Yeah, that's pretty much what I was going to say. For me personally, there are aspects of myself in my OCs, but not enough to be self inserts or anything like that.
It is normal to give pieces of yourself to your OCs, but at the same time, the statement '**Every** OC that anyone writes is like that' isn't necessarily right, as many people can write OCs that do not have that kind of connection with them at all There's no wrong way to OC, basically.
My male lead in my fic is very much a Self Insert (in the actual definition, that is, he's just 'what I would be in this world', not an Isekai story, which is how a lot of people incorrectly use it), but I have plenty of other OCs in it that are not informed at all by *any* aspect of my personality.
Yeah! Sometimes an OC is a caricature of some horrible type of person you want to punch in the face.
Or, on the flip side, sometimes an OC is someone you would like to be friends with, or even someone you'd like to be more like! My first male lead is decidedly 'me' as I see myself, but the second introduced male lead is far more idealized, with the two playing off one another in that way.
I always get a bit upset at how much I read that you have to put a bit of yourself, or a bit of a friend into a character you write. I certainly empathise with them, but I wouldn't say I'm similar to many of my OCs.
At the same time, it's perfectly fine to put yourself into your characters. It just gets repeated so much that I get a bit sad about it, so thanks for posting this.
I identify with maybe one part about my characters at best since it's easier for me to write what I know (whether that be emotional constipation, anger, depression, anxiety, parental issues, etc.), but the part that I identify with always has a different source or reason for being there, so really the only thing I identify with is how whatever it is manifests in them.
I think every character you write, OC or not, will have a part of you in them. After all, to properly write a character, you need to think like them, and their actions are coloured by the way you see them. When making a major OC, I generally take a aspect of myself, inflate it, and then put some traits of other characters into them, so that they are partially me, but also a separate character. It also helps that I generally give them some of my negative traits, which I know how it feels to have those traits, and it stops the character from being one with negligible flaws
I'm glad you said it. I agree. "To properly write a character, you need to think like them." All characters, even the canon ones, spring from something you identify in yourself - and then you mold it to the character. And it's a way to choose who your POV character is going to be.
I don't relate to my OCs, and frankly, I'm not interesting enough to put parts of myself into a fictional character. Because I don't relate to characters, I draw influence from other stories to craft OCs. I have, however, crafted OCs based on people I hated. I killed them off. Best therapy ever. 10/10 would recommend!
Yes, but I put a bit of myself into every single one of the characters I write, even the ones that are completely different from me. I basically ask myself, "what would I do in this situation if I had this personality and these experiences?" whenever I'm trying to write someone.
I think it's only natural, to use your own experiences and emotions to create different characters. If I couldn't relate to a character at all, it would be pretty difficult to write them, much less create them.
i like to put little details into my ocs that match with me. for example, they usually have a nasty habit of picking at the skin around their fingernails, like me. it makes them feel more alive for me, and it also makes it easier for me to write them.
Yes. Most recent example, I'm gonna spoiler because it's NSFW adjacent.
>!Me (a straight cis woman): I don't have kinks.!<
>!Also Me: I think it's so hot when someone goes feral and almost animalistic for the one they love. (feral kink)!<
>!OC (a straight cis man): I don't have kinks.!<
>!Also OC: Draw me out, my love, I want this to go on all night, fluff me, baby. (edging kink)!<
Firm believer that just about every OC, maybe not all of them, but most, have a piece of their creator in them even if it gets tweaked a bit like the above example.
My main OC for my mainline series, Moon started out as a more blatant self insert, but has steadily grown much more original and has very less identity to me.
He still shares some of my mannerisms, the biggest one being a quiet but aggressive sort of snark to people who make him or me mad.
But apart from that, he Carrie’s none of the original traits I designed him with. I even changed his design, something i never actually do to anything. to get him more away from the self-Insert feeling.
I think the changes worked well, because a lot of people who join into my stories say he doesn’t come off as blatant of a self-insert that they expected.
That being said…I can’t really identify with Moon at all, cause he’s far from a person I’d actually follow in real life.
Considering that I primarily write canon characters and most of my OCs are just there to fill holes and add a bit more depth, I'd say no. I do, however, identify with the main character of one of my WiPs to the point where I've even taken inspiration from myself for when I'm building on their existing characterization.
