How to Add or Edit Characters

[sothis]

Getting Started
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You can update a character by visiting his or her page, and then clicking the 'edit char' link underneath the left image.

You can add a new character by visiting the admin character input page.

When you submit the form, a thread is created in this forum for moderators to look at. Unless the moderators can personally confirm submissions, they will possibly need confirmation from the community. Thus, if you have time and can browse these threads and chime in with agreeance or disagreeance, it would be helpful and would make things move quicker.


Become a Moderator
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Demonstrate your candidacy by submitting info for a bunch of characters in the format below, and we'll be happy to bring you on board to help! ^_^


Names
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*The first name you input is the 'Main' name - use the most well-known name for this one

*'First' and 'Last' are based on the western definitions

*Disregard 'Last is First' - do not check it

*Capitalize the names as you would normally type it (do not fully capitalize the last name, even though it will look like it is when editing an entry)

*Only fill in the 'last' field if there is a traditional last name (for example, Smith, Yamazaki, etc). Otherwise, put everything in the First field (for example, Doctor John, Death The Kid).

*If there is a middle name, put everything except the last name in the First field.

*Names with 'Mr' or 'Mrs' at the front should also have a period. For example, 'Mr. Smith', not 'Mr Smith'

*Suffixes (san, kun, etc) should be avoided unless it is the ONLY name the character is known by, for visible names (ie, anything except 'searchable'). Otherwise, add as a searchable name only. Suffixes should be attached with a dash - , such as 'Sara-kun', not 'Sara kun'


NAME TYPES:

*Nickname - Only use if there is a very commonly known nickname IN THE ANIME OR MANGA (not a fan-given nickname) - most characters will not have one.

*Searchable - if there's a fan-given nickname that is well known or a name variation, use searchable. For example, if the name used is 'tomou' but some translations refer to the person as 'tomo', you'd use 'tomo' as the searchable name.

*USA Name - use only if there is a difference in name for the US R1 name. For example, Ash Ketchum for Pokemon would be a USA Name

*JP Name - you'll use this the majority of the time (if not always), and most of the time you'll only use it. It's tough to say how to be consistent with spellings. ANN, for example, tends to always use names like 'Tomo' instead of 'Tomou' (using 'o' instead of 'ou'), while the majority of other sites tend to use the longer form. As a vague rule, try to use what is the most common.


Image
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*Only one image per character is possible at this time

*Images are min size 130x180, max size 130x200. The width must be 130 wide, but the height can be between 180 and 200 pixels.

*Images are not required - don't worry about adding them unless you have the extra time and want to hunt them down.

*Do not use fan art or artist-created shots (or cut out a char from a wallpaper, etc).

*Do not use an image that is being used on another anime database

*If an anime exists, always use an anime image over a manga one

*Do not use visual novel, game or otherwise non-anime/manga shots for a character

*The image must be indicative of who the character normally is. If the picture is a bizarre appearance for the character, it is better to use a more common look.

*DO NOT SUBMIT IMAGES TAKEN FROM MEGAVIDEO as their resolutions change and images are very frequently being submitted with improper ratios, and look squished.


URL Slug
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To create a url slug, take the person's MAIN first and last name, change them to lowercase, and add a dash in between each word.

If you get an error that the URL slug is already taken (which means another character in the database already has that URL slug), add the exact URL slug for the main anime or manga (see below for what the main anime/manga are) right after the character's URL slug. Do not truncate or abbreviate the anime/manga url slug.

Examples:

Naruto Uzumaki = naruto-uzumaki
John Smith = john-smith
John Smith (another one, in a different anime whose url is /anime/naruto-the-movie-1) = john-smith-naruto-the-movie-1



Hair Color
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*Select the main color from the dropdown.

*For now, light/dark will just be the main color (ie there is no distinction between light or dark brown).

*Multicolored hair is currently not being handled.

*When in doubt, DON'T MARK HAIR COLOR.

*Unless a manga character has a color shot on a volume cover or an insert, do not mark hair color.

*For animals, if they are a solid color of fur, use that for hair color.

*Only mark 'bald' for characters who are human (or very human-like). Do not use this for monster characters or obvious non-humans who don't have hair in the first place.


Anime/Manga
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These are autocomplete fields that you must use to link this character to anime and manga entries. There is a dropdown for the type - main, secondary, minor.

Only add relations for something you have PERSONALLY seen or read. Do not assume that just because you've watched the anime, that the relation is probably the same for the manga. Likewise, do not use external resources to 'confirm' this kind of information, it needs to be based on your personal viewing/reading.


'Main Anime' and 'Main Manga'
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Only mark these fields if the character has an anime, or manga, relation filled in.


Tags
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Only use tags that are major elements of the character. You can see a full list of character tags and how to use them HERE. If you have a suggestion for a different tag, put it into the Comments area of the form.


Description
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Character descriptions, like everything on Anime-Planet, must be hand-written and cannot be taken or adapted from any other website.

If you are interested in helping write a character description, please read the spoiler section below.

CONTENT
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Because we need to avoid spoilers in the descriptions for now, when submitting a character's writeup, focus on their traits, not plot points - though there are sometimes exceptions for backstory. Here are the exact guidelines:

Include:

• Who the character is - "Nina Antauk is captain of the 17th Squad in Chrome Shelled Regios' Military Arts School."
• What the character is like - "Brash and ambitious, Nina values victory above almost all else." or "Nina is an avid cook and loves animals."
• Relationships with other characters - "Nina is Lina's older sister." or "Though they are brother and sister, there is no love lost between Karian and Felli."
• Basic backstory - "When Nina was a child, she was abandoned by her parents and now lives as an orphan in CityName." (note: as long as these are plot points explained extremely early on, and would not be considered a spoiler. Sometimes a character's past is revealed slowly - in that case, it should not be mentioned.)
• Appearance, but only if important and untaggable. For example, there is a 'Scar' tag that Kenshin would receive, but calling out why he has his scar would be considered a spoiler. However, it would be acceptable to mention that Gutts in Berserk carries a big sword.

