Chapter 1 - OC Creation: Physical Traits

Come on, come all!

This is yet another spin-off of the original trope discussions! But instead of covering everything as a general knowledge-based piece, this shall be FOCUSED on how to write an OC story!

Fun stuff such as: how to create a reasonable character, how to construct a backstory, how to give them a meaningful look, how to avoid writing Mary Sues without going towards the opposite extreme, and MOST IMPORTANTLY…

HOW TO NOT MAKE IT FATALIST!

Of course, this piece shall include my more-than vulgar humour y'all saw in the Trope Discussions, but this is mainly targeting the first-time writers that want to write their own OC story, and don't know how to do it!

So, for those of you with an idea of an OC, although me to be of service!

Here it shall be! Minipa's OC Guide: How not to Regurgitate Canon with a Mary Sue!

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If you can't be bothered to read the whole thing, READ CHAPTER 10 and 11. IT TEACHES YOU HOW TO CHANGE CANON. PLEASE DO THAT, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.

(https):/discord(.gg)/5WethAt - Trope Discussions discord, remove the () - brackets/parenthesis.

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Is this you?

'I have an idea for an OC story but I don't know if it's good.'

If you have reviewed this on a story, or have thought of it yourself, then this is for you!

Keep reading on, learn what makes a good and bad OC story (in my eyes), develop the fundamentals and then branch out on your own!

Edit: Discord server up at (https):/discord.(gg)/7c4gJST

IMPORTANT NOTE: MAKE SURE TO READ AT 1/2 SETTING FOR BEST PARAGRAPH SETTING.

Introduction: Okay, so this first chapter is called the Physical Traits of an OC. So, what would that entail? The simple stuff, namely: height, weight, eye colour, hair colour. Basically, just the attributes you would edit when you create a new character in just about any MMORPG. Pretty simple? Good.

Lucky for you guys, this particular chapter wouldn't be that ranty (wait until I get to the part on how to make credible changes to canon, then I am going to SHIT on fatalist fics). This short-ish chapter will be to help you create an OC that fits your vision, without going off the deep end of Mary Sue, or get stuck in the shallow end with a giant flotation device as a Victim Sue.

In short, it's how to make a reasonable character that's not super tall and drop dead gorgeous capable of harem-fying every friggin' story with a single appearance, or make a 4'11 manlet of an OC that is also fat, has diabetes, type 4 cancer, and can get his ass stomped by Happy.

I will also be going with random attributes, going through the list to create example OC's that I will be using for the rest of the OC creation process. I shall then write an example excerpt describing their appearance.

What is an OC: So, before we start, what exactly is an OC? An OC stands for original character, meaning that, they are a character or characters that you would insert into the canon story.

They are an original flair to the original story and range from main characters to side characters. Even naming previously nameless background characters could be considered an OC.

For this particular section though, we will be focusing on OC as a main character.

Height: Now, individual characteristics of a character can't really make an OC Mary Sue by itself (yes, not even heterochromia can do it by itself - although it's so red flaggy that it might as well be the Soviets invading). However, certain characteristics could actually allow for certain interactions to happen, or insecurities to form.

Ex. A 20-year-old male OC being 140cm tall (basically dwarfism) could probably cause some insecurity issues in the character. This could also allow for a story where the OC learns titan magic from Makarov as a way to 'address' that particular issue.

Ex2. Any OC being let's say, 210cm tall. They will tower just about over anyone in the story (even Gildarts who is likely over 2m tall as well) and will likely have some sort of issues that could be explored - such as finding clothes that fit or even just entering buildings. Not only that, if you make this a female OC, that could also lead to a character trait that could be addressed in the story.

Knowing this, how tall do you want to make your OC? Before you answer that question, ask yourself some questions as well, such as:

Is the height of my OC going to be a trait that is going to affect my character's development?

Is the height of my OC going to affect how they interact with the other members of Fairy Tail, or just other characters in general?

Is the height of my OC somehow affecting their choices in regard to magic use?

Depending on your answer to those questions, we could have multiple alternatives and story options to go upon.

