So I want to do a parody character.

[Naruzeldamaster]

The character is named Princess Orange (probably in another language)
She's an alcoholic the main party of my story meet at various points in the story.

They ask her why she's drinking, and she's more than open to telling them.

Her 'adventures' will be references to other princesses in fiction (Not just games) and she's been through so many, hence the alcoholism. The drinking isn't even so much an alcoholic problem (Although she WOULD be able to put most Alcoholics under the table)

I have yet to decide if she'll be a proper character in the adventure, but when I eventually make the game (Yes I DO plan to do that) She'll be someone the player can interact with and eventually recruit. In the Book Series, she shows up a few times (again, undecided how many) and sends the party on a quick fetch quest.

 

[Mad Swede]

The character is named Princess Orange (probably in another language)
She's an alcoholic the main party of my story meet at various points in the story.

They ask her why she's drinking, and she's more than open to telling them.

Her 'adventures' will be references to other princesses in fiction (Not just games) and she's been through so many, hence the alcoholism. The drinking isn't even so much an alcoholic problem (Although she WOULD be able to put most Alcoholics under the table)

OMG. Do you even understand how offensive a character like that might be? Do you know anything about alcohol abuse disorder?

 

[RoccO]

I think it is a good idea to find something that rhymes with orange, and call her that, but not as an insult. She reminds me of Tanya Adams in Red Alert, but only slightly, but I do wonder if she has an accent. Making her an alcoholic, rhymes with orange, but she is schnapped up.

Just joking, but I wonder what her taste in music is, if she is a bard or minstrel, herself, and her ethnic identity. Sometimes wanderers can be connected to a greater fate and will masquerade as another type of person….I have seen this done with royalty, and also members of the secret society. I have also seen this done with ambassadors.

If she turns up in the game, she had better morph into a queen of the fairies, or another demonic race, because she had better shape up quick as to her affiliation with the gathered spirits, be they of the liquid description, or of the more harmful voodoo nature. Being that it mostly incarnates in dolls or fruit anyway.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

OMG. Do you even understand how offensive a character like that might be? Do you know anything about alcohol abuse disorder?

I could do without the keyboard of justice attitude, you haven't even seen how she'll be depicted yet. (Never mind I'm still ironing out her kinks to begin with before I introduce her) I appreciate the slap on the wrist but can you chill?

She's an alcoholic in the 'drinks a ton to forget shit' sense, which is fine, I've seen a lot of depictions of this form Alcoholism in media and varying degrees of it. (With varying degrees of success if people like it or not) Nothing about the parody aspect itself has anything to do with 'making fun' of Alcoholics. She'll be depicted as a heavy/addicted drinker though. Again, chill, the parody has nothing to do with the disability.

Also there's no way to know if someone will be offended if I don't write the dang thing and publish it first. You also said MIGHT, which means even you aren't sure they're offensive or not.

I think it is a good idea to find something that rhymes with orange, and call her that, but not as an insult. She reminds me of Tanya Adams in Red Alert, but only slightly, but I do wonder if she has an accent. Making her an alcoholic, rhymes with orange, but she is schnapped up.

I am considering her having an accent yeah, but I have yet to decide which one. I'm leaning either Aussie, Britt, or Scottish though. As far as I know these cultures can drink a lot to begin with, let alone with having Alcoholism. Tempted to maybe even have her be German but, I dunno.

Just joking, but I wonder what her taste in music is, if she is a bard or minstrel, herself, and her ethnic identity. Sometimes wanderers can be connected to a greater fate and will masquerade as another type of person….I have seen this done with royalty, and also members of the secret society. I have also seen this done with ambassadors.

She's Going to be a guide post I think (a bit like when Stan Lee shows up in Marvel comics) Between her drunken rambles she'll have moments of being Sober. In those moments she might hint toward some side quest (in the game) or the next step in their journey (in the novel) She may or may not join the party in future books. But for the first Book, she's mostly going to be an 'npc' like in a DND campaign. If people end up liking her in the first book, I'll bring her back in the future ones.