Do not include:

• Things that occur during the series - "As she fights side by side with Layfon, Nina's feelings of inadequacy eventually consume her."
• Spoilers - "Wolfwood fights alongside Vash, even against--THERE IS NO WAY I'M SPOILING THAT FOR YOU" (but you get the idea)

LENGTH
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Between two and five sentences. Closer to five for main characters, while minor characters should only get two.


FAQ
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What if the character changes during the series? (visually, grows up, etc)
Leave it out. Eventually, funding permitting, we plan to have a segment for spoilers in each character description. Until then, if you'd hide it in spoiler tags on the forums, don't include it here.


Should the description be based on the character when you first meet them, or at the end of the series?
First meeting for the most part. Try to capture his or her essence before the series/movie/OVA causes the character to change. Again, back story is appropriate as long as major spoilers are left out.

For example, "Kenshin has vowed to never kill another person because of his haunted past, and fights with a reverse-blade sword." We don't want to spoil why he's vowed not to kill, but bringing up that plot point is fine.


Why was my description denied?
Though there's no easy answer for this, moderators try to give a clear explanation of what's needed in the moderation thread (so check back for information in your submission threads).

Descriptions are denied for the following types of reasons (most of which are covered above):

• The description was copy/pasted from elsewhere, or was copied and modified. All descriptions must be hand-written.
  
• Moderators are unable to confirm the facts are correct, and no one else has responded with confirmation. Want to help us so this doesn't happen? Check out the 'Help Needed With These Character Submissions' thread and respond if you agree or disagree with people's submissions.
  
• The description is too short
  
• The description doesn't have enough information in it (for example, it only has a few words about the appearance). Moderators are more likely to deny for this reason if the character is a main character.
  
• The description contains spoilers, or too many plot points

Note: As is true with names, please convert all macrons into an approximate romanization. For the time being it need not be correct (we'll look into it on acceptance), but if you change them for us, it saves our overtaxed description mods time in posting your descriptions.

What if this character is in Multiple Anime?

• If you can use one description for the character (as he/she is pretty much the same dude/dudette in all the anime in which he/she appears), provide one description.
• If the character varies between series/media, you can provide multiple descriptions but make it clear to which series/media each description applies.

[unitzero]

^ this is awesome sothis. This is exactly what I was looking for the other day but couldn't find. One question though.....

Character types: Main, Secondary, Minor
how exactly are these defined? Are we using another site to help figure this out, or is it up to the mods common sense? For example take a look at the freaking Bleach character section on our site. I would argue that some of the "main" characters listed there are in fact secondary like Byakuya Kuchiki and some of the minor characters are secondary like Ichigo's youngest sister.

Not trying to cause problems, I just want to do things correctly myself.

[ThePatches]

Originally Posted by tylerriggs

^ this is awesome sothis. This is exactly what I was looking for the other day but couldn't find. One question though.....

Character types: Main, Secondary, Minor
how exactly are these defined? Are we using another site to help figure this out, or is it up to the mods common sense? For example take a look at the freaking Bleach character section on our site. I would argue that some of the "main" characters listed there are in fact secondary like Byakuya Kuchiki and some of the minor characters are secondary like Ichigo's youngest sister.

Not trying to cause problems, I just want to do things correctly myself.

There is some debate. For the most part, we don't touch other people's ratings because the issue hasn't been decided, but here's what I think:

Main - The anime is ABOUT you. You're not just important to the plot, you are the point of view for the show.

Secondary - You're either plot important, or you show up a lot. Either way, you're integral to the show's character.

Minor - You're there for color. You might be plot important for the few seconds you were on screen, but you were only on screen for a few seconds. NOTE: If the character hardly appears in the show, regardless of how much of a lynchpin you are to the plot, you are a minor character (unless, of course, you are the main villain).

[sothis]

added a note about 'bald' hair usage (namely, it should only be used for humans/or human-like characters who have/had hair)

[vernanonix]

A question about pictures, real quick. If they character also appears in video games, can you also use art from those games (not in-game art but like cover or promotional art) if they look to be in the same anime style? (Just as a for instance, like the Tales of Symphonia characters.)

[alexander]

Why the hell did these posts disappear from this thread? And what about the question I had in there?

[sothis]

what exactly is the point in leaving up posts saying 'here's the backup' and 'thanks a lot' when i already rewrote the first post? a compelling reason would be appreciated, since apparently you consider it a really big deal. (ill be deleting these tangential posts too once the convo is done)

regardless, i missed your question.

feel free to submit a better image. the current image guidelines are listed in full, in the first post.

vernanonix: screenshots are #1 desired - video game art should be avoided.

[alexander]

Originally Posted by sothis

a compelling reason would be appreciated, since apparently you consider it a really big deal.

I know I'm talking to a wall, so I'll keep it brief: regardless how trivial, one does not silently change history.

the current image guidelines are listed in full, in the first post.

My point was that they should extended:

Please keep submissions representative of the character. No costumes or hairstyles that only occur in episode six of season two.

[alexander]

For some reason this sub-forum prevents editing, so I can't do an explicit change to add the missing "be" ^^

[sothis]

ive updated the image guidelines. and since you want explicit warnings that posts that are no longer needed for the thread will be deleted, here's your few hour notice.