CHARACTER GUIDELINES

Creating an original character here on L.T.D. (live to die). is quite simple, and easy enough to do. but the following documentation is here for you to read to help us out and yourself by helping you create a realistic believable and likeable character.

THE DREADED MARY SUE:

• WHO IS SHE ? Who is Mary Sue and her twin brother Gary Stu? Well, let’s be truthful they aren't always the terror that we let ourselves believe and in truth, some writers can make the Mary Sue somewhat readable... And for any lurkers of the 'D you may see the phrase 'Mary Sues are played not made,' floating around. Is this true? Well, yes... The way you play your character, the decisions you make for him/her can shape them into a character you didn't really intend to create. For example, if you choose to write a character that does nothing but mope about her life, has all the worst luck in the world but holds the key to the resolution for everything, you are looking at a Mary Sue. But then again although one may be a Mary Sue there are ways to make them readable. For an example: One can be heavily flawed and have rotten luck and on occasion be seen moping and whining about said luck but he or she isn't a genius/mastermind. They could run into things blindly and their looks are not constantly described. Looks should not be the forefront of your story telling mind or others. If your character is attractive let us decide that for ourselves after all we all have our own opinions on what is pretty and what is not. Also another thing that could make a Sue successful is if it has support of others around it, and is not a one man or woman show, yet is capable of handling ones self in a sticky situation and isn't a damsel in distress. Another this is, they are not an all powerful hero they simply do what they must and could be blind to their weaknesses but do have them and have the weaknesses far exceed the strengths

• HOW TO AVOID HER ? Well as I said, the character is played a Mary Sue. However here is a list of the most commonly played Mary Sues:

ATTRACTIVE SUE: Whether male or female, this sue is so focused on looks that other writers are expected to fall head over heels in love with the character. The writer describes the character's looks in great detail whenever they can and the character is almost never found with a member of the same sex (unless said character is gay) and exist solely for romantic means.

CANON SUE: Not to be confused with a canon, this is the sue who is best friends with the main canons or else aids them in great battles or out of sticky spots. Unless it just so happens to work that way out in a thread, this isn't something that should happen.

EVIL SUE: This is the one who is the big baddy, she hates everyone, has a million enemies but still finds time for some romance with a main character. They are angry for no real reason and usually are there simply so the writer can torment a canon they don't really like or befriend an enemy of a canon that they admire.

FORGOTTEN SUE: Ah... The one the author forgot to add into the stories? lead canon's twin sister who is romantically involved with said canon;'s enemy? You should never make a character romantically or genetically connected to a canon without prior permission from the admin and the other holder of that character. Your character unless canon should have no claims to any canon. Unless it is pre-plotted or you have permission.

REBEL SUE: They are so bad they cut class, addicted to almost every illegal substance they can get their hands on, complain about authority constantly and hate their parents. They're the misunderstood character who just needs a bit of love to soften them up. The darkest secret is, they're full of angst because of a secretly tragic past, they don't mope around like tragic sue, they actively hate everyone and anyone.

SPECIAL SUE: She or he leave others in awe as they save the day or demonstrate extreme prowess in their every day accomplishments. They're the best in the school at everything. These Sue's can do anything without consequences or things that don't make sense.

VICTIM SUE: This is obvious, isn't it? she or he is the one sitting in the corner, pitying him or herself. They turn every conversation onto them and force other players to sympathize or look after their character, either for attention or as a means to a 'romantic/sunset ending' finish. They find every opportunity to tell their sad story and often miraculously recover from their life-changing, ever horrifying life in order to have a romance or big plot change.

WARRIOR SUE: She or he is the ultimate fighter, they’re the best 'bad-ass' in town. They always win and never seem to take any hits. If you want a fair fight, your character MUST be hit at some given point.



CREATING YOUR ORIGINAL CHARACTER:

• INTERACTIONS WITH CANONS : Of course they can. Originals are still very much a part of the canon world, the best way make a character fit in is to simply rp with as many people as you can, make it so that your character is so much a part of everyday life that they could almost have been written into the books. Just because you can't claim a relationship right from the off, doesn't mean one can't develop.

• THE LIMIT OF CREATIVITY : Though really the limit is your imagination, a character; OC and canon, should always fit into the world the rp is based on, no matter if it's Harry Potter or real life. Everything your character does should make sense, so sleeping in coffins despite your character not being a Vampire? Why would they do that? It must make sense to you and to the readers... If your character is out of the ordinary, why is he/she?

'Why', is a question you should ask yourself constantly when writing any character. What makes them tick? What makes them do the things they do? Stories rest on the shoulders of every character; no plot will ever make sense unless the character does.

Your character should also always fit within the criteria of not only the site and it's rating but the world around them as well. For example would we allow a mermaid to be allowed on this site? No. Why? because this is real life based. However your character's job could be impersonating a mermaid in a big fish tank if that's what you wanted and if you wanted a mermaid that bad.



THE APPLICATION PROCESS:

• WHO WILL READ MY APPLICATION : The accepted applications are viewable to all registered members of the forum. In terms of who'll be reviewing your app, that job falls between the forum administrator(s): JULIET LOVES THE BEAT !. We'll judge fairly and as accurately as we can. All changes that will be asked for will be asked because they are needed in order to make the character fit the site. All members new and old will be treated the same way.

• ACCEPTABLE FACE CLAIMS : Celebrities and Celebrities alone are acceptable as face claims for your characters. We do not accept nor approve of personal face claims for safety reasons personal face claims are: images of yourself, images of friends, images of family, images of others you may know. None of those are allowed. We also do not allow images of people from: facebook, myspace, beebo, twitter, or people from other/any social media networks Other images not allowed as face claims are: anime, drawings, paintings, artwork or anyone else that is not alive and walking around. Those that are allowed though and approved of as face claims are: actors, actresses, musicians, band members, models, etc If they are not easily found on google or are in some way not involved with a red carpet scene they are not allowed to be a face claim.