Just like how I mentioned about overly tall or overly short OC's, you could also have an OC that is somewhere around the average, BUT, somewhere along the line, they develop some sort of issue where they constantly compare themselves to others, constantly believing themselves to be short despite objectively being above the average.

Ex. People who are 5'10 but think they are a manlet despite being taller than the national/international average.

Having this sort of irrational insecurity could also play well in your character development. They could get closer to a potential pairing or somebody who your OC would consider their best friend - especially if that certain character is part of the reason your OC was able to get past this particular insecurity.

Now for the second part, if your OC is an arrogant bastard that is also 6'5, there is a good chance they might mock the other characters based on their height (like how Gajeel mocks Levy's height by calling her 'shrimp').

These interactions could also mark the change in characters, outlining where an arrogant asshole OC matured and is no longer someone who constantly disrespects other people.

Remember how I said someone who is overly short might be inclined to use Titan Magic like Makarov? The same way if someone was really tall, they might be more inclined to use a physical magic. Such as Laxus using lightning magic mainly as a melee-type magic. Someone tall or physically superior to others would likely choose (in my opinion) a magic that would allow them to take advantage of their greater mass.

There are likely far more situations and scenarios that would have height affect a character. I hope by reading those three, you will have a relatively decent idea on what sort of traits your character might have if their height was also a defining trait.

Now, if the height of your character doesn't really matter at all, then I would suggest anywhere from 170cm - 190cm for male OC's, and 160cm-180cm for female OC's. Just for your reference, here are some Fairy Tail heights - keep in mind that these heights are not 100% official, they are taken from estimates and sources, but I think these numbers wouldn't be too far off from the real thing.

Elfman Strauss: 203cm

Laxus Dreyar: 190cm

Gray Fullbuster/Gajeel Redfox: 185cm

Natsu Dragneel: 175cm

Lucy Heartfilia: 162cm

Levy McGarden: 147cm

All in all, if the height of your OC really doesn't matter, then just pick a random number between those intervals. The upper and lower ranges of the interval wouldn't make your OC overly tall or short, so they it wouldn't really be a defining character trait, nor would it be something worth noticing from other characters.

For the male OC example, I will go with 184cm tall.

For the female OC example, I will be going with 165cm tall.

Body Type: For body type, what you have here could determine the life style of your OC, as well as their combat style.

Ex. If they live a healthy diet, or perhaps even a paleolithic diet (only meat, fruits, and vegetables), then they will likely be absent of fat tissue; how much muscle they have is determined by other factors.

Now, there's probably no need go into such detail about body types, but I think we can assume that, despite Fairy Tail being in a fantasy setting, it probably follows the same rules as real life in terms of health and nutrition.

Meaning, if you eat like a pig, you will look like a pig, if you eat healthy and exercise, you will look healthy.

So, when it comes to body type, what sort of body types are we talking about?

For those of you that don't know, there are three main body types in real life: Mesomorph, Endomorph, and Ectomorph. In short, these body types are basically: Endomorph: Strongmen, Ectomorph: Dancer (not break dancing), Mesomorph: Athlete.

So, for the most part, mages in Fairy Tail are either Ectomorph or Mesomorph - although you could say Gildarts is Endomorph despite him being drawn with a leaner physique.

Anyways, what sort of body type should we pick for the OC? That all depends on what you have planned for the OC really. If you have an endomorph OC, chances are they would be power-based, capable of lifting heavy and punching hard, but isn't that great in terms of speed and dexterity.

Mesomorphs would have decent speed and strength; they would be more mechanical fighters instead of the running in and brawling that I would imagine endomorphs doing.

Ectomorphs would be speed and dexterity based (a lot of people like having OC's in this area for some reason), they would likely thrive off of quick, precise strikes while using their superior maneuverability to dodge the enemy. Look at Jet for example; he is someone who uses speed-magic and he basically looks like a stick.

