overwritten and garish.Sometimes you need to resign yourself to the notion that some characters are going to be extras, or that they’re literally going to fulfill a plot function without having any personality to speak of. It’s a major sacrifice they’re making, subsuming their personality for the sake of the major players’ glory.”

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write-like-a-freak:

I’m someone who gets frustrated using character profiles because they never look anything like the character I actually end up writing. I like to discover a character through story. For me, this leads to a much deeper understanding of a character, which makes them easier to write and makes them come across as more real and developed in the story.

Tell Yourself Their Backstory

To really understand your character, you have to understand where they came from. This is important even for side characters. What kind of family did your character grow up in? What struggles did they face (or did they face few)? Tell yourself their story and watch how the events click together, their development comes naturally, and your understanding of them grows. Make sure to write this down. You’ll come up with a lot of great ideas, and I promise if you don’t write them down you will forget them.

Think About Them in Relation to the Other Characters in Your Story

Charactersreally show their stuff when they’re interacting with other characters. I actually like to have certain conflicts and chemistries in mind when creating characters. For example, when coming up with the idea for Bernie, a loud, aggressive, too-honest feminist, from my series Talented, the next character I created was Jared, the ridiculously attractive, ridiculously privileged boy who makes a game out of girls’ sexualities. I created Jared because of the conflict he provided for Bernie, and as I delved further into their relationship, I discovered nuance and depth I hadn’t previously expected. Their relationship became even more complex, and together they bring to the surface facets of their characters they might not have shown individually.

Push Their Buttons

Play with them. This doesn’t have to actually come into the story. This is for you.

Run your characters through scenes that stress them out, that make them happy, that challenge them. You can just do this in your head, you can write these out as bullet points, or you can even write whole scenes. Who knows, you might like what you discover and want to add it to your story after all.

The point is to test your character in every way possible so you personally know every extreme they have.

Analyze Other Characters (and Real People)

This is where I get my best inspiration. I’m a TV junkie, and half the inspiration for characters I get, I get from characters on TV. Now, it’s never me saying “I’m going to copy this character exactly.” It’s me saying, “I find the chemistry these two characters have really interesting, and I wonder what would happen if these things about them were different” or “I really hate this dude, and if I were writing him this is how he would be.” And on and on. Find what works. What doesn’t. What makes you question, and what keeps you invested. Discover and analyze and interpret into something of your own.

—

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rhymingslang:

At the heart of every novel, short story or fanfiction are the characters. Whether they be good guys, bad guys, major, minor, based on real people, works of fiction, background, foreground or anything in between- your characters make up your writing and knowing them, inside and out, is the key to making them believable. 

1.Looks.

While it may seem obvious the look of your character is vital to how he, she or they are envisioned by the reader. If the character does not have a particular look in your mind then it will be ever more difficult for the reader to imagine them as being real people. Think about it, no matter how hard you try you cannot imagine a person without a face and that is exactly the principle we are putting into play here. 

I’m not saying you have to describe every single character in detail for the reader to get it, not at all. I’m saying YOU have to know how they look, every detail, right down to a little scar on their right hip or a mole on their…nevermind. This is also vital for knowing your character, inside and out, which will later help in their development. If you know the superficial details then it will become easier to know the deeper ones. 

However, when it comes down to it, these characters are, for all intents and purposes, real people and every person is flawed in some way. Nobody has flawless skin, flawless hair and a flawless body unless they have been Photoshopped and, unfortunately  you cannot Photoshop real life. (unless your piece is set in a time when real-life Photoshopping is a thing that can happen- in which case, you can). Try to bear this in mind when creating a character, everybody has insecurities and this includes the people you create.

Hint: If you’re finding it difficult then think of an actor who you would like to play your character were it a film, then try to describe them. This will aid in describing real people and may help the reader imagine them. 

2. Interests.

Everybody has interests and if you don’t then Tumblr is probably not the place for you. Whether it be writing, singing, dancing, fashion, gaming, reading, fitness, music, cheekbones with legs on the BBC, gardening, interior decorating, just lounging around in your pants watching RSPCA Animal rescue (cough cough) or anything in between, we all have something that occupies our time and the same goes for your characters. 

