Main Characters: 12 Tips to Help You
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- Опубліковано 22 лип 2024
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"Carrot Boy" was a nickname for me at school in the 1970s
I was a red head, and my mum bought me a t-shirt which said "Karate Boy"
Children can be so cruel
😰
ANDREW HOLTON im sorry but thats funny😂
True.
It was a long time ago.
The scars are healing 😀
At least you're not carrot boy anymore. More like "melon man" Am I right?
Jk.
That sounds like a superhero name though hmm..
Anakay Bruh hahaha
As I'm developing my own story, I realised the importance of three things about character's personality:
1 - He/she has to have disadvantages.
2 - He/she has to do things, make decisions, take their life into their own hands. They cannot be passive, because the story won't go further.
3 - some time ago I came across a picture on pinterest which said "Bad decisions make good stories" and I think it's also a good advice about writing. Character needs to make mistakes, argue, harm somebody, and later on fix it (or not).
To sum up, our hero cannot be perfect.
Nekotek109
Well said
Watch jojo
And that's all important things, both in story telling, but also if you just wanna make an original character!
Having them with flaws, and where they make mistakes makes them seem more human. It's easier for others to relate to the character!
Nekotek109 I actually disagree with your #2 because the fact that he is passive can be a weakness.
Satoshi Mochida
Yeah, but if that's the case (imo), that trait should be evolved out of (at least a little bit) so the story can go along.
Mark wish me luck because I'm going to try and publish a manga
A plus Games was it made and published in Japanese print?
^Are you American? cus its spelled American, not amarican
A plus Games AYY ME TOO best luck to u pal
spultra2 2 samurai twins who are separated and grow to hate each other and go to war with each other.however the younger twin starts to want to be a family again but the oldest doesn't agree and it kinda turns in a Naruto sasuke thing
Thanks
I think having your narrator refer to things that haven't happened yet can be compelling if you do it right. In My Hero Acadamia, the main character starts off the show telling you that he becomes the greatest hero. What makes it work is that you want to find out how he GOT there.
Or, for another example, how in The Book Thief the narrator (Death) spoils the beginning, middle, and end of the book shamelessly. Death then proceeds to explain how they dislike suspense, which both adds character to the narrator and helps contribute to the story.
great example
I agree. When I hear "I didn't know it yet, but he would become my worst enemy" I'm usually pulled in because I want to know why. It's especially effective if the characters start out on good terms, like as friends or siblings or partners.
Yes, you can really play with implicit foreshadowing as a narrator. In the movie 'Grave of the Fireflies', the very first line of monologue is the protagonist stating the day he died. Now even though everyone is spoiled about his demise, the audience is still intrigued about HOW it will happen and more importantly, if he can manage to make his family survive. Also knowing that he'll die no matter what adds a lot to the story's perception, since you'll cherish every good moment and criticise every questionable decision he'll make in his journey.
I think another good example is the Vision comics which describe the moments before Victor's death a while before it actually happens. This specific example didn't leave the reader wondering how he died, exactly, but instead provoked a sense of uncertainty and nervousness in them while they watched the story slowly build up to the inevitable.
marks next style: hyper realistic
rosie x maybe his challenge should be to make a hyper realistic comic🙃
you called it
It is honestly such a relief to see a successful artist with so much variety in style. I always worry I'm not being consistent enough to gain a following, but here you are doing just fine.
I remember going to the school library and your drawing books would always be checked out or everyone would be at the drawing section of the library racing to get your books. Then I discovered Miki Falls, it was the first manga I ever read and it became the reason I started to draw and love reading. I didn't find your channel until 2 years later when I got into UA-cam. I love your work and how you captivate the reader or the people watching your videos.
Thank you so much!! ^_^
I agree with some others who have said this. I found this video quite helpful, however I personally need a bit more help in story telling and character design. idk if anyone would agree with me but I think it'd be helpful to see you start to finish create a mini story. I tend to learn better that way and I think it'd be helpful, like I said to me at least, to see something like that.
