Anybody find pictures for their characters?
I do for some - put them in the character sheet in Scrivener. For some I've got pictures that really capture the character for me, including personality and role in the story. For some, the picture isn't as helpful, or I can't find one that really captures what's in my mind. And, for a few, they're based off people I've known and I have that image in my mind. I think I'm better about being consistent with a character when I've got a clear image.
No, but I do find it useful to find and image that portrays a key part of the story, and sometimes I find a few. I usually use one as the cover art if I can legally use it as such.
Yes. While I am planning a story I tend to have several possibilities, as I start writing I usually narrow it down to a single image (or one person of whom I have several images).
I may not describe the character in much detail in my story, but I do in my story notes.
I keep a folder for each story with the images of the characters for personal quick reference.
Yeah I did with Arkadia using regular pics I found and others that I "frankensteined" together. I kept them on my laptop while writing then put them in my Dropbox account.
I started "frankensteining" different photos long before I ever thought of writing Arkadia cause it was and still is fun for me. :)
I do for some
Pretty much this. It depends upon how important they are. I do have a folder with some pictures in it for ATH, and it does help as a reference in writing descriptions.
What's ATH?
I willing to say it is their series - A True History -
A True History — A Universe from the Mind of StarFleet Carl
https://storiesonline.net/universe/1159/a-true-history
Yea strangely i can relate to doing something like this for the story i'm working on. Though it doesn't always help with decisions in regards to the personality of the character.
Anybody find pictures for their characters?
No.
I can't actually visualize my characters. I know their general characteristics (hair color, how they wear their hair, relative height, etc.), but I don't see their face like you do in a photo.
It's their personality that defines them. That's how I know them.
This, for me, too. Also a feeling that pinning them down too much would wreck some characters (ironically, perhaps, the most 'visual' of characters would be affected the worst). One of my characters is definitionally 'beautiful' above and beyond the average. Trying to describe her 'beauty' would likely cause more readers to say 'Eh' than 'Oh, yes, so beautiful!'
Personality over all. Some characteristics are mentioned, and one could reasonably cast most of them for a movie (were someone to want to), but vagueness is useful for me as well as for readers.
I've wanted to, but don't. I've also never found Scrivener's character sheets to be helpful, but then I've never found any other character-management software to be helpful either (which is really why I'm replying/hijacking the thread :) ).
Something as fundamental as 'sort characters by birthdate' (a big deal if you want to manage birthday observations in story) seems to be lacking (with a few exceptions). The ones that can do that can't have pictures, or are inflexible in some other way, etc.
I'd love a really useful character database, but I have this feeling that I'd have to write it, and it would probably take me far too long for far too little gain.
I've never found any other character-management software to be helpful either (which is really why I'm replying/hijacking the thread :) ).
Yea for hijacking! Love the conversations.
Something as fundamental as 'sort characters by birthdate' (a big deal if you want to manage birthday observations in story) seems to be lacking (with a few exceptions). The ones that can do that can't have pictures, or are inflexible in some other way, etc.
I'd love a really useful character database, but I have this feeling that I'd have to write it, and it would probably take me far too long for far too little gain.
Yup, absolutely! I've got over 80 character sheets in Scrivener for my main series, but have pictures for less than than 20. I find the ones that capture key personality characteristics help me most. For example, I've got one of a female rodeo competitor riding all-out on a horse. The rider isn't the physical appearance of my character, but the picture captures key aspects of her personality. I find the pictures that do that help the most.
Some of the ones I don't have pictures for are drawn from folks I've known, so I have both a visual and personality in mind. But, I don't try to convey a picture in words for the reader. Generalities, not specifics. The pictures are for me; readers can form their own!
Also, I played with setting up an Access database, but gave it up as too much work for too little gain. Plus, I like having everything right there in Scrivener.
I have pictures for almost every female character and almost none for males. I've always done it like that. I use Zettler, a spreadsheet for a time line, and since I'm on Linux I use Novelwriter which while not Scrivener does a very good job. Plus, It's free :)
I've never heard of Zettler and Google was unhelpful, so I'm curious about the reference.
I've never heard of Zettler and Google was unhelpfu
He probably means Zettlr, a very good piece of multi platform software. Check this link too: https://linuxmasterclub.com/zettlr/.
Anybody find pictures for their characters?
I used one image I already had for Harper, who appears on her own and in a longer story. I remember thinking, "that's her!"