In order for your characters to even seem remotely real and believable they have to have things to do when they’re not saving the world/ wiping out humanity, just like any other normal person would. For example I know someone who’s novel features a Vampire who enjoys playing Tetris in his spare time. Interests make your character three dimensional  they make them real to you as well as the reader. If you can’t imagine a character in their spare time, or envision them living their day to day lives outside of the novel then the characters are not strong enough yet and need more work before they can be placed in the scenario of your choice. 

Once again, you don’t need to explain every iota of this to the reader, or even write much of it down. If its there, and you know its there, then not only will the reader pick up on that but it will be much easier to write the character into the story. 

Note: It is worth noting here that the character should have interests relevant to them. Its no use giving a character born in the underclass of society an interest in fine cuisine or a collection of rare gemstones, interests should come with the character and time, age and social status should be noted when writing. 

3.Motives. 

Why did the chicken cross the road? 

Lets face it: the answer is never to ‘just get to the other side’ and if it is then that is a really badly written chicken. Why does he want to get to the other side? whats over there for him? why does this chicken even grasp the concept of roads? 

Okay, so that may seem a bit of a stupid time to have an existential crisis over a chicken but my point still stands: Nobody ever just does things for no reason and the same goes for your characters. In order to make them believable then you need to know why they are doing what they are doing? Why is your protagonist the one to step up and defeat the villain? Are they getting paid, or just the only one brave enough? Are they trying to impress someone, or just rise above what they have been labelled as? Is your antagonist trying to blow up the world for fun or do they believe in a greater good? Do they just not like your protagonist and would much rather see his head on a spike in their front lawn? 

These are all questions you need to ask yourself before you write your characters into the plot of your story. Why are they doing what they are doing and what are they getting out of it? If a character has no motivation then they will fall flat and confuse the readers. Out of everything so far the motive of the character is the only one I advise you completely narrate throughout the story. Maybe not all at once, maybe not clearly but at least leave clues and hints as to why, let your readers have to turn back pages and go ‘OH, SO THAT’S WHY THEY DID THAT’ and help yourself feel like a cryptic genius. 

Note: If they are completely insane and just doing what they are doing for a laugh this still counts a motive. They may not see sense or reason but ‘doing it for fun’ is still a motive for doing something and it should still be documented that this is their reasoning. 

4. Other little bits and bobs. 

As we all know, real people are not built up solely on looks, interests and motives or else science would be well on their way to getting me that robot butler, but its these three things which are the core of any believable character. 

These are the roots to making them seem real but there are other things you need to consider to make them live and breathe as you write them. As writing down every single detail would take forever and make this post go on forever, I have decided to give you a checklist of questions to answer when writing your character (Not all of these will apply to your writing so just answer the ones that do). These are just a few, feel free to add your own and go into as much detail as you want: the more detailed the character the more deep the character.

• Where do your characters work when they’re not saving the world/ destroying it? Whats their main source of income? Why do they work there? Do they enjoy it? Why?
• Where do your characters live? Is it a nice neighborhood or a run down apartment? Why? 
• What are the names of your characters parents? (Remember, these are real people too with lives they have lived, remember that while writing them) Why did they give your character the name they have? 
• If your character was not born to mortal parents, how did they come about? Where did they come from? What is their purpose?
• If your character has a mythical ailment (eg. Vampirism, Lycanothropy) how did they get it? Who turned them? How old are they? How have they adjusted to life? 
• Where do your characters come from? Do they still live there? Why did they move?/ Why did they stay?
• Does your character dye their hair? Why? Where do they get the dye from? How do they afford it? 
• Where is your characters favourite place to go? Why? 
• How many relationships has your character had? Why did they end? Do they miss them? 
• Is your character allergic to anything? How have they coped if they are? How severe is the allergy? 

Remember, these are just basic questions to help you round off your character. I hope this helps you create a cast both you and your readers fall in love with. 

