A lot of writers when they create characters they like to choose a face of a real person (most likely a celebrity) to be a lookalike of their character.
Do any of you do this? And if you do please link a site with some spare (lesser known) faces.
>>8157977
Yes. For years I have planned and designed the medieval fantasy world of my magnum opus, and I have sort of a personal wiki in Google Drive, with each character having his/her own document with all the relevant information and a picture. Some are famous people, like Paul Bettany and Christian Bale for two kings, but some I've found simply by writing something like 'bald middle-aged man' in Google images.
It's fine if you do this after the book is written, but settling on a definite appearance for a character before it's written is no bueno. Unless you're just in this for the world building. Names and faces are of secondary importance to things like 1) actually getting your shit written and 2) narrative, plot, or whatever devices you'll be using.
Don't get distracted, OP
Terry Pratchett said he imagined Captain Vimes looking like Niam Leeson.
I also forgot to ask- why would you use celebrity faces for reference, unless you're writing about celebrities? Is everyone in your book beautiful? Because that sounds boring as fuck.
>>8158073
No, I just wrote that there are people who do that.
>>8158104
True, I had intended to use 'you' in a general sense, but then I was too lazy to check your original post.
Anyway, keep on keeping on.
You could probably use whoever you want. I've imagined characters with similar faces to people I know. People imagine what they read differently, it's very unlikely they will imagine themselves and know you did too.
>>8158073
There are funny-looking celebrities too. Imagine a whole clan of Buscemi lookalikes
>>8158060
>Names and faces are of secondary importance.
To each his own, K.
>>8158348
In a novel the are secondary
>>8158354
for you
>>8158060
>defining a character AFTER you've written the story
And that's why you'll never be published. The character's personality will inherently be tied up with their appearance, just as in life. If you go the whole fucking way with a generic story and afterwards decide what they're like, you end up with a story and characters that feel artificial, instead of a character going through and actually directing the plot.
>>8157977
More often than not people I meet in real life inspire me to create a character. I won't completely base them off them, but they have attributes or mannerism that I think would make for a nice character. So their appearance will also serve as a guideline for the look of them.
>>8159337
This guy gets it
>>8158383
Not that guy but
>Defining a character
>Defining a character's appearance
There's a difference
Of course I have an idea in my head about a character's weight/height/handsomeness, but finding an actual real-life person whose looks my character will have is not only unnecessary but also distracting.
>>8158383
>The character's personality will inherently be tied up with their appearance,
If you're writing shitty genre fiction, yeah. Do you make all your pretty people vapid and your ugly people miserable? pls. The appearance comes as you write the character. And characters are formed as the story needs.
>that feel artificial,
You know what would be really artificial? Writing character based off of what they fucking look like. Go back to your pinterest storyboard.
ITT: unpublished talentless hacks shit on one another's writing processthere is no "RIGHT" way, retardsand caring about appearance does not necessarily make you shallow, but making it a point not to care about it so as not to be shallow does indeed necessarily make you a pseud
Really creepy that you posted that picture because that girl looks a lot like me.
I have ancestors from Finland, where she's from, so maybe a long lost cousin?
>>8159518
The answer we were all waiting for.
/thread
>>8159536
Return to your ancestral homeland, my beauty, and I'll make you my Khatun. In my horde I have 25 000 fighting men loyal to me, along with the women and children. I will take my horde west to reave the lands of the weak and soft Swedes, and whatever you wish will be yours, be it jewels, slaves or pets. With you by my side I will carve out the greatest khanate the world has ever seen, which you will rule with me, my Börte.
>>8158383
absolutely fucking this
If you're not writing characters, you're not writing shit
>>8159536
If she looks a lot like you then I would 10/10 rail the fuck out of you. Even if your a guy and looks like a female version of you I have still done worse than that. Top marks for hotness. Please post a selfie so we can praise the fine females that Grace this board with their time and relevant comments
>>8157977
Why exactly did this picture catch on? What exactly about her made /r9k/ and other boards start posting her?
Because she looks smug? I don't get it.
>>8160654
She looks like female Kappa.
>>8160654
She's the toppest qt that ever was or will be.
>>8160654
Well she's quite cute. I just saved the OP pic into my literature image folder.
>>8159504
>And characters are formed as the story needs.
