What character appearances do you think are overused?

Discussion in 'Character Development' started by LaurenM, Jul 22, 2011.

  1. Jonathan22

    Jonathan22 New Member

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    Blonde, blue eyed, dark hair, brown eyes... they are the usual stereotypes. Also a 'sad' look in someone's eye is often described. Has anyone here observed such a thing in another human being upon looking at them in their natural expression? I doubt it!

    Why don't any MC males have a slight belly on them too? Why are they all muscular or toned? It is rather annoying... I'd like to hear about the guy who killed the Evil Lord whilst coming home to find he shed off a wee bit of that beer belly along the way!
     
  2. MRD

    MRD New Member

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    You've obviously never read The Black Prism, by Brent Weeks.

    But yeah, the hero with a perfect body is pretty common. Too much so, really.

    Then again, you wouldn't really want a protagonist having to constantly pause their epic quest because they're out of breath every ten minutes. An unhealthy hero would either be not very fun to read about, or downright hilarious.
     
  3. Rassidan

    Rassidan New Member

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    I don't have a problem with a well toned and muscular characters as a general rule unless it makes no sense to begin with. For instance I really doubt I will find a well toned character who hangs out in a bar every night. On the other hand if I the character spends his time practicing with a sword or some other weapon then this only makes sense. To be honest it is only when you introduce a character trait that makes little sense that I find it annoying.
     
  4. Nicholas C.

    Nicholas C. Active Member

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    All of them.

    Honestly, I take the minimalist approach when it comes to character appearance. I try to develop characters mostly through their actions and dialogue, steering clear of too many appearance descriptions. When I'm reading, I prefer to visualize the character exactly as I want to see it and not be told what he or she must look like -- I like to think there are some others out there who feel the same. :)

    I'll give a second answer though; the most annoying one for me, so much so that it makes me want to close a book altogether, is the "chiseled jaw/face". God willing, this trite description will never find its was into my writing.
     
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  5. Blue_Lotus

    Blue_Lotus New Member

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    1. Liz Taylor had violet eyes honest to god! it is a real eye color. A mighty kick arse one at that. :)

    2. MC's friends are all less attractive, to whom? I haven't read many books where that is the case. I have read a lot where the MC is described with painstaking detail and the supporting cast is kinda flashpaned over in general terms. Perhaps that is what you are noticing?

    3. Eyes that change color are very common these days. When I was a child not so much, but when I was in High school my Science teacher was going over genetics with us and used me as an example of people who you can't really use the square with because of that pesky eye color changes thing.
    As for eyes that sparkle, IDK, sometimes I like to think that this is a real thing ... perhaps it is our way of describing something that we humans notice on an unconcious level? Like the saying the eyes are the window to ones soul, Attraction between 2 ppl can be noticed within the eyes long before speach enters the picture.
     
  6. Pythonforger

    Pythonforger Carrier of Insanity

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    "Mysterious","brooding","maniac"... ugh.

    Those things are just too easy to Show instead of Tell.

    Why call him mysterious when you can just make it a point not to have him talk to much;instead, put him in a black hoodie, in the shadow of a dark alley?

    Why call her brooding when you can just show her glaring at everyone, baring her teeth and so on?

    Why call him a maniac when you can just have him carry six knives around at all times and leer at strangers?
     
  7. Radrook

    Radrook Banned Contributor

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    I agree 100%. Also, the reason that a writer might be having a hard time reaching his intended word-count for a novel could very well be because he or she is telling instead of showing. Telling the reader works like an abbreviation or a synopsis which drastically reduces the number of words used. In contrast, several pages can be written just to convey the brooding, maniacal, or mysterious aspects of a personality.

    About character appearance overuse, perhaps the exceedingly ugly, deformed, or physically handicapped maniac qualifies as such.
     
  8. Gigi_GNR

    Gigi_GNR Guys, come on. WAFFLE-O. Contributor

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    Chubby with glasses. I remember when I was younger and was into RL Stine's Goosebumps, and EVERY SINGLE MAIN CHARACTER in every book was described as chubby with glasses.
     
  9. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    What, no more Velma?
     
  10. SeverinR

    SeverinR New Member

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    I have at least one elf that has dark blue hair. It is a hair color unique to elves(mix breed elves too, very recessive trait though) Also woodland green hair happens too, ecspcially wood elves. (they blend in with their surroundings)

    There are a few ugly actors, more often villains or comic relief.

    Is it possible to have mismatched eyes, in real life I mean?

    If I use eye color I go random(if I don't care) or pick one.
    Eye color is always in the background info.
    Height, weight, hair color, eye color, build(if neccessary)

    The way I write, I can't try to remember. I have books started that I haven't worked on in months. If I don't write in the background section, I will not remember or will conflict if I wrote about it before.
     
