12 character archetypes with disney: The Seducer

Intro

I know it has been a long time since I've done these, but I have not forgotten about this series! So we are continuing with the 12 character archetypes with disney series right now. Now on the list, is the Seducer. Beautiful, mysterious, charismatic characters who have an allure to the main character. Of course, this doesn't have to be a woman, it can also be a male character.

So... Let's get into it. You know the drill: Try to think of some characters you'd consider to be in here, and let's see if we agree.

6 Reasons Why I Don't Like Writing With AI

Intro

A bit of a controversial topic for today, but I decided to do this anyway. AI is starting to be everywhere, and as a writer, I absolutely don't like it. Some of these might upset some people, but these are my opinions, just as you are allowed to have your opinion about it. I am not going to hate on anyone and I hope everyone can be civil about this.

So. before continuing, I will list my reasons for why I don't like them. It is of course up to you to continue reading, or click away if you don't agree. Below this list I will explain in more detail.

Reasons I Personally Dislike AI

1. It's often not writing
2. AI is stolen content
3. It's actually not really that good 
4. It drains creativity
5. The 'Disabled Author' excuse
6. It shrinks the writing community

Now we all know what we are getting into now, let me get into more detail about what I actually mean.

Disney Princess Analysis: Belle

Intro

We are already at the fifth princess in the line up. I know I said the next one would be Jasmine, but I forgot a princess that came out a year earlier than her movie. So today, we are diving into the personality of Belle. We have a lot to dive into here, so let's get started and analyze our favorite bookworm!

My 7 Favorite Writing Tools

Intro

When it comes to writing, there are a lot of writing tools. Websites, books, or programs, there is an overwhelmingly amount to find out there. Like everyone I have my favorites. I will list my top 7 writing resources and tools for you and hopefully you will be able to find something that will work for you! So let's dive into the list! They are in no particular order, cause I don't know how to rank them. I just like using them.

Disclaimer: I am not sponsored by any of these tools and I am not paid to advertise. These are just tools I love to use myself and want to bring to your attention. Whether you will like it or not, is your choice, just as much as these are my opinions.

Book Review and Analysis: Disney's Twisted Tales - Be Prepared

Intro

The lion king has been my favorite movie ever since I was a child. When I learned about the disney twisted tales books, I had been wishing for one about the Lion King. Of course, when they finally wrote one I had to buy it and my husband got it for me for my birthday.

Let me tell you, it did not disappoint. The twisted tales book honestly never disappoint me, but this is one of the best ones. It was fun and intriguing to read and I definetly didn't want to stop reading.

So, let's get into the book of Disney's Twisted Tales - Be Prepared. What if Nala was compelled to team up with scar for a secret reason?

Same as the last one, I will do a review, then place a disclaimer for the analysis. If you don't want spoilers, it will be marked clear when to stop reading. 

Disney Princess Analysis: Ariel

Intro

We are finally at the princess where it gets a little more interesting with their personality! I honestly did like to go into the first three Disney Princesses, but I am excited to start with Ariel, because I know a lot more about her. I've watched, the sequel and the series a lot more than the first three princesses. So, let's see what we can find out about her together!

Ariel's Introduction

From the first scene, we already get to know something about her, before she is even on the screen for the first time. She is a great singer, being the lead singer in the performance at the beginning of the movie. She is also rebellious. She doesn't come to the repetitions, and it is clear that when it's discovered she isn't there, it hasn't been the first time she missed something important. Her sisters gasp, not shocked or confused, but more like 'Oh here we go again!'. Sebastian is panicked, and Triton is angry because once again she missed something very important for him.

Writer's Note: This is a fun and interesting way to introduce the main character to the reader. They are not on the screen. They don't have a conversation with someone or doing something, but it is others that are talking about her before they cut to her for real. Maybe this could be hard to pull off in a book, but it would be interesting to try.

When we see Ariel for the first time, she is very adventurous, exploring a wrecked ship together with Flounder. Even though she is not allowed to go there, she goes anyway and is convinced nothing will happen. She is playful as she teases Flounder for being a guppy, and telling him to stay outside to watch for sharks. Her curious character especially her curiosity about the human world is shown instantly as she picks up human things and wonders what they are.

Writer's Note: You don't always need exposition to let readers know about their hobbies or character. It is more interesting to show it more through their behavior. Instead of saying 'she loved reading books', you could say something like: 'She grabbed the new book she bought and turned to her wall filled with rows and rows of books. Was there even room for the new ones?" This sounds a bit cheesy, but you know what I mean. As people say: Show, Don't Tell. Though I don't think you should always stick to the 'show don't tell' but that's a story for another time.