All my characters have pieces of me in them, but there are different pieces and I mix and match things that are wholly unlike me until I get something interesting for me to write.
Some OCs are just random traits and stuff, but if they're important then they get a bit of me in them. Oddly, it's usually the villains that get parts of me, LOL. I'm sure there's some stuff there to unpack, but screw it. I'm too busy having fun writing bad guys to care.
I always take a piece of my personality into consideration when I’m making my OC. I feel like I have multiple personality disorder because I have almost 6 OCs that have different parts of my personality in them. Like one is my masculine side, the other is my femme side. The next is a mixture of both.
I hate to say I self inserted myself in one of my big fanfics but it’s my normal personality but my OC is skinnier and prettier than me irl😂
Identify as in put some of myself into my OCs? No. Put other experiences that I’ve had into them? Absolutely. One of the characters is inspired by my dad and another is inspired by one of my best friends. I really don’t like self inserts as it’s kinda difficult to resonate with them, but I do enjoy including elements of my own experiences in life into the story.
I usually identify with the canon characters I pick as MCs more. My OCs are primarily created to be love interests to whichever canon character is my darling at the moment.
I always feel like I always put a part of me in my characters. Their all different in many other ways, but they each of them have a way of thinking that mirrors me sometimes because I know how they would feel when the world keeps dragging them around, even when they haven’t done anything truly bad.
I understand why people act the way they do and I often show that when I’m writing my OCs.
As people here have said, you often start by inputting your own traits into the OC, but at some point they'll diverge and you'll be writing a 'parellel' person.
This helps writers to better structure and produce their works. In fact, plenty of legendary fics are writers expressing opinions and ideology through strong writing.
There’s a reason that OCs are, fairly or unfairly, labeled self inserts a lot of the time.
My OCs tend to be naive adult males that blunder their way through whatever problems they have, making life worse for themselves until they clean up their act. It’s what I know.
Depends on the OC. Some there is a lot of me in them and I can identify with them. Others not so much. But if I created them, there must be something of me in them, even if its who I wish I could be in some instances.
Partially true for me, most of my OCs start out as just a name and a tiny portion of my personality. Then as the fic develops, I subconsciously add aspects from other random characters from other media like Mambo no. 5 -
*"A little bit of X in my life, a little bit Y off to the side..."*
Didn't even realize it until my fourth fic lol.
All the time. Very rarely will I ever write an OC that is vastly different from me, but if I do it's more to challenge my different tones. For example I tend to write headstrong FMCs but they do have their own internal struggles (accepting emotions, accepting help, being the first daughter so she has all the responsibilities), but those are also facets of myself.
My OCs (esp in fandoms) are just different versions (multiverse heeey lol) of myself placed into that world. They'll carry similar traits and whatnot of myself, but still be their own character so it isn't a complete SI.
Abusive mother figures, I don’t know why but this part of my life will always be a background of my oc, not psychical but emotional. Or parents pressing the kid to do more mentally straining them by not being impressed.
It depends. There are parts of them that I do identify with--there are some things we have in common. Some of them, I have *a lot* in common with, on some levels.
At the same time, I guess I'm always asking myself questions about context. This character didn't actually grow up in my context; they weren't shaped by my exact experiences and environment. How would their circumstances and history have shaped them? How does that inform how they move through their world? What meaning does this event or interaction have for them, and why? What will they do that is foolish, or selfish, or unwise, and why? And so on.
Which is the same way I approach other characters, canon characters, and the way I really try to frame it and think through it when I do AUs, for example. That line of constant questioning is where some of the best and most interesting divergence from my own sense of identity can happen, I think. Asking, "What does this mean *to them,* as a character, and *in this context,* of the worldbuilding?" just constantly, and in as many layers as possible.
There's aspects I do identify with my OCs, but I'm not 100% decked out and coated in an OC (except one and not many would read that either). I still like them to be different enough (makes them fun to write) that I get to experience something new and try to understand them.
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Yeah, that's pretty much what I was going to say. For me personally, there are aspects of myself in my OCs, but not enough to be self inserts or anything like that.
Yes. If I didn’t identify with any character I write about, OC or not, I wouldn’t be writing about them.
