Just a moment, survey yourself.
[READ B4 COMMENTING: Not all of these are automatically negative by simply existing, and some questions can have very nuanced answers that can't simply be summer up as "Thing: bad. Stop." I'm making this so you can keep yourself aware and reflective on what you do, and encouraging you to learn, diversify and be on the lookout for anything sketchy. You're not automatically a bad person if some of these apply to you, however just be wary of how. Lack of diversity is a design problem. And it can be improved! You can improve! Not everyone starts out knowing everything and many of these can simply be bc someone really just didn't know. That's okay. Don't start stressing, take it like a champ and think how you can work with the situation. Thank you]
- Have you noticed that the characters you make fat have usually if not always something to do with either greed, materialism, their love of food, or eating, or being spoiled?
- Are you using fatness in character design to communicate something unpleasant? Why? Does it really have to be represented or tied to fatness, or are you just used to seeing fat be presented as negative and ugly in media?
- "Why is this character fat?" Why is this character not? Why is this character thin? Do we really need to justify the existence of fat characters in some way? Fat people in real life simply exist. There can be reasons someone is fat, but that doesn't define them. There isn't always some "cause", but regardless of if there is, that shouldn't impact their right to be here and live their lives same as everyone else.
- Could this character design be made more interesting or distinct if you gave them a different body type? Does the vast majority of your characters have the same weight, body proportions and physical abilities? Is there a concrete reason why you make your designs have such similar body types? Is it really out of story purposes, or are you just unable to think about your designs in other physiques?
- Do you know how to draw different body types in general? Have you taken the time to practice and learn? Any art style can depict a variety of body types, it's not a question of fitting, it's a question of the artist's skill to adapt. That can be learned and honed. Yes, you too can learn.
- How many of your characters have physical disabilities? Is the amount simply tied to the fact that you hadn't thought to add any? Disability is also something you can learn more about and then apply to your stories. Yes, even if you're abled.
- Are you only drawing characters a certain way because you think the other alternatives are ugly? Why? And why shouldn't you learn to draw ugly things too? Do you really think these things are ugly, or are you just not used to seeing it? Ugly traits in character designs isn't a bad thing. But it is bad to give your character traits you deem ugly, in order to present them in a negative light. Real people out there have these traits you think ugly. Ugliness doesn't make someone a bad person.
- Do you know how to appropriately draw various ethnic traits? Do you avoid drawing certain traits because you have a bad impression of the ethnicity? Are the traits you consider ugly, actually just traits different ethnicities have? Do you avoid drawing racial diversity out of inexperience, or are you just nervous to make a mistake? These things can also be learned. Yes, even if you're white.
- Do you assign your ethnic looking characters certain traits simply because you associate this ethnicity with them? Is this backed up by any research, or are you relying on stereotypes that mainstream media always leans on? Are you aware of stereotypes, or harmful biases?
- Do you only draw curvy bodies for sexual or otherwise appearance based reasons? Do you notice yourself portraying curvy characters more sexually simply because of their body type, instead of something related to the character? Do you automatically make your promiscuous and sexual characters a specific body type? Why? Why not some other one? Why can't another body type be sexually attractive?
- In the case of fat characters, are they usually if not always linked to themes that are associated with fatness? Are all your fat mermaids whales or octopi? Why can't cute catgirls be fat? Do you give your fat characters associations with pigs, cows, or other fat animals? Do you do it with all of them? Are you aware of reductive tropes that implicitly reinforce negative stereotypes?
- Do you portray thin characters in a normal way? Do you have thin characters with small boobs, narrow hips, wide shoulders, bulky jaws or protruding features? Do you portray thin characters as anything other than conventionally attractive? Do you intend your thin characters to always look attractive? Do you only portray thinness in relation to poor health? Eating disorders? A character's health isn't always dictated by their body type. Fat people can be healthy, or have eating disorders just the same as thin people.
- Do you always make your male characters traditionally masculine? Are they often muscular or square shaped automatically? Do you portray fat male characters as either comedic or gross? Are you (intentionally or not) saying something about your male characters through how masculine (or not) they are? What? And why? How do you portray feminine male characters? Are they always portrayed as more sexual, innocent or weak? Why? Do you think this could (intentionally or not) say something negative about these characters? Do you infantilize male characters based on certain traits? Their ethnicity, body shape and size, or sexuality?
- Do you always make your female characters feminine? Do they always have only specific traits and body types? Why? Do you automatically portray masculine women as more aggressive, loud or mean? Why? And why don't you do this in comparison to your feminine women? Are you (intentionally or not) often putting masculine women in a negative role in the story? Why? Did you intend this when designing them? Do you give masculine traits to female characters who are meant to be seen as bad? Even if not intended, is there still a harmful pattern in how you do this?
