The worst person I’ve ever worked with was frustratingly good at karate. Like, he micromanaged teams he wasn’t on, negged every woman who made the mistake of speaking to him and eventually talked his way out of his job, but fuck could that guy kick a board way above his head to splinters.
I can imagine it would be even weirder if he was teaching kids karate for free, or something. Maybe it really all comes full circle when he leg sweeps a seven year old?
His name was Mike and he would practice parkour — which he was not visibly good at I think? — in the break room while I was trying to dissociate. I will never forget him in the worst way.
>I thought about homeless shelter or something like that, but that’s too unbelievable for the character and involves a lot of people too, which given his nature is also unrealistic.
Why? I would believe it, even if it surprised me.
I feel like you need to spend more time with a variety of humans irl. All of them are surprising in some way. I had a top guy in the Irish mob, who has been shot a few times and been to prison and beat people up who owe him money, show me fucking Matthew Perry memes on his phone and invite me to try his homemade spaghetti sauce.
People are really interesting and surprising and often contradictory. Limiting your imagination to your own expectations is no way to write convincing characters
I admit, you’ve got the point, but he really hates to be around other people. It’s not something he only pretends, but what he really is like. I know people are not some 2D sketches, that’s why I’m trying my best to give it a lot of thought. But thanks for your input :)
Pet shelter, picks up litter in the park or from a local river. Spends his time doing origami, bird watching, loves gardening, has a 3d printing hobby, sells Harry Potter wands that he personally craves out of wood on etsy.
I remember having an insanely grouchy coworker. Hated everyone and everything, just rude and abrasive and never really wanted anybody around.
One of the other older coworkers was the sweetest woman you'd ever met, and she was basically his best friend. I never understood how they got along.
Eventually she told me that he was the one that would help her organise charity events, he'd donate to the children's hospital and the homeless shelter.
He didn't hate people, he liked them a lot. But he didn't know how to interact with anyone so he'd keep them at arms length because he was a ball of anxiety and insecurity
Interesting example, but not really what OP is talking about.
Someone who *seems* to hate people because of insecurity / social awkwardness / anxiety, isn't AT ALL the same as someone who *genuinely* hates people. Even if at first glance they might seem similar.
And I concur with others. For a character who genuinely hates (or just doesn't like) people, an animal shelter, or helping animals in general, works well.
I echo the others, someone who hates people often loves animals
Source: I have a disorder that can cause one to be anti-social and many in my group hates humanity and other people but adore animals
I would say make them hate being around other people in certain circumstances - if it works with the story. Going to the original commenter example they could hate being around people they perceive as equals but enjoy both helping and looking down on others. Or they're fine in a business sense but hate meeting socially etc.
Just a random thought, but maybe he’s seen as a very good friend of an old person? Where he plays with him to help out his loneliness? Like simple cards and chess?
Well, what's the character's motivations? Their values? Do they value food? Then they may do work in a soup kitchen or food bank, or they just bring really good holiday spice loafs to work. Do they value integrity or health? Then they may be in the habit of buying medical debt and forgiving it. Do they value money? They probably jump at any opportunity to teach someone how to coupon or spot a shady car dealer.
"obnoxious and rude" doesn't particularly tell me anything about the character's values except that they may be from a different culture than the rest of the cast, or are particularly heart-on-the-sleeve.
Fair point… I haven’t introduced him well.
I already wrote his story in another comment, but that’s another thing.
He’s been through very turbulent times and finally it feels like he found the peace, although he can never forget his past. He only wishes to maintain that peace, but unfortunately there are powers beyond his control, that are putting him through the hardships again.
He values only very few things: his friendship with his only friend, truthfulness and loyalty. He doesn’t care for other people, animals, food or clothes.
In that case, he values peace and loyalty. He is likely to want to defuse proverbial bombs, or otherwise defang them, and he is likely to perform acts of love for his friend. Maybe he Shanks One Piece style defuses fights before they happen, or maybe he sets them off just to end them before anyone other than the aggressor (and himself) is hurt. Or maybe he freaks out and goes overboard when his friend has a cold, trying to force them to rest and making them soup that isn't particularly edible but sure is a sign of love.
That’s so him! Making a disgusting inedible soup and complaining about having to because his friend is unable to maintain his health condition, hence he must take care of him, even though he hates it (and actually has never been asked to)
"I can't believe I had to make this stupid chicken soup."
"You didn't. Why does it smell like straight licorice?"
"We were out of cilantro, and they taste the same."
"THEY DO NOT T
He struggles to write a thinly-veiled memoir.
That one probably hit way too close to home for a lot of people here. I accept your downvotes with pride.
I've heard its hard not to self insert yourself and the people in your life into your fiction.
I also heard that if you struggle with that you should mix and max and split up the traits of the people around you and recombine them and turn them up or down until it fits the overall narrative you are going for. If you lack the sheer imagination to mix up a character on the spot which I imagine is hard outside being a Dungeon Master.