  11. KinkyCousin

    KinkyCousin New Member

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    ^ My boyfriend has mismatched eyes so it is possible in reality.

    I tend to make my charadcters look like real people, one has pink hair because she dyes it and it suits her character. Everyone else has hair/eye colours you could commonly see in real people.
     
  12. vanguard

    vanguard New Member

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    Definitely I have to agree. I guess from a standard viewpoint I want my protagonists to be sort of like an inspirational kind of person. So out of breath Wheezy Mcphereson with a mission, well maybe he's kind of lovable for it like a Jack Black type cause there's nothing wrong with a lil spare tire, though I have to admit if the character isn't remotely redeeming, it tends to get some negative connotations having that gut.
    But if the hero is an anorexic hero who end up feeling lethargic all the time from malnourishment pops on the scene... well I think the fit muscular hero is more redeeming.
     
  13. proserpine

    proserpine New Member

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    I am weary of "full lips", "trim figure", and "dark, brooding eyes".

    Most of my favorite books do not dwell on appearances. In one of them, you know the MC by first name only, and the only physical description given is that he is a tall male. His appearance wasn't very important to the story, so it didn't take away from getting involved with the character or the plot.
     
  14. Fullmetal Xeno

    Fullmetal Xeno Protector of Literature Contributor

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    Your Elves sound very interesting, i hope you keep that idea. It sounds very original in my opinion. That will be one of the reasons it will sell well. :)

    And yes, it's very possible to have mismatched eyes. It's called Heterochomria. You can look it up on Google. Dogs and Cats have mismatched eye colors aswell.

    If you want ugly actors, i can mention Nicholas Cage. No offense towards him, at times he's a great actor, but he just i don't know. Kinda scares me sometimes. Weird.
     
  15. Me he he

    Me he he New Member

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    For me, I notice that a lot of books make the main character red headed. It is supposed to be a rare hair color, but at the rate, people are using it, it becomes stale and boring.
     
  16. J.T. Woody

    J.T. Woody Book Witch Contributor

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    i saw eye color on here and laughed. 2 of my characters have "different" eye colors but its more of a world building kind of thing. and the eye colors are normally found in this "world" but are less common.
    for example, my MC's mother is from a desert clan. their people have brown eyes that shine burgundy, almost red in the sunlight. they were persecuted because the sultan saw them as demons and sorcerers (didnt help that they had mystical abilities).

    my secondary main character was born with "golden eyes" (in real life, hazel eyes seem "golden" especially on dark skin, which my character has). in his tribe across the globe from my MC, he is sacrificed because he has "eyes like the sun" which meant that the gods had shown favor on him and he should be sent back to the gods.

    its a big thing for him because he ran away from being a sacrifice and his fear is a great source of shame to him... which gets worse when he ends up back home.



    a characterization that shows up everywhere (including tv) is the "tall dark (hair), pale (skin) and handsome" character. the brooding Byronic hero.
    the main female characters being described as super pretty, but then being bullied for being "ugly" but then every guy is after her because she's pretty
     
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  17. Cave Troll

    Cave Troll It's Coffee O'clock everywhere. Contributor

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    I have a character with large partial heterochromia eyes, but they are also
    an alien species where it is kinda more common, vs. humans where
    it is much more rare.
    [​IMG]

    Though being a Sci-fi writer, what is odd to other genres, is perfectly normal to me.
    So, I am always challenged to come up with strange colors for skin, strange bodied
    creatures, and odd flora/fauna that may or not be phosphorescent. :p
    Though the only Human character in this more recent story is more average looking,
    and not considered to be the pinnacle of winning the genetic lottery. :)
     
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  18. LucyAshworth

    LucyAshworth Active Member

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    Litte girls with dark hair and blue dresses with red ribbons. Jesus fucking christ you middle school minded college age game designers. Get a life you boring people.
     
  19. GrJs

    GrJs Active Member

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    Nothing is really overused, things that are common are common because they're tropes. Colours have certain meanings and readings and that's why they're used in certain ways. Your characters visuals should be the visual representation of what they are. Sometimes though people do the opposite of that just cause or because the character is lying about who they are either to themselves deep inside or to other people for plot related reasons.
     
  20. Alesha

    Alesha New Member

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    Blonde hair and blue eyes. Almost every book I’ve read has that combination. If else, I’ve seen red hair used a lot too, or any peculiar or ‘unnatural’ color as a matter of fact. I’ve yet to see a female character with black hair/dark brown hair and brown eyes though, maybe too conventional for authors but the representation would be nice for a change.
     

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