restless child

alright this is super super late but !!! here are some key factors:

1) avoid the cliches.

rich kid plots are ruining good characters. none of these rps offer much when it comes to groups because guess what .. everyone is literally the same. you can explain them however you want but it’s always these lukewarm characters with very little development opportunity. if you call your character something like “my little ball of sunshine” or “my angry son” or anything other typical intro post bullshit like … your character is boring. super boring. unless they’re unique enough, which .. they rarely are. the new mary sue is an angry asshole matthew daddario or literally any female fc with a sweetheart personality. everyone keeps limiting themselves because they want to play likable, easy characters, and that’s not what good writing is.  

2) find the polar opposite and run with it. far, far, away with it. 

my first thought when i pick the fc i want to play is to assess what they’ve already been associated with, and go in a totally different direction. with actors its easy because most people tend to (intentionally or not) stick with their fc’s most popular role, and model their character after it. i’ve never seen shadow hunters, but the common ground most matty d’s share are assholes/lotharios, so i can only assume that’s the type of character he plays. dylan obriens tend to be sarcastic funny guys. lindsey morgans are tough girls with no feelings, and josefine pettersens are generally soft and sweet. while these character ideas are good, the fc match is a bad choice because … everyone is expecting it. it’s nothing new. your character doesn’t have depth. i honestly can’t remember a single character’s name that had that type of personality/backstory matched with those fcs. your character is your work, and your work should be good enough to be remembered. 

with models, its a little harder, but think of your stereotypical gigi/kendall/bella: rich, stubborn, stuck up or sweethearts, bland and boring blah blah blah, but honestly how hard can it be to switch that up?when it comes to underused fcs, i honestly just take them at literal face value. sure i research a little bit  (i’m careful not to make singers into singers, models into models, etc) and try to avoid mimicking any character i can find that they’ve played. a lot of my process is just thinking about everything these entertainers are NOT, and moving on from there.

3) write WHO you know, and WHAT you don’t. 

you know other humans, yes? you’ve seen tv, you’ve read books, you know stories …? even rumors about people i go to school with inspire me. no matter what you do, parts of your personality (your speech patterns, your thoughts, ideas, etc) will shine through your character. if those personal traits are the only realistic parts of your character, then you aren’t doing enough for them. think of your friends, of anyone you know. think about what makes them … them. their ticks, their interests, their history, their humor. for some reason, everyone in the rpc is afraid of writing REAL flaws. so many of these characters are so 2 dimensional because people are so hung up on getting their characters to be likable or sexy or perfect and its just like … you’re writing a human being, aren’t you? write manipulative characters that spread lies or rumors. write characters that fuck up and get defensive and are wrong in the argument. write characters that harbor actual *secret crushes* that aren’t just the first step to a ship plot. let them be embarrassing, and slam their hand in a door trying to be cool in front of someone. give them real insecurities, like where they fit in with society. characters who can’t control their emotions and cry at confrontation, even if they started it. give them opportunities to fuck up and grow without ridiculous ooc meddling in thier affairs. even stuff as small and useless as allergies help connect both you and other writers to your character. its little things that give your character flare and realism. 90% of my traits and ticks and flaws in characters come from people i know in real life, or my own experiences. don’t be afraid to tackle personal things like that.

as far as WHAT you don’t know: stop being afraid to step out of the box and write a real human being. write characters with disabilities, with hearing aids or wheel chairs or speech impediments. its been like four years and i STILL remember a blind colton haynes i met in an rp because he was so .. unique. 

4) for general inspiration, hit spotify and tumblrs.

the more obscure the song, the easier it is to base a character off of it because ... no one’s heard it, have they? so i get lost in my indie spotify acc, or i find a random huge aesthetic tumblr blog and i dig from there. you can find those by typing in literally any random word for the url, but for some help to get started these are some of my faves: x x x  ... you can also just go to @museinspo​ ‘s page and go to like ... a random page in the 500s and build from there !! 

5) honestly ? write who you want to see.

at this point there’s only like ... four different personalities and backgrounds that every rp character has atm, so i just make it a point to .. write the kind of character i’d be interested in writing against. granted, this doesn’t ensure a perfect character experience (sometimes i make a character too complex and i lose interest much faster bc .. bc its just not right for me, you know?), but it does create a bigger personal investment in what you’re writing. when it honestly comes down to it, you can build a character out of a shitpost if you take a couple seconds to just ... think one out. when it comes to plotting i find it easier to just leave as much room as possible in your character’s backstory/current life to make stuff more flexible so it works, but honestly like ... the less dramatic you go, the easier it is to make them realistic. that’s just something to keep in mind when you write up a new character.

