Bssing characters on people you know?

[Inkent]

Do many of you base characters on people you know, if so how close is the characterisation to the person.

In my first couple of stories it was heavily base on my wife, myself and another simply because it was an embellishment on real events.

I often look at friends behaviours and model characters on people I know. In the current series I'm working through the main character's behaviour is based on someone I've worked with but in a scenario he would never be in.

There are parts of myself in some stories, in a discussion with a friend that reads my work pre-publish I descible the characters as shadows of the real people. It's not them but if those people ever read my work I could imagine them drawing comparions. Not necessarily in whatever they are doing but the way they would deal with that type of situation.

I'm a fair way though a piece of work based on my own real life experiences and there would be no doubt should the other parties included in my scribbles would align the character to themselves.

But how close to the sun do my fellow Literoticans dare fly using the persona of real people??

 

[Bamagan]

Not really? I mean, I borrow bits and pieces of the looks, personalities, or other quirks of people I know or know of, and typically blend them together, but those things are like tinsel and ornaments on a tree. They're (hopefully) adding a little touch of color or realism or relatability to otherwise make-believe folks. I don't think any of my characters are very much like anyone I know real life (more's the pity for my real life).

 

[SimonDoom]

Very loosely, yes, but not in a way that anyone would be likely to identify them if they read the story. I've written stories where I have an image in my mind of a female character looking like, and having some of the characteristics of, women I've known. But the association is a loose one.

 

[StillStunned]

Never without permission. More specifically, I wrote a series about a Goddess of Love who is my wife. I wrote them for her, and she urged me to publish them here.

All other characters are purely fictional, although I might take inspiration from someone's behaviour sometimes if I'm going for a particular effect.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Some more than others. Mostly I look to their personality types and behaviors to put my head in the right space to correctly portray how my characters deal with someone like them. If I ever need an opinionated, judgmental jerk, straight to my brother. LOL

 

[Bazzle]

Merge several to create one or the other!

 

[Voboy]

I used to when I started out, and I was always VERY loose about the features I chose to highlight. As I've gone on, I've done it less and less; by this time, most of my characters are people of their own, with lives and appearances of their own, plus their own pasts.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Sort of a amalgamation of people. When I'm thinking about what a character might do in a given situation I tend to think about what people I know might do in that situation and that sort lays out a decision tree.

 

[Euphony]

Not really.

What I do crib is for verisimilitude worries.

I am far more interested in telling a story, 99.999% the protag's internal story and in RL, rarely do people put their real selves out there, especially in that sense.

I understand the comfort of "reality grounding." I'm a visual learner so I will spark off of a passerby or stock image and refer back to those to get back to the part of my brain where creativity has chosen to currently hideout. But any RL similarities...

 

[HordHolm]

I do it a fair amount, to a greater or lesser extent. I am currently close to finishing something that very closely aligns to an unhappily married couple I know. Fortunately, they are not native English speakers and are thus a) extremely unlikely to ever read it once it's submitted/accepted and, b) don't have the necessary language skills to recognise themselves even if they ever did find it.

But otherwise I play the usual game of pick'n'mix.

 

[ronde]

Most of my characters are based on people I've known or on myself while I live out a fantasy. Usually, I carve a bit off this person, a bit off another, and glue them together to make my character. A few are based on a favorite actor or actress, but the character is based on the character the actor or actress plays, not on the person.

 

[Rob_Royale]

Many of my stories feature women I have known and admired, but in appearance only. The big beautiful blonde in MILF Cruise, Upgraded is based on a former coworker who was a terrifically reliable software engineer. In the story, she's a park ranger. And of course her real name was not used.

 

[MillieDynamite]

When I write about a prostitute, they are always based on one I knew. Often, what happens to them, happened to them in real life. I never use their real names and the dates, most likely, aren't correct, either.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Déjà vu, didn't we talk about this a few days back? Oh, speaking of Déjà vu, Jo has preformed there a few times. That's a club in OKC.

 

[Zootonius]

Sort of a amalgamation of people. When I'm thinking about what a character might do in a given situation I tend to think about what people I know might do in that situation and that sort lays out a decision tree.

