When it comes to creating a character, I normally don't have much trouble. They're all different, with individual preferences, personalities and appearances. It's fun to create a new character. It's interesting.
Something else that I find interesting is basing characters off people I know in real life. I've done it a few times in the past, usually twisting distinctive characteristics so they become more defining - sometimes to the point of parodying these people. It's all in good fun though and I don't mean any offence by it. Personally, I found it flattering when a friend of mine admitted he had created a character based on me.
However all of this is intentional, and that's the point I want to focus on here. Or rather, the opposite point I want to focus on. This week I came to realise a realistic, well-rounded secondary character I believed I had thought up all by myself is actually strikingly similar to one of my close friends.
This isn't a bad thing. In fact, the character and her real life counter part both reflect good qualities of each other, (although they are not without their flaws). For all their similarities, the fictional and physical females are also significantly different which is probably why I didn't see the link sooner.
What I want to know is this: why did I choose this person's character as a point of reference when creating my own, however subconsciously? Is it just because it was right for the storyline, or am I just lazy?
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