Separately, I've never seen it work for the storyteller to say, "Well, she looks like / reminds me of [insert name of well-known singer or actor]."
I used one image I already had for Harper, who appears on her own and in a longer story. I remember thinking, "that's her!"
Yeah! That's it for me. For some characters I have a picture that captures both looks and personality, and that really helps. Others, it's harder, and, for a few, I have a couple of pictures each suggesting different aspects.
Separately, I've never seen it work for the storyteller to say, "Well, she looks like / reminds me of [insert name of well-known singer or actor]."
I've got one character that I picture that way, and even have pulled a photo of, and interestingly it's a male character who is modeled after a country music singer. BUT, I'll never use that in a description. I don't like it when I run into it in a story, especially when I often have to go look up the referenced person. That sort of specificity is just too much for me. The suggestions of some of the authors on here to be more vague and to focus on the impression the character inspires in others seem to work well when I read them in stories.
Separately, I've never seen it work for the storyteller to say, "Well, she looks like / reminds me of [insert name of well-known singer or actor]."
I would caveat; Rarely works. An example, in H. Beam Pipers Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen there is a line (similar to): "a Cavalry commander dashed by leading his men, his golden locks flowing, the spitting image of George Armstrong Custer"
Later Lord Kalvan encounters this officer and learns his name. He is an important secondary character, but the earlier single line comparison, Piper did not need to describe him in detail as he did many other characters. Yet I, and other readers who have commented on the character thought he was as "well developed" as other secondary characters. Later he displayed some traits not identical to Custer. But, readers were willing to believe his aggressive actions and charismatic appeal to his troops based upon the comparison.
I think a comparison to a celebrity or historical figure may work for a secondary character. In real life I have encountered people who resemble a celebrity etc. Some even consciously or unconsciously mimic other traits too. Writers should be careful with this device.
For example: a tall blonde stripper approached me. She bore a striking resemblance to Lady Gaga. When she tried to solicit me for a lap dance I almost wondered if I was on a version of Candid Camera. Except she was at least a decade younger than the infamous celebrity, and upon closer examination there were noticeable differences.
That could be the only encounter with that character. Or further encounters could develop her more. Yet, in the character and readers minds she would likely remain the "Stripper who looks like Lady Gaga"
Anybody find pictures for their characters?
One time, absolutely. I was writing a scene where two women were dressing in Mardi Gras masks and costumes. I searched for an image with a description of what I was thinking and found an image that matched perfectly what I wanted. For me, it was helpful to have a visual when introducing the costume in the story.
I've got a scene in a (so far) stand-alone book where the MC is teleported into Vegas by a mischievous god and spots a group of girls out for a bachelorette party in wild colored wigs and costumes. One, the one in blue, ends up with him as he hits a huge jackpot on a brand-new type of slot machine. The girl and the idea came from a picture of Vegas when I was browsing to help write descriptions. She stuck around in my head and in the story.
I usually avoid this sort of thing so that the character can remain more 'fluid' in my mind.
I usually avoid this sort of thing so that the character can remain more 'fluid' in my mind.
Fluid in looks or personality? I've got one who, though I have pictures of her, I've never really found one that's right, partly because I describe her, by almost every character who meets her, as "the most stunningly beautiful woman they have ever seen." I never really try to pin that down except that she's tall, black, and an athlete on top of her beauty. (She's going to be a famous actress, eventually, at least for a while and as one of her roles.) But, I think I've got her character pretty well in place (experience junky, innovative, pushes herself and boundaries, loves the spotlight, the pressure, but also sometimes wants to be able to disappear).
Fluid for looks works for me. I recently read Pride and Prejudice for the first time and was amazed at how much the characters were described ONLY by the way other characters described them, which was mostly about judgments and impressions, not physical details.
Fluid for character doesn't work for me as a reader and I'm trying to avoid it as I write.
Fluid for looks works for me.
Moderately detailed physical descriptions don't bother me as long as they are handled well. Vague is okay.
What I would consider "fluid", the physical description changes in significant ways throughout the story with no explanation, would be a killer for me.
Yup. You are right. "Vague" is a better word for what I meant than "fluid." Vague may leave it fluid in the sense that different readers construct different images, but not that the descriptions in the story would contradict each other.