Now, some authors might want to subvert tropes by making some fat ass character that is faster than speed-type characters. Personally? You can do it if you want, I just think it doesn't make sense. Sure, a fat ass wizard saint is probably faster than a stick fodder mage, but if the fat mage's opponent was a mage of equal skill? He's going to get fodderized in terms of speed.

Another example would be Duke Everlue. Despite his dive magic, can you really see him outrunning Jet? What about Jellal? Please answer no, seriously.

For the male OC example, he would be a Mesomorph that is roughly the same build as Gray and Natsu.

For the female OC, she would also be Mesomorph with a build that is a cross between Lucy/Levy. Basically, NORMAL proportions.

For those of you that are making a female OC, you DON'T need to make them have ludicrously ZZZ sized breasts. They can be normal - C or D cup.

Weight: This section will be a lot shorter compared to height; however, I will still go slightly into this topic JUST in case someone decided to make this a defining trait.

Now, some of you might be thinking, there's only fat or skinny right? Should this even BE a separate section considering it should be under body types? While I will be talking about weight in body types, I wanted to talk about weight because it extends beyond people being insecure about being too skinny or too fat.

However, I will just say it first; if you are writing a character that is fat or skinny, look at the example I used for height. Is the weight going to an important character trait for your OC? If not, just put them as average for their height/body type.

So, for the real reason I wanted this particularly section.

It is density.

If you had some sort of OC that had the ability to alter his own mass as some sort of mass/weight magic, you could actually play his weight depending on the situation - imagine a branch of Brandish's magic but more geared towards rapid instantaneous changes.

I will likely be expanding on this type of magic in the later 'let's build an OC' sections, but a character that can alter his own weight could easily have characters that encounter them as a brick wall, or even as a feather. This would change how certain characters interact with them, especially if the OC in question made themselves heavier/lighter normally to make their lives easier/harder.

Ex. Doubling their own weight normally as training or halving their weight to run between places faster.

Remember, you don't have to restrict yourself with common meters associated with a certain trait. Hell, you could play off an OC that is a different race altogether, such as a race of sentient stone-men that weigh many times more than normal, allowing them to be far more sturdy - albeit slow as fuck.

Eye Colour: For those of you that have read the original Trope Discussions, you probably know of my utter loathing for the unbelievable amount of asspulling that goes into the eye colour of original characters.

So many OC creators think to themselves 'My OC with one eye blue and one eye green is SO original!' Well, I can't even begin to tell you how wrong you are. Frankly, ignoring the 'authors can create whatever character they want bullshit,' I'm just going to say this: creating a compelling character means making a character that is relatable. Guess what isn't relatable? Absolutely crazy Yu-gi-oh level hair and eye colours when most if not all of the characters in the series don't have it - at least if you are adding it for the literally sake of having a 'cooler' character design.

Remember, if you are adding an extremely unique trait (even in the series itself), just for the sake of 'OMG MY CHARACTER IS SO COOL,' then I would suggest toning it down.

Remember x2, for those of you that recognize the sentences above, you don't have to make your character 'omg, so boring, brown everything, literally the average, average of averages with nothing standing out whatsoever and can probably fill the place of an unmoving background.'

So, before I start suggesting the eye colour, what are some things we should avoid first? The biggest, BIGGEST thing is heterochromia. I spoke about it a little bit in the original discussions, but basically what it is, is having eyes with different colours.

This could be brown and black, blue and green, or god forbid GOLD AND SILVER. GOD NO.

Now that you know that you shouldn't have unnecessarily uncommon eye colours without good reason. Good reason being - notable family histories that had these eye colours, why this family has certain eye colours - as in, maybe they have certain eye colours that are common in other parts of Ishgar, and the OC originates from there.

If you have a character that comes from the Pergrande Kingdom, you could weave it into your world building notes saying that violet eyes is the brown eyes of the country, then you could expand on that fact and write a backstory for your character that is more than the 'unspecified village destroyed by dark mages, found by random dragon out of nowhere, then dumped into Fairy Tail just to change nothing.'

No matter how much you think the sentence prior is stupid, believe me when I say, THAT is more common than you think.