Love, 

-L. 

fictionwritingtips:

There is such a thing as your antagonist being too over-the-top. There’s a possibility that they can become static or one-dimensional if you don’t understand why they’re the protagonist. Not many people in the world are evil for the sake of being evil. There’s usually a reason behind what they’re thinking and feeling, so try to explore that with your own characters. Remember, the antagonist is usually the hero in their own story.

Focus on background

Knowing your antagonist’s personal background should add more dimensions to your story. Do they have a family? Is there something specific that happened that shaped them? Understanding where each of your characters came from and how they came to be the way they are will really help add depth. Your readers will begin to see what makes them tick.

Know what they want

Antagonists have wants and needs, just like any other character. You should always know what your protagonist wants if you want to drive the story forward and the same can be said for your antagonist. What are they searching for? Why do they want to stop the protagonist? Do they want the same thing as the protagonist? This will help you figure out your conflict.

Is there someone they care about?

Knowing what your antagonist cares about will reveal a lot about them.  Sure, sometimes mindless unstoppable villains are exciting, but it doesn’t work for every story. Smart antagonists that care about something are usually more enticing. You can make them a bit more humane if you reveal what they care about. Do they believe what they’re doing will actually save the world? Do they think they’re doing the right thing? Consider these questions.

What do they think about the protagonist?

It’s not necessary for the antagonist to absolutely hate the protagonist. Sometimes it’s more interesting if they respect each other or if they already have a relationship. Do they think the protagonist is completely wrong? Do they understand their point-of-view? Knowing what your antagonist thinks will help form a realistic relationship between the protagonist and antagonist. It will help you shape your story into something better.

-Kris Noel

fictionwritingtips:

As a post request, someone asked me what character types should be used more often.  While I think diversity is severely lacking in YA fiction, I decided to focus more on character types that can fit all different characters—regardless of their gender, sex, ethnicity, sexuality, etc. It always helps to think about your character in a variety of different ways before you make any final decisions. I like to ask myself “what if this character did this” or “what if I changed this about my character”. Thinking about your character in different number of ways will help you pin down what makes them interesting and will compel you switch it up a bit.

Here are a few character types I’d like to see more often:

Silent, but assertive

A strong female protagonist, or any protagonist really, is often associated only with physical strength. Many writers believe that making a female character more masculine is all you have to do to build a good protagonist. This is something I’d like to see changed. In Pacific Rim, Mako Mori proves that your silence can make you stronger. Not every hero needs to be an extrovert; introverts can be just as powerful.

While Mako is also physically strong, she is obedient and puts others before her own happiness. Her silence actually strengthens her because when she does act it makes her that much more powerful. She understands that she can learn from those who came before her and doesn’t feel the need to be the loudest and most powerful in the room.

Enthusiastic dreamer

We often associate strong protagonists will their ability to understand how dark the world can be, but there’s something so refreshing about the Leslie Knopes in fiction. There’s no reason a strong female character can’t be an enthusiastic dreamer and still be able to stand on her own two feet.

Sure, there are times when characters like Leslie Knope get sad about things and realize there’s a time and a place to give up on certain dreams and ideas, but her enthusiasm inspires those around her. Her friends rally with her and give her the support she needs. I’d like to see more of these characters and let readers know that it’s okay to feel strongly about something and to be a bit of a nerd about it.

Mary Sues with depth

I know a lot of people don’t like the term Mary Sue anymore because there’s so much more to it than just creating a perfect character. I think it’s bad when anyone creates any sort of flawless character because it makes them boring and we don’t get to see them struggle in any way. I think it’s a problem when the protagonist is overshadowed by the supporting characters that do all the work.

I have no problem with Mary Sues with depth. If a character is a perfectionist, there’s nothing wrong with that. If they’re good at what they do, there’s nothing wrong with that either. I do think, however, it’s important to add more to that character. They need to have flaws, they need to fail sometimes, AND they need to solve problems on their own.

