Do you incorporate your own interests, hobbies and such into your stories?

[Leyelle]

In an upcoming episode of "Damsel in the Red Dress" my MCs mention an old Xmen TV show I used to watch with my brothers when I was a kid. Alicia often references poems and poets that I like ("The Honey Bear" by Eileen Myles, Nikki Giovanni's collection of poems "Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day" as well as the poem itself.) And more.

I have a lot of random interests I had throughout my childhood that ended up getting incorporated. Gameboys, action movies I saw part of but never got to watch the whole thing of (though me and younger brother really wanted to) etc.

[TheBlacKat333]

Yep. All the characters are just different bits of me, with a tweak or two. Like, one character obsesses over a specific animal, another character uses art as wish fulfillment, one of them just has a straight up copypaste of my childhood (semi joking lol), I put a lot of little references to my hometown, etc..
Storytelling is inherently personal. Parts of yourself and your life will seep into it, whether you want to or not. So instead of paying a therapist, I just make my characters punch/kiss/befriend personifications of my own personal traits. Freud would probably have a field day just with that sentence.

[Leyelle]

Parts of yourself and your life will seep into it, whether you want to or not.

I definitely don't try to avoid it, but occasionally it's a more intentional/active decision.

[ThunderChicken]

WNHCD incorporates a lot of my interests, hobbies, etc, as it is a true story.

Daecon, of Finding Daecon's Way, has a few of my interests (cars, computers, reading, drawing) but with twists: I am more into classic cars, Daecon loves the modern stuff. Daecon is more interested in the programming side of computers, whereas I like the hardware. Daecon is into more modern fantasy reading, while i like the classic stuff like Tolkein.

[Leyelle]

Makes sense, it doesn't necessarily have to align completely. My ML is really into fashion, but his aesthetic isn't the same as mine. My female lead loves art, but her preference is warm tones while I generally don't use those (they are always the last thing used in my paint sets, when i'm all out of blue.) I think characters don't generally match up 100% even if the influence comes through

[kyupol]

Meditation...

Martial arts...

[Leyelle]

oh, what martial art do you study, or are you simply interested in martial arts?

[sophialyncoleman]

My characters and I share many characteristics but my character Andy specifically has the aesthetic I want to have. Barefoot with princess dresses and flowers. I cannot afford this aesthetic at the moment, so I projected it onto her.

Read Worst Case Scenario | Tapas Web Community

[Leyelle]

that sounds like a really fun aesthetic. and yeah, I give a lot of my interests, especially fashion aesthetics that I currently cannot afford to my characters. Though ATM, none of them use the signature style I have planned for myself "Tomboy Chic"

[sophialyncoleman]

Haha! Love that! Yeah, none of them have my current aesthetic, “homeless Adam Sandler”

[Leyelle]

hmm, Alicia probably has my current aesthetic to a certain extent. "whatever is in my closet, randomly assembled to suit my needs for the day." though the "whatever" that's in her closet is a lot nicer than mine, she styles it so poorly it doesn't really matter

[kyupol]

Muai Thai, jujitsu, taekwondo... and been in 20 something street fights growing up in the Philippines.

[Leyelle]

ahh, i've only ever studied capoeira

[AmysGames]

I don't intentionally make characters who enjoy the same things that I do, but I write a lot of characters, so there's bound to be overlap sometimes. Honestly though, it's usually the other way around, where writing about a character's hobby will then get me interested in that hobby, haha.

[Leyelle]

Ahh, I'm interested in so many things i'd be hard pressed not to overlap

[Ordinaryaverageguy]

No, and frankly it never crossed my mind to do. Maybe I should consider that.

[LavenderLeavened]

frankly . . .. that's all my comic is

folklore, historical fashion, art, romance

https://tapas.io/series/The-Good-Neighbors-/info

[Leyelle]

XD, largely it's most of what "Damsel in the Red Dress" is too. Except cars. I don't care about cars

[SumireHime]

I absolutely do. Most of my stories feature musicians, usually the main characters. There's dancers also. Most characters are drag queens, too. These things are just what I know best, so I write my experiences and such. I usually incorporate jazz and older music also. I find it to be relatable and most people know the songs and get happy when they see a favorite older song in there that's nostalgic for them. I love hearing about people's stories about music that I mention in my stories. Really, all these things in my stories make me joyful, because my readers tell me stories about how they relate to it.

[Lensing]

The last story that I wrote was about a tourist who becomes a poker pro.
I love playing poker