Soooo i used to play the type of character that I personally wasn't ..... If that makes sense... Like when I initially started playing, I think would create my characters based on people I wanted to more like ... I think that's probably in essence why 90% of my characters are quidditch obsessed / athletic sorts because I beyond like 6th grade I never really was involved in the whole athletic team thing.

I'm a sucker for happy endings too, so my characters probably all have that happy-go-lucky vibe to them ... although some more transparent than others (Looking at you Dominic Denton)

I share a similar sentiment with Jess where it's fun to play as a character not like yourself. You get the freedom of not limiting yourself, inserting traits and watching how they unfold and grow as a character with all the experimentation. Characters where they're heavily exaggerated I find are the easiest since there's not much internal conflict from them reacting a certain way. And if not heavily exaggerated I try to fit one major quirk into their actions.

When I started out with Charely my very first term, I essentially put more of my traits in at the time since I was closer to that age. He was talkative, polite, always up for an adventure but behaved in class. Basically a good little student. Since then when my characters start out young I tend to revive that personality since around that age I remember it was all about having fun and being the coolest over being the best academically. I kept that trait with Charely where as he matured into adulthood he lived by the book but made a point to consider other's thoughts before his own while keeping level headed.

I think it's natural that we put a little bit of ourselves in our characters while mixing it up with people we know in real life. Wade like me was caring and willing to go so far to help his friends out, but the difference strayed with his exaggerated love for naps and pickles. It became his little quirk where being happy is all that matters and making sure others are happy as well. What also helped was when it came to picking out models for my characters I dug into their social media to see how their personality is and try to incorporate that in the character. Since Wade's model was adventurous, loving to surf, skate, and basically did goofy antics I gave them to him as well.

For Javy as my first Professor, I did the same thing with looking into David Gandy who was always clean cut. Mixed in some Ravenclaw stereotypes where he was bookish, well-groomed, and very articulate. So he tended to creatures while wearing a suit. Writing out his posts always came out the longest compared to my other characters. He was strict with discipline but attempted to be fair. With Justin, he was a major difference from Javy. I had alot of fun with rping out his reactions to situations. I would describe him as heavily exaggerated, friendly, and a very stereotypical Slytherin. He was overconfident, outgoing and always making connections with others to better himself. He was nice but not one to cross because he has such a fiery temper. Since he was an exaggerated character his disciplinary beliefs and actions reflected that. I think this just comes from my experiences with noteworthy teachers being very strict in general and it's easier to tie that in with Professor type characters.

When rping kids, I find it easy to have them being outgoing and looking for adventure. But as they age they focus more on their interests and working to pursue them. Also like Jess, I prefer happy endings, where if a character starts out in a bad place I have a thing with having them reach their goal for happiness in the end.

I definitely started off with characters I could relate to in some way because I felt like I could understand them and therefore (hopefully) do a better job at portraying them. Eventually as I became more comfortable with my writing and with the people on SS, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and give other personalities a try.

Meredith Moxley was definitely way louder and more blunt than I was used to playing, but it was so refreshing playing someone like this because it is so not who I am. Same with Harmony Delilah Skylark, who was my flower child ministry baby. I've learned to love playing characters who are a challenge for me because it pushes me to push myself creatively (if that makes any sense, eep)

I thinkkkk that's where playing in houses outside your comfort zone is such a great example for that because it's sort of an EASY way to force yourself to go outside that comfort zone and push yourself .... Not that i need to tell you that, but for anyone who gets nervous or unsure on the resorting thing, this is another plug for that

I most certainly have my tropes when it comes to charrie creations...though I am not sure I entirely share the sentiment for being a sucker for happy endings That's a bit subjective for me depending on the character and, quite frankly, who comes in and out of their lives that dictates how their story unfolds. I have a few who I just think are going to be perpetually miserable

I think what I do the most is 'type cast' my characters a bit based on their house. Each fall along a sort of spectrum with the below blanket statements, but in general I feel as though:

- My Hufflepuffs tend to be overtly empathetic and emotional
- My Ravenclaws suppress their emotions and, in general, lack emotional intelligence
- My Slytherins are emo selfish babies
- My Gryffindors are LOUD and have anger management issues

For my characters who are not rooted in Hogwarts, some of this still holds true but sort of as if these Hogwarts houses were there 'secondary' house...if you know what I mean

I totally tend to play a type..