Antagonists that can succeed

I often find myself bored by antagonists that aren’t strong enough. I think it’s important for writers to realize that antagonists are only threatening when the audience really believes they can succeed. We need to see them win from time to time. We need to see them startle our heroes and actually make them think about what would happen if the antagonist won.

When an antagonist is weak and underdeveloped, you’ll immediately have a weak story. Think about what they want and remember that most antagonists think they’re the hero. Not many people are evil for the sake of being evil. Develop them just as much as you’d develop your antagonist. Think of them as different sides of a coin.

This is just my list of what I’d want to see, not something you need to agree with. Feel free to add your own and I can build a bigger post!

-Kris Noel

Description: the ability to restore one’s physical condition to an optimal state, healing wounds and bodily damage at a cellular level.

Beneficial Strengths or Abilities: to achieve this ability, one would require an evolved level of mental control so that the healing progress could be triggered at will. Superior genes and intelligence would both be needed to direct the allocation of energy, ensuring that if necessary, calorie intake, stored fat and even muscle tissue could be refocused to repair tissue or organ damage. Being able to consume large quantities of high energy foods without getting sick and learning to sleep at will would both heighten one’s ability to regenerate and recover as needed.

Character Traits Suited for this Skill or Talent: focus, intelligence, determination, adaptability, gluttony, conservative, self-controlled

Required Resources and Training: While a large part of regeneration would have to be genetically imparted (unless it came about through taking a drug or some kind of nano technology), a great deal of concentration and study would be required to learn how to harness and focus healing, especially during times of high stress. Meditation and having a mentor who can lead one through exercises to boost one’s mental prowess would help one master this skill. Additionally, a deep understanding of the body, organ placement and how everything works in concert would be necessary to perform regeneration without over extending oneself and depleting energy stores beyond recovery. As well, a person with regenerative skills would have to have constant access to an energy source (food, sleep, a drug, etc.) to power one’s ability to regenerate.

Keep Reading at Writers Helping Writers· Article written by Angela Ackerman

legit-writing-tips:

People tend to act, speak, and - perhaps most importantly - make decisions differently when they are very tired.

Because so many of you write sci-fi, fantasy, adventure, etc., this is really important for you to keep in mind.

Showing their exhaustion after 3 days spent deciphering an ancient riddle in an equally ancient library/running away from a group of soldiers intent on killing them/taking part in a massive week long fighting tournament will make what’s happening feel more grounded in reality (which is especially important when writing fantastic fiction) and will help your reader to better empathize with your characters.

Example time - One of the greatest episodes of Avatar: The Last Airbender took place after the blind earthbender Toph had recently joined the group. Toph was already at odds with the others, tension was high, they had barely had any sleep, and to top it all off the evil firebending princess Azula and her two friends chose that exact moment to chase them all night long in an epic manhunt with a massive machine. 

One of the greatest things about the episode is that you actually see the impact their exhaustion has on their personalities and they way that they behave. It’s actually really unsettling, but believable.

Characters who are usually optimists are much more likely to let their real feelings, doubts, and insecurities out when incredibly exhausted. Those who are generally prone to anger may descend into apathy.Those who are usually cautious about making decisions may become much more prone to snap judgment (which may or may not work out in their favor). 

Use this to your advantage. Being exhausted absolutely sucks, even in a real world setting, so it can be a great tool for creating dramatic tension and further exploring your characters’ personalities. 

anomalously-written:

A villain (also known in film and literature as the “antagonist,” “baddie”, “bad guy”, “heavy” or “black hat”) is an “evil” character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist (though can be the protagonist), the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters. [x]

Villain: A cruelly malicious person who is involved in or devoted to wickedness or crime; a wicked or malevolent person; the main evil character and antagonist to the hero