Typical Teenager

Ariel is kind of a typical teenager to me. She is rebellious going where her father literally told her not to go. She is also very stubborn and has a bit of an attitude towards her own father. She literally says: "I am sixteen years old, I am not a child anymore!" (Honestly, in my eyes sixteen is still a child, but I suppose a lot of teenagers think that way 😜). The first thing she does when her father tells her she is not allowed to go anywhere near the humans, she goes to her secret cave where she has her full collection of human stuff.

Impulsive Choices

Ariel is very impulsive and makes choices without even thinking. She sees something floating over her cavern, first thing she does is go up to look at what it is. When she sees it is a ship, she doesn't even think twice and goes closer to it. Not just staying in the water, but literally pulling herself up to look at the humans.

After her cave was destroyed by Triton, she was quickly manipulated by Flotsam and Jetsam to go to Ursula. Granted, she was heartbroken and just had her stuff destroyed, but she knew Ursula was a sea witch and means trouble. She already encountered her before in the little mermaid series.

She think for just a moment when Ursula gives her her deal to turn her into a human, saying she will never be able to see her father and sisters again. But when Ursula says she'll have her man, she is sold and signs the contract, also without actually reading it first.

Writer's note: Honestly, in defense of Ariel, she was emotional and hurt after her own father destroyed all her stuff. It's fine for a character to make impulsive choices, especially when they are angry or hurt. Being manipulated at the right time and place makes the reader also feel sorry for them, and wonder if they would have done the same. And, a good villain, always knows the right time to show up and the right things to say. Besides Ursula, think about Scar, Mother Gothel, and even Frolo. They are all manipulators and know when the hero is at their weakest, or know how to keep the hero in check.

Conclusion

Well, that was the end of the forth Disney Princess in this series. I have to say, Ariel was a lot easier to analyse and discover than the other princesses. Also because I have watched this movies a lot more. But let's summarize what we've discovered here.

Good Traits: Adventurous, Curious, Playful

Neutral Traits: Virtuoso

Bad traits: Rebellious, Stubborn, Impulsive

Do you agree with these picks? What would you have assigned to her after watching the original animated movie? Let me know in the comments.

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Next week (hopefully), we will get to Jasmine's character. I hope you enjoyed this post and see you next week!

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Developing A Relatable And Imperfect Character

Intro

When it comes to Character development, there are a lot of questionaires to be found on the internet. Some are just the basics, others are detailed and have over a hundred questions. While I like filling those in for fun, not everything is really needed. I started to try out my own method for developing characters, and I would love to share this with all of you. I hope it will work or at least give you all some inspiration for creating your own characters. So, let's dive in to how I develop my characters with the most important information.

Good, Neutral and Bad Character Traits

You know the motto of this blog. No hero is completely flawless, and no villain is without at least one or two good traits even if the good traits are used for bad intentions. It is always important to give your character at least some good traits and bad traits. Neutral traits are also very important. For neutral traits you could think of creative or animal lover etc. They could be applied to both good and bad characters, and are neither good or bad. A villain can still love animals, while a Hero could actually hate them.

If you're not sure what kind of traits to give your character, have a look through this list. It provides a lot of variety for all sorts of traits. 

Hobbies or Manias Are Important

Especially when it comes to the main character, let them have a hobby or two. Something they know a lot about and can talk on about for ages. Perhaps they are in a new world and find out they can use their skills there. Or they explain their skills to others. If someone who loves reading in the modern world finds themselves in a fantasy world, why not have them show their new companions some books from their world? Or explain how magic in books is? Is it the same as in the world they are stuck in? There is a lot you can do with these kind of things. A hobby makes a character more unique. It doesn't have to be a special hobby, it could simply be writing, or photography. Just something they enjoy doing after a hard day.

This isn't just for the main characters, but it could apply to your side characters as well. Does the son of the villain maybe like animals? Or collecting rare artifacts? Anything is possible. Don't be afraid that hobbies are too boring.  

Answer Questions That Matter For The Character

In all those questionaires, you see questions like: 'Favorite food', 'favorite movie', 'favorite color' etc. These are fun to answer and it will let YOU get to know the character. But does it really matter for the reader that the main character's favorite color is green? Honestly, I couldn't care less whether it would be mentioned or not.

For example, if you have a character who is the son of the villain, but not like his father and actually is against what he is doing. What would you think is more interesting? That his favorite color is blue? Or perhaps more info on why he is against his father, how he grew up and when he first started to see things differently? After all he was raised to be like his father, so how did he change his mind? I would definitely be more interested in the last part. 