I feel like I have one “Main” charrie who is usually pretty angsty, Azura, Ethan, Rose and Kam (my poor baby) were all very angsty charries that I just wanted to have happy endings, which three out of the four mostly got.

Besides angsty they all tend to have a “trait” of some sort, either they can bake, or draw, or sing or dance or play an instrument, it helps me play them when they have a goal, also they usually have a goal for their future, like what they want to do with their lives.

While some of their personalities have been closer to mine.. their talents and abilities are not even close to me.

And I use to think playing boys was difficult, but now I don’t have that issue.

Also my charries can be.. dramatic.. as I’m pretty sure I’m known for that.

I prefer to play characters with either a troubled or hidden past and reveal the whole story of who they really are and where they come from over time. My first RP character on here, Excelsior Black (who was actually my first RP character EVER) was like that; I think he remains a mystery to this very day. Perhaps I should bring him back soon, maybe in the next school term (which I hope to be more active in.)

I definitely have a 'type' Loud

Usually, I just think of a few traits/personalities that I think would be fun to play or places that I think would be fun to have a character from and develop them from there. Then, I just 'let them loose' so to speak and see where the RP takes them So, when developing Archer, for example, thought it'd be fun to play a sort of brash, insensitive type and the rest just went from there. So basically, I don't usually intend for them to be so loud I also try not to plan them much more than what's in a usual bio, so they don't have an 'ending' so to speak (makes it easier to bring them back, if I wish). I love when one of my characters surprises even me, which happens much more often than you might think.....

You guys won't be surprised with my response here because I feel like I do play a certain type of charries, especially from my 2011-2016 RP journey

Two words. Slytherin girls. Because I'm a girl and I'm a Slytherin. Like what some of you guys mentioned, I was definitely very comfortable playing characters that were mostly like me. I knew how their thought processes would be or how they would react to a certain situation or how they would act differently towards someone. They would even share the same values as me. I was young and a noob. My charries in all areas of the SSRPG were female just because I was a little scared to try something new out.

I only recently, early last year (2018), started stretching out of my comfort zone. I started making charries from different Hogwarts houses and of different ethnicities. My school RP boy now, Drewett, is the first male charrie I had that actually stuck (I've made male charries before my SS hiatus years ago, but I've retired them because playing them made me twitchy and they weren't very developed) and it has been an amazing experience to develop his character and to interact with other people's charries. Playing female characters is still very much something I am more prone to do and I still have more girl voices than boys. I do try to balance it out now I also am more comfortable playing student charries because, no surprise again, I'm definitely part of this community's younger demographic. The adulting life makes me a wee bit anxious but the more I venture through the world of adulting and the more I allow myself to grow as a person... the more I actually enjoy RPing charries older than me. It's like I grow with them too. That makes sense, right?

I very much echo what Tarah mentioned as well. My charries surprise me all the time. IT'S WILD! It makes this entire experience fun and dynamic, and I love that we all get to indirectly influence one another's charries and their growth through roleplaying.

I forsure played loud sure of them self characters when I was younger, as I've gotten older they're a bit more studious and outgoing... I am not. I tend to play boys as I was one of the boys and still would get mistaken for a boy if you looked at my likes/dislikes on paper (sad but true) I also find that my characters usually come from a large family as that's all i've known in my own life. But i'm starting to branch out more than I did when i first started.

I always play a character who has something in common with me, if not multiple things.

Brian has my love of science and knowledge, Simran has my disdain for academia, Ariadne has my affinity for languages, Serene (aka Yue) has my love of dance and reading, Amrita has my undying loyalty, and Faith has the kindness and good heart that I aspire to have and my love of cats. Beyond that, however, they're all their own person and I have a lot of fun playing them. It excites me.

However, I have yet to create a character who has nothing in common with me. I'm really looking forward to the time I finally have the confidence to create a character that I don't relate to at all.

I also have a tendency to create characters who align with the gender they were assigned at birth. It's even somewhat tropey. My male characters tend to be emotionally stunted and my female characters tend to be flighty and/or dramatic. I have yet to write a tomboy character, or a man more in touch with his feminine side. I'd like to, but I'm forever paranoid that I will never do them justice.