Heard an interview with David Cornwell, aka John le Carré. When asked about where Smiley came from, he said he was influenced by various people, but that, in the end it was his bringing the pieces together.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Heard an interview with David Cornwell, aka John le Carré. When asked about where Smiley came from, he said he was influenced by various people, but that, in the end it was his bringing the pieces together.

I certainly don't put myself in his league, but that has the feel of my process.

 

[Zootonius]

FYI, the opening of this interview describes how George Smiley came about. If only we could be a fraction as good at creating a character.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Basingcharacters on people you know?​

My early stories (and a few more recent ones) are suffused with either people I know / knew or amalgams of them. A handful of current and past Literotica friends also appear.

With one exception, I got permission from anyone who was the basis for a non-amalgamated character. I then changed elements of their appearance and bio. And I avoided anything that could dox them, like locations.

The exception was my best friend, we were both angry with each other for reasons I won’t bore you with. With her, I asked her retrospectively when we had patched things up. Thankfully she was fine. But I learned not to be so cavalier with people.

Of course the elephant in the room is that my FMCs are often based on me, either explicitly, or in light disguise.

Em

 

[madelinemasoch]

Nice try, FBI.

 

[AchtungNight]

The most frequent MMC in my stories is a fantasy version of me with his life and to some extent his personality so heavily modified by his more fortunate financial circumstances and successful polyamorous relationships that he might as well be a different person. Bridging the gap between us is increasingly impossible. That’s probably a good thing. I don’t want to get a big head thanks to my imagination, you know?

 

[ElectricBlue]

Most of my characters are inspired by people I've known or have met. Whether they'd recognise themselves or not is a completely different thing, On the other hand, some of my favourite characters have been completely fictitious.

I get a great buzz when people have commented, "Thank you both for sharing," which means that that reader has thought I've recounted something true, something autobiographical. That's when I know I've written a good story, when folk can't tell fact from fiction.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

With only a couple of exceptions, my characters are completely fictional. However, I do frequently use the names of friends for some of my characters and they always get a kick out of how I portray them as a fictional character. Having the wife of a real-life friend show up in a story as a bikini-clad beauty while in real life she is seven months pregnant gave them both a laugh.

Of course, no one is ever mentioned without their complete consent and knowledge about what the story entails. No one has ever refused to be included so I guess I have their trust.

 

[Cagivagurl]

Do many of you base characters on people you know, if so how close is the characterisation to the person.

In my first couple of stories it was heavily base on my wife, myself and another simply because it was an embellishment on real events.

I often look at friends behaviours and model characters on people I know. In the current series I'm working through the main character's behaviour is based on someone I've worked with but in a scenario he would never be in.

There are parts of myself in some stories, in a discussion with a friend that reads my work pre-publish I descible the characters as shadows of the real people. It's not them but if those people ever read my work I could imagine them drawing comparions. Not necessarily in whatever they are doing but the way they would deal with that type of situation.

I'm a fair way though a piece of work based on my own real life experiences and there would be no doubt should the other parties included in my scribbles would align the character to themselves.

But how close to the sun do my fellow Literoticans dare fly using the persona of real people??

I think... and it's only my opinion.
We all do it subconsciously. We are influenced by film, people we know, or meet. Plays we've watched...
I feel if you want to build an element of reality into your stories. Make them seem real, then the dialogue written into the story, must seem plausible.
For that, I draw from conversations I've heard, overheard.
Cagivagurl

 

[Priscilla_June]

Honestly I wish I knew more people interesting enough to be characters

 

[MrPixel]

I have one, just one, a walk-on that I based on a good friend from 30-some years ago. His characteristics were perfect for the situation I had written, even the sexy stuff, as he was a bit randy and appealing to women, and tended to step-out on his wife when the opportunity presented.

As I was writing the story I did a search for him just a few weeks ago and discovered he had passed in 2016. I was saddened, obviously, but in exploring his last gig as a volunteer at a state-sponsored park and resort, it was pretty clear he was still chasing pretty women. That did my heart wonders, true to himself 'til the end.