Problem 1: One of my characters has this odd obsession with explosives and weapons, he has an advanced knowledge of bomb crafting and always talks about it. However, I just realized in order to write his character I'd have to know how explosives work, and obviously, I can't google "How to make a bomb" because that's creepy and illegal, and I have no idea how else to research this. So in a magical world, what sort of materials would someone use to make a bomb? It doesn't have to make sense in the real world, Heck, it could even be baking soda and vinegar or some sort of made up material, but I need to think up a method of making explosives and with my knowledge of science, I can't. Problem 2: I kinda ship two of my characters, they have a lot of height difference and they're really cute together, but one of them is so short she's sometimes mistaken for being a child, which made me wonder, would people think I'm some sort of twisted maniac for shipping an adult with someone who's as short as a child? How childish can I make her before it becomes creepy? Is it already creepy? Would other characters think it's creepy? How many times can I finish a question with creepy? I'm only 13 so I don't quite know how these things work. Thanks in advance! ~NutElla The Ultimately Superior
For the bomb part, I'm not sure… I don't know what kind of magic you have, but you could always take an approach similar to Fullmetal Alchemist, I think it was? This guy was able to rearrange the substances in the human body to make people explode, if I remember right. Of course, don't take that exactly, but maybe have him be able to put together substances you normally wouldn't think of to make one and come up with some BS magic explanation. Usually, because it's magic, readers are like, "ah, okay. Checks out, I guess."
For the relationship, it depends on her personality. If she's mature and acts like an adult, it's okay, but if she looks and acts like a child, then it might not go over so well. Also depends on how mature the guy is personality-wise. I think with that part, go with your gut. If you feel unsure or uncomfortable, then you should probably change things. Just keep in mind that real people have relationships that look different. And it's not uncommon for someone to look younger than their age. For example, I'm older than my boyfriend, but I still look like I could be anywhere from his age to 4 or 5 years younger (which wouldn't be cool at all), but our dynamic and ability to function as adults makes things work. Good rule of thumb: If she looks like a child, and acts like a child, then she is a child.
Just going to comment on this so it'll go back to the top… Also is it weird to ship my own OCs in general?
Not really? I used to do it, but now I kind of steer clear in case it interferes with story… that is, unless it’s specifically for story.
For the bomb part… How about some kind of ground up mineral that's flammable? And when it's compacted into a small package and set on fire it explodes.
Explosives often rely on rapid expansion of gas after a reaction. Nitrogen compounds are commonly used. For example ammonium nitrate, which is found in fertiliser and while it usually won't explode by itself and needs to be mixed with something like aluminium powder, it may be possible to by-pass this with magic. TNT is another nitrogen compound. Not as easy to come by, but could be transmuted if your magic system allows?
Just going to comment on this so it'll go back to the top… Also is it weird to ship my own OCs in general?
LOL no. I ship my portrait character and my adorably shy OC, just I don't mention it in my writing.
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