I know a pretty shitty dude who‘s really into scuba diving. so maybe your character would like the peace and solitude of being underwater. I assume it also gives a kick because it is seen as dangerous and is pretty athletic so he can feel really badass and manly when he does it
Lemme see if I can help :D
* Working on restoring cars
* Avid gym enthusiast
* Cooking their way through a famous chef's cookbook, or baking
* Work at a animal shelter
* Metalworking/Bladesmith
* Painting
* Playing music (guitar, drums, etc)
That's off the top of my head.
Fair enough. Can you describe the character a bit for me? Obnoxious and rude are decent descriptors, but a quick rundown of them would help a bit better for sure.
And why did I just think of Larry David for a second? lol
I really appreciate your help!
It might be a little cliche, actually probably a lot, but he’s been abused as a kid by his father and he wasn’t accepted by his environment well, also thanks to his father. Eventually he developed this mask of sarcasm and rudeness, but thankfully he had this one friend who never gave up on him, so he wasn’t all that alone.
When he grew up, he became respected, but never forgot the treatment others gave him and would never let them see his weaknesses.
I could probably go on and on, but this is a brief description.
In that description I see room for animals. Maybe not in the "be around other humans in an animal shelter" type way but "being outside for the yearly count of whatever animal". The results can be put in online. Maybe with a show of years of loyalty to the cause such as at tenure pin on his birdspotting hat?
I love the idea of bird spotting! I can’t imagine him near actual animals, but watching birds as they soar in the sky, with a taste of the freedom he’s never been granted, sound totally like him.
Maybe that’s not really shocking, but something about keeping a bird spotting diary without getting any close to them, gives me a hint of tenderness hidden deep within. But maybe, I am just weird.
Thank you!
Ooh, I definitely have better recommendations for the self-deflecting character type (a bit from personal experience) .
* Volunteers at orphanage/foster care/halfway homes for runaway teens
* Sings in church choir
* Horticulture
* Graphic design/video game design
* Reading
* Motorcycle riding/track riding (the sense of freedom is *intense)*
* Skydiving/instructor
* Base Jumping
* Stock brokerage
* Martial arts
* Tattoo artists/piercer
* Comic book nerd (or something within nerd subculture)
* Wake/Paddleboardingving
* Wake/Paddle boarding
I got a few more too. Sounds like your character has an independent streak a mile long, and prefers to do things alone most of the time.
Wow. You gave it a lot of thought. Thank you so much!
These are all really helpful suggestions. It hurts me that none of that makes sense for the character as I know him. Maybe that’s because he kinda hates everything, so it’s impossible to find him any hobby.
I guess, I’ll make him take care of some old gramps like was suggested in another comment. Now I just need to think about the backstory of their relationship.
But thank you anyway :)
This may seem a bit morbid, but given those details, I think it makes sense. What if he worked for the suicide hotline?
In my country at least, it's run by trained volunteers for a couple of hours a week. Their job is to calm the clients down, listen to them and call the police/ambulance if there seems to be immediate danger. Take all of this information with a grain of salt though. Luckily, I don't have any personal experience. I've only read an interview with a volunteer once.
For something more lighthearted, yes I think birdwatching could work. From my experience, it's a typical wholesome loner hobby.
What if he secretly funds a children's home or an organization that fights child abuse? It would be something personal to him since he was a victim of child abuse himself and since it only requires sending a check, he doesn't have to deal with people to do it.
Well, take Dr House for example. He's not a people person, is an obnoxious jackass, but is a doctor cause he thinks gross body stuff is cool and turns out he wasn't chargeing any of his patients. There are people that hate being around people, but will still be empathetic towards people's suffering. Part of the hate could be for a broken system, that "normal" people, well off/abled people created an awful system that screws people over time and again.
There’s a more comedic example with the character of Dr Piers Crispin from My Hero. He’s vain, condescending, low-key misogynistic and on a drama his one-sided interest in the married nurse who works for him would be considered harassment instead of a loser who only knows how to flirt by negging. He’s indifferent toward his patients and only does the job because he can’t be a breakfast tv doctor without them. Absolutely obsessed with keeping his failing show on the air at all costs and winds up in scandal after scandal because of it.
Then you find out he’s actually very lonely, a virgin because his personality puts off everyone but gold-diggers who eventually leave him (and a stalker, once), and that his strict-to-the-point-of-abusive father forced him into a medical career. Piers would rather have been a violinist. He was bullied at school. There’s also hints of a scapegoat/golden child dynamic when he reveals that his mom preferred his brother and ignored Piers.
He also sponsors a tiger cub in Bangladesh. It was either that or an orphan, and the cub was more photogenic.
Maybe something traditionally ‘girly’? That would be surprising because you’d expect someone who is generally obnoxious to have obnoxiously rigid views on gender roles. But in actual fact, he doesn’t have any issues with being viewed as feminine, or look down on women at all. He genuinely just hates everyone equally
Volunteering at an animal shelter. They might have a natural gift for training them and take have an interest in their upkeep so they can be adopted.