I've only had it happen once. While I was writing chapter 63 of "Mayhem in a Pill," I was trying to visualize the look of the Matthews triplets. But simple Google searches for twins or triplets were coming up short. But then I came across an article about the upcoming third season of "The Orville," it was interviewing Seth McFarlane accompanied by a nice picture of the crew of the ship. standing beside Seth was Adrianne Palicki was smiling and looking very photogenic, you know like she was born to do. I remembered the first time I saw her and said, "Self. That's is a good looking woman, right there." I also remembered the exact picture so I did another quick Google search and low and behold, the inspiration for the triplets. Now I know she is not a twin or a triplet but I figured would anyone else mind.
So, the Matthews triplets were created. I did download the picture and have it in a cast of characters folder for all the characters. They are not yet all full but I pretty much have a picture saved for each of the women in my story.
I'd have a picture of the guys but I'm not spending the time to look. If you're interested, do a Google image search for "Adrianne Palicki coca cola," it will fill in the picture of the girls... at least in my mind.
Tee Hee.
If I come across a model or actor that best represents I'll often have them in mind as I write the character. I like to make note of them in my character list in story, so a reader can go look, if interested.
so a reader can go look, if interested
How I described Margie in ATH Book One:
She had licked her lips again. Margie, in her heels, was still short of my height. Light brown hair, her face looked a bit like Carrie Fisher, but Margie had larger breasts than Princess Leia. From the way she'd walked, I could tell she'd exercised on her bike a lot.
Of course, sometimes you don't have to worry too much about searching for pictures:
It was subtle, but I caught the slight push in the back that Beth gave her, as Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales, stepped forward, put her arms around me, and kissed me deeply, like the lover of mine she wanted to become.
I enjoy how over-the-top ATH can be, as comics should be!
Well, yeah! That's the whole point - and what's more fun is with all the Marvel movie Multiverse stuff out now, you don't have to go with DC's 'Crisis on Infinite Earths' stuff. Since DC can't make a decent movie without having to redo it courtesy of Zack Snyder, or having Heath Ledger as Joker.
I vote the second Suicide Squad as a decent movie (of course, they 'borrowed' James Gunn to accomplish that...)
I keep hearing Shazam was good, too. On the to-watch list.
The first Wonder Woman was good. Not great, but decent. The second was... eh.
She had licked her lips again. Margie, in her heels, was still short of my height. Light brown hair, her face looked a bit like Carrie Fisher, but Margie had larger breasts than Princess Leia. From the way she'd walked, I could tell she'd exercised on her bike a lot.
Of course, sometimes you don't have to worry too much about searching for pictures:
It was subtle, but I caught the slight push in the back that Beth gave her, as Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales, stepped forward, put her arms around me, and kissed me deeply, like the lover of mine she wanted to become.
I do this on occasion. Right now my stories are few years in the future, 2029 and 2037- would my teen know about X or Y film star or Princess. Basically you need to have a pretty well known reference... I woule even say Princess Di is fading...though I was in jr high I think when I watched the wedding with an aunt in the middle of the night.
my stories are few years in the future, 2029 and 2037
That's the nice thing about ATH. It's still fall of 1985 for Cal, his wives, and children. (And for everyone else, too, of course - he's not stuck in a Time Warp, even if some of the women KNOW the Time Warp.)
I Dig! The Rocky Horror Picture Show reference, Baby!
" Let's Do The Time Warp, Again!"
Sometimes I find almost random photos online that will inspire me for the looks of a character, usually a woman. The character's personality will be very unlike whoever is in the photo, assuming there is any information about that person. I have used a few real people I know as "models," and I have used a couple of celebrities too. In one case, it was supposed to be that very celebrity, although I changed her name and other details about her background. Obviously, it's not on this site.) Often, I just wing it, and only I know exactly (sort of) what the character looks like.
I don't use photos of real people. They're never quite right, and it would make me feel weird to try to turn a real person into a character in my story.
I do sometimes draw my own pictures. Usually it's just main characters, but for my most recent one, I've been doing a lot of the secondary characters... it's a supers story, and it helps to work out their costume details. My main character is still the only one I've done out of costume.
I don't use photos of real people. They're never quite right, and it would make me feel weird to try to turn a real person into a character in my story.
I presume you are referring to "celebrities" or other people alive today?
I am writing a fictional story based upon real events focusing upon A Co. 1st Bn 8th Infantry Regiment of the US 8th Infantry Division.