HAILEY BALDWIN - MOLLY EDWARDS

ok you know what’s cute as hell ?? a hailey with a geordie accent. you can click that link for a good idea of speech patterns and what not !! anyways, molly’s family’s been living in and out of cars, basements, and on relative’s furniture since she was a tyke, and a humble existence is all she’s ever known. her father used worked on boats in the shipyard, but a sudden budget cut cost him his job months before her first birthday, and between his handicap and her mother’s lack of an education, finding work had been a struggle since the day she came into the world. molly’s never been very good at school - just doesn’t have it in her to be very successful at it, prefers a bit of manual labor to a textbook - and there’s never been much of a chance for her to make it to uni anyways, let alone afford it, so she went right into odd jobs as soon as she was old enough to drop out of school, working everything from in a hair salon to a fish canning factory. personality wise, molly’s a very hard working girl. she’s kind, dedicated, and honest, but her simplistic view of life can be frustrating for some people. she doesn’t set very high goals for herself, doesn’t expect more than what she’s got, and lets herself get pushed around a bit at work, so her self confidence isnt .. all there ?? like shes comfortable with herself and where she is, but … she’d rather let people walk all over her than speak up and disrupt them bc she’s so used to being second class she doesn’t know any different.  a lot of growth with her could be built through her learning to take what she wants from her life, along with her struggle of living paycheck to paycheck from her several service jobs. depending on the rp, you could do some more with her like … maybe she’s got a singing talent or for modeling, or maybe she winds up breaking even one day and taking off for america or somewhere new to try to turn her life around, or maybe she joins the military to make ends meet. extra fun writing quirk would be her shitty spelling, so .. your text convos can go freaking wild. 

BELLA HADID - DR. JOSIE ST. GERMAIN

twenty years ago, josie was abandoned on a doorstep and taken in by two professors of science, who raised her to be whiz kid. straight A+’s all through school, academic decathlons, and a degree in computer science set her up for success for life. she’s worked hard for where she is now in a big name company - some kind of google set up - and has sky rocketed through the power positions to a lead director of some kind, and with this new position has brought ... threats. like, lots of death threats. as in, untraceable, unclaimed emails, notes, etc, that started out as bothersome but now hold a pretty significant place in her life. she’s scared to go anywhere alone (has even hired a body guard to watch over her day ‘n night ... plot idea hint hint) and as many complaints she’s taken up with her bosses and the police, no one seems to take her seriously. personality wise, she’s sort of uptight, a little snobby, and overall has zero time for any bullshit. she can’t stand people playing dumb or those who refuse to work hard, because its just something she can’t relate to ?? she’s wonder woman basically, but with a much lower tolerance for other people. not to say she’s a bitch or anything, but a woman like josie isn’t someone to mess with, or to be anything less than completely upfront and direct with. 

hi u !! first of all i just want to say thank u !! for !! being so patient with me !! this was such an emotionally taxing week ( i guess it always is with horrible stuff like that ) but piling on syria and the phillipines and everywhere else is just ... anyways !! secondly my guy hearing that u want to use a muse is woNDERFUL to me tbh !! thats what this blog is here for !! so far as a backstory:

i kinda saw her coming from a family situation that emotional vulnerability is kind of .. an impossible choice for her? im thinking something like .. maybe her father died when she was too young to lose him, but old enough to have been hurt so badly that she understood the gravity of their relationship (or maybe she was too young and the fact that hes a stranger to her hurts worse?), and her mother has never been very good at relating to her or helping her cope (she’s barely overcome her pain herself, despite how many years its been), so as much as she loves her mom, there’s not a tight enough bond there to have established something tara can fall back on when times were rough, so it sort of created an emotional isolation that keeps her from forming healthy relationships today. her rock hard, ice cold personality she adopts for her band is her way of coping, and a good plot here would be a childhood best friend who grew up with tara and saw her change over time, and has kind of ... stuck with her bullshit bc they’ll always love her (they probably started the band together and had quite a time) and both of her personalities and though this best friend is the only person tara could even begin to feel safe enough around to be vulnerable, she holds back a lot and focuses on looking calm, cool, and unbothered (even though her friend can see right through it). 