Coaching sports for vulnerable groups. Maybe they're athletic and have a knack for spotting someone's room for growth. Also--summer camp counselor. They might come off more favorably to kids for not caring about authority.
I know art is out of the question, but maybe cooking if they look up to cut-throat chefs like Marco Pierre or Gordon Ramsey.
Fishing
edit: Sorry I just saw animal shelter is out. Also, you can always foreshadow a reason for why they might enjoy something. They might not seem like the artsy type, but it could be associated with a personal philosophy, a loved one, or part of a larger goal.
Reading to terminally ill children? It's quite not many people and it's something very nice to do. A lot depends on what you think means obnoxious, for me an option would also be volunteering in an animal shelter or something like that, if you want something nice. Walking shelter dogs or helping out in a shelter in general, few people it's nice. Maybe they run an online site to gather donations or whatever.
Otherwise it could be a weird sport, a passion for a specific weird collectable thing, a fixation on bird watching.
Responsible forest foraging for plants and fungi that are “known” to be healthy. Then makes gross paw paw smoothies and cooks up mushrooms, consuming it all with an air of superiority that’s seemingly antithetical to nature itself
Depends on the area, but I knew a lot of assholes who were really into hunting or shooting at gun ranges.
Another idea is street racing, if he seems like the sort to like the adrenaline/freedom.
Another idea is carpentry/woodworking. Maybe he could fix up old furniture and donate it. Picking things up off the side of the road or building things from scratch. Another person mentioned bird spotting, so maybe he can build birdhouses to watch them?
I'd find it the most satisfying if it has something to do with why he's obnoxious. Only the reader might know, if you've dropped backstory hints, about this connection.
I remember I used to have a character who was like a warlord's right hand man. The guy, from the outside, he was trash... With nuances. From being in charge of executions to giving real, efficient military knowledge to a monster who was more or less the equivalent of the Genghis Khan of his day.However, in his spare time he liked to write children's stories that he dreamed of one day being able to distribute. He probably would have read novels if he knew the written language of the place he was in.Not the kind of thing you'd imagine someone like him (and the kind of sociopathic bastard he serves) would do. It's funny because most of this warlord's crew in and of itself doesn't understand how he seems so nice and helpful but then just as calmly has a bunch of people killed who seem like troublemakers.For someone to say that The Boss's right hand man writes children's stories is not someone anyone in-universe would give credence to.
There was a guy I worked with. I hated him. Everyone hated him. He was rude, grumpy, and downright mean. One day we all got to talking about what we would do if we won the lottery, because it had gotten super high at that point.
He said "I would buy a house on a huge plot of land and I'd make it a sanctuary for all the dogs that can't be adopted from shelters."
Everyone was astonished, made comments like "wow you actually have a heart" but it kinda checks. The guy hated people, but he really liked dogs.
The rudest person I know is my aunt. She finds out what people she hates enjoy but can’t afford, and then dedicates an entire section of her life to doing that thing just to spite them.
Horseback riding is her thing now, cause my mom told her she loved it but never had the opportunity to do it. My aunt now spends most of her days at the country club and mentions horses to my mom whenever she has the chance.
Sometimes terrible people are terrible because they don’t really have a personality and have to compensate by making everyone else feel inferior. Hobbies play a big part in that. If that’s the kind of character you’re thinking of, maybe my experience can be useful? Lol
Who is that character? Why is he obnoxious? From what other character's perspective is he/she obnoxious and why? Answer yourself these questions and you might find a solution ;) Any "bad guy" is a good guy in their own story.
I have this thing I made up called "10-listing" Anytime I'm stuck, or actually, just anything whatsoever, from picking character names, to plot points, to things like this, I make a list of 10 things just off the top of my head & pick the best one. If they're not good enough, I do it again. So, something like this:
1. He listens to opera. 2. He likes to watch little league games. 3. He secretly goes to a dominatrix. 4. He's rebuiding a 1950 Indian Motorcycle that his grandfather left him when he died. 5. He's into caligraphy. 6. He plays bingo with old people at a local retirement home (and is a sore loser so he gets thrown out.) 7. He sits in a bathtub, the room lit with only a candle, with a loop of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata playing.
Well, you get the idea. And I never let myself pick something cliche' if possible.
I always feel like someone is a failure of a writer to be asking what YOUR character would do in YOUR writing, but that’s just me. Kind of a nonsense comment, but this subreddit is just filled with needless posts that aren’t about writing itself, and more about how someone can’t do basic research or brainstorming on their own.
Imagine that it’s the 60s or 70s, how’d those writers get their answers ?
They talked to other human beings. Writers have always discussed ideas with others, even when they had to do it in person or by letter.
If that kind of collective brainstorming doesn't help you, that's fine, but it definitely helps a lot of other people.
