NaNoWriMo 2013 - Cast Pictures

A while back, mathtans suggested creating pictures of characters as references while writing.  This year, I meant to have pictures ready in time, either drawn by myself or commissioned.  Neither happened.  My art skills are rudimentary, with straight lines a challenge.  I did go to the Geek Market, but there were few artists there.

My solution, The Sims 2.

I used the game once before for the Threefold, getting usable portraits for them and some oddly candid shots that fit the personalities.  Why not do it again for Ione and company?

With Ione, I found two hairstyles that could work for her.  Both are short, shorter than originally conceived, but work for my purposes.  The first is closer to the original idea.

Short hair suits her.

The second, though, gave me an idea for later in the story, when Ione needs to change her appearance a little.

Might be difficult to change the part, though.

 With the head done, I started to work out her wardrobe.  Two outfits stood out; one that she would wear to work,

She'll need a jacket.

the other for weekends.

Suitable for coffee shops and curling up with cats.

 I even found her a little black dress for more formal occasions.

Suitable for all occasions.

With Ione done, Karen came next.  Karen's appearance I already had clear in mind,  Shorter than Ione, with long hair tied into a ponytail.  Again, easily done, except for the height.  The game doesn't allow for height variations.  No matter, I can live with it and remember that Karen is shorter.  With Karen, I found the ideal hairstyle quickly, then gave her glasses and earrings.

Karen.

 I didn't get a photo of her nose piercing, but she has a gold stud on the other side.  To emphasize the difference between Ione's workplace and Karen's, I gave the latter a miniskirt and a black blouse.

The boots are a nice touch.

 The idea is that, in Karen's private sector job, what one wears is as important as capability, as opposed to Ione's public service job where clothing doesn't need to be emphasized.  Karen does not have a little black dress, though.  She's more colourful when out on the town.

Showing personality differences through clothing choice.

Since I had the game running, I went through character creation for Gemma.

Gemma.

 A British agent who has already appeared in the story writing, Gemma is a field agent.  It was appropriate to give her a pair of sunglasses.

The future's so bright...

 Her choice of clothes reflects her career.

The name's...

 And, for fun, since the outfit exists, a what-if, as in what if Gemma was in the Village.

The new Number 2.

To complete the character generation in the game, I filled out the personality bars to reflect the characters' personalities.  Karen is very outgoing while Gemma became very serious.  Once done, I tried to get a shot of the three women looking at the camera.  The didn't.  Instead, I got a few candid shots that, like the three fold, just worked.

I can't believe I have to work with two amateurs.

Amateurs?  Have you read the script yet?

That's what was in the envelope?

Fortunately, the game created a proper group shot with everyone looking at the camera.

Say cheese!