If she turns up in the game, she had better morph into a queen of the fairies, or another demonic race, because she had better shape up quick as to her affiliation with the gathered spirits, be they of the liquid description, or of the more harmful voodoo nature. Being that it mostly incarnates in dolls or fruit anyway.

I already have a queen of the Faerie. (the tinkerbell sort) BUT There are many species of Fae that also have nobility / royalty so she could actually end up being one of them. Queen of the Spirits (as in alcohol itself) could be interesting. Where in this world spirits and wine are literally tied to fae that bless the drink with magic. It still wouldn't be good to be addicted, but that gave me an idea.

I was thinking her drunken ramblings about being kidnapped etc could sound like you know, insanity from being drunk. (Mostly to explain the references to other media) But when she properly sobers up she asks the party how they know her and she's like 'oh...uh, sorry you had to hear all that, it's true though! Every story!'

 

[Mad Swede]

I could do without the keyboard of justice attitude, you haven't even seen how she'll be depicted yet. (Never mind I'm still ironing out her kinks to begin with before I introduce her) I appreciate the slap on the wrist but can you chill?

She's an alcoholic in the 'drinks a ton to forget shit' sense, which is fine, I've seen a lot of depictions of this form Alcoholism in media and varying degrees of it. (With varying degrees of success if people like it or not) Nothing about the parody aspect itself has anything to do with 'making fun' of Alcoholics. She'll be depicted as a heavy/addicted drinker though. Again, chill, the parody has nothing to do with the disability.

Also there's no way to know if someone will be offended if I don't write the dang thing and publish it first. You also said MIGHT, which means even you aren't sure they're offensive or not.

You've seen depictions in media... Wow. You really don't get it, do you?

This is yet another example where you're trying to write something without doing some proper research, meaning reading up about the subject in question and talking to people who know about it. Just relying on something you've seen in media isn't good enough, not if you want the character (and the parody) to work. Being a serious about your writing means being serious about your research. It takes time and it takes effort.

I have personally known and worked with several alcoholics, all of whom were friends of mine. Two died of drink. Two have managed to recover by cutting out alcohol completely. As one of them says, every day is a battle with the cravings.

I also have another friend and former collegue, the daughter of an alcoholic. Her descriptions of her childhood are frightening. She ended up taking her little brother (then only 6 years old) to live with her when she got her first apartment at age 17, because of her mother's behaviour. I met that kid, and I've never seen a more abject and passive child here in Sweden. Meeting him was like seeing some of the children I came across on the various UN peacekeeping missions I served on. He's made it through childhood and now he's much more like everyone else you meet, but it took my friend and (later) her husband a lot of work, a lot of time and and a huge amolunt of affection.

So, based on this, my more detailed comments on your concept...

A heavy drinking alcoholic won't live long, and their death will be unpleasant. Their behaviour will be... varied... to put it mildly. They'll be very unpredictable and they won't be someone you can rely on for anything. They may be prone to violence and they'll often act irrationally. They may suffer hallucinations. They will do almost anything to get the alcohol needed to soothe their craving - and that includes selling others out. So when you write that

She'll be someone the player can interact with and eventually recruit. In the Book Series, she shows up a few times (again, undecided how many) and sends the party on a quick fetch quest.

you show that you don't know what alcoholism is or how it affects people.

So no, your concept doesn't work. Not as a parody and not as a character.

If you want to have a parody princess of this sort then I'd suggest that you drop the alcoholism. You might want to make her sarcastic, bitter and dejected about all these "adventures". Then, the way your players get her on side and then recruit her is to offer her something new and unique. Something which values her for what she is as a person, not for being a princess with all those adventures.

And if you want to see how other fantasy writers have handled alcoholism, try reading David and Leigh Eddings series The Elenium and The Tamuli. Their descriptions of how alcoholics behave and how they die are all too accurate. Possibly because David Eddings himself was a recovered alcoholic.

 

[RoccO]

You could have her an aficionado of drinking games, I can think of a few but Pass the Pigs or Pin the Tail on the Donkey, unless donkey is an offensive term here, you might have her blind drunk instead of blind folded. But there is a drinker in anyone, if they have the balls to consider moderation. I like how she can become an NPC in just about any situation, but I wonder if she might come off too abrasive with a Scottish accent, it might be typically Russian or German.