Anyways, moving on to decide what colour the OC shall have.

For the male OC example, he will have blue eyes.

For the female OC example, she will have green eyes.

On an extra note, try not to describe blue/green eyes with deep ocean, electric, forest, or cerulean - those are common colour tropes that move into purple prose territory.

Hair: Hair is something just as abused upon by OC authors as the eye colour. Ranging from dragon-braided helicopter hair to literally the colours of the rainbow.

Now, assuming that I don't need to go over the 'unnecessary vibrant colour of style' shit again, let us move on!

When it comes to hair, instead of just going with whatever you think is cool, try to think deeper. As in, how would the personality of the character affect their choice in hair style? Would someone that is generally unmotivated have unkempt hair? Would some insecure about their looks obsess over every small detail about their hair? Would a more arrogant outward projecting OC spike their hair to feel tougher?

Not just personality, but would a speed type mage, or even someone in the rune knights, have a certain style to complement their fighting style? It could even be for a reason in the army where you cut your hair short to wear the army hats better (at least I think that's why they do it, correct me if I am wrong).

Moving on from style, let us go to colour. In Fairy Tail, having vibrant colours isn't something out of the norm, as there are various shades of blue, green, purple, black, white, etc. Something that would be considered 'unnecessarily vibrant' would be actual rainbow hair, or even duo-coloured hair such as Todoroki from BNHA.

So, what colour of hair would he have? While some OC authors want every part of their OC's appearance to match their magic, I would suggest something in the middle. Such as blue eyes and blonde hair - pretty common European combination.

You don't need to go all-out average boring Joe Guy with brown hair and brown eyes with the 'appearances don't matter or it's what on the inside.' It's all about balancing the act.

Just a note, appearances shouldn't match up exactly with the OC's abilities - especially not for the sake of making them cool.

Ex. Don't make an Ice Dragon Slayer with Icy Blue Eyes, Icy Blue Hair, Icy Blue just about fucking everything.

That is Mary Sue territory. Do try to stray from there, aite?

If you ARE going to do it regardless, there are some easy ways you could explain it through backstory.

You could say the OC dyed their hair. Yes, hair dye exists. Next.

You could make it so certain types of magics used over multiple generations could actually change the way characters look - then make this a consistent thing for all characters in the story.

You could say that certain people in the family line preferred certain physical traits as it accents their magic - such as Endeavor going for quirk marriages. An Ice mage could go for blue eyes or blue hair.

REMEMBER, anything you write to justify the appearance, SHOULD be mentioned in the story. Do it in a way that weaves it, don't just mass paragraph drop in the first chapter the moment the OC joins Fairy Tail or whatever just to get it over with. That's just lazy writing.

Even MORE not to do, is not writing in at all and only bringing it up to justify it to reviewers that ask the question - seriously, big FAT no. If your reviewer has questions, and the story doesn't address it later on, change some parts in the story to weave it in.

Anyways, the male OC example will have black hair.

The female OC example will have cyan hair.

Notable Features: What do I mean by notable features? This is basically the first thing someone might notice when they see the OC. It doesn't have to be something extra; it could even be apart of their clothing.

You don't need to add seventy-five different scars on your OC for no goddamned reason, unless years of fighting is a part of your OC's backstory.

Ex. Older OC that is a War Veteran - they might have scars running all over his body.

To get a better picture of what I am talking about, let us look at some of the notable features of the canon cast.

Natsu: Now, having vibrant hair colour is pretty common in the story, Natsu's pink hair probably wouldn't stand out that much. Correct me if I'm wrong, although I do think Natsu was addressed by his hair colour - this could just be FN so if not then just ignore.

So, for Natsu, what would people see first? They might see his scarf, since it is supposed to be made out of Igneel's scales or something. They might also see the Fairy Tail symbol that is blatantly obvious on his right deltoid.

Lucy: Since most women in Fairy Tail has massive tits, that particular feature wouldn't be the first thing of attention - unless to characters that are inherently perverted.

Nothing particularly stands out about her appearance, although her chain of keys is something to note. It is what identifies her as a celestial wizard and can certainly be something of interest.

