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Hello, everyone! I’m taking part in the Teens Can Write, Too! Blog Chain once again. Why? Because it’s fun to connect with other bloggers, that’s why!
This month’s prompt is, “Which characters are you most like?” Well, that’s easy. The calculating, logical ones who don’t really “get” emotions. (Yes, really.) It’s seriously freaky, because people like Obi-Wan and Sherlock could be my alter egos. For some reason, though, girls like this are rare… it’s almost like there’s a stereotype that keeps people from writing girls like this. Unequal representation, I say!
More and more, though, I keep finding that the people I’m really most like (at least in my own work) are the villains. Don’t get me wrong, my own personal goals could not be farther from the villains I love to write. I don’t go around in my spare time planning world domination, or plotting how to turn my friends to the Dark Side (nope, no Palpatine for me, thanks!), or just randomly bumping people off. That’s not me.
I think it’s easiest to identify with people like us, which is why there is such variety in character types (put the Doctor, Obi-Wan, Jack Frost, Sherlock, Anakin, and Doctor Watson in a room together and what do you see?). But more and more, I find that my heroes tend to share only facets of my personality and develop minds and personalities all their own. I think that there must be something of the actor in a writer, something that allows them to take on the role of these characters and play them to the best advantage. It’s a rare ability–and perhaps, becoming rarer–to step into somebody else’s shoes, know how they think and act, and then walk a mile in those shoes. But I believe it can be developed–in the interest of compassion, people should take up creative writing as a hobby!
Villains, though, though painful to write, can be frighteningly easy to portray… basically, all you have to do for a villain is to summon up your selfish side, think of the times you hurt someone, and then transfer your self-hate to the villain on your paper. Though villains are characters too, they are mostly characters who slip where the heroes hold firm, and though we hate them for it, it makes them so horribly, frighteningly human, that sometimes it’s hard not to try to make your villain too sympathetic… (Forgive the rambling. I have the flu at the moment.)
I think that we can write because we are both the heroes and the villains of our own stories. It depends on the point of view of the outsider watching, really.
But as to the prompt itself (sorry for the long ramble that you didn’t ask for and probably didn’t want to read), the characters I think I’m most like (apart from the villains), would have to be the ones whom no one sees or can quite understand without some kind of shared intuition, also the ones who are unusually intelligent (though I don’t think I am myself; my IQ test came back as just “gifted”, nothing more. I just know better ways of thought, I guess?) Thus, I identify very closely with characters who tend to be more intelligent, or think differently than the people around them. Characters like Charles Wallace Murry…
If only we could still call on Asa Butterfield for this one. Gah. I HEREBY DISOWN THIS MOVIE AND DESIRE FOR A BETTER ONE TO BE MADE.
Sherlock…
Okay, not so much with this one, but I have been known to randomly make deductions about people.
Hornblower…
I just had to pick the one with this expression. D’awwwwwwww!
(For those who do not know Mr. Hornblower [and I pity thee!], he’s a British naval officer during the Napoleonic Wars and later, and is known for risky but brilliant strategies. I also identify with him because he consistently self-depreciates in his own mind, and I know just how that feels.)
And last but not least, Obi-Wan (and not just because he’s a misunderstood intellectual–I think I posted about that here… but because of the amount of grief he had to put up with from Anakin and other people besides. He’s sort of the older brother character in Star Wars, and I’m the oldest sibling, and I certainly can relate to all the nonsense he had to put up with.)
Yes, Rosalie, I borrowed your image. MWHAHAHAHAHA.
But there are other characters, too… Merlin, because, well, social awkwardness… need I say more?
Poor Merlin. The Master of Awkward. (Don’t we all feel like this sometimes?!)
Will from Ranger’s Apprentice!
Yes, I know this is certainly someone’s fan art… sawry….
I think I identify with Will because his coming of age story is very much one that we all understand… And I think I have the same sense of humor… Anyone else getting the feeling of deja vu?
No, I couldn’t pick just one. This is awesome fan art. Seriously. (And it doesn’t look like it’s copycatted from Lord of the Rings… wheeeee! ;-P)
Speaking of Lord of the Rings…
Sam is down-to-earth and loyal, and though I’m not really like Sam when it’s the down-to-earth bit, but I try to support my friends the same way he supports Frodo.
Teehee….
The main reason I’m putting this here is because I love the relationship development between Hiccup and his father, but the other reason is because I share Hiccup’s curiosity and eagerness to learn. Maybe not so much his inventiveness and willingness to accept and create new traditions, but still.
