Self-Representation

RadPal · Post by **RadPal** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:07 pm

I know many of you do it, I do it as well.

I'm talking about modeling one of your characters directly after yourself; may it be an exact copy of personality, an exaggeration, or a loosely-based version.

I am curious about the general attitude towards doing this. Is it generally looked down upon in comics? Or am I wrong?

Keep in mind I hate it when people do this when it takes away from real character development. I understand that making yourself a character makes characterization awkward and difficult, and if you do not succeed in separating yourself from this literary character who should be fictional, you will have a very hard time building a convincing character whom you would have no hesitation towards changing or developing.

What I am doing is having a character with the same general beliefs and attitudes, a spokesperson of me through which I voice my opinions in the comic, without making that character me.

I'd appreciate any feedback.

Vorticus · Post by **Vorticus** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:19 pm

You have the right attitude about the whole situation. As long as you stay away from making the character a "Mary Sue", probably no one will notice or care. I know that some of my characters are based off myself.

Phact0rri · Post by **Phact0rri** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:43 pm

I think it matters how the character is and the type of comic you do. my comic is based on real life (with fiction thrown in) so one of the characters in my comic is based on me just with more quirks than I have.

Rabbitz_ · Post by **Rabbitz_** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:52 pm

I plead guilty... However, I try to make his actions follow a coherent path, and make him a strong enough character on his own... It's all about the pathos, I guess...

Van Douchebag · Post by **Van Douchebag** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:03 pm

The only seperation I make between cartoon Van and the real Van is one of us shoots laser beams from the eyes (I'm not telling you which)

If you're putting yourself in a comic, try to be something like Real Life or Penny-Arcade.

However, I don't do the comic series Van Douchebag is in; aptly titled Douche-O-Rama.
In White Hydra, each of the main characters has a fragment of my personality. Ernest is a dork, Eve is a bad romantic, and Samara is angry.
'nuff said.

Dutch! · Post by **Dutch!** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:10 pm

I always thought that if you're creating characters of your own then you're automatically including aspects of yourself into their makeup. I wouldn't be too worried about it as long as you do your best to keep the characters believable.

Orion · Post by **Orion** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:10 pm

I'm guilty of it, and not subtly either. My main characters are me and my sister (didn't even change the name) with some modification to appearance (I wear glasses in real life for instance), some personality traits magnified or reduced, and a few other story-based changes.

I do worry that mycomic will turn into some kind of ego-fantasy because of this, and hopefully I've managed to prevent it. At the very least I try to pick on "me" just as much if not more than the other characters. Of course I'm sure any psychiatrist would say this isn't exactly healthy but I knew that going in.

Interesting note, I had never heard the term "Mary Sue" until several months after I started the comic.

Col · Post by **Col** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:16 pm

I do a similar thing in having my characters voice my opinions on things. Specifically Wade, the ghost, cuz he's the pissed off one, so that's where my opinions usually go when I'm in a bad mood. A bunch of cartoonists do this, including Bill Watterson of Calvin and Hobbes. He's admitted to having Calvin voice his opinion on matters several times. It's your comic, you do what you want with it. Screw anyone who doesn't like your opinion or ideas.

Rabbitz_ · Post by **Rabbitz_** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:24 pm

orion wrote:At the very least I try to pick on "me" just as much if not more than the other characters. Of course I'm sure any psychiatrist would say this isn't exactly healthy but I knew that going in.
[snipped]

Funny that, my whole comic seems to be based on self-harrasment... None of my characters suffers as much as the main one... It's my own way of acting like a victim for one...

Self-depreciative humour rules...

Warofwinds · Post by **Warofwinds** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:24 pm

As comedy or satire, I don't mind. I just hate it when people cast themselves as what they wish they could be, ex. Dork--> Buff hero that's great with the girls. It's so corny that I am embarrassed for the artist. Especially when the character actually looks like the artist too. Yuck.

Jaybob81 · Post by **Jaybob81** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:30 pm

Guilty. I actually started drawing comics for my friends, pretty much for them. I still draw about them, with characters based on myself and my family as well.