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How Not to Create a Villain

• Villains Who Take Over the Novel.
• Obvious Villains.
  [If you’re having trouble with this, read the novels of Agatha Christie and other famous mystery writers to learn how to fool the readers while playing fairly. For an even better learning experience, try reading an Agatha Christie novel after finding out the identity of the killer. You’ll get great tips on how to conceal information right in front of the reader’s eyes.]
• Clichéd Villains. 
  [The conniving other woman, the evil mother-in-law, the wicked twin sister. Some villains have been used so often that they have become recognizable character types. These characters still have a lot of life left in them, but only if you flesh them out.]
• Villains with Unbelievable Motivations.
  [Nobody wants to read an entire novel only to find out that the villain was plotting against the hero the whole time because the hero stole away his prom date 20 years ago. If your villain is scheming and planning and committing crimes, he needs a good reason to go to all this trouble.]
• Unnecessary Villains.
  [Powerful main characters can create plenty of conflict on their own.]
• Utterly Evil Villains.
  [Some villains are simply too evil. Not only does he make life miserable for the hero and heroine, he also beats and rapes the servants, kicks the dog, and on top of that, refuses to recycle. Not only is this unrealistic, it is often trite.]
• Villains Who Talk Too Much.
  [This one is a classic cliché. The villain captures your main characters, but instead of getting them out of the way, he goes into a spiel about how bright he is because he outwitted them all.]
• Weak Villains
  [Imagine this scenario. You’ve been reading an exciting, suspenseful novel, and you’re close to the end. The hero is confronting the villain. You’re expecting a big payoff. But instead, the villain turns out to be a huge wimp who caves in quickly.]

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Writing Tips for Creating a Complex Villain

—Choose a model for your villain: an ordinary person, a celebrity, or a notorious criminal from the news; examine that person’s flaws and weaknesses. How have they wronged others? Discard their positive traits, magnify their negative traits, and write a brief character sketch. What’s the character’s name? What does he or she look like? What is going on in the character’s head that allows him or her to treat others with disregard?

—Give your villain a shady past: what terrible things has your villain done throughout his or her life? What terrible things were done to him or her? Some villains are just trouble makers; others are deranged psychopaths. How extreme is your villain?

—Identify the source: what happened to your villain to turn him or her so evil? Was your villain born that way?
—The most interesting villains are not completely evil. They have a soft spot for puppies or they write cheesy love poems. Contrary personality traits add depth and realism to all characters. Describe your villain’s positive traits.

—Put your villain in a scene: make sure you include dialogue so you can work out how the character speaks. Give your villain a distinct voice. Is your villain disguised as a benevolent character? Does he or she spend every waking minute committing evil deeds?

—

Real Life Inspirations Behind Some of the Best Comic Book Villains
Creating Villains People Love to Hate
Everybody Lies 
What Makes Serial Killers Tick?
The Making of a Serial Killer
The Greatest Female Villains
Female Villains: 10 Evil Women In Literature
Basic Tips To Write Better & More Despicable Villains
Seven Tips on Creating a Fantastic Fantasy Villain

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A good villain must be ACTIVE:
Writers often complain that they have trouble making the middle of their novel exciting. A villain who acts, instead of simply sitting around thinking evil thoughts, is the best possible cure for a sagging middle-book.

A good villain must be SMART.
When the author has the villain do something stupid so the hero can defeat him, it not only makes the villain look stupid, it makes the hero look weak.

A good villain must be SENSIBLY MOTIVATED, AND NO WORSE THAN HE HAS TO BE TO ACHIEVE HIS GOAL.
A credible villain can be motivated by anything from simple greed to self-preservation, from patriotism to revenge, from religious fervor to ambition to romantic love.  In short, anything that can motivate any normal person can also motive your villain.

[x]

—-

A great literary villain is not any one thing; some are moustache-twirlers or evil geniuses, some are darkly complex, tortured souls, while others are amoral crazies who act wholly on impulse. There are many ways to write a literary villain, but a unique characteristic often binds the truly memorable anti-heroes together: they are at least as complex as the heroes. [x]

Sibling bond recognition isn’t finding out that you’ve loved your sibling all along and would die for them it’s walking into them at night and wordlessly giving thumbs up, thumbs up first bumping them twice, tilting hands to the right simultaneously, thumbs up first bumping them twice again, single huff laugh and walking past each other!

bberenicce:

He was the most civilized man she’d ever met. Not a gentleman, thank goodness, but a gentle man.