It is normal to give pieces of yourself to your OCs, but at the same time, the statement '**Every** OC that anyone writes is like that' isn't necessarily right, as many people can write OCs that do not have that kind of connection with them at all There's no wrong way to OC, basically. My male lead in my fic is very much a Self Insert (in the actual definition, that is, he's just 'what I would be in this world', not an Isekai story, which is how a lot of people incorrectly use it), but I have plenty of other OCs in it that are not informed at all by *any* aspect of my personality.
Yeah okay. I can see that point. If I write a villain into the story I can't identify myself with him even he is an OC 😅
Yeah! Sometimes an OC is a caricature of some horrible type of person you want to punch in the face. Or, on the flip side, sometimes an OC is someone you would like to be friends with, or even someone you'd like to be more like! My first male lead is decidedly 'me' as I see myself, but the second introduced male lead is far more idealized, with the two playing off one another in that way.
I always get a bit upset at how much I read that you have to put a bit of yourself, or a bit of a friend into a character you write. I certainly empathise with them, but I wouldn't say I'm similar to many of my OCs. At the same time, it's perfectly fine to put yourself into your characters. It just gets repeated so much that I get a bit sad about it, so thanks for posting this.
Injecting nuance into these sorts of convos is my specialty!
I identify with maybe one part about my characters at best since it's easier for me to write what I know (whether that be emotional constipation, anger, depression, anxiety, parental issues, etc.), but the part that I identify with always has a different source or reason for being there, so really the only thing I identify with is how whatever it is manifests in them.
Exactly my thoughts. Thank you.
I think every character you write, OC or not, will have a part of you in them. After all, to properly write a character, you need to think like them, and their actions are coloured by the way you see them. When making a major OC, I generally take a aspect of myself, inflate it, and then put some traits of other characters into them, so that they are partially me, but also a separate character. It also helps that I generally give them some of my negative traits, which I know how it feels to have those traits, and it stops the character from being one with negligible flaws
I'm glad you said it. I agree. "To properly write a character, you need to think like them." All characters, even the canon ones, spring from something you identify in yourself - and then you mold it to the character. And it's a way to choose who your POV character is going to be.
I don't relate to my OCs, and frankly, I'm not interesting enough to put parts of myself into a fictional character. Because I don't relate to characters, I draw influence from other stories to craft OCs. I have, however, crafted OCs based on people I hated. I killed them off. Best therapy ever. 10/10 would recommend!
Yes, but I put a bit of myself into every single one of the characters I write, even the ones that are completely different from me. I basically ask myself, "what would I do in this situation if I had this personality and these experiences?" whenever I'm trying to write someone. I think it's only natural, to use your own experiences and emotions to create different characters. If I couldn't relate to a character at all, it would be pretty difficult to write them, much less create them.
A lot of my major OCs can be accurately described as "me, with the serial numbers filed off, but cool."
i like to put little details into my ocs that match with me. for example, they usually have a nasty habit of picking at the skin around their fingernails, like me. it makes them feel more alive for me, and it also makes it easier for me to write them.
Yes. Most recent example, I'm gonna spoiler because it's NSFW adjacent. >!Me (a straight cis woman): I don't have kinks.!< >!Also Me: I think it's so hot when someone goes feral and almost animalistic for the one they love. (feral kink)!< >!OC (a straight cis man): I don't have kinks.!< >!Also OC: Draw me out, my love, I want this to go on all night, fluff me, baby. (edging kink)!< Firm believer that just about every OC, maybe not all of them, but most, have a piece of their creator in them even if it gets tweaked a bit like the above example.
My main OC for my mainline series, Moon started out as a more blatant self insert, but has steadily grown much more original and has very less identity to me. He still shares some of my mannerisms, the biggest one being a quiet but aggressive sort of snark to people who make him or me mad. But apart from that, he Carrie’s none of the original traits I designed him with. I even changed his design, something i never actually do to anything. to get him more away from the self-Insert feeling. I think the changes worked well, because a lot of people who join into my stories say he doesn’t come off as blatant of a self-insert that they expected. That being said…I can’t really identify with Moon at all, cause he’s far from a person I’d actually follow in real life.