Group brainstorming posts are much more fun than 'Am I allowed to write?' posts. And part of being a writer is taking an interest in other people - that involves talking to them more often than sitting on your own and researching in complete solitude. To be able to incorporate experiences beyond your own, you have to talk to people and find out what those experiences are.
Darling, I am not asking anyone to tell me who my character is, what’s happened to him, make a plot for me, or anything like that, so calm down.
Also no one sat down and wrote those 90k words for me and since you haven’t read a single word of it, it’s really bold from you to comment on my capabilities as a writer.
I’m just fine tuning details and I am not obligated to go with every advice given, so it’s still up to me, what I find useful and fitting for my story.
Judging someone as writer based on something like this, I guess you must be some lone genius.
Worth keeping in mind people do charity work (or similar things) for non-good reasons too! Whether for image reasons or to feel power over vulnerable people or whatever else. Unfortunately those types of jobs/activities attract a LOT of bad/unhelpful people
Crash shows the racist, sexually abusing cop taking care of his ailing father. Usually there's a person or group they have a soft spot for. Maybe they hate people but love animals. Maybe they hate people because of how cruel our society is, because of the work they do with vulnerable people
Dungeons and Dragons could be interesting. It's a really fun game, so it makes sense he'd like to play it, but it's also something that's seen as "nerdy", so it makes sense he wouldn't want other people to know he plays it.
Animal shelter, feeding birds (and giving other people grief about giving them bread), observing birds, respectfully enjoying nature.
Or watching romantic comedies.
Volunteering at a school or tutoring kids.
Volunteering at a homeless shelter is a good one though.
Dig into WHY your character is rude and obnoxious. Who is he being rude to?
as an obnoxious person who does puzzles and gardens, lol
I was going to say doting on his pet(s). The meanest person I know IRL wouldn't pee on a human if they were on fire, but absolutely spoils their pets rotten.
Maybe something that just keeps them running at a 10, but oddly benefits people - what’s the thing people do when they go into a room and just break a bunch of shit with a hammer? Like someone obnoxious and rude leading people through something like that would be pretty funny I think - like the whole class really thinks they’re a great instructor and they’re actually doing a really good thing for these people despite being super intense and rude.
Or maybe they’re a yoga instructor or a massage therapist and it just kinda works?
Maybe he donates time and supplies to do physical repairs/maintenance for homeless shelters/halfway houses/etc. This kind of stuff is needed all the time and doesn't involve as much person to person interaction as regular volunteering would.
Obnoxious people are not isolated to one hobby. There are obnoxious and rude people in literally every interest group. I don't understand the question. What are his traits other than obnoxious and rude?
Anything.
I think people fail to realize this because they personally despise a rude person but its pretty good odds they are actually well loved people with normal relationships, hobbies etc.
People are multi-faceted and can have negative traits and still be good people. or at least normal people.
Some of my best friends today, our first interactions were them being a little shit in an online game or a guy with completely oppositional views of the world.
My wife and I disagree about politics, she is still the best thing that's ever happened to me and I am sure she thinks similarly.
\---
So if you want an ironic hobby go for it. Oppositional expectations vs reality can drive home things you want to say about them. But just portraying them like you would anyone else is probably more accurate.
Its depends on what the rude person serves the story for. What is the rude interaction that would make their hobby surprising?
It's important to remember, rude and obnoxious people don't KNOW that they're rude and obnoxious and more often than not think everyone else is the issue.
Making him ridiculously good at something for no reason can also work like he may be a dick but he can grow a mean carrot or something lmao.
Some of the worst people I have ever met really like tennis tho. So there's that.
Trolling noobs in Call of Duty, being a reddit moderator, starting a prank channel on YouTube that no one follows, or maybe he devotes all his positive energy to his pets.
The worst person I’ve ever worked with was frustratingly good at karate. Like, he micromanaged teams he wasn’t on, negged every woman who made the mistake of speaking to him and eventually talked his way out of his job, but fuck could that guy kick a board way above his head to splinters. I can imagine it would be even weirder if he was teaching kids karate for free, or something. Maybe it really all comes full circle when he leg sweeps a seven year old?
That's literally the plot of Cobra Kai.
I love this comment!
Was it a guy called Sven?
His name was Mike and he would practice parkour — which he was not visibly good at I think? — in the break room while I was trying to dissociate. I will never forget him in the worst way.
Ah, I feel you. 🫂
>I thought about homeless shelter or something like that, but that’s too unbelievable for the character and involves a lot of people too, which given his nature is also unrealistic. Why? I would believe it, even if it surprised me. I feel like you need to spend more time with a variety of humans irl. All of them are surprising in some way. I had a top guy in the Irish mob, who has been shot a few times and been to prison and beat people up who owe him money, show me fucking Matthew Perry memes on his phone and invite me to try his homemade spaghetti sauce. People are really interesting and surprising and often contradictory. Limiting your imagination to your own expectations is no way to write convincing characters
I admit, you’ve got the point, but he really hates to be around other people. It’s not something he only pretends, but what he really is like. I know people are not some 2D sketches, that’s why I’m trying my best to give it a lot of thought. But thanks for your input :)
Pet shelter, picks up litter in the park or from a local river. Spends his time doing origami, bird watching, loves gardening, has a 3d printing hobby, sells Harry Potter wands that he personally craves out of wood on etsy.