Terry Pratchett, The Fifth Elephant

captainsupernoodle:

Thinking about discworld at this point is just *brain making teakettle noises* but the way vimes sees himself as a grungy pathetic crotchety suspicious bastard AND YET the way the first few stories end with him kicking himself for his own blind prejudice! like!!!!!! his whole genre-aware hardbitten detective act is played for funny haha but, like literally everything else in discworld, that’s not all - vimes is aware that he’s grumpy, and sarcastic, and apathetic, and in some ways mean and small-minded, but he is alwaysready to learn.

not happily. not necessarily willingly. a lot of his more negative traits are learned through repeated exposure to terrible things (vampires) or just because for so long he’s been fighting this slog against the worst of humanity. but he learns despite himself.

he doesn’t just say “well, this is just who i am, it’s too late to change and what would be the point anyway,” he just thinks himself around to overcoming his prejudices one at a time and is immediately ashamed (privately, not performatively, not as a martyr) of the way he behaved - a way that he, himself, does not approve of behaving. the very moment he accepts golems as “alive,” he thinks about how he’s been saying that “you can’t take away something they haven’t got,” and he thinks that that’s exactly the way that rich people, powerful people, the people that show up in books for owning streets of slums, the people that he fucking hates, think about everybody below them. that’s one of the key reasons whyhe hates them, that they can look at another human being and say “well, why not take away their life, their livelihood, their comfort, their safety? they can’t miss what they haven’t got”

vimes knows he’s not a person with the moral high ground. that is something, i think, that i love the most about him. he doesn’t have it, he doesn’t pretend to have it, he doesn’t agonize over not having it, he doesn’t faff about in mangst about it when he takes another quiet - or not so quiet - step over his own ignorance.

most importantly, he doesn’t need it. he’s an officer of the law. the law comes up through his boots. nobody is outside the law, it’s just that some people are out of his reach for now. it doesn’t matter how dirty or dingy or battered he is, some things are just wrong, and some things he can make right. if some of those wrong things are in his own head, he’s going to fix them and carry on because he has work to do.

captainsupernoodle:

Something something vimes and carrot as foils the descendant of kingslayers and the descendant of kings the man who sees clearly the truth of evil and the man who sees clearly the truth of good the man who’s being pulled up from the gutter and the man being pulled down from his near miss with glory and both of them being made better for it the man whose apathy covers deep personal care versus the man whose boundless kindness covers personal disconnection the man who lives so mired in the world at it is and the man who lives almost entirely in the world as it could be the way they could never understand each other and the way they understand each other better than anyone else

kyjoraven:

OC ask prompts

1. Who are they closest to? How did they meet and what do they like to do together?

2. What were they like as a child? Were they quiet and reserved, outgoing, or a bit of both?

3. Are they an early bird or night owl?

4. What are 3 of their irrational fears?

5. How affectionate are they? What are their top love languages?

6. On an average day, what can they be found doing after dinner?

7. What are 3 foods they can’t live without?

8. What will always make them smile? What will always make them cry?

9. What was their first kiss like?

10. Favorite place? Do they go there often?

11. Who was their child hero/heroine?

12. Are they hot-headed or even-tempered? What frustrates them the most?

13. What special abilities or talents do they possess? Did they develop through training or were they born with them?

14. Choose an AU you think would be interesting for them to be a part of. Who would they be?

15. Are they the type to adopt strays (animals or people?) What or who have they “adopted” over the years?

16. How do they like their baths/showers? Hot/cold, long/short?

17. Do they consider themselves to be romantic? Why or why not?

18. How has their hair changed over time? What is their favorite hairstyle?

19. What do they wish they knew more about?

20. How many friends do they have?

21. What are they most afraid of? What made them fear this?

22. What is something others admire about them? Are they aware that people admire them for this?

23. Where would they fall on a politeness/rudness scale of 1-10 (1 being the most polite and 10 being the rudest)?

24. Where did their name come from? Does it have meaning?

25. What events changed them as a child?