Gray: Gray's is pretty obvious. Considering his stripping habit, many people who meet him would see him clothe-less. The results of this particular trait would likely be the most notable feature.

Erza: Erza, unlike most other characters, wears plate armour as her normal attire. This would be a rather notable feature, as it is something uncommon in the Fairy Tail universe. Someone who sees her for the first time might likely divert their attention to the particular piece of attire, simply because of its uniqueness.

So, knowing some of the notable features of other characters, what sort of trait/physical feature would your OC have for their 'first' impression?

Dual coloured eyes.

No, fuck off.

WOOP WOOP WOOP WOOP woop woop woop….

Anyway, I imagine the example male OC to be someone that is generally introverted as well as being edgy in his choice of clothing. Instead of carrying a black katana or some other cliché shit, his notable feature could simply be most of the clothes he wears is dark/black. Not necessarily a bad thing mind you, despite what some others think about black clothing. This choice of his would make him stand out in comparison if everyone else was wearing bright clothing.

For the female example OC, she could be nerd just like Levy - Levy studies old magics and such, this OC could be someone well versed in the more physical sciences. To go with this, the OC could be wearing circular glasses and be carrying a backpack everywhere. While not really uncommon, these could be some defining traits that a person would notice first.

Clothing: Ahh, clothing. This is somewhere that gets to new OC authors, ESPECIALLY IN DESCRIBING THEM. JESUS PEOPLE YOU DON'T NEED TO DESCRIBE EVERY FUCKING INCH OF CLOTHING ON AN OC, CHRIST.

Did you guys know that you could add detail for the OC in multiple different parts? As in, you DON'T have to describe every fucking thing the first time they appear.

WAIT, I DON'T?

Nope.

Anyways, clothing is something that isn't inherently important - by itself at least. You could have certain pieces of clothing that your character wears be tied to certain character traits or memories - such as Natsu wearing his scarf because it was a gift from Igneel, or Erza wearing her armour because it made her feel safe from her times being a slave.

We can get to the backstory/character traits later, but for now, let us think of something that the OC(s) might wear on a regular basis.

Now, I get that characters can have lots of variety in their wardrobe, but there's usually a set of clothing that they would wear above all else.

Ex. Erza's Heart Kreuz armour.

Ex2. Natsu's vest.

Ex3. Laxus' fur coat.

For the OC's, what would they wear normally? Their first choice of attire would likely be linked to their hobbies and way of life as well.

For the male OC, he would likely be wearing a black coat similar to Kirito because that's the edgiest thing I can think of, black trousers, boots, maybe a leather belt, and a black plaid shirt. Just from the appearance of this character, he seems to be a devote fan of Evanescence, doesn't he? So for the most part, this would what the OC wears when he goes on missions, when he goes out and goes into the guild.

If he was inside his house, he might be wearing something else, such as a tank top and some shorts (standard indoor wear).

For the female OC, considering we have established that she would be nerdy. It is likely she would wear something that accents this, likely with many pockets as well. Remember, this girl is NOT an OC that flexes on looks. I can see her wearing slightly baggy cargo pants with lots of pockets to carry equipment that would not be in her backpack. I can also see her wearing lab-coat like wear indoors and likely have a technological advanced insulated jacket with a lot of pockets when she does go out.

Description: When you are describing your OC's, the best way in my opinion, is to imagine the OC walking up to you, and imagine what you notice first. If you are someone that can notice every earring, ring, and accessory on someone you just saw, then go right ahead. If you're not, then I would suggest not overly describing the appearance of an OC in purple prose.

Have any of you guys heard of the 'laundry list' description? Basically, what that is, is a description of your OC's appearance, but in point form, wrapped in a paragraph.

Excerpt go!

'He was wearing a high-collared plaid shirt, covered by the thick leather jacket on top. He had earrings on both ears, and a piercing on his nose. He was also wearing fitting trousers held up by a belt. On his feet, there was boots that seemed to be stained with mud. On his fingers, he wore two rings each containing a diamond of purple and blue respectively. He was also wearing a red scarf that covered the majority of his neck.'