Rabbitz_ · Post by **Rabbitz_** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:40 pm

Now, as for adding your friends, keep in mind that friendships can be broken, or things can happen that would affect your strip in ways your readers may not like... also, get ready for some: "Hey, why is X on your comics and not me?" jelousness...
Myself, I refined all of my friends traits and characteristics into four supporting characters, two females and two males... That way, everyone is represented in one way or another and I can avoid some awkard moments...

Jaybob81 · Post by **Jaybob81** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:43 pm

Rabbitz_ wrote:Now, as for adding your friends, keep in mind that friendships can be broken, or things can happen that would affect your strip in ways your readers may not like... also, get ready for some: "Hey, why is X on your comics and not me?" jelousness...
Myself, I refined all of my friends traits and characteristics into four supporting characters, two females and two males... That way, everyone is represented in one way or another and I can avoid some awkard moments...

lol so true.

But hey, if a friend likes my comic I'm more than happy to draw them in.

Isukiyomi · Post by **Isukiyomi** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 4:58 pm

orion wrote: Interesting note, I had never heard the term "Mary Sue" until several months after I started the comic.

First heard of Mary Sue the first month that I started writing yaoi fanfiction.

Jops · Post by **Jops** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 5:54 pm

Well, in SDXF, most characters are based off real people, including myself.
That's 'cause at first the SDXF was a Team Fortress (the half-Life mod) clan and the story originated from some "clan fiction".
Anyway all characters have been heavily modified from the real people, so that, other than the name, they've really few things in common. In addition, who appears to be the main character (Lynx) is fully fictional.
So, even if guilty, i think i managed to stay out of the whole annoying shameless-self-insertion thing there.

A little different is the situation in the Menagerie.
Two of the three main characters are basically me and my girlfriend.
Again, this is not really due to poor character design, but for reasons that are behind the origins of the comic concept itself (very long story: it involves a dream and a short x-mas fiction idea with black-ops in it).
Anyway, this "self-insertion" is more subtle: names are different, and i'm letting most of the character personality develop by itself as the story goes on (it's just following some sort of guidelines). In the end, from the script, it seems that only those people who know us pretty well, can actually recognize us in them. So i believe the average reader wouldn't notice that.

Stinkywigfiddle · Post by **Stinkywigfiddle** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 6:55 pm

I put myself in a comic when I was trying to pick a muse for myself.

I haven't actually put myself in a comic in a long time and probably won't. Now even if I made an auto-biographical comic I would probably not make the characteras as myself.
But I do have characters who believe the same things I do.

So, I think you're idea is just fine.

Leko · Post by **Leko** » Sat Feb 19, 2005 11:04 pm

All character start out as parts of the author/artist. It just takes time and a few dramatic plotlines for them to evolve away.

The Neko · Post by **The Neko** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 12:11 am

Alex is an exaggerated version of my personality, and probably a more free version of my mind. His family situation is far different, though. And he says what I usually have the tact not to say.

I don't really deny it, though.

Joel Fagin · Post by **Joel Fagin** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 12:37 am

I intend on making a cameo in my next comic, possibly using my real name, but that's all.

- Joel Fagin

Paul.Power · Post by **Paul.Power** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 1:38 am

Interesting one, this. My first webcomic, the now defunct MAPP (Miscellaneous Adventures of Paul.Power) was an extremely blatant self-characterisation of myself and my friends on the Team 17 Forums (My excuse is, people enjoyed it. Even if a lot of the newbies didn't get all the jokes).

Boot Camp is a little different, and falls more into the "author's personality traits" mould. Most of the characters fit into various aspects of my personality, which I find makes them easier to work with. I haven't done much with a couple of the characters yet (George particularly), mainly because I haven't quite got the empathy for them yet, so I've yet to get those particular characters developing. I've got a couple of ideas, but the plot's a bit on rails at the moment with the next bunch of strips planned out. Having just said that, I think I've thought of a way to possibly get a few bits of background personality into their characters without divorcing too much from the plotline.