OC (Clichés)

Clichéd OCs are extremely common on AFF, or in stories in general. They differ from Mary-sues as they are not perfect or close to perfect, but they are stock characters that are repeated in every story. This type of OC is one that I am very lenient on with my criticism because they are essential to most stories.

How?

Clichéd (or stock) characters help move the story along. They are two-dimensional, easy to incorporate into any story, and bring in the drama necessary for any story. They come in many different shapes and sizes ranging from the mean cheerleader to the anti-social nerd. But it’s important to remember one extremely important thing about clichéd characters:

THEY ARE NEVER TO BE USED AS THE MAIN CHARACTER!!!

In terms of literature, clichéd characters are called stock characters. They were first used during the Italian renaissance in the Commedia dell’arte as brief entertainment in between the scenes of the real performance. Key term: BRIEF ENTERTAINMENT.

Clichéd characters only provide a brief entertainment. Their presence in a story dies out pretty quick. So imagine that you have one of these characters as your main character. Bad, right? Exactly why my biggest rule of all in terms of clichéd characters is to only use them as secondary characters.

But how can we be sure that our OC isn’t a cliché?

Well, just for you guys, I’ll list some of the most common clichéd main characters that I see on AFF:

GIRLS:

1. The pretty and sweet girl who, for some reason, isn’t popular and hides a dark secret / past underneath her outgoing exterior.
2. The cold ice princess who is actually just misunderstood and is really sweet on the inside.
3. The girl with the body and face of a model who hides under the façade of a nerd so that she can live a normal life or, better yet, because she is in hiding and doesn’t want to be found.
4. The poor-little-rich-girl who decided that being cooped up in a big mansion with maids at her every beck and call wasn’t the lifestyle she wanted and ran away because her parents were arranging a marriage for her.
5. A rich girl who wants to live “independently” and have a “normal life” but still visits her rich parents very often and lives in a penthouse apartment that a “normal” person with a “normal life” could never afford.

GUYS:

1. The rich guy who is only in his early twenties but is the CEO of a big company. He also happens to never do his job but still has yet to be fired.
2. The insanely hot bad boy that everyone in town knows of who is either A) extremely rich or B) extremely poor (because our male leads can NEVER just live a normal life you know).
3. The dorky next door neighbor who underneath the dorky façade is extremely hot and in shape but gets embarrassed easily.
4. The Casanova who sleeps with every girl and just so happens to never get anyone pregnant. He also has to have money and HAS to have been in a past relationship where his heart was broken to turn him into the person he is today.
5. The ice prince who happens to have a lot of friends even though he possesses no qualities that anyone would want in a friend. He also has to be the object of every girl’s affection.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

I get it. In this day and age, it’s hard to come up with a completely original character because when we think that we have finally made a character that isn’t a cliché, we look at them one last time and realize that they ARE a cliché. Honestly, I don’t mind cliché characters (at least, not anymore). I guess I have become numb to them. Would I like to see a little originality? Of course. But I’m not going to flip out if I do happen to come across a cliché character. I will, however, flip out if I see a Mary-sue.  

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!!!

RANDOM FACT: Today is my Dad's birthday! He's turning 29 years old again~ :D