BRANDON DECKER

      brandon has a habit of sticking out. he comes from an upper class rich white town (i’m thinking richmond or somewhere in maryland, michigan, etc ... somewhere that almost require a dress code of vineyard vines and chubbies and every other frat boy nightmare outfit you can think of, with regular boating and cocktail parties and golfing and pastels...), where his parents are the only biracial couple with actual status. he’s the only openly gay member of his lacrosse team, and the only one of his friends not going to college to b something other than a lawyer or a doctor or politician. he’s a sweet and quiet boy, but he’s sort of .. lost. his whole life has been about fitting in and following the crowd he was born into, but as he’s matured he’s sort of realized ... he doesn’t want any of that. when he came out in high school, his parents honestly didn’t believe him. his father’s still in denial, and sets him up on dates with his coworkers daughters all the time. he’s probably got an older sister that he’s constantly ignored for, and his parents just expect him to follow in her perfect footsteps, but brandon’s grown to resent it, and is starting to branch out of his comfort zone to kinda .. fuck shit up i guess ?? he’s recently pierced his nose, and started sneaking out to gay clubs (i’d put his age range around 19-20ish, maybe he lives at home in a gap year? or he’s recently left his home to live in whatever town the rp takes place) and basically is learning to let loose. his major downfall would probably be the elitism and the prejudice that he carries - unintentional, but still prevalent in his opinions.  he’s a republican, but not in an extreme right wing kind of way, more ... in a “you need to work to earn what you have”, pro-life, gentle conservatism that highlight the positives of the political idea, mostly because that’s what he’s grown up accustomed to, but on his new journey to finding himself, i’m sure he’s bound to learn and change ... he’s grown up in a bit of a bubble, and suffers a lot from it - internalized homophobia, racial prejudices, etc - but he’s growing !! 

TARA SPOOLER

okay so you know that really hot, super punk rock angry girl band that sings about lesbian revolutions and pussy and about how men are all wasted spaces of garbage ?? yeah that’s tara’s girl group, only ... that’s just on the internet. on band camp [ insert band name here ... bloody daisy or ladywhirl or whatever the hell u want to call it ] has a pretty big following, all things considered, and fit every stereotype of angry girl music ( HAVE A LISTEN HERE ), with your typical rockstar bikini kill vibes ... but in person? you’d never see it coming. when she isn’t in the musical ~zone~, tara’s as soft and quiet as they come. sweet, even a little bit of a flirt, and while she’d rather die than seem weak or gentle in front of any man, tara has a pretty sweet time playing them all tbh. she’s incredibly unassuming, somehow hardly drawing attention with that crazy blue, pink, etc hair, but managing to trap the affections of enough guys to cause a bit of a scene for herself. she’s very protective over her own heart and refuses to be hurt by any man, so she keeps them at an arm’s length, never revealing her true intentions or feelings. it’s too dangerous, probably, and she can’t compromise the band’s credibility by showing herself to have soft feelings for someone ..  so a basic rundown: quiet, shy, sweetheart by day, angry, man-eating pop punkster by night.  

FOX WALTER

a rebel without a cause in the truest sense honestly ?? basically all fox wants is to be apart of something bigger than himself, something that’ll make history. completely inspired by THIS SONG, fox is a fighter inside and out, ready to use his words, fists, posters, whatever the hell the situation calls for. he means well, he’s passionate, and genuine, but he’s a little mislead. he falls into everything headfirst, full force, with totally reckless abandon. willing to lay everything he has down for what he believes in - even if he isn’t 100% what it is. he’s like this in his day to day relationships as well; he’s impulsive and rash, and most definitely had THIS QUOTE at some point, because he’s never figured out a balance for himself. he falls in love as quickly as he loses his temper, which is symbolism somehow but i’m too tired to write the whole thing out. basically, when you need someone to back you up, fox is your guy. however, his sense of identity is sort of compromised. he needs to learn to throttle back, that not everything is a fight or a war to win, and maybe he can figure shit out. 