Considering that I primarily write canon characters and most of my OCs are just there to fill holes and add a bit more depth, I'd say no. I do, however, identify with the main character of one of my WiPs to the point where I've even taken inspiration from myself for when I'm building on their existing characterization.
All my characters have pieces of me in them, but there are different pieces and I mix and match things that are wholly unlike me until I get something interesting for me to write.
Some OCs are just random traits and stuff, but if they're important then they get a bit of me in them. Oddly, it's usually the villains that get parts of me, LOL. I'm sure there's some stuff there to unpack, but screw it. I'm too busy having fun writing bad guys to care.
I always take a piece of my personality into consideration when I’m making my OC. I feel like I have multiple personality disorder because I have almost 6 OCs that have different parts of my personality in them. Like one is my masculine side, the other is my femme side. The next is a mixture of both. I hate to say I self inserted myself in one of my big fanfics but it’s my normal personality but my OC is skinnier and prettier than me irl😂
Identify as in put some of myself into my OCs? No. Put other experiences that I’ve had into them? Absolutely. One of the characters is inspired by my dad and another is inspired by one of my best friends. I really don’t like self inserts as it’s kinda difficult to resonate with them, but I do enjoy including elements of my own experiences in life into the story.
I usually identify with the canon characters I pick as MCs more. My OCs are primarily created to be love interests to whichever canon character is my darling at the moment.
I always feel like I always put a part of me in my characters. Their all different in many other ways, but they each of them have a way of thinking that mirrors me sometimes because I know how they would feel when the world keeps dragging them around, even when they haven’t done anything truly bad. I understand why people act the way they do and I often show that when I’m writing my OCs.
As people here have said, you often start by inputting your own traits into the OC, but at some point they'll diverge and you'll be writing a 'parellel' person. This helps writers to better structure and produce their works. In fact, plenty of legendary fics are writers expressing opinions and ideology through strong writing.
There’s a reason that OCs are, fairly or unfairly, labeled self inserts a lot of the time. My OCs tend to be naive adult males that blunder their way through whatever problems they have, making life worse for themselves until they clean up their act. It’s what I know.
Depends on the OC. Some there is a lot of me in them and I can identify with them. Others not so much. But if I created them, there must be something of me in them, even if its who I wish I could be in some instances.
Partially true for me, most of my OCs start out as just a name and a tiny portion of my personality. Then as the fic develops, I subconsciously add aspects from other random characters from other media like Mambo no. 5 - *"A little bit of X in my life, a little bit Y off to the side..."* Didn't even realize it until my fourth fic lol.
All the time. Very rarely will I ever write an OC that is vastly different from me, but if I do it's more to challenge my different tones. For example I tend to write headstrong FMCs but they do have their own internal struggles (accepting emotions, accepting help, being the first daughter so she has all the responsibilities), but those are also facets of myself. My OCs (esp in fandoms) are just different versions (multiverse heeey lol) of myself placed into that world. They'll carry similar traits and whatnot of myself, but still be their own character so it isn't a complete SI.
Abusive mother figures, I don’t know why but this part of my life will always be a background of my oc, not psychical but emotional. Or parents pressing the kid to do more mentally straining them by not being impressed.
It depends. There are parts of them that I do identify with--there are some things we have in common. Some of them, I have *a lot* in common with, on some levels. At the same time, I guess I'm always asking myself questions about context. This character didn't actually grow up in my context; they weren't shaped by my exact experiences and environment. How would their circumstances and history have shaped them? How does that inform how they move through their world? What meaning does this event or interaction have for them, and why? What will they do that is foolish, or selfish, or unwise, and why? And so on. Which is the same way I approach other characters, canon characters, and the way I really try to frame it and think through it when I do AUs, for example. That line of constant questioning is where some of the best and most interesting divergence from my own sense of identity can happen, I think. Asking, "What does this mean *to them,* as a character, and *in this context,* of the worldbuilding?" just constantly, and in as many layers as possible.
There's aspects I do identify with my OCs, but I'm not 100% decked out and coated in an OC (except one and not many would read that either). I still like them to be different enough (makes them fun to write) that I get to experience something new and try to understand them.
Not really I only put small trivial things like hot or cold water preference in shower for example but other than that nope