Justin R yeah cuz unless you've made a comic already you don't really know the process, like what it looks like. all the videos in the world could be made on the topic but I feel without really seeing the process from start to finish it just doesn't quite cut it.
Emma Adams I like that idea, I hope he could find time for that.
John Olajimi no like a full process through a new story not just going through his old comics and explaining the process. I've seen all his how to comic videos and understand the misunderstanding just I mean something different from what you are taking it as.
Story telling and Character design generally go hand in hand. What I've noticed is that you gotta have heart for your own characters. Make them an actual being; In the past, I've used a very extensive sheet that contains a lot of information, a lot that I thought irrelevant... How wrong I was to think that became apparent when I used the sheet to create the most popular character that I've created on my forum. Story telling, is a dynamic that you need to get into. Every artist has their own; one is all fast-paced and they end fast(Think of the action genre). Another is slow-paced and ends slow(Romance). Some start slow, then end up fast(Thrillers, they tend to pick up pace midway through). And rarely they start fast, and end slow.
In the end, it's all up to you. What works for you, tends to work for those that read your work. As long as you enjoy the story yourself, your reader will enjoy it as well.
Emma Adams
Hello! My advice is to know how you're presenting your story and characters first. If you're writing a story with no (or very little) pictures and illustrations, then you need to focus the most on who your character is. This is usually done by having an idea: Jake is a teen who has problems with anger, and pushes people away. A very interesting thing to do next is to contrast that first idea: Jake has a good heart and wants a friend, but he just doesn't know how to show it.
Then you need to know more about Jake, so you need a type of bio, something to tell you how he reacts to different situations. I recommend looking up a basic character sheet and filling it out, this will tell you what Jake's favorite food is, why he cries, and his sense of humor.
If you are illustrating the story, you need to think of the character's appearance as well as their personality. First, you need to think of what the at style is, is it very cartoon and not as held back by realism? Great, you can go to shapes. Shapes tell the viewer what to expect of your character, and I would not recommend contrasting this with their personality since most viewers will not understand what you did. Round shapes show friendly qualities, sharp shapes show hostility, and square shapes show stability and honesty.
If you're style is realistic, then you can show the shapes through clothing and such. Next is color, and this is a little more important than shapes. Red shows fiery qualities such as passion, anger, and violence. For the rest I recommend you search up what colors mean.
Alright, let's go to story. A good story has 3 to 5 stages in it: The calm before the storm where you show the norm of your characters. The rising action where your character starts on their journey. The climax is usually split into the struggle where the character hits their lowest point, but they will probably succeed. The next is where the story is wrapping up, here you close off the subplots (a small plot that accompanies the main one), and the characters may be going back home. The end is when the beginning is mirrored, but the characters aren't who they were when it started.
Hope you found this helpful!
Mark I just finished reading The Drawing Lesson and I have to say that it is a fantastic book for beginners and seasoned artists alike! Im gonna recommend this to anyone that wants to learn how to draw and those who already do draw
Thank you so much!
I feel the need to buy every single one of your books due to geniune interest
Thank you so much!
I like stories that are about one character but told by another.
I dont know where I'd be as an artist without these videos
Skides Art At Jazza or Baylee's channel😅
The way you’ve organized the videos with a list of points is just brilliant, very useful and handy, thanks!
In my first up coming novel I have multiple main characters. it's definitely risky I'll admit. In another book I wrote too one of the side characters became a favorite as well. I love writing and creating these new worlds and people.
I never understood why people disliked the big chins in Miki Falls. It was such a neat style.
Arparagus In the past we survived by staying in groups, now we still think that way, saying it's a good thing to think or act like most people do and bad to act differently than the group. That effects art too- his style was close enough to the average manga style to be identified by that group, but it was different enough that it's thought of as wrong.
Okay, honest opinion wanted:
I tried writing a story with six main characters, taking place in a fantasy bend war setting. It does focus more on one person, being the leader, but I also focus on the others fairly. To avoid spoiling the others, I'll give a brief description of each.