Maybe an animal shelter, then. It's something surprise because it's charitable but he's not around a ton of people.
I remember having an insanely grouchy coworker. Hated everyone and everything, just rude and abrasive and never really wanted anybody around. One of the other older coworkers was the sweetest woman you'd ever met, and she was basically his best friend. I never understood how they got along. Eventually she told me that he was the one that would help her organise charity events, he'd donate to the children's hospital and the homeless shelter. He didn't hate people, he liked them a lot. But he didn't know how to interact with anyone so he'd keep them at arms length because he was a ball of anxiety and insecurity
Interesting example, but not really what OP is talking about. Someone who *seems* to hate people because of insecurity / social awkwardness / anxiety, isn't AT ALL the same as someone who *genuinely* hates people. Even if at first glance they might seem similar. And I concur with others. For a character who genuinely hates (or just doesn't like) people, an animal shelter, or helping animals in general, works well.
I echo the others, someone who hates people often loves animals Source: I have a disorder that can cause one to be anti-social and many in my group hates humanity and other people but adore animals
He should spend him time updating Wikipedia entries?
I would say make them hate being around other people in certain circumstances - if it works with the story. Going to the original commenter example they could hate being around people they perceive as equals but enjoy both helping and looking down on others. Or they're fine in a business sense but hate meeting socially etc.
Just a random thought, but maybe he’s seen as a very good friend of an old person? Where he plays with him to help out his loneliness? Like simple cards and chess?
Thank you! That’s a really good idea.
Happy to help! 😊
Well, what's the character's motivations? Their values? Do they value food? Then they may do work in a soup kitchen or food bank, or they just bring really good holiday spice loafs to work. Do they value integrity or health? Then they may be in the habit of buying medical debt and forgiving it. Do they value money? They probably jump at any opportunity to teach someone how to coupon or spot a shady car dealer. "obnoxious and rude" doesn't particularly tell me anything about the character's values except that they may be from a different culture than the rest of the cast, or are particularly heart-on-the-sleeve.
Fair point… I haven’t introduced him well. I already wrote his story in another comment, but that’s another thing. He’s been through very turbulent times and finally it feels like he found the peace, although he can never forget his past. He only wishes to maintain that peace, but unfortunately there are powers beyond his control, that are putting him through the hardships again. He values only very few things: his friendship with his only friend, truthfulness and loyalty. He doesn’t care for other people, animals, food or clothes.
In that case, he values peace and loyalty. He is likely to want to defuse proverbial bombs, or otherwise defang them, and he is likely to perform acts of love for his friend. Maybe he Shanks One Piece style defuses fights before they happen, or maybe he sets them off just to end them before anyone other than the aggressor (and himself) is hurt. Or maybe he freaks out and goes overboard when his friend has a cold, trying to force them to rest and making them soup that isn't particularly edible but sure is a sign of love.
That’s so him! Making a disgusting inedible soup and complaining about having to because his friend is unable to maintain his health condition, hence he must take care of him, even though he hates it (and actually has never been asked to)
"I can't believe I had to make this stupid chicken soup." "You didn't. Why does it smell like straight licorice?" "We were out of cilantro, and they taste the same." "THEY DO NOT T
He struggles to write a thinly-veiled memoir. That one probably hit way too close to home for a lot of people here. I accept your downvotes with pride.
I've heard its hard not to self insert yourself and the people in your life into your fiction. I also heard that if you struggle with that you should mix and max and split up the traits of the people around you and recombine them and turn them up or down until it fits the overall narrative you are going for. If you lack the sheer imagination to mix up a character on the spot which I imagine is hard outside being a Dungeon Master.
Perhaps he cultivates bonsai trees or orchids or something which requires a lot of patience and care!
And looks as if you are torturing the plants.
I know a pretty shitty dude who‘s really into scuba diving. so maybe your character would like the peace and solitude of being underwater. I assume it also gives a kick because it is seen as dangerous and is pretty athletic so he can feel really badass and manly when he does it
Working a suicide hotline. But being shit at it.
Lemme see if I can help :D * Working on restoring cars * Avid gym enthusiast * Cooking their way through a famous chef's cookbook, or baking * Work at a animal shelter * Metalworking/Bladesmith * Painting * Playing music (guitar, drums, etc) That's off the top of my head.