If she does end up being one of them, the fae or royalty, she could have a special drinking apparatus that arrives from the dust, and a shop or distillery that shows the progress being made with each colour, like a scientist doing experiments. There is a lot to say for having wings as well, red bull gives you wings. There is a determination in most wanderers to be good at a close hand at poker, so I think they are mostly found around an inn, but maybe there is another world beyond the spider-verse that is for one kosher and another hallelujah.

I was watching a show the other day where a queen bee start to digress into the cups, with a younger writer in residence, and it took away from the woes and worries they had with the men folk around. It was like she was giving the reigns over to the younger one, and watching her own reins be loosened a bit, but it seemed a situation that could change their lives. Here is to the third eye, and blinking what can be missed entirely about a common trope.

 

[pmmg]

I think we can chill a little on the seeking offense at an idea not even written, and every piece of writing does not have to fix the world.

While its true that Naru projects a lack of actual research and experience, how is he supposed to learn if he never does?

I say go with it, and see where it takes you.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

You could have her an aficionado of drinking games, I can think of a few but Pass the Pigs or Pin the Tail on the Donkey, unless donkey is an offensive term here, you might have her blind drunk instead of blind folded. But there is a drinker in anyone, if they have the balls to consider moderation. I like how she can become an NPC in just about any situation, but I wonder if she might come off too abrasive with a Scottish accent, it might be typically Russian or German.

I don't think I will tie any drinking games / mini games to her, the end goal with her is to be respectful to the condition while having her rambles be the things that are parodies of other princesses. Some of them will be actual events that happened to her, some of it (especially the ones that break the fourth wall) will clearly be the alcohol talking.

The Alcoholism part is just an interesting part of the character which I hope to depict well enough that the parody bits don't detract from it. That's why I'm torn between Scottish, Russian, or German (And lightly Aussie cause the few aussies I've met are stern drinkers)

If she does end up being one of them, the fae or royalty, she could have a special drinking apparatus that arrives from the dust, and a shop or distillery that shows the progress being made with each colour, like a scientist doing experiments. There is a lot to say for having wings as well, red bull gives you wings. There is a determination in most wanderers to be good at a close hand at poker, so I think they are mostly found around an inn, but maybe there is another world beyond the spider-verse that is for one kosher and another hallelujah.

I don't think I want her to have anything that would allow her to 'cheat' the negative effects of Alcohol. Cause then the protagonists helping her with her struggles would be pointless. One of my characters in the main party has a Thermos that is 'bottomless' of whatever liquid you put into it. (He chose a particular kind of fermented milk that would put most casual drinkers under with a single cup. Culturally it's one of those 'it puts hair on your chest' drinks. But you aren't meant to just casually drink it several cups in a sitting.) She might have a similar device, but I dun want her to cheat the condition in any way. She has to fight her way to being stable just like every other alcoholic.

I was watching a show the other day where a queen bee start to digress into the cups, with a younger writer in residence, and it took away from the woes and worries they had with the men folk around. It was like she was giving the reigns over to the younger one, and watching her own reins be loosened a bit, but it seemed a situation that could change their lives. Here is to the third eye, and blinking what can be missed entirely about a common trope.

That may be a great depiction, but apparently media is an invalid form of research no matter how accurate. (Though I like that example personally)

I think we can chill a little on the seeking offense at an idea not even written, and every piece of writing does not have to fix the world.

I mean I did ask them to chill, politely, I can understand being offended but again, the character hasn't even been fully crafted yet, let alone written.
I Do understand being personally offended, but I'm not a fan of the whole 'let me be offended for x group' before even seeing the character in full. Heck, the whole point of this thread is to hash out the finer details until she's fully formed and figure out what and where to do the research.

While it true that Naru projects a lack of actual research and experience, how is he supposed to learn if he never does?

I say go with it, and see where it takes you.