Main 1: A teenager who lost his father in a war and goes to fight in it, not to win the war but to end it quickly. Instead of enlisting in the Army, he forms a private company. In short, he's a blend of George Washington and Billie Joe Armstrong.
Main 2: A girl who joins Main 1's company in terms of financial interest. Coming from an aristocratic family, she has little knowledge of the rough life, but is well versed in the business life and the 1 percent.
Main 3: A guy with a spotty history and one of Main 1's friends. Thought he isn't academically smart, he is street smart and machine wise.
Main 4: A girl that joins Main 1's company as a personal test of strength. She's a bit reckless and will openly jump into the line of fire.
Main 5: A foreign refugee that joins as a medic knowing firsthand at a young age what war is like.
Main 6: A computer expert who does whitehat jobs for companies and joins as a computer technician. Emotionally reserved and quirky.
Overall, I try to make each character recognizable yet uniform with the rest. Individuals in a unit, a family of sorts.
Any opinions? I really want to know.
It's hard to pull off, but for example the award winning sci-fi novel Hyperion has 7 or 8 main characters. Each chapter is told from only person's perspective though. Of course the plot interconnects all of them. For most of the book they're far apart though. On different planets even.
Meant to say "only one person's perspective" :)
You know you can edit comments, right?
Didn't have the option for me to edit it shrug*
Not sure if you'll see this, but just wanted to say I really enjoyes your presentation today at the library in Abilene. I've been interested in creating my own manga-inspired comics, and I think a lot of what you talked about gave me some inspiration to put that dream to reality. Just so you know, I was the redhead near the back of the seats.
I like how these videos are actually helpful and I'm not just watching someone draw amazing stuff.
amazing work Mark, you're actually so talented honestly I have no words before I started doing a lot of art I looked at your videos and they are honestly blew me away there are so many tips that you've taught me throughout the years and you honestly inspired me to go out of my comfort zone and explore new things thank you so much Mark
This was actually really helpful. I'm thinking of creating a manga/story thing that mostly focuses on all of the character's development and impacts on each other, and this really helped me get a better grip on how to portray and develop these characters. Thanks Mark!
HOLY CRAP! I read Akiko books like 15 years ago and I remember really liking them, but I didn't own them myself and couldn't remember anything about the title or author. Now I found your youtube channel while looking for comic art advice. I guess I've been a fan a long time!
Yes Sir!! Very useful! Again, congrats on your nomination! You deserve it for the amazing content you always produce 😊
Congratulations, Mark! That's really AWESOME, about the Eisner nomination! Great tips, by the way.
Once tried to write a story where the main character was effectively a hermit with no supporting cast to bounce off of. Needless to say, that project didn't go anywhere.
I just started watching your videos, I had no idea you are a writer! haha it makes more sense now because in other videos I've seen you make comments about "stories". I honestly thought it was a way to express the story of the drawing you were doing in that video
Congratulations on the Eisner nomination, Mark. It is well deserved. I reviewed The Drawing Lesson for a former website and enjoyed it greatly. It was a unique take on the "How-to" genre of books and a good read
Thank you so much, John!
SO many great tips here. I'm gonna go over this one a few times, for sure.
Mark I just want to say thank you so much for all of your info/insight throughout the years. It really helps being that I plan on creating my own story/comic soon. Thanks again! XD
I know this is late, but you definitely deserve the nomination! Also, "Storbeck's Coffee" haha, wonderful :)
Your advice in this video was very helpful to me, so I just wanted to say thank you. I'm actually working on a comic, my very first one, so I'll take all the advice I can get.
Thanks for the advice Crilley. I'm working on a book with a bunch of characters and this helped me out with knowing what I can do to distinguish my main character. You're the bombdiggedy Crilley!
Thank you Kyler :)
It's a shame these videos don't get More views. Your story telling advice is my favorite video topic of yours as one of my biggest dreams is to get into the comic writing/ creating business. Hopefully someday I can make it a reality!
congrats Mark, hope you get the award, you deserve it!