I am considering using some US Army Signal Corps photos that are in the public domain. Some depict the terrain, with most soldiers indistinguishable. Or, depicted historic senior officers (Battalion and Regimental commanders, as well as Brigadier General Roosevelt).
I have also found an interesting photos of US soldiers wearing blue denim fatigue uniforms prior to 1942. I am an amateur historian, and have long been aware of the pre-war US Army. It is the same uniforms issued to members of the CCC. My story starts off days after the German invasion of Poland; several chapters cover the growing pains of the US Army before and after December 7th 1941, from the perspective of Platoon level soldiers and NCOs. Most readers probably won't be aware of many aspects of this history.
Most people think of what they see in movies. I intend to use actual images of soldiers, ideally in locations mentioned in my story. Faces of the soldiers in the pictures don't have to match the characters in my story (except for the historic persons).
I don't 'find' pictures for any character. I do one better. I have a very good friend who is an amazing 3D modeler (Daz3D, Poser, Photoshop) who I give brief summaries of a character to, and he 'designs' a character for me. He's actually working on a cover for a book I'm writing. I'm friends with a few mainstream authors, and they too have started dabbling in 3D graphic tools and making their own covers.
I don't 'find' pictures for any character. I do one better. I have a very good friend who is an amazing 3D modeler (Daz3D, Poser, Photoshop) who I give brief summaries of a character to, and he 'designs' a character for me. He's actually working on a cover for a book I'm writing. I'm friends with a few mainstream authors, and they too have started dabbling in 3D graphic tools and making their own covers.
I am Jealous! I have experimented with some software in the past. In particular some software used for Missing Persons/Suspects, but couldn't quite create the images I wanted. I suspect that technology has evolved to provide better results (my efforts were in the late 90's).
I don't 'find' pictures for any character. I do one better. I have a very good friend who is an amazing 3D modeler (Daz3D, Poser, Photoshop) who I give brief summaries of a character to, and he 'designs' a character for me. He's actually working on a cover for a book I'm writing. I'm friends with a few mainstream authors, and they too have started dabbling in 3D graphic tools and making their own covers.
I am Jealous! I have experimented with some software in the past. In particular some software used for Missing Persons/Suspects, but couldn't quite create the images I wanted. I suspect that technology has evolved to provide better results (my efforts were in the late 90's).
If you just want to practice, with no money involved. Get the free Daz3D program. Completely free (they get you with paid content) and it comes with one male and one female figure included (last I checked. I myself haven't used it in quite a long time). there's also tutorials on how to do certain things within it. Since it's free, you can just play around and see what you can create. Practice makes perfect. ;-)
right now I've been experimenting with an AI that is in beta. It will try to draw anything you describe in natural language. I've used up all of my 'free' goes and am debating paying for a subscription to one of the continuing tiers. I've been happy with most of the results so far. It's just whether or not the service is worth paying for when I don't know if I'll use it going forward. I've only generated 2 portraits I was happy with and those chewed through my 'trial' quota. The service is not all that expensive for the base service, but it's pretty stingy with how much use you get out of it as iterations / Mo. But money is money and mine is very limited. So perhaps when I get more writing time I will pay for a few months and see if I can get results that are worth the investment in the 'service'. If I can see using it to create more detailed scenes then yes it will be worth it but right now it's a luxury I can't afford.
Sorry to take so long to get back to you, I kind of lost this thread.
The primary AI I'm using is called Midjourney sp? it's very powerful but won't do anything at all sexual and will tell you if you use a 'banned' word.
I'm also looking into services I can install on my daily driver as it's reasonably powerful for what I invested in it. I'll get back to you again with a progress on that one as once you have it 'running' it's 'free' as you are the source of the processing power. it's also a lot more 'flexible' with word choice i.e. you can do 'sexy' stuff with it. that may be a long term benefit but for now I'm happy using Midjourney for around $10 US / Mo.
I've done a 'little' research on this and would be happy to share some more 'resources but that would need to be done in 'mail'.
I've tried for a few of them, but mostly it's difficult. For example, in 'Charley and Claire', Charley was dead easy — I know almost exactly what she looks like so I don't even need a picture. I have an image of Claire, but I've never seen a picture that matched. I don't even have an image for some of the characters (Tom, Shelly, Bill) — they're completely defined by other characteristics.
It's not that I wouldn't like to know what they look like, it's just that my mind doesn't appear to work that way.