DragonHeart

@Dragon_H3art wow, this is amazing! It also reminds me I need to write... Ah, I'll get to it! 

@NightinLark Good Fortune to ye, young'un!

Aaaaaaand I just realized you weren't asking for a "How to", you were asking for more of an analysis.
            
            A good character maintains internal consistency, no matter how inconsistent they may appear externally. That's not to say they won't grow and change, because being externally unchanging is generally not ideal unless deliberate, but someone who likes dogs won't suddenly decide to punt a puppy out of the blue.
            
            A good character also exists as more than a one-note cutout. Nothing says they can't lean into it, but someone who enjoys being a cartoonish villain with weird nonsensical schemes can have a life outside of their theatrical villainy. Even if we never see their personal life, something as simple as bantering with their nemesis and saying "Why go after this corporation's building? Oh come now, I'm not so barbaric as to target a residential area, not like (fellow villain)." They don't need to break character to display something deeper than their first impression.
            
            And though it may seem a bit counterintuitive considering I've been focusing on letting the characters be people... Sometimes you just really need this one specific niche filled, and the character made for that is pretty much cookie-cuttered for their role. And that's okay! It's perfectly understandable for an obscure side character to not have the same level of detail and care put into them that a more prominent character does.  They do what they need to do, and they don't linger long enough to need to be anything more.
            
            Oh, also, a "good" villain doesn't need to be sympathizable to be a good character (looking at you, Thanos). People can be good. People can be bad. It's a slider, not a switch. And sometimes, they really are just unlikable people. The kind of person you would loathe IRL. And you know why that's perfectly fine? Because they're a character, not a real person. The very same thing that would disgust you in a real person makes the character more interesting, more fascinating.

@thecausualreader2 Portal hubs all have their own rules. No two are quite the same. And, uh, how are they supposed to find a new portal hub when they're all living on this one? Best way I can think to handle past life would be to just have Grian see how many mechanics he can strip back before the server just refuses.

New portal hub?

@thecausualreader2 It would be interesting, but I'd have to figure out a lot of stuff, like how on earth you would move back versions when the portal hub itself is evolving to produce new things. How is one supposed to un-evolve a single server?

@idcletmein123 Ah, I see. Not sure yet. I might try to incorporate it in some way? It's far enough away from the current point in the timeline that I don't feel like I need to make a decision immediately though. Might end up replacing it with my own idea if I can't find a way to make the mechanics of it work in the story.

I’m so sorry, I meant the new one. Past life

@idcletmein123 I... already have? The first three seasons have already happened, and I'll likely have the fourth happen before the next portal opens. Not canonizing Martyn's Life Series Watcher lore in my fanfic though. Grian's the only Watcher currently on Minecraft.

@idcletmein123 Prequel? As in, an origin story for Grian in The Chained Watcher? Probably not, but that's because there are a ton of backstory chapters dotted around the main book already, and to separate them into their own book would make some things feel like I just chucked them in for kicks and giggles without bothering to make it fit.
            
            As the branching canopy of the world I've created grows and spreads wider, so too do the roots dig deeper, anchoring the present firmly in the past. Present the canopy without the roots, and it will collapse under its own weight, made hollow by the lack of a past supporting it. Present the roots without the canopy, and though it may grow new leaves if given time, much of what would draw in observers is initially absent. The roots, the past, are there to support the canopy, the present. Without the present to give one a reason to care about the past, very few would bother to study the roots, no matter how intricately woven and delicately intertwined they are.
            
            (Can you tell I love analogies? My absolute favorite way to explain things, hands down)
            
            But TLDR: When I write, the past and present are created simultaneously. If I separate the past into its own book, the present will feel unfinished, rushed, or even poorly written.
            
            I guess I could see about compiling all the backstory chapters together for independent perusal once all's said and done, but that's a ways off. No plans at the moment.

Do you ever think you’ll make a full prequel?

@idcletmein123  Admittedly, my original plan for this was to write the first couple chapters to set the scene for future oneshots set in this world. I don't do much proper planning, since railroading myself like that would kill my motivation to write, and an ending... I honestly have no idea.
            
            This is my first real writing project, and one of the things I haven't really figured out how to work in satisfactorily is an ending. What would I even do for such a branching, open-ended story like this? Do I call it finished once all his friends know what he is? But then what about the slow adjustment of perspective and growing familiarity as they really come to terms with it and realize that Grian is still Grian? The worlds I imagine are just too broad for me to say "Alright, this is the end."
            
            Future stories (or at least oneshots) should hopefully get better at ending in a satisfying way, but I imagine The Chained Watcher will keep going until I'm out of ideas for further adventures. Not that I'm forcing myself to write, but I've always loved exploring every possible angle and observing every possible interaction, so it's hard for me to commit to an 'ending' for anything. Even when I do, it's always open-ended, leaving room for more adventures in that world if I ever feel like it.
            
            So while I can't say how far through TCW we are, I can say that I have an idea of a very rough sequence of events for certain things happening, like what needs to happen before Skizz learns about Grian's species. That chapter is... actually already partially written, since I write according to inspiration instead of from any kind of schedule. But I have fun with it, so I don't fuss over when and what I write.

@idcletmein123 *looks up from blank document* "...Plan?"
            
            In all seriousness though, I don't really do much planning as far as story arcs go. I'm fairly aware of how my brain works. The moment I start railroading myself down a preset path, my enjoyable hobby becomes a tedious chore, and I'll very quickly get burnt out over it.
            
            That's not to say I don't have ideas for things I want to happen, of course. I've got plenty of notes for fun worlds I could send them to, lots of snippets that are located too far ahead in the timeline to finalize or post, and a plethora of noncanon scenarios that are, to put it bluntly, fanfiction for my own fanfiction.
            
            As for my inspiration? I've read a lot of Watcher Grian stories, but I found that very few really let him be comfortable in his own skin, usually using him as a target for angst. Nothing wrong with that! I just wanted to see a few where he's mentally stable, so I did it myself. And... My younger sister and I might have a tendency to make up stories about our favorite characters before bed (since it lets our brains wind down, unlike electronics), and an idea lodged itself in my brain for a couple days.
            
            I figured, since it stuck around, I'd write it out! Then the one scene, built around the little compilation of different versions of HTTYD's nightfury leitmotif, became two. Then three. I was originally just going to have it be a way to set the scene for some fun shenanigans, without any real overarching plotline, but it grew on me. And when I was having so much fun writing, why should I not continue? I could write the exact things I wanted to see, and while there are definitely some scenes I find to be a bit "meh" when reading, I can confidently say that I've written something I love to read.

@KeefeFan333 I'm not even sure what that stands for, so unfortunately, no.

@Dragon_H3art Good luck!

Oh dear. I'm slightly flattered that my writing is good enough to steal, but also rather annoyed about it. Will definitely make sure to add a note about that in the description and at the end of the next chapter.

*hey*

EXACTLY!!

@LilaJeanB Ikr?!

@LilaJeanB FR??

@Be_Nicks_Intern np, you too