+ 1 Point for using my shortened username I prefer. (This is not a joke, a lot of people online use that for this username)

I'll probably do a bit of actual research before I start properly writing her, for now, I want to work on fine tuning her character and purpose in the story. Both for the game and the Book Series. She's ultimately a minor character the Main Party interact with throughout their quest, but the idea of her stuck with me so I want her to be a little more than a random NPC.

 

[pmmg]

NaruZeldaMaster is a pain to type out

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

NaruZeldaMaster is a pain to type out

It is lol it's a mouthful to say outloud too.
I picked it when I was like 15 so I've used it just about everywhere since. (At least it's better than a *thing I like* *cool number* name heh)

 

[Mad Swede]

I think we can chill a little on the seeking offense at an idea not even written, and every piece of writing does not have to fix the world.

Not all writing has to change the world. But good writing needs a bit of research to make it work.

While it true that Naru projects a lack of actual research and experience, how is he supposed to learn if he never does?

Well, starting by reading up properly on a subject before putting a post up here would be a good start. Especially when the need for this has been pointed out several times before.

The Alcoholism part is just an interesting part of the character which I hope to depict well enough that the parody bits don't detract from it. That's why I'm torn between Scottish, Russian, or German (And lightly Aussie cause the few aussies I've met are stern drinkers)

I'd drop the idea of alcoholism being connected to a certain accent. That will offend people.

I don't think I want her to have anything that would allow her to 'cheat' the negative effects of Alcohol. Cause then the protagonists helping her with her struggles would be pointless. One of my characters in the main party has a Thermos that is 'bottomless' of whatever liquid you put into it. (He chose a particular kind of fermented milk that would put most casual drinkers under with a single cup. Culturally it's one of those 'it puts hair on your chest' drinks. But you aren't meant to just casually drink it several cups in a sitting.) She might have a similar device, but I dun want her to cheat the condition in any way. She has to fight her way to being stable just like every other alcoholic.

What I am trying to get across to you is just how serious alcoholism is. Not all alcoholics get to a stable condition, if indeed there is a stable condition (researchers are divided on this). Most alcoholics never recover, and they're never sober, not properly (being sober can be a life threatening condition for an alcoholic or indeed any addict).

Helping an alcoholic recover is a huge task and it never stops. You always have to be there, as a partner or as a friend, helping them to avoid the cravings and the alcohol. From personal experience, it is emotionally demanding and there are a lot of highs and lows along the way. You don't always succeed, and trust me when I say that failure of that sort hurts. It isn't something you can just do as a sort of side task, when you've got a bit of time over. So I don't think your protagonists are going to be able to take care of her and do whatever their real task is. Which is another reason for not making this princess an alcoholic.

That may be a great depiction, but apparently media is an invalid form of research no matter how accurate. (Though I like that example personally)


I mean I did ask them to chill, politely, I can understand being offended but again, the character hasn't even been fully crafted yet, let alone written.
I Do understand being personally offended, but I'm not a fan of the whole 'let me be offended for x group' before even seeing the character in full. Heck, the whole point of this thread is to hash out the finer details until she's fully formed and figure out what and where to do the research.

OK, I'll be blunt. What offends me is your seeming laziness. You're not stupid, you're not unintelligent. In fact I suspect you are very bright. I and a number of others have pointed out several times that you need to do proper research to make your writing work. Yet you still write things along the lines of "I saw a bit of media about it." Sorry, that doesn't cut the mustard. Not given your apparent intelligence. It gives the impression that you don't take your writing seriously.

+ 1 Point for using my shortened username I prefer. (This is not a joke, a lot of people online use that for this username)

I'll probably do a bit of actual research before I start properly writing her, for now, I want to work on fine tuning her character and purpose in the story. Both for the game and the Book Series. She's ultimately a minor character the Main Party interact with throughout their quest, but the idea of her stuck with me so I want her to be a little more than a random NPC.

In my view you can't fine tune the character without doing the research first. That's the only way you can understand how the character might act and react in a given situation, and it's the only way you can work out their motivations for their actions. Which in the case of an alcoholic is likely to be 'how do I get my next drink?'

So no, there's no probably about doing the research. You have to do it, so you might was well start now. Yes, it takes time and effort. But your writing will benefit from it.