THIS IS MY FAVORITE PART OF FANFICTION. you get to create a fictional human being. their looks, personality type, traits, quirks, mannerisms, and actions are totally up to you! you can create heroes, villains, and people in-between. it's actually amazing once you think about it.

okay, sorry about my little nerdy rant there. but making characters is so FUN.

that being said, it can also be hard. that's why i'm here to help!

did you know that there are more than just the main characters in the glade?? just a reminder that there are at least sixty people!! sixty!! that's why, in order to make your story more realistic, you're probably going to want to add in some characters of your own.

the best example of this that i've done is my book Aegis (i really don't know how many of you have read my stories). basically, i have more OCs in there than canon characters. let me introduce you to some of them. all of the faceclaims will be listed at the end!

starting with the most obvious, here's dylan!! (rip me for using such an overused faceclaim in 2014.) she's from my newt trilogy so i lied and this isn't just Aegis characters oops. she's thomas' twin, is incredibly smart, and amazing at martial arts.

and now theo!! he's a fan-favorite and a lil mexican builder, disabled bean

now that we have theo introduced, have you heard of his best friend, garret? he's a raiser (i made it up- it's what i called the people who take care of the animals) and can sing like john legend. he's a cutie pie

in comes my fave. nadia! she's also disabled and keeper of the runners. there is a 10/10 chance she will punch you in the face if you scare her but then immediately apologize and hug you because she's smol and adorable. she's also bi aF but dedicated to her man minho

now one of her best friends. this is clark, and he will roast you if he thinks you deserve it. he loves boys and is very loyal to his friends. clark is keeper of the raisers!

luke is clark's former love interest. lowkey a jerk but trying his best.

here's alex, who's a villain and yeah. nobody likes him.

and lastly, nick. i don't know if he counts as an OC because he was mentioned in TMR and had like one line in TFC, but i made up his personality and looks so??? idk??? anyways here's my beautiful bisexual ray of sunshine leader of the glade and light of my life (still salty over how jdash wrote him in TFC lol). he also has blond hair instead of brown!

(faceclaims: lucy hale, diego boneta, mason dye, lindsey morgan, linus wördemann, darrin jones, jos canela, tim borrmann)

i have waaaaaayyyy more OCs, but those are the important ones

OKAY. now onto the tips. as you can see, i rambled a lot about each of my characters and probably sounded like an overexcited parent (which i kinda am). your OCs are like your children.

that being said, you shouldn't be afraid to hurt your children. i have killed mine. 2 of them have lifelong injuries that will always bring them pain. one is half-deaf and uses a hearing aid. none of them are treated like angels in my books; they all suffer in some way, as all of us do. your characters should not be immune to injury, trauma, illness, etc. it's not how life works.

forming a personality is the next best part. you'll want to make sure your OC is as realistic as possible. not all of them should be carbon copies of another, or of a character that already exists. they should be well-rounded and three-dimensional.

what does that mean? basically, think of yourself. you don't have just one personality trait. you have a combination of hundreds that make you who you are.

take clark, for example. he's got a bad temper, is sarcastic, and probably will fight anyone. however, he's also fiercely loyal, caring, humorous, and shows emotion. he is a very trustworthy person who you could have a 10-hour conversation with and he would listen.

also remembet that not everyone has the most admirable traits. it's okay to create "annoying" OCs. people whine, are overly emotional, and do other things some might categorize as bothersome.

something that'll really help are character forms/charts! they're all over the internet and can help you get a rough outline of your OC.

moving on. when i write, i take every character's personality into consideration and imagine how they'll react to situations. will they cry? if so, do they let others see? do they get angry? are they going to flee or fight? these questions and more are what i ask myself. not everyone reacts the same way to certain things.

the easiest way to write a character is to remember that they represent a real-life person. we are not a perfect species. therefore, your character should not be perfect. they should have flaws. don't be afraid to give them some.

(i even make instagram edits of my OCs like wow can i get any more extra???)