It's a bit (a lot?) late, but I'll put in my two Kwacha for what it's worth.
( about 0.0507639 Yen or 0.000430107 USD)
Ummmm . . . IMO you're trying to micro-manage the story too much. But
that may only be because my writing style is so very different.
I.
OK, you've done some pretty good work on characterization, but let me
make a suggestion or three. Let's use Ryouga as an example.
1) Write a backstory on Ryouga. Something to flesh out his character IN
DETAIL, so that you know and understand him, as if he were a good
friend of yours.
2) do NOT try to force 'what to give him to offset the Secret Techniques'.
Let Ryouga's skills and personality evolve naturally as the consequences of
what happens to him in his life.
3)Don't try to force him to fit into the story. It may be that Ryouga is a
minor character and Mu Si (or Kasumi or Herb) takes his place in the story
more naturally.
In fact, the worst mistake an author can make, IMO, is to try and FORCE
characters to do something they don't want to do. It feels forced to the
reader and can ruin a story.
II.
What is your Dynamic Tension? That is, what's the problem to be solved?
For instance, in "Inu Yasha" there are two main 'problems to be solved'.
Finding the 'jewel shards' and resolving the kikyo/kagome-inu yasha love
triangle. There are a lot of sub-plots along the way, but finding the 'jewel
shards' and resolving the kikyo/kagome issue drives the story along.
SO . . . what drives your story? What is the conflict to be resolved?
III
Regarding Ranma & Honor?
This is a slippery term. In WWII the Imperial Army BioWarfare (Unit 731)
section thought they were being honorable when they used gas & plague
on Chinese villages or injected salt water into the veins of captured
Americans, then cut them open, while still alive, to see the effects.
The _kind_ of temple Ranma studies at is going to affect things as well.
Taoist? Buddhist (Zen or Pure Land?) Confucian? Shaolin?
(Side Note: I'm not sure you actually NEED the Cat Fist. IMO it doesn't
fit the rest of the story you're outlining. I'd skip that as excess baggage.
There are plenty of other trauma's that could be used if needed. And you
don't actually NEED a trauma to get Ranma into a temple for training) The
KIND of temple and where it's located (Northen China is very different
from Southern, for example) is going to make a big difference in how
Ranma turns out.
IV.
I won't go into any of the other characters (well, maybe a little), but it's
that kind of detail that makes the characters come to life. And building
from the bottom up, that is have some sort of :
<cause> (Ranma trains at Taoist temple at age seven) gives the
<effect> (Ranma is a powerful Taoist Shaman, who is constantly trying to
improve his body and mind to attain immortality. ) This Taoist mindset
would be VERY different from the mindset Rama would get if he were a
Confucian, for example.
Rather than simply starting with Kunou is crazy, WHY he is crazy is
VERY important. Is it trauma? Genetic? An accident? Deliberate? A curse?
Everything else in Kunou's life flows from this AND details HOW & WHY
Kunou will affect other people. WHAT makes Akane doubt herself?
Because this affects how Akane deals with other people and will affect the
Kunou/Akane interaction. You must start with those details, not simply the
effect of [Crazy Kuno] & [Insecure Akane] but WHY!
Summary:
1)Build characters from bottom up. Start with <Cause> -> <Effect> to
determine characterizations. Do a short backstory on the characters to help
flesh this out.
2)Do NOT try to force characters into unnatural situations. THIS is why
the back story is so important. You've got to understand the characters
past to understand their motivations.
3) What is the Dynamic Tension? What drives the characters? What is the
problem to be solved? There should be 'at least' ONE major problem to be
solved to energize the story. Ranma searching for a cure to his curse in the
original with a coexisting romantic plot. WHAT is the PROBLEM to be
solved in your story. This will drive the story. Your characterizations
(developed from your characters past actions/interactions) will determine
HOW your characters go about solving the problem.
A few links I like:
http://www.dragonsquillandink.com/Resources/writing_resources.html
http://www.geocities.com/twadvice/
http://hobgoblin.net/resources/createlink1.asp
http://members.aol.com/MacedonPg/writing.htm
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