The Big Ole Book of OCs

How I Handle Too Many OCs

I recently received this comment from @IssebellaJames69 and it goes:

The struggle to organize so many OCs feels almost like a meta-story itself, like your characters are alive and multiplying faster than you can contain them. Is this overwhelming chaos part of the creative process or a sign you're crafting a universe too vast to hold? How do you balance giving each OC enough depth without losing focus on the main narrative? Do some characters challenge your original plans and demand more spotlight?

How does a jackass like me handle too many OCs is a question as old as time. I've been asked this before so I guess I can finally put a concrete answer out.

Is this overwhelming chaos part of the creative process or a sign you're crafting a universe too vast to hold?

Well, not really. Mind you, not all of my OCs belong in the same universe, so let's start with that. Most of my OCs belong to an already-created universe, Little Witch Academia, The Legend of Zelda, F-Zero, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, you name it. For those OCs, all I have to do is somehow thrust my ideas and concepts into the already canon universe, such as inserting Starshine and Solarium Academy into LWA, or inserting Rhiannon and her friends into the already complicated Zelda timeline. The problem is with OCs like Clara who used to belong to a universe but are now on their own. Creating Clara's universe has been challenging because Black Archer does not follow an already-established canon, but rather something I created on my own, and the problem with that is that I'm constantly changing things. The overwhelming chaos is definitely part of the creative process and it has gotten to me before. I've talked about the massive creative burnout I had back in 2020 when I had too many ideas that I couldn't keep up with myself. I eventually got a hold of myself (like a year later), so please, don't be like me--if something gets too out of hand, know when to stop.

How do you balance giving each OC enough depth without losing focus on the main narrative?

In all honesty, I have no clue. I just try to give each OC as much dimension as I can without losing focus on the main story. An example of this is my Little Witch Academia OCs in A Brand New Beginning, when I showcased a little bit of Starshine and Solarium students without losing the focus on Luna Nova students. I guess it depends on how often those OCs are going to appear in the narrative. In other words, it depends on whether the OC is part of the "main cast" or if it's just gonna be a recurring character that appears every now and then, if that makes sense. 

Do some characters challenge your original plans and demand more spotlight?

Not really. I make sure each OC has as much spotlight as they need depending on their role. For example, recurring characters in Hyrule's Hope like Dua or Amera had less screen time than someone with a major role such as Rhiannon, Dori, Aya, or Ratna. And as I mentioned before, 90% of my OCs follow their media's canon, so it's changes in the canon (such as Tears of the Kingdom adding more to the Era of Wild's canon) that challenge my original plans (Rhiannon was originally going to fight Calamity Ganon at the end of the Springs Arc, but I had to delay the ending when Tears of the Kingdom came out in which Rhiannon was originally going to fight Ganondorf, but then I thought it would be best if she fought Ratna instead). I will admit there is multiple OCs I've abandoned for a while, but not because of my writing stuff but mostly because I haven't drawn them in a while (and I mean a loooooooooooooooong while). 

The problem with my OCs is not that they are multiplying faster than I can contain them, the problem is that I have too many ideas. I haven't added new OC entries in a while (mostly because I'm in the process of rewriting and redesigning old OCs) but trust me, there are PLENTY of OCs that haven't seen the light of day yet or haven't been introduced yet. How do I even manage to catch up to myself? I don't know, ask my ADHD. One thing's for sure, I'm trying not to have more creative burnouts like I had in 2020 because that was NOT fun--It got to the point I even developed severe anxiety. 

Or maybe I'm just built different, idk./j 

Anyway, I'm sorry I didn't answer this in the comments but I feel like this was better answered as an entry than a comment, also because of character limits. Anyway, I hope I answered your questions! I'm bad at explaining myself so if you need me to elaborate, I'll be more than glad to do so, and feel free to DM me here or on my IG if you wanna talk more!

That's all for now! Thanks for reading!