Creating Characters

Basics of Creating a Character

The basics of creating a character will usually involve the following information:
Name, Gender, Age (appearance if you like), Position in the manga, Occupation, Blood Type, Birthday, Favourite
Colours/Foods/People/Books etc. A quote they live by, their motivations and their background.

Character Personality
The most important thing about a character is its personality. Only after you have that set can you begin the
process of drafting etc etc. The best way to set personality is to know what your plot requirements are. If you
haven't read the plot creation tutorials I recommend you read them now.

A few Conventions:
Most manga with a philosophical tone tends for a male character that is somewhat tortured and in some kind of
mental instability. The female of such a manga (If there is one) will usually be either a peripheral presence that is
completely ignorant of the male's feelings (Think Asuka, Evangelion) or an insightful one that is somehow
mysterious and problematic in her own actions (Think Rei, Evangelion).

Most girl manga tend to have a female lead character that is rather happy and open, a very likable person if they
were to be in our world. They would always have friends of course, at least one very good one, and a boy they
either secretly admire or say they hate.

Most boy manga tends for a male lead character with a likable personality and mostly pretty 'good'. If you play DnD,
they'd probably be Chaotic Good alignment. If there is a female lead the story is usually tending towards comedy or
even hentai.

Naming a Character
Names should be clear, concise, and most importantly, easy to remember. I recall the days of manga with lengthy
English names published in Japanese, I had a lot of difficulty memorizing the names. Most manga artists these days
prefer to use Japanese names. It's an easier way to give a name substance and meaning without being corny or
lengthy about it. A good rule is to try keeping at least main character names to under 3 syllables.

A bit about Blood Types and Horoscopes

Asian culture places great importance on horoscopes and blood types. Study the conventions for these and make
sure you've got the right match.

O - Happy disposition, usually open and caring.

A - Elegant, naturally smooth, can get a little edgy if they didn't get their way.
B - Practical, open, strong-willed, intendant
AB - Silent, introverted, soft-spoken.

As for horoscopes, I recommend you get a small booklet from any naturopath store. Most bookshops also carry
these.

Age of Appearance
Most younger audiences want characters their own age. Around 12-14. If your manga is more teenage geared you'll
want to do the same to the characters, or somehow endear them to the older audience and the younger audience at
the same time.

A philosophical manga that is trying to convey a deep message isn't going to do well with a younger appearing set
of characters. And a comedy trying to appeal to the younger age group isn't going to get laughs talking about adult
themes with adult characters.

Miscellaneous
Give the character a habit or a hobby, be it bad good or stupid. Having some kind of habit makes the character
more realistic and lets the reader identify with them a lot more. It also gives the reader some grounding in the
story, just that simple act could take them back and tell them 'relax, the climax is over for now'.

For example:
Rita (Sailor Jupiter) likes to cook, Daidouji Tomoyo likes to film Sakura and make up all these things for her. Chii
says 'chi' a lot. And Yoh always looks too laid back for his own good.