The closer to the modern era you get the more fascinating "lost at sea" becomes as a backstory element. Being lost at sea in 1612 is a downright normal kind of lost to be. Being lost at sea in 2012 is like, okay, back up – I need to hear this one.
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The closer to the modern era you get the more fascinating "lost at sea" becomes as a backstory element. Being lost at sea in 1612 is a downright normal kind of lost to be. Being lost at sea in 2012 is like, okay, back up – I need to hear this one.

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cw: abuse and trauma and other unsavory things
interesting character backstories
because "my parents hit me or force me to be perfect" won't cut it for every character in the cast
-characters who grew up poor. poverty is traumatizing, people. i wanna see characters who never ask for anything, count dollars and coins, freak out when the bill isn't split fairly and immediately suspect bed bugs when someone says they're itchy. and mention the ugly stuff too. smelling bad and having water stains on the walls. ice cream for dinner and not eating breakfast. lights going out and fourteen year olds supporting a family of five.
-characters who were neglected. not physically abused, neglected. who don't understand why people care when they don't show up, or seem kind of down today, or leave a party without saying goodbye. who are too independent for their own good. who can't think of anything to say when asked to describe their parents. who are okay with being lonely. who always feel lonely. who get uncomfortable if you even ask them how their day was. who does that?
-characters who were smothered. who were treated like a toddler well into their teens. who were practically stalked by their own parents, never allowed a moment of privacy. who were constantly belittled and denied their autonomy as the adults in their life made every decision for them. regardless of how loved they truly were, this is abuse. this could go in two diverging directions: end result of a very guarded, mature character feeling a constant need to prove themself, or end result of a passive, immature character who requires attention, praise and constant assistance. both have extremely low self-esteem.
-characters who are fundamentally different from their family. maybe they're queer, or adopted, or disabled, or aren't fully related to the rest of them (bonus points if they aren't the same race as their family). characters who watch like a ghost as everyone else smiles and bonds. and maybe it's their fault that they're like this, or maybe it's their fault for not reaching out to the family themself, but... nobody else had to ask for it.
i forgot about this blog
Laios Backstory
I've been wanting to compile the comics that talk about Laios backstory for a while, especially after reading the "Laios and Family" extra from the new Adventurer's Bible that re-contextualizes it from Falin's POV.
So I'll be posting and discussing parts from the manga and extras that talk about/show his and Falin's Backstory. Spoilers Ahead.
I love telling my character’s backstories to people and seeing their faces slowly turn into a mix of horror, concern, and ‘what is she doing out of the asylum’
yes kageyama mightve been an arse in junior high, but wtf do u expect his grandpa died 😭

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Confession #906
Backstories for girls and women in stories that *don't* involve sexual assault.
I beta read a lot, and am involved in writing communities of various kinds, and I briefly taught English way back in the day, and I consume storytelling media in general - and one of my biggest pet peeves is sexual assault backstories. While I think this is improving, it's still annoying to me that a lot of writers (of all genders, but particularly men) fall back on a sexual assault backstory whenever they need to make a girl or woman in a story complicated or haunted or fucked up in some way.
Unless your story is dealing with the topic of sexual assault in some way, please don't use it as a way to give a character depth or angst.
Here are some prompts, just to get you started with some ideas.
Why would a woman be trying to escape her past? Why would she be seeking a fresh start?
She hated her small town; the people there didn't understand her and she never felt like she fit in - she's queer, she has a weird birthmark, she's got unique interests, she has magical powers, etc.
She's a criminal - she robbed banks or stole cars and she wanted a fresh start
She was an addict and hurt people, and she wants a fresh start now that she's sober
Her parent is a criminal or an addict and she's trying to outrun the stigma of being related to them
She didn't get along with a stepparent and skipped town as soon as she turned 18
She had big dreams of being something else, and left to pursue them
Her childhood home was haunted, but no one believed her
She got married young then divorced, and wants to start over somewhere that no one knows her
Heartbreak of any variety - she's leaving a place that reminds her too much of someone she lost or couldn't have
She wants better; maybe more money, or a career, or simply a higher quality of life
Some other violent tragedy occurred - a school shooting, an explosion at the plant, police brutality, her best friend was killed, etc.
Her hometown no longer exists (climate change, the main factory shut down, it was overrun by rabid squirrels, etc.)
What would make a woman distrustful of others?
Heartbreak; being lied to, cheated on, left for her best friend, etc.
A big betrayal - her former best friend told everyone a secret about her, someone weaponized her trauma or her past or a major flaw she's sensitive about, etc.
She witnessed a traumatizing event as a child
Her mother was a grifter and used her as part of her scams
One parent cheated on the other and broke up the family
Her older brother isn't dead after all, he was disowned for being gay and now she's questioning everything her parents ever told her
She has problems with her memory, and is never quite sure what the truth is
She's bad at reading people and has been taken advantage of
She finds out a dark secret about someone she loves and is having trouble processing it
She gradually comes to see that someone she idealized as a child is not at all what they seem
Someone she thought was a good, kind, and genuine person is arrested for a terrible crime
Spiritual abuse - the worldview she was taught was right turns out to be exploitative, represses women, etc., so she leaves
What would cause a woman to have mental health issues?
Any form of abuse - doesn't have to be sexual
Her parents had really high expectations that she couldn't live up to
It simply runs in the family
Survivor's guilt - she survived something that someone else did not
She was bullied and no one protected her
Her parents were very controlling and destroyed her confidence
Her sibling was the golden child and she was the scapegoat
She's had issues since childhood but her parents refused to admit there was anything wrong with her, so she didn't get help
Being a part of any oppressed group of people who experience discrimination - she's a person of color, she's an immigrant, she's got a disability, she's queer, etc.
Any major trauma, either witnessed or being a part of - weather events and natural disasters, infrastructure collapse, crashes and accidents, fires, a shooting or a murder, etc.
You're a writer - get creative. There are lots of ways to traumatize and haunt a girl/woman character without having to resort to a sexual assault backstory. You can even make her the problem! Maybe she's the one who did something bad and is trying to outrun the guilt.
Let's also let go of the idea that it's meeting and falling in love with a man that saves her from her trauma. Let her have a healing arc that doesn't involve a man - a love story can still be there, but it can't be the magic healing balm that fixes her. Make her have to save herself. Give her autonomy to both make her own mistakes, and improve her own situation. Don't let your man go into savior mode - let him get frustrated with her. Let her push him away without him clinging to her in a desperate bid to show her what unconditional love is. Don't let him be a martyr to her trauma.
Women are complicated for many reasons. We have trauma for many reasons. We have mental health issues for many reasons. We may want to escape our past for many reasons. We're angsty and weird for many reasons.
Please pick literally anything other than sexual assault.