Maybe the fear is a good thing, though. It keeps us in check, keeps us asking questions. I think I'd prefer that over plateauing as a writer and RPer.

I still can't decide whether I mostly play loud, outgoing, energetic charries because they all come from the same family or because that's my type xD (Sophie, Mandy, Matt, Anna all come from the same family, so they're very similar in that way) - although my other charries like Rachel and Catherine come from the same family but they aren't like that, so *shrugs*

What I do know is that all of them have a certain obsession over something because that's how I roll in real life (welp =P). So all of them have something that's "their thing".

Sophie used to looove Charms, but now she's obsessed with her "wonderful family" (she still very much loves Charms, though, lol)
Catherine loves watercolour.
Mandy is obsessed with drama and theatre in general.
Dawn (Mandy's child) is obsessed with Kung Fu (and she's a tomboy so she likes playing tough, hahah)
Derek is obsessed with Potions.
Matt was obsessed with Star Wars, now he is 100% into this Auror business.
Ollie (Matt's brother) is massive on Transfiguration (so much so he became an Animagus while at school)
Anna is all about Quidditch and sports in general (and basically nothing else xP)
Muirgen loves Quidditch and the Irish.
Jared has a thing for mermaids, bahaha (he speaks Mermish and all that nerdiness).
Agatha's obsession always was and still is ballet.

Aaaand I could go on because I still have a bunch of other charries I haven't mentioned, but you get the drill.

I have the tendency to RP friendly charries too because I've convinced myself that it'd be easier to make friends and RP with others if my charries were like that (and I have the tendency to befriend most people I meet in RL so I suppose my charries get that from me too, heh), HOWEVER... my Agatha was never the friendly kind and she was one of my most active charries at school and I got to interact with SO many people while RPing her, I debunked my own conviction, haha!

I do have quieter characters (Derek, Catherine) and I'm always nervous people won't want to play with us because they don't talk much, lol.

However, Derek was in the action quite a lot back in the day in the Ministry and we were still really active even though he hardly spoke out loud. So apparently that works too =P

I was going to say most of my charries are emotionally led, but then I tought a bit better about it and I actually have a good half and half balance regarding that too. Maybe because my own Myers-Briggs Feeling-Thinking balance is 50/50, lololol. Most of my charries feel a LOT of feelings, but not all of them let their emotions take over their actions, if that makes sense?

I could carry on, but this post is becoming an essay already, so I'll stop here for now xD I'll probably come back later for some more, ehehe! [I love talking (typing?), can you tell?]

EDIT: ONE LAST THING (for now)! xP

I was going to say, none, literally NOT ONE of my charries are extremely calm and zen-like, actually. This is a type I've noticed I haven't played ever and all of my charries have very strong opinions about pretty much everything, though some feel the need to voice them while others are fine with not saying anything (whether because they can't be bothered or because they think other people can have their own strong opinion about things too, lol). But yeah, I did try to RP a totally zen charrie once (Jet, my Slythie gap-charrie right after Agatha dropped out of school) but I got SO bored and so I gave up, bahaha! (and I was given the opportunity to bring Matt in earlier so of course I did =P)

Typically, I've always played a hard headed, quick to anger characters.. Mainly, because I myself am much like them.. Each of my babies has a bit of myself in them, but unlike myself, they have the courage to truly be who they are without having to hide behind what society has decided is acceptable. To have the freedom to be themselves has a freeing affect on me. I'm a bit older than the average SSer and life experiences have definitely been different.

One last thing.. I am FAR more comfortable playing male charries than females.. Mainly, because I don't connect with the normally dramatic nature of girls.. I'm not about drama. So, to play a dramatic charrie is like knives to my brain.

I think a few of my characters have had spots of me. Chloe is one that I have let more of myself into, louder, more confident on the outside, but inside very insecure and always second-guessing herself. Her mother (my very first character) has some of those as well.

Now though I enjoy playing all over the board. I enjoy and feel like it brings back some energy when I go polar opposite in characters. Zita was loud and selfish, Chloe is loud, but the biggest heart you could ever find.

So much of my inspiration has come from students I have, kids I have observed and something inspires me or even shows I get obsessed with my characters tend to end up with some traits from my favorite characters. Once those traits are placed in I feel like that is all I get for control of my character, they jump in and do the rest.