Also far more important questions are a character's biggest fear... Something they would absolutely never do? What is the worst thing they have done in their lives? Honestly, questionaires work really well to get a general view of the character, but try to stick to the questions that are important to the story. Sometimes a character hasn't done anything bad, or it just doesn't matter. So don't panic abut that you can't think of anything and move on. 

Create A Backstory That Matters To The Story

Also a bit like the above but then specifically for backstory. Does it matter which elementary school your character went to? Well, if the story takes place at that school, or there is a reunion or something, then yes. But otherwise? Not important at all. Focus on important events in their lives that changed them. Do they have a difficult relationship with their parents? Do they have a friend since elementary school that they still speak to? What happened? How did they meet? Maybe something traumatic happened to the character? Or did they just have a simple good life without any problems? These are all questions that are important to the backstory if you want t create one. It doesn't have to be detailed. If they didn't have an exciting life, than there isn't much to talk about at all and that is fine. Some people just have a simple life without too much happening. That is realistic.

Don't Go Down A Checklist

One thing I often see on the internet is how everyone has things that you HAVE to have in a story. At least one LGBTQ+ character, at least one POC character... Everyone needs to be represented if you have to believe the internet.

People may not agree with me, but without going into a rant, I think you should NOT do this. Does it matter to your story that a character is gay or of a different culture? Sure go ahead and make it very clear. But if it doesn't matter... Then don't go there. And definitely do not go down the checklist and make sure you represent everyone. It shows in the story, because the story might not be as good because you're too focused on those things. Especially with sexuality... Let the reader just interpret their own take on it. If a female character has a male love interest, then yes it's clear they are both straight, or bi. If a character is never paired up with a love interest, then who knows? The reader can believe they are gay for all I care. That doesn't matter to the story at all.

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against representing these kind of things. But don't feel like you HAVE to include those characters. Because you don't. If someone wants to read a book about a gay character or a POC and yours doesn't have that, or doesn't state it clearly, than your book is just not for them. You can't please everyone. 

Conclusion

I hope this was helpful for all of you. If there is one thing I'd like you to take from this, is to just write down what is important. Don't think you will use the question in the story? Then don't use it. Of course there will always be details that the reader doesn't know and that is really fun, but don't get yourself stuck on it.

Either way, I hope you enjoyed this. What is your method of writing characters? Do you use a character questionaire or just write down random notes? Anything you would like to share with the class? Please don't be afraid to share your opinions and methods. There is no wrong way of doing this. Everyone has their own way. 

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Book Review & Analysis: Disney's Twisted Tales - Conceal, Don't Feel

Intro

As a writer, of course I also love to read, which I want to do a little more than usual. One book franchise that I really love, is the Disney Twisted Tales books. These are 'What if...' scenarios for Disney Movies. For example: 'What if Cinderella didn't have the glass slipper?' For me, these are great stories, and I haven't found one that I don't like at all yet. Some are of course better than others, but to me none of them are really bad.

So, I have decided to add a review and book analysis of some of these books, starting with the frozen version named Conceal, don't feel. What if Anna and Elsa didn't know each other? I am a fan of Frozen, and this book is definitely one of my favorites. I will not only write out a review for this book, but I will analyze it, like I always analyze the Disney Movies. If you are interested in reading the book yourself, and you don't want any spoilers, I will state when I am starting the analysis, so you can stop reading. But first, let's get into the review, which I will try my best to keep spoiler free, or at least don't show too much spoilers.

12 Archetypes with Disney Characters: The Orphan

Intro

 Back again with a new installment of the 12 character archetypes! I know I haven't been updating frequently for a while, but I'm trying to get back into it. Having a new born does take a lot of time and energy though, so no promises for a 2x week update😜.

Either way, let's get into the next Archetype I will be adding to the list. This will be the forth out of twelve. This week will be 'The Orphan'. Despite it's name, I don't feel it's simply characters who have lost their parents. There is a lot more to it than that. So let's see what we have this time.

Like always, try to think of characters that would fit this trait, and let's see if we agree with each other!

12 Archetypes With Disney Characters: The Caregiver

Intro

I'm back as promised with another post about the 12 character archetypes with Disney Characters as an example! Today we are going to have a look at 'The Caregiver'. 

Just like last time, if you'd like, think about which characters you'd think would fit in there from what you know about the archetype. Let's see if we match with some of them again. Ready to go through them? Alright, let's get into this!