Some kids just won't leave the nest: Pippin!

One of my favorite aspects of storytelling is undoubtedly character creation.  From the moment I picked up my first pencil and started doodling, I was creating characters and stories to immerse those characters in (I'm fairly certain that a lot of these old "books" I wrote/drew still exist somewhere in my house, probably under my bed).  My love of character creation really blossomed, however, when I joined Neopets around the age of twelve.  From there, I took up role-playing, and for several happy years my friends and I developed countless fantastic characters and stories.

Though I'm older now and I've mostly retired from role-playing, I still look fondly at the vast spectrum of characters I hold close to my heart.  I've no regrets about my role-playing; thanks to it, I learned a lot about creating well-rounded, believable characters that can truly touch someone.  If you go on my deviantART, you can actually find a link on my Journal that will take you to a Freewebs page that basically lists all my "canon" characters.  Although I do not draw or write about these characters anymore, I still like to remember they exist (which is why I have yet to retire that page from the public eye, I suppose).

There are other characters, however, that refuse to be simply set aside with fondness.  There are some that just somehow take hold of your attention and, no matter what you do, won't leave you alone.

Continue reading after the break!

For me, these characters are Princess Maura and Pippin.  Maura and Pippin were introduced to the world sometime during 2007 in this MSPaint comic (as a side note, it's interesting to watch my art evolution in the following comics):

Fairly crude, but it established two characters that would remain basically the same in all the years they have taken up residence in my mind.  Where Maura and Pippin came from, I've since forgotten.  All I can suppose was that Pippin was a happy chance doodle, and Maura just followed suit.

Since that first comic, other short comics followed suit occasionally (circa 2008):

And even three other ones just from 2010 that didn't even make it on deviantART (with Maura aged very strangely at 13):

At this point, I think it is pertinent to ask why I insist on reviving Maura and Pippin occasionally to the public eye.  (For the record, I now place Maura around 16, for reasons that will perhaps be expanded on another time.)  Honestly, the answer is just as mysterious to me as anyone else.  Why do Maura and Pippin show up in my sketch/notebook doodles constantly?  Why do I still think about their story and potential stories for them?

Here, for example, are two quick joke comics I just did recently with the troublesome duo:

The best conclusion I can reach is that because I know deep down that, someday, Maura and Pippin will be something big.  I can come up with material for them often on the spot.  I love drawing them.  And considering that they've stuck around for five years now, who am I to think they won't force their presence upon me for another five at least?

And I, for one, will be quite happy about it!  Knowing Maura and Pippin, I'm sure that whatever they have planned for me in the future, it'll be quite a ride.

Do you have similar characters that seem to have a permanent residence on your creative property?  Do these characters often change over time, or have some remained basically the same since their first conception?  What gives more characters more staying power than others?  What are your thoughts?