Does any doll you buy have to fit a story?

I have never bought a doll for a preexisting character. However, once I get them I tend to start writing new stories based on them.

 

Not for me. They have to speak to me in some way.

 

While I'm trying to limit myself to only getting dolls for my existing characters, that's a recent development for me. All of my dolls except for the newest one I started to create characters for after I bought them, usually while waiting for them to arrive. I have trouble getting a sense of what character a doll suits just from looking at company photos. I need to play around with wigs, eyes and clothes to figure out what personality suits the mold.

When I finally got a doll with a particular character in mind, I was scared that it wouldn't work out. I had built up so much around the doll and the idea of getting her, as she was one of my dream dolls as well, that the idea that she wouldn't work out for the character was terrifying. I bit the bullet and bought her, figuring that if she didn't work for the planned character then I would just make a character to suit the doll. Well once I put her clothes and wig on, I took one look and knew I had made the right decision for the doll-version of the character.

So both getting a doll just because you like, then developing a character for it, and getting a doll because it suits a character have both good points and bad points. Personally, if I don't go looking at dolls with a particular character in mind, I'm more likely to want a lot of dolls. When I limit myself by keeping what characters I want in mind, I'm picky about my choices.

 

My dolls have nothing to do with characters or stories, so I don't have this type of restriction~

 

All of them have to. I feel it eliminates impulse buying.
I like having a back story before the doll. Forcing myself to require that also eliminates impulsive buying.
And if it's not perfect, I continue the search.
I'm sure my stories would develop more depth if they had more characters, but I don't want to have to shell them ='( my poor wallet

 

No not really. But if it's easy for me to imagine their story when I see the doll, then I consider buying the doll or putting it on the wish list. Each doll I get has their own unique story that is independent of the others yet they can all interact in the same the story if I choose. It's fun to consider vignettes about their interactions. I don't have preexisting characters that I'd like re-create in doll form but I do need that which ever doll I see, they inspire me in some way.

 

With the exception of my one and only SD doll, all my other dolls are avatars of pre-existing original characters. It's not absolutely necessary for my dolls to shell my OCs, but I like the idea of the doll having a character, personality and back story before I get them home. Part of the fun for me is searching out just the right sculpt for a certain character. Also, having dolls based on characters helps me plan and organize my collection and helps me limit my dolly spending. Having a plan helps me not to impulse buy. This hobby is expensive enough without impulse buying a doll that I might not really want, like or relate to.

 

Way back in the early ages when I was not able to buy dolls, I set up stories for my "future" dolls. And now, whenever I buy new dolls, I try to make up new stories and characters that can make them fit into the original story. For me it's like becoming a big a family when I do so.

 

Like you, I bought my dolls for the way they looked, their bodies, posability etc etc... and I did'n have any characters in mind for them, intstead, they started developing their own characters the moment they arrived home. For me it is like knowing new people, 'blank' so to speak, because you do not adapt or choose your friends based on a preexisting chaacter.

 

Avalon originally was supposed to be a teenage alchemist elf but he's quickly turning into a storyline of his own in which he jumps out of my alternate self's world and he winds up becoming what he is now...XD;; A companion elf so to speak.

 

I definitely plan my doll purchases on what sculpts/faces would fit certain characters. I don't go out specifically looking for dolls that look like a character in mind, but if I come across one and go WOW THAT WOULD BE GREAT FOR [BLAH], then it gets added to my list. This happened with Sahariel when I came across 5StarDolls' Tumnus and, of course, with my cat girls, Poe and Desma.

I, personally, feel like, if I don't have a game plan for a doll, I'm worried it'll just gather dust and I'll be too stubborn to sell it after spending money on it and then doing nothing with it. So basing dolls on characters I have is helpful because then I know what things I want to look for to help complete the doll and such.

I do have a doll on my list that I don't have any particular character in mind for, so it's not as if I'll ONLY be interested in dolls that will work for my characters, it just helps motivate me! Plus, I like bringing my creations to 'life', so to speak, and modeling a doll off of them is a good way to do so.

 

I do and I don't at the same time.

Most of my SD girls (SD Megu, School B, Rose and Kun) are from the same story and Rupert (Volks Kurt) has a story, but my Unoa has no story of her own and I didn't get her specifically for a character, she originally belonged to a friend who has passed away, so I got her as a memorial for my friend.

The same goes for my Volks F-03/F-05 head, Poppy, and my Elfdoll Hazy head. I got them for face-up and modding practice, and they seem to have taken on lives of their own!

 

None of my dolls had a pre-existing character. Most of my dolls have existing stories in my head after I 'got to know them', so they're more like inspiration for writing, drawing and character development. However, I'm really excited to shell my first (and only) OC soon. I also want a character doll from an anime series, so those are the two exceptions. Everyone else is in my possession because I thought they were pretty

 

All my dolls have characters. I'm a roleplayer so I can't imagine it otherwise! But when this character is developed really depends on the circumstance and the doll. Sometimes I've had a doll come home and then I make up a character for it, and sometimes I have a character idea in mind, buy a doll to embody it, and then "learn" more about the character as I play with the doll. I try to keep dolls within the same continuity (ie. world and story), but if a doll ends up not fitting in, I won't stress out -- this is just an opportunity to make up something different! But all of them have a character and background, all of them have a story and world they live in.

But I don't buy dolls to shell pre-existing characters that are fully-fledged in my imagination -- I once tried, and failed miserably. The doll sculpt plays a critical role in my development of the character: both are intimately intertwined and inform each other, and the life of the character is literally tied to the sculpt. If I sell a doll, its character is effectively dead in my imagination. And a character is only "born" when I bring a doll home. So my "doll world" is separate from my other imaginary and story-writing worlds.

 

it's in my nature to create personas and backstories for every doll i become attached to. sometimes i write stories set in an alternate universe where the characters are based on some of my dolls, but that doesn't mean every doll i own is ever going to be a main character...some of them may just be frequent cameos or supporting characters.

on a side note, i always work the story and the character around the doll, and not vice versa (i don't do "shelling"- at least up until now i never have). recently though, i have been feeling a little conflicted about the doll i chose to represent a character in a story i'm writing, and i am wondering if i will possibly end up "re-shelling" her after all.

 

I always make my dolls fit into the on going story I have for all of them, but I let the doll tell me where it belongs in the story instead of force them into it. I have no idea how my next few dolls will fit into my story, but I'm going to see where they fit in. Its a mark of a good writer to be able to take any character and flesh them out into a specific situation.

 

My dolls don't have any stories behind them, mostly I just explore the doll, feel what they feel like and then decide what kind of personality they have and sometimes they change a lot!

 

All my dolls belong to a story (or another - most are pulling double duty in both the "real life" and "fantasy" storyline). When I first started researching BJDs I felt like I could have bought any doll I saw because there are just too many lovely ones ... focusing on the story gives me a starting point. Maybe in 10 years when the crew is complete and I've got a decently-paying job I'll go beyond it But for now I focus on getting my crew home, and if I see a doll I love that just doesn't fit they go on the "maybe one day" wishlist. So if I ever end up with money needing to be spent, I'll always know where to put it

 

My first human doll was for a particular character, but the ones since are just because I liked the sculpt-their characters came later. All of my anthros were simply because they appealed to me.

 

I love Ukitake from Bleach, so yes, I am currently day dreaming of a SD to dress up similar and be just as pretty most of the time I don't though, I just thought Ukitake would look great as an SD!