Okay, I know I should probably include some girls in here… grrr…
Marguerite Blakeney!
Because! (Actually, this is probably the one female character whom I am most like. She’s bright and intelligent and clever and tries to fix her mistakes and she gets to work with her husband saving lives!!! Okay, I’ll admit it. Percy and Marguerite is my real OTP.)
Ahsoka Tano!!!
“Snips” is the queen of sarcasm, and she’s a teenager who’s a Jedi and growing up in a war and totally gets teenager problems! Seriously. If Marguerite is my grown-up side, then Ahsoka is my teenaged, sassy, warrior-maiden side.
Padme!
Yes, Padme, purple is your color. (I still hate this dress, though.)
Like Obi-Wan, she had to put up with a ridiculous amount of grief, because Anakin is an idiot. (I don’t actually blame her for thinking that she might be able to change that… Whoopsie, unintentional Merlin quote…) I admire Padme because she’s courageous and willing to stand up for things other people don’t stand up for. But like the rest of us, she’s human and makes wrong decisions. And she’s actually a mature person. (Anyone else feel like something was missing from Revenge of the Sith?)
Mary Morstan Watson!!!!
I never did get a good look at this dress…
Talk about strong female characters! Mrs. Watson could quite literally wipe the floor with several of the guys in Sherlock. (I’m not specifying who, though…) Former CIA, assassin… And a lady who makes mistakes, but still tries to rectify them. (Noticing a pattern here?)
And last but not least, Tigress!
Kung Fu Panda and Kung Fu Panda II (deliberately taking them as one piece here) was a boon. Not only did it have a better plot than a bunch of other recent movies, it also had female leads (Viper, as well as Tigress) who were strong without overwhelming the male characters (which is a problem, in my opinion, equal to the lack of strong female leads in the first place!), funny without making racy jokes (TAKE THAT, SEXISM!), and, especially in Tigress’ case, had a strong character arc and were good at giving relationship advice, besides! (Added to that, the sequel actually lived up to–and even surpassed–the first movie. Will DreamWorks’ next KFP movie live up to its predecessors? Only time will tell…)
Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this post!
5th – http:// semilegacy.blogspot.com/
6th – http://thelittleenginethatcouldnt.wordpress.com/
7th – http://nasrielsfanfics.wordpress.com/
8th – http://sammitalk.wordpress.com/
9th – http://musingsfromnevillesnavel.wordpress.com/
10th – http://irisbloomsblog.wordpress.com/
11th – http://www.brookeharrison.com/
12th – http://miriamjoywrites.com/
13th – http://uniquelyanonymous.wordpress.com/
14th – https://erinkenobi2893.wordpress.com/
15th – http://novelexemplar.wordpress.com/
16th – http://nutfreenerd.wordpress.com/
17th – http://unikkelyfe.wordpress.com/
18th – http://writers-place-for-you.blogspot.de/
19th – http://roomble.wordpress.com/
20th – https://taratherese.wordpress.com/
21st – http://thependanttrilogy.wordpress.com/
22nd – http://freeasagirlwithwings.wordpress.com/
23rd – http://butterfliesoftheimagination.wordpress.com/
24th – http://theweirdystation.wordpress.com/
25th – http://teenageink.wordpress.com/
26th – http://www.adventuringthroughpages.wordpress.com/
27th – http://randommorbidinsanity.blogspot.com/
28th – http://missalexandrinabrant.wordpress.com/
29th – http://dynamicramblings.wordpress.com/
and http://thelonglifeofalifelongfangirl.wordpress.com/
30th – http://fantasiesofapockethuman.blogspot.com/
and http://www.turtlesinmysoup.blogspot.com/
31st – http://theedfiles.blogspot.com/
and http://teenscanwritetoo.wordpress.com/ (We’ll announce the topic for next month’s chain)
The Upstairs Archives 
Really enjoyed this! I love your rambles, they are such fun. For the record, I sort of do go around plotting world domination in my spare time, but the world need not worry just yet. I’ll let you know if come close to something approximating a plan 🙂
Like you, I find it difficult to relate to a lot of female characters as I am not very ‘female’ in many respects. I have been thinking about what characters I am most like and it was hard to think of a lady that I could relate to. Then – it came to me! Cheetarah from Thundercats! Which you will be waaaaay too young to remember. But she is cool. And we had the same haircut in the 80s.
🙂 Thanks!