In contrast to a lot of people, I don't have trouble creating a story or main characters. I can come up with a decent story if you give me a day or so, but I have A LOT of trouble staying motivated to do the big projects I want to do. I have an amazing idea for a comic, but I don't think I have enough motivation to finish it, and I don't want to leave it half-finished. Any tips on staying motivated?
Laura Velazquez Motivation is a fickle thing that you'll never be able to count on for the long term. If you want to stay out of the pattern of giving up, it really comes down to sheer discipline- which just means if you're thinking about it, you should be doing it. It's extremely simple sounding, and in principle it is really simple- but in practice of course, the matter is pretty difficult. Simply because humans are lazy lazy creatures, and it takes a lot of will to push towards working without necessity. If you want a bit of a of a booster for when you start working, create a schedule for the overall hours of your work time, and you can use techniques like the pomadoro technique- just avoid distractions during the short breaks and opt for some light exercise (a walk, jumping jacks, whatever) instead. This comes down to when you're actually drawing or writing though. Actually starting- that's the hardest part. Get 4 days in a row, and you'll start to be building a habit. That's what you need. If you can start a routine to build on your story, you'll be good to go. Just have to start- so, figure out your distractions. Shut them off WITHOUT a final check. (I'd say UA-cam is one of them, considering that you're here.) Find what you need to start writing or drawing. Get it. Set up your timer. And get to work- NOW.
Same. i would usually ditch the project
Working on a different aspect of the project each time to mix things up can help.
I feel yeah, and you might even be done with your book at this time, but if not that is okay. I am a type of person that gets these cool stories in my head, but when I try to write them out, my mind goes to another story and I lose focus on the one I was writing. My first ever story I tried to write crash and burned (maybe because I was 10 at the time) but also because I really didn’t have a plot or a main character. Three years later I was really into spirits and the idea of people having more than one life. At the end of the year I tried to write a story about that but when a friend of mine introduced me to a TV series, I didn’t have the heart to keep on writing. But now, when I got the idea for a third story, I didn’t hesitate to write it down. I am now on the tenth chapter and still excited to write more. My advice to you is that it’s okay to give up an idea, but when you get another one, don’t hesitate, like I did.
@@maddiechapman7564 Hi! Thanks for the advice! I regret to say that I haven't even begun to write the story (either due to life getting in the way or my own laziness), aside from a few sporadic chapters I have here and there. I've mostly been working on character design and world-building. I keep focusing on the beginning, but I feel like I should create an outline first. I REALLY want to start writing the story, getting into full-swing, because it's always easier for me to finish something that's halfway done instead of starting out.
I'm so happy about your story! Ten chapters?! That's epic. I hope you have many more by the time you read this. Keep at it and maybe we'll both make it some day! Best of luck!
btw thank you for this lesson again! I have a habit of writing these tips down to my sketch book, I really feel like they are a big help to motivate me.
16:25 Tip #12...this has been my main issue. My comics suffer from this a lot, and often-times the goal is vague or implemented too late.
In my most recent one I had the world and the characters, but the goal was so distant and vague that I lost the desire to continue. I pushed to make sure I had a 'sort-of' ending rather than quitting cold-turkey, but it really is a bad feeling to lose a story like that.
Thank you for this video. It's helped give me some direction. :)
That was helpful as hell..wasn’t even looking for it but needed to see n hear it, thank you..
I'm trying to find ways I can improve my writing and my main character. This really helped! Thank you!
Mark, I personally liked the way that Miki was drawn. I feel that it added to her character, especially "The Blushies"!
Also, congratulations on the Eisner Award Nomination! I really hope you win!
CONGRATS ON YOUR NOMINATION!!
Thanks for the tips! It's reassuring to know that some of these things I was already doing. XD I always glean a lot of knowledge from your videos!
I just met the channel and wanted to say thank you for all this good content :)
Your books are like Ghibli movies. They're all in different styles. :)
Great video, lots of good tips. You're stories sound great a d hopefully one day I'll get to read one :)
You've got a new subscriber!