The excerpt above is probably the most common type of description - ESPECIALLY IN NARUTO CROSSOVERS WHILE THEY ARE DESCRIBING NARUTO.

There is almost no sentence variety, and the entire paragraph just reads as 'He was wearing *blah*' from top to bottom. If you find yourself doing this, consider taking out some details and combining it with action. Also, consider leaving some details to later paragraphs.

So how would I describe the appearances of OC's? Here, I'll give it a go, assuming this is third person objective.

Male OC:

'A tanned man of above-average height entered the room, his appearance consisted of black all the way from his boots to his short, spiked hair. As he continued in, one could see a brown belt holding up his trousers, constantly being obscured by the waving of his cloak.'

Ehh, could do better, but whatever. Just from this paragraph, you could probably get a decent image of what he looked like, cloth-wise. Considering there are no descriptions about his face, only thing we know is that his hair would be similar to Gray's, he would basically be dressed like Kirito, and there would be a brown belt that stands out from all the black.

Now, there would likely be more details of the OC, his eye colour, the shape of his nose, potential scars, where his Fairy Tail mark is, etc. Those small details could be described later on in another scene when he is talking with someone else. And no, you don't have to write it like this.

'Blue met Green as the OC's looked at one another.'

Not necessarily bad, but I've seen so many people describe eye colours like this. It feels like forced sentence variety and is a little bit too weird for me.

Anyways, descriptions should give a general idea of what the OC looks like from top to bottom. You don't need to describe how many pockets or buttons are on the clothing unless it is important. Keep to the general impression of what they would give when walking into a room.

Female OC:

'As the man walked in, his eyes landed on a peculiar cyan-haired girl sitting alone. She had a backpack whose size was only matched by the jacket that puffed beyond her small proportions. A hand flicked away strands of unkempt cyan hair, clearing her sight though the circular glasses that was pressed into a rather old-looking tome.'

A little bit towards the prosey side, but it will do for now. Anyways, this is a narrative/objective form of describing people. Basically, this is how I would describe an appearance when there is no specific POV or internal monologue. If there was a specific POV or internal monologue. Then I would do something like this.

'Always the bookworm, she's got a backpack bigger than her whole body! Not only that, does she really need to wear that jacket while inside… really makes her look like some of Eskimo with how puffy that thing is. The man scowled in irritation. Seriously, she should really brush her hair! It's going to get stuck to her glasses one of these days, and I'LL have to pay for it again.'

Notice how in the different excerpts, one of them basically looked like it was a close-up scene from a narrator, while the other was describing the character through the view of another character. Personally, I would suggest doing this for anyone not your main character. This makes the story a lot more immersive and can reveal certain interactions in the past between the characters.

Conclusion: So anyways, now that you managed to reach the bottom, what is the underlying wisdom to be taken here?

It is NOT, make the dullest dullard ever dulled in dull-ville, but to actually create a likable character that matches their personality and not have rainbow shit all over the place.

If you are going to give the OC uncommon traits, think of a decent reason and weave it into your backstory. DON'T LAUNDRY LIST DESCRIBE YOUR CHARACTER AND DON'T FACT DUMP.

Try to have your character's appearance relate to their life style, magic, fighting style, and personality. Not everything is about completely being a perfect match for their magic. Ex. Ice Dragon Slayer where her entire persona is basically cosplaying Greenland.

Bottom line is, think about the different attributes your character will have. Does it match with the way they talk, the way they walk, and the way they solve issues? Having a Sue trait for the sake of being cool is bad. Having a Sue trait because it matches the character's backstory and balances certain flaws is okay.

Remember, balance is not achieved by having a straight line, it is by having a series of troughs and crests that AVERAGES into a straight line.

I mean with that logic; you could basically create a dual-eye-coloured rainbow-haired elemental dragon slayer that has twelve different types of cancer. But seriously though, crests and troughs aside, do try to watch with the extremes.

See you guys next time!

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