LAUREN THATCH

lauren’s a straight up memester. she’s got more pics of kris jenner looking ridiculous and sassy on her phone than of her own family, and has a reference for everything. she’s very internet cultured (sometimes to the point where her jokes/memes are so obscure, no one has any idea what she’s talking about), and is overall just a giant geek ?? like naruto running down a crowded sidewalk or milly rocking to a car alarm in the grocery store parking lot ... you can’t take her anywhere tbh. quirky, funny personality aside, though, lauren has been battling with her mother’s bipolar disorder for years. shortly after lauren’s fifteenth birthday, lauren’s family had mrs. thatch admitted to a mental health facility where she has been treated ever since. however, as much as lauren loves her mother, their relationship has strained far beyond repair. between the medication and the social separation, mrs. thatch has completely altered both in personality and lauren’s eyes. the remains of a strong, goofy, striking woman like mrs. thatch were hardly recognizable after the years of medication and solitary confinement, which had transformed her into not much more than a vegetable, and lauren’s had a rough time adjusting to her new role in her mother’s life. she keeps a brave face in front of her friends and father, but everybody has a breaking point. she’s a very difficult emotional egg to crack because she doesnt’ feel like she can trust anybody with her truth (she’s worked this rep up as the funny girl for so long, she can’t just .. breakdown and be so honest and naked. there’s no way.) and the basic round up of this character is ... just breaking into her emotionally, and getting her to face her real problems even though she’s scared of change, and of losing such a close relationship.

RAMONA PEREZ

DREAAAAAM WEAAAVER. that’s the theme for ms, ramona ok. she’s very much a believer in fate, auras, and everything supernatural and superstitious. she’s a die-hard zodiac reader (she's sworn off capricorns for life), has her own little online advice column, and has looked into online witch craft more than is socially appropriate. she’s very out there and kooky and eccentric and says whatever pops into her head because she values honesty almost as much as she values her own opinion. she’s a very funny little thing, the type of girl everyone knows not because she’s popular, but because - by no intention of her own - has made a bit of a name for herself for her unconventional personality (most people think shes just got an acid problem). she’s a bit of a loner but she’s coolin, isn’t really out to please anyone but people are still enamored. 

JEAN HARTMAN 

ok so you know those “smol bean” yellow aesthetic, succulent loving tumblr heauxs ? jean’s basically ... that ... but with a pretty dark and dry sense of humor. she’s incredibly passionate about the earth and recycling and socialism (she’s been a member of the green party since her eighteenth birthday), but first impressions of her leave people with a mixed bag of emotions. she’s incredibly abrasive, harsh tongued and sardonic with a sarcasm and wit so dry you’re never certain if she’s really being mean, or if its a just a joke. spoiler alert: could be either .. she’s very hot and cold with people, often flipping her opinion of them without a moments notice - or any justifiable reason - because she’s very particular about who she’s hanging out with, and what she’s spending her time doing. she’s very much a girl who lives in ~the moment~, but not so much in the “live every moment like its your last” or “be impulsive!!1!” ways ... more like “i dont have time for any of u assholes i got shit to do before this planet dies”, so a lot of people find her too self involved and standoffish, but in reality, she’s very much on top of who she is and what she cares about, it’s just a matter of likability and charm - both of which are severely lacking. you can find muse inspo pics from THIS BLOG, but her character was born from THIS POST.

EMELIA JOLOYES. the gender crisis.

I'm so used to seeing promiscuous/hippie/teen mom type Stellas, I'd love to see someone branch out and play a more insecure type ?? Particularly with her gender. I'd love Emelia to be pretty secretive and introverted - spends 80% of her day locked up in her room, promising her parents she's only studying when really, she's on LGBTQA+ sites and blogs, trying to figure herself out, and at night when she's meant to be fast asleep, she's dressing in drag and heading out to clubs and parties where no one knows her, just to see what it'd be like ... While, yes, I understand there are always NB spaces in rps, i think it'd be interesting to have a NB character just now figuring out what they want and who they are.

JODIE VINCENT. pathological liar.

PAISLEY WALKER. the lost cause (more or less).

Paisley's a little backwoods chick, hailing from a small town in middle of nowhere, southern USA. She grew up with a bitter old man for a father figure, who let his anger and alcohol consume him. Though she loves him dearly, she'd give anything to get out of their junkyard of a home, but he refuses to let her leave. After her mother died years ago, her father can't handle being alone - and since it's always been the two of them, Paisley's unsure if she could do much better. Personality wise, she's pretty sweet, quiet, and despite using some pretty wack grammar, she's super smart. Sure, she barely meets a sixth grade reading level, but she's the most perceptive member of the group. She sees everything, hears everything, but keeps her mouth unshut, unless she's sure what she wants to say is necessary for the other person to hear. She's a little weird, but it's a good thing.

WARREN REICH. the entrepreneur.