I watched this after already creating my character and I like how I somehow ended up covering most of these points. This helped me realize that my character doesn't have an ultimate goal and that is something I will need to work on or clarify. I have no other "writing" knowledge other than my imagination and your videos. Thanks a bunch.
NintendoPolitics by no stretch am I in the position to state anything wiser than Mark in terms of experience, but I'd just like to say that your struggle or goals could be both internally focused or externally focused. A battle with yourself, or a battle with your surroundings, you just need a source of tension and a goal in sight to push the readers onward. Maybe a battle of strength with the goal of being the ultimate hero, or saving the princess while struggling to get stronger to beat the greatest of foes. Maybe a battle of identity or belonging, struggling through the memories of ones past as they look to rekindle a relationship with a long lost parent. Mixing the two is also an extremely potent formula if done correctly.
Really enjoyed all the tips you presented in this video. Looking forward to seeing what your seventh project will be on. Love all the stuff you do. Thanks for making UA-cam one of my favorite places to be.
Thank you Dora!
Really liked this video thanks for doing it
Thank you so much Mark, how did you know I needed help with this! You read my mind!
Thank mark! This was just the video I needed today!
Amazing video as usual!
Hey Mark I've been watching your videos since around elementary school and I'm a senior in high school now and I decided to take AP art. For my concentration portion I decided to make a 12 page (since we need 12 pieces) comic. Just want to thank you for all your help over the years you've really taught me a lot and inspired me over the years. Sadly the teacher wouldn't let me actually enter the pages into the portfolio because she said it was a waste of time but I'm still proud of myself for doing it since I never thought I'd be able to and you're certainly a big part of that. So thank you
Glad I could help!
super awesome advice mark, thank you! in the middle of redesigning a few of my characters and i always struggle with the written story parts haha ^^;;
when you like the video before you watch it because you know it's gonna be good 😁
thanks, all your videos help with a comic i'm working on!
Very good advices. Thank you, that will help me.
Great stuff sir
Thank you so much I am doing a project at school and this has really helped
I love this style of videos!
Please, do a video on creating a character from look to personality and introducing them to the reader.
This is so helpful thank you so much!
Thanks for sharing these lessons learned from your years of creating stories and characters. I feel lucky to be following you and learning so much. Plus you're really entertaining to watch! . ^_^
Another great video. Thanks!
:D i love you Mark! you give the best art advice!
i find these videos really interesting I've been making stories/watching anime since i was four (though i didn't know what anime was) so Ive never had problems with characters
but it's nice to have a different perspective
Omg i just openned youtube and a wild Mark video appeared yaaay!
Did you catch it?
Inna Ultraball or normal one?
Fudge Cake most likely a master ball >_>
I needed this. Thank you!
I love Mark and his videos, they are so helpful. But, he's the only artist I know on youtube that gives tutorials on how to draw AND tell stories. Can somebody please recommend more people that are masterful and teach all aspects of writing manga/graphic novels/ comics ETC. PLEASE AND THANKS!!!
Mark, I really enjoy your videos. Can you do one one point of view and 'dual' main characters you mentioned?
Amazing advice.
Congratulations.
Congrats on your nomination!
I can't wait for your 7th project! I hope it is in the works!
Boy those are some good tips, Mark :)
Thank you, Mark! That's so helpful!
i found this really helpful! thankyou!
My main character is very much influenced by Poly Styrene who is the real life lead singer of the X Ray Spex. I love how fierce she is on stage, using her voice and her lyrics as a weapon of mass destruction. However, off stage, when she's doing an interview she is so timid and shy but she does come up with some extremely intelligent answers. I am so inspired to take that quality and incorporate that into a fictional character :D
Btw congratulations on The Drawing Lesson :D You deserve to win.
And I'll be sure to pick up your books, real soon!
Hey Mark. I just wanted to say that I bought the Complete Collected Collection of Brody's Ghost at Barnes and Nobles and I absolutely loved the story and I haven't stopped recommending it to everyone I meet xD
Thank you so much , Maggie, it really means a lot! :)
Oh my god I remember akiko now!!! I read your books holy cow!!!
