Why People Don't Care About Your OC

Summary

The video explains how to make readers care about a character quickly. Drawing on the speaker’s writing experience and reader feedback, it explores several ways to make a character immediately engaging: humor, kindness, cuteness, and admirable resolve.

A recurring principle is contrast. A character’s flaws, vulnerabilities, or unexpected behavior can make their strengths more memorable and relatable.

Techniques and advice

Use humor that grows naturally from the character

Don’t force jokes just to make readers like a character. Let humor emerge from their personality and the situation. Establish their strengths and the expectations around them first, then use an ironic flaw as the punchline.

For example, in Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, Kaguya and Miyuki are brilliant and accomplished, but their pride makes it difficult for them to confess their feelings. Their romantic ineptitude contrasts with their competence elsewhere.

If a character is witty rather than the butt of the joke, let their humor reveal something about others or give the story a moment of lightness. Take care not to make it feel cruel.

Show kindness through meaningful action

Distinguish genuine kindness from mere niceness. A kind character is more compelling when doing the right thing costs them something or goes against their apparent persona. Rough edges can also make a softer side stand out.

In Dandadan, Momo’s decision to sit beside Okarun when he is being bullied communicates her character without a speech or confrontation.

Another approach is to place an innocent, self-sacrificing character in an unfair situation. Their persistence and goodness can make audiences root for them and feel anger at the circumstances. Takopi in Takopi’s Original Sin illustrates this: his innocence and desire to help persist even when his attempts go wrong and others treat him unfairly.

Make cuteness more than a design choice

Cute behavior, dialogue, and mannerisms should support a character’s appearance. A cute character can inspire a protective response by seeming vulnerable or defenseless at certain moments; they don’t need to be weak overall.

Contrast can make this especially effective. Frieren is a powerful, stoic mage, but her sleepy, awkward, and emotionally inexperienced moments reveal an endearing side.

Make a “cool” character’s struggle visible

Coolness is not just swagger, quips, or never losing. It comes from facing difficulty with resolve, especially when acting for others.

The Hero of the South in Frieren accepts that he won’t defeat the Demon Lord himself and instead helps clear the way for Himmel’s party. Show what a character struggles with and how they persist. Their resolve matters because they are vulnerable to failure, humiliation, or doubt—not because they never experience those things.

Closing advice

These approaches can be combined rather than treated as rigid archetypes. The speaker closes by encouraging viewers to apply the same persistence to personal growth and take a practical first step: open a document and start writing.

Creators and contributors

No individual creators or production contributors are named in the subtitles. The speaker discusses their own writing and reader feedback.

The works and characters used as examples are Kaguya-sama: Love Is War (Kaguya and Miyuki), Dandadan (Momo and Okarun), Takopi’s Original Sin (Takopi), and Frieren (Frieren, the Hero of the South, Himmel, Stark, and Fern).