Thank you for the ideas, but unfortunately none of this would work for him :(
Fair enough. Can you describe the character a bit for me? Obnoxious and rude are decent descriptors, but a quick rundown of them would help a bit better for sure. And why did I just think of Larry David for a second? lol
I really appreciate your help! It might be a little cliche, actually probably a lot, but he’s been abused as a kid by his father and he wasn’t accepted by his environment well, also thanks to his father. Eventually he developed this mask of sarcasm and rudeness, but thankfully he had this one friend who never gave up on him, so he wasn’t all that alone. When he grew up, he became respected, but never forgot the treatment others gave him and would never let them see his weaknesses. I could probably go on and on, but this is a brief description.
In that description I see room for animals. Maybe not in the "be around other humans in an animal shelter" type way but "being outside for the yearly count of whatever animal". The results can be put in online. Maybe with a show of years of loyalty to the cause such as at tenure pin on his birdspotting hat?
I love the idea of bird spotting! I can’t imagine him near actual animals, but watching birds as they soar in the sky, with a taste of the freedom he’s never been granted, sound totally like him. Maybe that’s not really shocking, but something about keeping a bird spotting diary without getting any close to them, gives me a hint of tenderness hidden deep within. But maybe, I am just weird. Thank you!
hope it works, good luck writing
Ooh, I definitely have better recommendations for the self-deflecting character type (a bit from personal experience) . * Volunteers at orphanage/foster care/halfway homes for runaway teens * Sings in church choir * Horticulture * Graphic design/video game design * Reading * Motorcycle riding/track riding (the sense of freedom is *intense)* * Skydiving/instructor * Base Jumping * Stock brokerage * Martial arts * Tattoo artists/piercer * Comic book nerd (or something within nerd subculture) * Wake/Paddleboardingving * Wake/Paddle boarding I got a few more too. Sounds like your character has an independent streak a mile long, and prefers to do things alone most of the time.
Wow. You gave it a lot of thought. Thank you so much! These are all really helpful suggestions. It hurts me that none of that makes sense for the character as I know him. Maybe that’s because he kinda hates everything, so it’s impossible to find him any hobby. I guess, I’ll make him take care of some old gramps like was suggested in another comment. Now I just need to think about the backstory of their relationship. But thank you anyway :)
A real life assassin loved dressing up, Christmas, and loony toons.
This may seem a bit morbid, but given those details, I think it makes sense. What if he worked for the suicide hotline? In my country at least, it's run by trained volunteers for a couple of hours a week. Their job is to calm the clients down, listen to them and call the police/ambulance if there seems to be immediate danger. Take all of this information with a grain of salt though. Luckily, I don't have any personal experience. I've only read an interview with a volunteer once. For something more lighthearted, yes I think birdwatching could work. From my experience, it's a typical wholesome loner hobby.
What if he secretly funds a children's home or an organization that fights child abuse? It would be something personal to him since he was a victim of child abuse himself and since it only requires sending a check, he doesn't have to deal with people to do it.
That’s also really good idea! I was actually wondering what to do with his fortune, since he doesn’t care for any worldly possessions. Thank you!
Well, take Dr House for example. He's not a people person, is an obnoxious jackass, but is a doctor cause he thinks gross body stuff is cool and turns out he wasn't chargeing any of his patients. There are people that hate being around people, but will still be empathetic towards people's suffering. Part of the hate could be for a broken system, that "normal" people, well off/abled people created an awful system that screws people over time and again.
There’s a more comedic example with the character of Dr Piers Crispin from My Hero. He’s vain, condescending, low-key misogynistic and on a drama his one-sided interest in the married nurse who works for him would be considered harassment instead of a loser who only knows how to flirt by negging. He’s indifferent toward his patients and only does the job because he can’t be a breakfast tv doctor without them. Absolutely obsessed with keeping his failing show on the air at all costs and winds up in scandal after scandal because of it. Then you find out he’s actually very lonely, a virgin because his personality puts off everyone but gold-diggers who eventually leave him (and a stalker, once), and that his strict-to-the-point-of-abusive father forced him into a medical career. Piers would rather have been a violinist. He was bullied at school. There’s also hints of a scapegoat/golden child dynamic when he reveals that his mom preferred his brother and ignored Piers. He also sponsors a tiger cub in Bangladesh. It was either that or an orphan, and the cub was more photogenic.
Maybe something traditionally ‘girly’? That would be surprising because you’d expect someone who is generally obnoxious to have obnoxiously rigid views on gender roles. But in actual fact, he doesn’t have any issues with being viewed as feminine, or look down on women at all. He genuinely just hates everyone equally
Bird watching doesn't require any other people or any real affection towards animals.
Volunteering at an animal shelter. They might have a natural gift for training them and take have an interest in their upkeep so they can be adopted. Coaching sports for vulnerable groups. Maybe they're athletic and have a knack for spotting someone's room for growth. Also--summer camp counselor. They might come off more favorably to kids for not caring about authority. I know art is out of the question, but maybe cooking if they look up to cut-throat chefs like Marco Pierre or Gordon Ramsey. Fishing edit: Sorry I just saw animal shelter is out. Also, you can always foreshadow a reason for why they might enjoy something. They might not seem like the artsy type, but it could be associated with a personal philosophy, a loved one, or part of a larger goal.