Your mangas are awesom, I would love to read one!
Mark, on my end, I did have to learn at least a couple of these lessons the hard way.
My original OC started out as a reject bootleg knockoff of Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z, and the origin story somewhat played out like Todd McFarlane's Spawn. For years, the story would stick to an origin story status, while maintaining the main character's quest for vengeance against the terrible bad man who put said OC in the terrible circumstances.
This provided a lot of catharsis over the years of junior high and high school.
For nearly 15 years or so, it would seem like my main OC basically didn't even get his foot through the door to really getting his stuff together and properly embarking on his quest of aforementioned vengeance. Then came a sort of magical fantasy side-kick inspired by folklore and fantasy video games. The story became monumentally more interesting.
Somewhere subconsciously I must have decided the vengeance could wait.
Some hairstyle and personality changing later, I feel like I properly established the beginnings of the relationship between my main OC and the other character I elected to become his companion. I decided to cut out the origin story to save it for later, and I alternatively decided to have the side-kick save the main OC in the first confrontation.
I'm still heavily influenced by video games and action anime, however.
So, even if I dropped the goofy hair spikes on my OC, decided to save the vengance for a sort of a 'plot-bomb' later, and turned the main character away from constantly being in a state of agitated psychosis, the character maintained an aggressive action hero physique, fights the inhuman foes, and (prospectively) gains more power in the (coming) adventure.
I'm not sure when I'll get the motivation to keep working on the story properly.
Even so, having at least a second character actually made writing the story much easier, especially with making the 'side-kick' (or so to speak) much more important to the plot. Now, I just have to muster up the gumption to figure out how to advance the story forward and actually come up with enough material for a solid 'volume 1' of the series.
Mark! I dont know if your manga "Brody's Ghost" has been fetured in any sort of book fair, but I saw volume 1 at my book fair at my school and I almost flipped right then and there. :) I love you and your work!!
Nice :-) I loved the drawing lesson
honestly is their nothing you can't do mark. Your literally goals
GOOD JOB CRILLEY FOR YOUR NOMINATION
I really like the way the characters in miki falls though, it's a really refreshing style compared to some other typical manga styles with more exaggerated eyes and smaller features
Thanks man..
This really helped me out with my comics
I bought the Brody's Ghost Collected edition recently and read the whole thing in one session. It is an amazing storyline!
Thank you so much :)
As always great advice Mark. But I have a question sir. Do you have any advice on copyrights & trademarks? Thanks Bubba, keep up the videos.
thank you so much
Congratulation for the nomination! :D (y)
Damn mark ur channel grew I remember watching u as a kid when u had 500k subs
OMG I read Akiko from my local library when I was ten years old! I had no idea it was from you! By the way, it was a good book! Holy cow, this is awesome.
Can't wait for manga art!(book)
AMAZING!!!
OHHHHH trust me crilley iv'e been practising for 3 years and still going on till i become a Doujinshi (a self published Mangaka). Its good to practice at the stuff i like to do without studio's getting in the way (I'm already thinking about asking Lucas about writing a star wars manga) I'm also think of going to art college for a decent amount of years, a small side job (PART TIME 5£ an hour for 2 hours and five days every week), It's gonna be fun!
I have a lot of characters too, but I trying to figure our who's the main focus of my story. Also I'm trying to come up with a title for my manga too.
12:06-12:23...describes Rey from The Force Awakens perfectly.
Mark, would you be interested in making a video about how to draw airplanes, similar to the planes in porco rosso and such, not these boring looking planes we fly in today :) also I really enjoyed this video about your main characters.
mark I love your videos and I have a question on characters. I've noticed that many characters have hair styles that show the type of person they are like ponytail are for athletics characters and ringlets are for rich characters and so on so I was hoping if you could show us how other styles can show personality and if a style could fit a character. I've had this problem for making original character since I can't decide what hairstyle to give them
I do hope that 'The drawing lesson' wins! It certainly deserves it!
Wow, very interesting!