😛 I might plan world domination from time to time, but normally it involves broccoli, spaghetti, Kung Fu Panda, and then Bob the Marshmallow takes my plans away and eats them ’cause he’s bored. GRRR. So if I were really a supervillain and not a generally benevolent creature, I’d be of the incompetent and comical kind. 😛
😀 I will have to check that out… It sounds cool. 🙂
Oh, I forgot… I missed one. Edith from “Despicable Me”! X-P If you ever see a ninja with a pink hat with pom-poms and ear flaps, that’s Edith. ;-P
I love planning world domination… >:-D
That’s not worrisome is it? 😉
No, seeing that most of the time you can be distracted by coffee. 😛
Not all the time! *silence…*
I didn’t have any coffee this morning 😦
Awww… *hugs you and makes you virtual coffee and some virtual tea for myself*
This was really fun to read! I like your point about how people should take up creative writing because it builds compassion.
😀 Thanks! I have lots of theories about how education and its goals can be improved, but I’d have to annoy a LOT of bureaucrats to get them implemented 😛
Can I hear some of these theories, perhaps?
Like the one about how a balanced education comes not from unbiased textbooks but textbooks biased in both directions? 😉 I’d have to anger a lot of liberals to get that done. 😛
I often try to debate the reason the books need to explore more views, it seems that some want to alter history and change the narrative.
I would say that you would clearly make some liberals mad. Just tell a liberal that creationist science should also be taught in science class they will attack you.
It’s also sad that they don’t seem to want to accept a compromise. Lots of people, both liberal and conservative, don’t want to compromise…
Debate helps people think an issue through from all sides. 😉 I think that as long as we keep it civil, it’s a great tool. 🙂 Some people have actually accused me of being too logical and “having no heart” at times… I sometimes wonder if they’re really talking about me!
I have to say, I was a bit surprised by some of your choices… of course, I knew a few.
I figured you’d list Obi-Wan, Merlin, Hornblower…I thought you’d do Sir Percy though, not his wife! 😛
I always thought of you as more like Viper, not tigress. Tigeress was always quiet and serious, and didn’t want to give Po a chance (poor Po..).
But Viper was super friendly, and felt a little sorry for Po that he got shoved into things the way he did.
I don’t know, just how I see you. *shrugs*
You could probably call me on the same thing for some characters I think I am.. 😛
Ever hear of the Johari window?
Oh, and your first picture of Will isn’t fan art I think. It was included in some copies of Book 11 I thought…
😛 Hmmm… I don’t know…
Johari window? What’s that?
Well, that’s good to know…
Iris! Get over here now! There’s a pillow fight on and WE NEED MORE MEN!!!
http://robynhoode.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/very-inspiring-blogger-award/
It’s the personality trait idea that there are.. oh… hold on, I’ll do a blog post on that later today. It’s kind of hard to explain in a comment. 😛
Not again! Didn’t I just fight one a while back…
Okay….
Sort of. But this is fun. ;-P
Okay, since when did Ahsoka fight Jar Kai?
And a whole chizzkload of your pictures are missing.
Two lightsabers? Since… Season three. About midway through. So for about half the series, really. Oh dear…
*looks* Funny, only one is actually missing… it’s the second picture of Will, actually… That’s weird.
Okay. I bet Anakin just loved that.
From this angle Padmé, Mary, and Hiccup are missing. And yes, Mary is pretty darn cool. Love that line:
“You don’t even know my real name!”
“Is Mary Watson good enough for you?”
Anakin is a nut case, and Ahsoka has learned enough to ignore him when he’s pesky.
What? That is strange… I found I couldn’t actually embed the images straight from my media library, for some reason, so I had to embed them all from the URL. Maybe it’s just that your computer didn’t like that…?
YES SHE IS! 😀 😀 😀 And John is so sweet!!! 🙂 *happy sigh*
From my view Sherlock is missing.
Maybe Erin could stop with the o-so-clever inserting pictures without downloading them. Erin? It doesn’t actually work. It wasn’t a very nice picture of Sherlock, Iris, you’ve missed nothing.
Okay, I’ll stop, I guess. If my computer will actually let me insert them straight from the media library this time. Grrr.
Thanks. ‘Cause believe it or not we do actually want to see these awesome pictures you put up.
Okay… Should I go back and try to change it…?
*groans* I’m sorry, everyone, the internet must just not like me. *sigh*
Erin, the internet l *likes* nobody… it is a devious monster that is very choosy about who it bestows its easy access to. To us poor average tech people, it is very rude.
