Steps on making Sonic Fancharacters Part 1 of 5

STEPS ON MAKING SONIC FANCHARACTERS: Part 1 of 5

_{DISCLAIMER: This guide is NOT guaranteed to work for everything, nor on how to make the perfect Sonic FC; there's no such thing as that, anyways. This is just my views on it and what I've seen from others.}

So! Making a Sonic Fancharacter. There are a few simple things you need to start to even mold you're character….

Number 1: Species.

This is VERY important. The species of your Fancharacter will determine their abilities, skills, and *behavior. (Behavior is a possibility.)

First, there are over-used species that would do you good to stay away from…. (However, this is just a suggestion,)

*Echidna's
*Hedgehog's
*Foxes
*Bats

Yes, yes, I know, my main Fancharacter is a fox; but, remember what I said above; this is just a guideline on what species might be best to avoid. While there's no such thing as originality, it's still interesting and fun to find a new/different species to use besides the usual. (For example, I have Skunks & a Dingo to balance my FC's out, and I'm still creating more!)

For example, if you're character, if you want them to be a cat, then don't just say "???? The cat"; what type of cat are they? There are TONS of different breeds of cats, and mixes, as well. Look up the animal you want you're Sonic FC to be if you don't know much about it—it can help a lot with the development of the character, and the skills he/she will have, or get, or do have.

He type of animal to make you're FC as is important to the development; why? Well, if you like making you're FC's more in-touch with the way real animals are, (because Mobians are based off of real animals) then this is important. If you're going down this road, then think of the usual temperament of the animal; if it's a different breed, (like for example, a breed of cat,) then look up that specific breed.  Different breeds of a species can have different temperaments/general personalities than just the animal itself. (However, just because you're FC is a certain species, they don't have to follow the exact temperament of the real animal; hell, they don't have to follow any temperaments of that animal, but if you're reaching out for your FC to be more in-touch with a  real animal, then by all means, go for it. Mix up real animal personalities and Mobian/human personalities. It provides variety, and it's creative.

As for animals you could use. Here's a small list of them, but there are thousand's and over that of different animals! Don't be afraid to experiment with it!

So, here's a small list to get you started:

*Bug
*Fish
*Shark
*Peacock
*Hyena
*Lion
*Tiger
*Squirrel
*Poison Dart Frog
*Snake
*Buffalo
*Anteater
*Baboon
*Badger
*Beaver
*Bison
*Cougar
*Chimpanzee
*Camel
*Black Bear
*Bear
*Deer
*Caribou
*Dolphin
*Panda
*Giraffe
*Gorilla
*Hippo
*Horse
*Jackal
*Kangaroo
*Lemur
*Goat
*Manatee
*Orca
*Otter
*Porcupine
*Platypus
*Rabbit
*Rhino
*Raccoon

There are thousands of other species to choose from, (and sub-species) so don't be afraid to look an animal up! Learn about what it eats, how it acts. What is it really like in real life, in the wild? This information can help you greatly in developing you're character.*

(*Note: One thing that would be BEST to avoid is to call you're character something based off of what they do/They're personality. I cannot stress ENOUGH how many times I've seen THIS:

"Lily the Punk-Diva Cat"
"Joe the Rapper"
"Billy the emo-Vampire-Hedgehog"
"Jessica the Fashion Designer"

It's annoying, AND over-used. It doesn't tell WHAT species your character is, and when people see that in the title/name of your FC, they're going to get disinterested. It's also stupid. Sorry, but a "Punk-Diva" isn't a species of animal. Nope, sorry. If you want to stress this out so bad, then do so in the description or BIO, not in the name/and/or/title. Put it in bold, spam it with rainbows for all I care. Just stop putting it in the title/name!)

Step 2: Biography (BIO), History

This is very important to the character. Don't just use a character for their design or just for the sake of having them! Fill them with life, color, emotion! It's bad to just leave them flat, they could be turned into an amazing character. Now, I can't tell you exactly how to make a BIO, this IS you're Sonic FC, but let me tell you a few things that should be avoided when making the character's BIO:

*Avoid over-dramatic/traumatizing pasts. It's alright to have one or two events in the character's life that were bad/stand out badly from the rest, but do NOT make it ANY of the following:

-They were created by Robotnik, tortured, but they escaped!

-Shadow is they're father and abused them/tried to force them to be evil/good!

-Robotnik killed his/her parents/sister/brother/sibling(s)/family/friends/BF/GF/BFF, and they want revenge! It's all they strive for!

-He/She is Shadow/Sonic's/Tails'/any official Sonic character's long lost brother/sister!

-They've been tortured by the demon within them, which comes out when they're angry! They feel HORRIBLE about it!

Ect ect. I'm sure you get my point. Just avoid any cliché situations where the character's life is turned miserable by one of the official characters. It's alright if you have them paired up together in present-time, but I find it better to leave any official Sonic characters out of your FC's past. Y'wanna know why?

Because it makes no sense, it's not canon, and it NEVER corresponds with the Official Character's past. You can't change the OC's past to fit your needs, SO DON'T DO IT.

Just avoid cliché, over-used scenarios, alright? If you don't know what these are or if you want to find out a few other things just to check, then by all means, consult with a friend who's made Sonic FC's before. Look it up. There's nothing wrong with learning. And if you make a mistake, then you learn from it.*

(*Note: If someone points out that something is wrong with your character or that something seems off/cliché about it, then don't ignore them or yell at them! Take what they said to mind. Think about how you could change your character to fit in better. There's nothing wrong with taking advice from someone who's just trying to help you to improve.)

Be creative with writing your character's BIO! These 2 steps are the first steps to creating you're very own Sonic FanCharacter. And after you finish the character's Biography, then you can start on his/her personality, quirks and traits!

See you in the 2nd part of: "How to make a Sonic Fancharacter, part 2 of 5!"

~Hooligan