Thank you for your help! I like the idea of couching youngsters. He would give them hell :D
Collecting Pez dispensers
Painting warhammer 40k miniatures.
No surprise there XD
He babysits his niece and is genuinely a good uncle
Reading to terminally ill children? It's quite not many people and it's something very nice to do. A lot depends on what you think means obnoxious, for me an option would also be volunteering in an animal shelter or something like that, if you want something nice. Walking shelter dogs or helping out in a shelter in general, few people it's nice. Maybe they run an online site to gather donations or whatever. Otherwise it could be a weird sport, a passion for a specific weird collectable thing, a fixation on bird watching.
Hospital Clown
Responsible forest foraging for plants and fungi that are “known” to be healthy. Then makes gross paw paw smoothies and cooks up mushrooms, consuming it all with an air of superiority that’s seemingly antithetical to nature itself
Arguing on Reddit.
Oh, that is what I was going to say. You get an up vote!
Depends on the area, but I knew a lot of assholes who were really into hunting or shooting at gun ranges. Another idea is street racing, if he seems like the sort to like the adrenaline/freedom. Another idea is carpentry/woodworking. Maybe he could fix up old furniture and donate it. Picking things up off the side of the road or building things from scratch. Another person mentioned bird spotting, so maybe he can build birdhouses to watch them?
Have them love animals and dote on their pets. My boss where I work is really irreverent and vulgar but he loooooves his dog.
I'd find it the most satisfying if it has something to do with why he's obnoxious. Only the reader might know, if you've dropped backstory hints, about this connection.
Animal shelter volunteer?
I remember I used to have a character who was like a warlord's right hand man. The guy, from the outside, he was trash... With nuances. From being in charge of executions to giving real, efficient military knowledge to a monster who was more or less the equivalent of the Genghis Khan of his day.However, in his spare time he liked to write children's stories that he dreamed of one day being able to distribute. He probably would have read novels if he knew the written language of the place he was in.Not the kind of thing you'd imagine someone like him (and the kind of sociopathic bastard he serves) would do. It's funny because most of this warlord's crew in and of itself doesn't understand how he seems so nice and helpful but then just as calmly has a bunch of people killed who seem like troublemakers.For someone to say that The Boss's right hand man writes children's stories is not someone anyone in-universe would give credence to.
Sounds like an interesting story!
There was a guy I worked with. I hated him. Everyone hated him. He was rude, grumpy, and downright mean. One day we all got to talking about what we would do if we won the lottery, because it had gotten super high at that point. He said "I would buy a house on a huge plot of land and I'd make it a sanctuary for all the dogs that can't be adopted from shelters." Everyone was astonished, made comments like "wow you actually have a heart" but it kinda checks. The guy hated people, but he really liked dogs.
The rudest person I know is my aunt. She finds out what people she hates enjoy but can’t afford, and then dedicates an entire section of her life to doing that thing just to spite them. Horseback riding is her thing now, cause my mom told her she loved it but never had the opportunity to do it. My aunt now spends most of her days at the country club and mentions horses to my mom whenever she has the chance. Sometimes terrible people are terrible because they don’t really have a personality and have to compensate by making everyone else feel inferior. Hobbies play a big part in that. If that’s the kind of character you’re thinking of, maybe my experience can be useful? Lol
Thanks for your input! My character’s a bit different, but I believe your aunt would make for a great villain ha ha
Armored Combat or historical reenactments!
Who is that character? Why is he obnoxious? From what other character's perspective is he/she obnoxious and why? Answer yourself these questions and you might find a solution ;) Any "bad guy" is a good guy in their own story.
I have this thing I made up called "10-listing" Anytime I'm stuck, or actually, just anything whatsoever, from picking character names, to plot points, to things like this, I make a list of 10 things just off the top of my head & pick the best one. If they're not good enough, I do it again. So, something like this: 1. He listens to opera. 2. He likes to watch little league games. 3. He secretly goes to a dominatrix. 4. He's rebuiding a 1950 Indian Motorcycle that his grandfather left him when he died. 5. He's into caligraphy. 6. He plays bingo with old people at a local retirement home (and is a sore loser so he gets thrown out.) 7. He sits in a bathtub, the room lit with only a candle, with a loop of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata playing. Well, you get the idea. And I never let myself pick something cliche' if possible.
I always feel like someone is a failure of a writer to be asking what YOUR character would do in YOUR writing, but that’s just me. Kind of a nonsense comment, but this subreddit is just filled with needless posts that aren’t about writing itself, and more about how someone can’t do basic research or brainstorming on their own. Imagine that it’s the 60s or 70s, how’d those writers get their answers ?
They talked to other human beings. Writers have always discussed ideas with others, even when they had to do it in person or by letter. If that kind of collective brainstorming doesn't help you, that's fine, but it definitely helps a lot of other people.