You're showing off how much of a novice you are. A story should not guide the characters, the characters guide the story. If you don't have defined characters from the start, you're doing nothing but pleb-tier story wanking.
>>8158368
for any writer of literature.
if you want to write genre fiction, where world-building and plot are basically all that matter, then that's a different conversation.
but the only situation in which a literary character's appearance will hold significant sway is when it affects other characters and events, or it has symbolic value.
acting like it's a personal preference thing is pretty retarded and also objectively wrong.
>>8162229
>acting like it's a personal preference thing is pretty retarded and also objectively wrong.
it's funny because you literally didn't give any arguments for the part that actually matters the most
and I would also wager that you aren't that published tbqh, so hopefully you don't expect me to just take it at face value that you actually know what you're doing. so why dont you then provide arguments fornothing more important than justyourpersonalstandpoint, or btfo, self-important retard.
also, "genre fiction" is a pointless buzzword, it literally just denotes "literature that isn't very good"
>>8162345
You look like you're arguing with yourself. Protip: if you want to same fag, at least change how you type.
I base 90% of my characters off people I know or know of
Even if it's not key to the story and I never end up describing their appearance in detail I find it helps
>>8162430
No, it doesn't look like he's arguing with himself. Protip: "how you format stuff" is not the same thing as "your writing voice".
>>8162229
>not wanting to give life to your characters by giving them imagery that the audience can use to visualize them
yeah it's not significant at all to describe your characters and build atmosphere and tone, just have them all be empty canvases because muhh minimalism.
You swine, literary experience is about immersion into the worlds the author creates, in what world do the people have no appearance? In what world anon?
>>8162434
>I base 90% of my characters off people I know or know of
>Even if it's not key to the story and I never end up describing their appearance in detail I find it helps
this is the author version of using stencils, just potato head characters like the good authors do
>>8162345
>it's funny because you literally didn't give any arguments for the part that actually matters the most
to be fair to me, I kind of thought my argument was evident in the first part of the post. rereading though, you're right: I was a bit vague.
I buy into literature being primarily a storytelling medium. but what I'm trying to get at is, as far as writing literature goes, your priorities are in the wrong place if you insist on writing a character who happens to look a lot like your favorite actress. like, if your commentary on the human condition can only function properly if your protagonist has rich, flaxen hair, piercing blue eyes, and a beautiful smile, then whatever. I'm just saying it's a sort of weird viewpoint to have for someone writing literature instead of genre fiction. not so much a case of "it's literally impossible to hit the target when you shoot like that"; more akin to "most people miss when they're facing in the opposite direction."
>i would also wager that you aren't that published
and you'd be right. but I've studied literature like most people here, and it seems to me like world-building isn't really a hallmark of most great literary fiction. I stand by what I said: if the appearance affects characters or plot events, or has symbolic value, it's important. but starting off your novel by saying "I want to write a story about a strapping young lad with raven hair" doesn't strike me as the way to go about it.
>genre fiction is a pointless buzzword
I'd disagree. it's pretty specific: fiction that's plot-driven and is designed to fit into, and incorporate, certain plot/setting/character/what have you archetypes. this is when world-building is important. but it's also shit, so.
>btfo, self-important retard
this seems a little uncalled for, anon. I never personally insulted you. when I said that "acting like it's a personal preference thing is...retarded and objectively wrong", I meant that arguing the whole "there are many ways to produce good fiction because there are many types of good writing" thing in this case doesn't really apply, since, once again, it's sort of missing the point.
it's a paradigm thing.
>>8162592
> if your commentary on the human condition can only function properly if your protagonist has rich, flaxen hair, piercing blue eyes, and a beautiful smile, then whatever.
that's a bizarre straw man, just because a character is beautiful doesn't mean they can't have problems or be in an interesting story. You are implying that the only way you can write literature is if you take a contrarian stance to conventions of traditional literature which sounds a lot like your viewpoint creeping into the pragmatism of writing.
> I stand by what I said: if the appearance affects characters or plot events, or has symbolic value, it's important.
most appearance is important since humans by default make judgements based on appearance. Unless it is your goal to leave it to the imagination of the audience, why leave imagery to chance?
What is your point? That people who like to describe their character's appearances are fools unless that appearance falls under a specific arbitrary set of conditions you impose? I am truly at a lose to try and find your point.
Who the fuck keeps bumping this shitty thread?!
>>8157977
are they related??