*groans* that was melodramatic and not necessarily… necessary, Iris.
What?! I thought it fit… I’ve been having a lot of internet problems myself. *glares at invisible internet monster*
Ha…. *sigh*
Lovely ramble! I think you’re quite right about the representation thing. That’s why you must write such a female character. Maybe I should too… Need to think about this.
Tigress is so cool! But…but…what’s that thing with two lightsabers?
I am thinking of a story where the MC is female… and completely awesome… and though she thinks that her supporting character is more awesome, he’s really not that great for his kind… I mean, she sees him as this almost-like-a-mythical-god but in his own world he’s an outcast, even homeless. And he’s unaware of all this… because he thinks that finally someone has just accepted him for who he is, assuming that she has the same powers. What do you think???
Perfect idea, actually. I would definitely be interested to see what develops between them when he does realize what’s up. And when she realizes what he is! Very cool.
😀 Thanks! I kind of liked the angle of almost-Mary-Sue proving not-Mary-Sue and actually kind of wimpy. 😛
Nice! Definitely do it!
🙂 I’ll see what I can do… after all, I do have an obligation to continue Battlefield of the Soul for Rosalie!
The “thing” as you so untechnically call it, is Jar Kai – favored by N’Kata Del Gormo originally, and filtering down through… seven generations! Quite impressive, really.
You mean, it’s powerful?
It depends. In some situations, it’s not an advantage over someone using a single blade, just as sometimes a single blade is more efficient than a saberstaff. It takes a lot of training to coordinate both blades at once, but it’s worth it–a good Jar’Kai duelist is amazing.
Only as much as Soresu or Ataru or Niman or Djem So or Juyo – possibly not so much as Vaapad. But the Sith don’t use those names for their forms.
It also depends on the user. Someone like Ventress or Obi-Wan would be incredible using Jar’Kai, but Anakin is only mediocre with it, by all reports. (HAH!)
Hehehe.
….?
Wow, you covered a lot of my favorite characters! Will Treaty, for sure, and Mary Morstan/Watson and Tigress. I thought it was an exceptional point you made about villains–it totally made sense to me. And I, as well, had a hard time finding female characters like me, so bummer. Thanks for sharing!
OH, YEAH! Will is awesome! (So that’s his last name, eh? 😛 I’ve only read up to book three… ;-P)
😀 I’m glad you enjoyed it! 😉
Whoops! 😉 Me having read all twelve, I didn’t think to filter for spoilers. At any rate, I’m glad I enjoyed it too. 🙂
Well, I don’t know the story of how he got that name. So I’m still in for that, right? 😉
😀 I love those books! I need to read more… I’m waiting for book four to be returned to the library… which was closed today… thanks to the bike races… 😉
Yes, and it’s a great story! They’re a great series by all accounts, though bummer about the library. Trust me, though, they’re worth the wait. 😀
I know!!! Still, waiting is hard. Especially if, like me, and also like Will (:-P) you can be impatient about things. ;-P
And, if you’re like Will, everyone is going to spend a lot of time testing your patience for a long, long time. 🙂
More than likely. 😛
That’s a very interesting cast of characters! It’s funny the way girls tend to be portrayed as emotional. I suppose it’s true that girls are more emotional than guys as a whole but I have encountered a lot of “logical, calculating” girls in the blogging world. I suppose those types tend to enjoy writing.
Yeah… I can be very emotional at times, but I don’t like to let it rule me. I prefer to be rational about things. 😉 Which, again, is probably the biggest reason why I identify with Obi-Wan. I identify with Will probably because I’m also intuitive and like to explore and discover things. 😉
Same here. I’ve really got to learn more about Star Wars because I’m pretty clueless about all this.
Well, it’s also a bit like John Watson, from ‘Sherlock.’ 😉
Love this! And ha, it IS surprising how easy villains are to portray. I just exaggerate all of my less-than-flattering sides, and I have myself the foundation for someone evil.
Yeah. 😛 I tend to identify with my villains a lot… For instance, if I were the villain of a story, I’d want to be the mostly-classy but secretly insane kind. And that’s the kind most of my villains are. I think that we all have the potential to be both heroic and villainous, and writing is a way of bringing that out.
Another creepy simile–if I were a villain, I probably wouldn’t have a good reason for being evil, and in my most recent novel, neither does that villain. She just decided that she wanted power, which isn’t a very good reason at all. (Bah, Anakin Skwalker! *slaps him with a mop for being such an idiot*)