27 nov 2025, 4:22pm
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i love character design, and have been designing original characters for many years now. but it's also really fun to write their backstories and personality, and build a world around them. writing and designing my own characters really allows me to appreciate the thought and effort put into good character writing, whether that be in manga, shows or books. i really really love character growth; seeing a character grow through the events in the story makes me attached to them.
it's because i always admire those traits in my favourite manga that i really want to design my own characters in their own world, so i can pretend im drawing my own manga :0c unfortunately, as of late i haven't been doing a lot of character writing. i've mostly been drawing cool designs with extravagant and exaggerated proportions and clothing, but every time i try to give them a story, a personality, or even a name, i fail.
if you've watched any video on character design, they'll always mention the golden rule: the world builds the character. your character will be affected by their surroundings, their upbringing, and the events they go through. they'll dress based on their personality, their likings, and where they live. even if your character existed in a sort of vacuum, where you've just created them for the fun of it and haven't thought about the world or the people in it, as long as they have a personality, it'll reflect in their design.
of course, this doesn't mean your character can't look cool and still have a strong design that reflects them as a person. but balance is important, because if your character is all sparkles and no content, they will inevitably, obviously feel hollow.
and that reason is why i haven't been feeling satisfied with my characters lately. i really love their designs, but there's always something lacking! and that something always turns out to be their character. i'm always confused on where to start, because it always feels like i can't design a character without writing their story, but i can't write their story if i haven't drawn their design.. ( 𖦹‸𖦹)
there have been times where i had drawn a speech bubble above the character and written some silly lines. and in fact, that still gave them personality, because i had in fact just imparted my personality onto them. so maybe it doesn't have to be that complicated!! i can just write a bunch of mes in cool fits, then tweak them a little and put them in a slice of life setting...
wait, what about that cool sci-fi fantasy shounen action manga idea you had???
...oh (っ º - º ς)
sorry. unfortunately this is not an article, so there isn't really a conclusion. (｡•́ ̫ •̀｡)i'm always in the process of exploration about myself, and here is where i document that journey. perhaps one day i'll find the solution to writing ocs, then i can finally share it here! even if it doesn't help anyone, i can look back at it and appreciate growth. kind of like my own character arc. wow, am i a manga character??
just kidding. that's actually why flaws and setbacks a character has or experiences makes people attached to them! it's because they feel real, and they're relatable. they feel like they could be their own independent existence in real life, and that's what makes good character writing so amazing to me.