Going from AI Slop to a Lovable Character
The Beaver spans both character and creature in “The Hunting of the Snark.” It is the Bellman’s pet, the Butcher’s foil, and the Barrister’s antagonist. It knits. It galumphs. It counts (poorly). It even debates insurance policies.
It is also a delicious double entendre — perfect for the many of the themes I wanted in the book.
So as imagination dust swirled and coalesced, the main idea started to emerge:
- The Beaver is the Bellman’s stooge/ servant
- The Beaver is (obviously) anthropomorphic on walks on two legs.
- However, the Beaver is still very much an animal
So first I decided that the Beaver needed clothes—but not too many. I started with a bow tie. Something about the excessive formality and professionalism on a furry buck-toothed creature called to me (also, my Black Lab looks quite handsome in a bow tie so I knew it could work). From there adding the Playboy Bunny Costume detached cuff links merged formality and innuendo perfectly. Throw in a monocle for comical studiousness, and we’re all set!
Off to AI (using Stable Diffusion with A1111) to generate some examples!
All of which are really bad: wonky proportions, grotesque hands, and utterly chaotic constructions.
But each one has elements that were workable: the upright posture, the proportions, the coloring on the bow tie and cuff links. So now I’ve got two options: a) continue refining prompts and models and in painting and masks until I get the perfect character built or b) work with a human artist.
Knowing that my end goal was to work with an artist to build a cohesive story, option B was a no-brainer; if I was focused on mastering AI artistry, I might have chosen option A. So ,after identifying the few salvageable elements, I condensed them into a clear brief for the artist:
- Anthropomorphic beaver, should generally walk on hind legs
- However, is regular Beaver size, should only come up to the other character’s shins
- Wears a bow tie and cuff links
One of the early signs that I had found a good collaborative partner with my artist were the clear and concise notes we could give each other.
Artist: “Ditch the monocle, we’ll get better facial expressions without it.”
Me: “The hands and feet are too leathery and frightening, give it a softer look.”
And that’s all the “prompt engineering” we humans had to do.
