A Little Character Talk

I thought it would be fun to give you all a run down from all the characters I’ve ever created. Here is just a ton of questions about original characters (OC) and a little background into how I brought them to life in my stories.

1. Your first OC ever?

Finnley/Clara. She officially came to life back in 2018, when I wrote the first draft to Soul Forgotten, but she’s been stuck in my head for a lot longer than that. From her purple hair to her personality, I modeled her after a lot of my own characteristics to have something easy to practice with, but she evolved in the later drafts and became her own person with the release.

2. Do you have a personal favourite among your OCs?

I think I’d be doing everyone a disservice by choosing. It’s impossible to pick.

JK, it’s Brela. Did you really expect anything else?

3. A character you rarely talk about?

I think I have done a poor job with spreading the love to the Warrior series, simply because it’s now done. Therefore, I don’t often talk about Kahyr and Rhish, my two favorite MCs from that series. That one was especially fun because there’s a language barrier and writing from the perspective of not knowing certain language and social cues was a delight.

4. If you could make only one of your OCs popular/known, who would it be?

Brela, again. I think she’s the whole package and delivers a good punch (literally). Her story is much more ‘adult’, simply because as I write and get better, I take on new writing challenges. For her, she’s the most complicated and intricate character to write, but also the easiest.

5. Two OCs of yours that look alike despite not being related?

I think Rhish and Nate are probably the most alike in terms of physical appearance. Except Nate lives in the real world and Rhish is a bit more rugged from his epic fantasy background.

6. Introduce an OC with a complicated design?

Oni is probably the most complicated in design, at least physically. Though he’s human-like, as a sand sprite, his outer ‘skin’ is made of glass while his interior is sand. Black sand for eyes, and whenever he makes facial gestures or reactions, the sand that comes to the surface can be a different color to reflect it. For example, when he blushes, a pinker hue can tint his cheeks. It’s a lot of fun to imagine him and make his body move while being glass. It poses a lot of challenges, but his magic is also a lot of fun to play with.

7. Do you have any troublemaker OCs?

I mean, most of the cast of Shadows are troublemakers. Elias is probably the most difficult because he can balance between a total lovable idiot to a stoic, solid force in the next moment. At his heart, though, he’s immature in the best ways and just loves to get into trouble and cause chaos.

8. Any OC OTPs?

I’m in love with writing love into my stories. While not everyone is paired up (nor do they need to be paired up to be happy), I do enjoy having relationships that strengthen one another rather than rely on the other to function. So, all of my character ‘one true pairings’ are less about needing each other and more about finding strength together but also still functioning independently.

We have the mains: Brela/Cason, Kiya/Ryder, Kahyr/Rhish, Finnley/Nate.

And to all my readers out there who are shipping Serill/Farrah, I see you and I make no promises except that I think you’ll like where all of this is going.

9. Introduce an OC that means a lot to you (and explain why)

This may just become a love fest for Brela, but she’s definitely the one that makes the most impact in my mind. She’s the first real unleashing with absolutely no barriers to her personality. I wanted her to be a ‘no constraints’ type of character so I made her do all of the crazy. Vicious and loving, powerful and cunning, respectful and brash. Empress of Chaos. With her, I gave myself permission to write the character that I would have been too afraid to write immediately. I allowed myself the freedom to make someone and not be embarrassed to love.

10. Is there any OC of yours people tend to mischaracterize? If yes, how?

I think Ryder might be a bit misunderstood at first, especially because the reader has to remember that he’s an eighteen year old guy. Writing young adult and having adult readers sometimes balances the line of ‘is this character annoying or is he just acting like a teenager’. Ryder has a lot of struggles in the first book, and sometimes his mind tends to fall into the ‘teenager’ category. He grows up a lot in this series so that attitude definitely changes.

11. Your most dangerous OC?

Too many. Most of my women are written that way on purpose. I like a stabby female character.

When it comes to superpowers, Kiya is probably the most volatile and dangerous. Even compared to her mom and dad.

When it comes to magic, Brela and Cason are probably tied for their strength.

When it comes to lethality without any other factors, Brela. No question.

12. Do you have any twin characters?

Declan and Isobel! They were the first twins I’ve written.

13. Which one of your OCs would be the best dancer?

Farrah. She is the most graceful but also the most uncivilized which makes for a hilarious blend.

14. Do you have any certain type when you create your OCs? Do you tend to favour some certain traits or looks? It’s time to confess.

Height. As a fellow 6’1 human female, I really appreciate writing them into my stories. I feel like all the ‘chosen one’ characters are super average in height. I want a 6'+ female character owning her height and just being a total boss.

Also, ‘dark’ powers. Shadows specifically, because they’re always seen as such a mysterious, evil thing. I like writing characters who have that kind of power but find comfort in them.

15. OC who is a perfect cinnamon roll, too good for this world, too pure.

Yes, yes, we all know it’s Serill. He’s an absolute softie and we must protect him at all costs. I think it’s fun to see him evolve a bit in the first book (and show you just how much the perceptions of him are wrong), but just you wait for the rest of his story.