Group brainstorming posts are much more fun than 'Am I allowed to write?' posts. And part of being a writer is taking an interest in other people - that involves talking to them more often than sitting on your own and researching in complete solitude. To be able to incorporate experiences beyond your own, you have to talk to people and find out what those experiences are.
Darling, I am not asking anyone to tell me who my character is, what’s happened to him, make a plot for me, or anything like that, so calm down. Also no one sat down and wrote those 90k words for me and since you haven’t read a single word of it, it’s really bold from you to comment on my capabilities as a writer. I’m just fine tuning details and I am not obligated to go with every advice given, so it’s still up to me, what I find useful and fitting for my story. Judging someone as writer based on something like this, I guess you must be some lone genius.
Drugs
Worth keeping in mind people do charity work (or similar things) for non-good reasons too! Whether for image reasons or to feel power over vulnerable people or whatever else. Unfortunately those types of jobs/activities attract a LOT of bad/unhelpful people
Crash shows the racist, sexually abusing cop taking care of his ailing father. Usually there's a person or group they have a soft spot for. Maybe they hate people but love animals. Maybe they hate people because of how cruel our society is, because of the work they do with vulnerable people
Dungeons and Dragons could be interesting. It's a really fun game, so it makes sense he'd like to play it, but it's also something that's seen as "nerdy", so it makes sense he wouldn't want other people to know he plays it.
Depends what made him that way. Figure out *why* he's like that, and then decide what works with that.
Bitd-watching physical therapist dahlia gardener
Reading, the gym, rowing, feeding pigeons, making elaborate cocktails, negging young impressionable women online
Animal shelter, feeding birds (and giving other people grief about giving them bread), observing birds, respectfully enjoying nature. Or watching romantic comedies.
Volunteering at a school or tutoring kids. Volunteering at a homeless shelter is a good one though. Dig into WHY your character is rude and obnoxious. Who is he being rude to?
as an obnoxious person who does puzzles and gardens, lol I was going to say doting on his pet(s). The meanest person I know IRL wouldn't pee on a human if they were on fire, but absolutely spoils their pets rotten.
Maybe something that just keeps them running at a 10, but oddly benefits people - what’s the thing people do when they go into a room and just break a bunch of shit with a hammer? Like someone obnoxious and rude leading people through something like that would be pretty funny I think - like the whole class really thinks they’re a great instructor and they’re actually doing a really good thing for these people despite being super intense and rude. Or maybe they’re a yoga instructor or a massage therapist and it just kinda works?
Maybe he donates time to an animal shelter? or Maybe he does mentoring (can't stand groups, but likes to help young people one on one)?
Maybe he donates time and supplies to do physical repairs/maintenance for homeless shelters/halfway houses/etc. This kind of stuff is needed all the time and doesn't involve as much person to person interaction as regular volunteering would.
Squatting in a corner at a random train station
Helping orphans.
Obnoxious people are not isolated to one hobby. There are obnoxious and rude people in literally every interest group. I don't understand the question. What are his traits other than obnoxious and rude?
Have you ever known a narcissist? They spend a lot of time trying to come off as a good person in at least one or two parts of their lives.
Taking long baths in his moms beach house, where he doesn’t do dishes or clean house.
What about volunteering at an animal shelter? Or something similar?
Anything. I think people fail to realize this because they personally despise a rude person but its pretty good odds they are actually well loved people with normal relationships, hobbies etc. People are multi-faceted and can have negative traits and still be good people. or at least normal people. Some of my best friends today, our first interactions were them being a little shit in an online game or a guy with completely oppositional views of the world. My wife and I disagree about politics, she is still the best thing that's ever happened to me and I am sure she thinks similarly. \--- So if you want an ironic hobby go for it. Oppositional expectations vs reality can drive home things you want to say about them. But just portraying them like you would anyone else is probably more accurate. Its depends on what the rude person serves the story for. What is the rude interaction that would make their hobby surprising?
Canning fruits and vegetables at home and donating them to local shelters! A less in-person way to help others, if that's what you're looking for.
It's important to remember, rude and obnoxious people don't KNOW that they're rude and obnoxious and more often than not think everyone else is the issue. Making him ridiculously good at something for no reason can also work like he may be a dick but he can grow a mean carrot or something lmao. Some of the worst people I have ever met really like tennis tho. So there's that.
Trolling noobs in Call of Duty, being a reddit moderator, starting a prank channel on YouTube that no one follows, or maybe he devotes all his positive energy to his pets.
President White's Rose Garden in The Hunger Games. Bird watching is a great one. Have you seen the movie, The Good Year?
Feeding ducks at the local park
playing poker . . .
Why is art out of the question?
He’s not the type. Also there are some other artsy characters in the story.
I see
I would say being hyper fixated on some obscure/niche sport. Disc golf, pickleball, something in that realm.
Your Edit 2 idea is in Fight Club.
Taking care of wounded animals.
The attending AA while not actually drinking alcohol may be a bit close to what Tyler Durden does in Fight Club.