Post by Amandus on Dec 15, 2015 17:31:41 GMT -5
Who are the Outcasts, and what inspired their creation?
The Outcasts of this RP live in the magnificent Sierra mountain range, with many thriving traditions and a rich history ever since they were formed. It turns out that they also have quite a history with their creator.
Unfortunately, the Outcasts' beginning wasn't as glorious. My earliest concept of them was halfheartedly created in late 2011, during a trip over Thanksgiving to visit my grandparents. This story was in the form of a black-and-white comic composed of stick figures with T-shaped eyes.
However, the story didn't actually center around them. It was actually about a young girl, Amanda, who suddenly finds a giant ruby as she was mucking out her horse's stall at an equestrian center. She and a couple of her friends, Sarah and Abby, decide to go on a journey to find whoever owned it. Many unimportant things happen, and long story short, they end up in Colorado where the Outcasts lived. I ended the comic there; I grew tired of it and didn't know where it would go. I call this story Outcasts (Version I). It was pretty pointless.
Around that time I had been reading the Warriors books, and I was fascinated by the sociology of it as they waged war and supported each other in their relations, even though the characters were cats. But what if they were human? This was how I initially came up with this concept.
How did this plot come to be the way it is now?
I had completely forgotten about the comic I made for a couple of years. It wasn't until August 2013 that I suddenly remembered and started to pick up on the Outcasts again. This time, I decided to make it a literary project from that would completely center around them from then on. This took place in a fictional location in central Colorado, presumably outside of Denver. Eventually, the plot in this version didn't make much sense, and my writing was primitive. Outcasts (Version II) was all over the place.
Then, in September 2014, Outcasts (Version III) rolled out with a completely revamped system of organization and writing. This time, I used an accurate real-life location, Stockton lake in south-western Missouri, as the setting, and I described the environment during the story with as much detail as possible. Sadly, I was so caught up with world-building that I couldn't focus on character development. The plot was a little better than version II, but I eventually had to abandon it after making the version this RP is based off of.
Outcasts (Version IV) is a miracle child. In February 2015, I found a good balance between world-building, plot, and character development all at once. I was thrilled to have it located in Yosemite National Park; why couldn't I not think of that before? In this version I also introduced loners, the arts, and an economy for them. Clan relations, social hierarchy, and elements of their survival also became more complex.
Version IV will definitely be sticking around for a long time, especially with this RP up and running. I hope others will enjoy this plot as much as I do. Happy hunting!