So this one here is something all you artists should know. Especially for starters. I don't believe that any of you don't have knowledge about these things, but just in case, I present you... The OC and OTC. ALL of you would stumble upon this one day anyways even if you didn't know about it, whether you are a Mangaka, Cartoonist, et cetera.
THE OC
OC is short for Original Character. An Original Character is a Character you made completely by yourself, using your heart and brain. And hands. XD You decide their name, their race (Caucasian? Asian? Mongoloid? Amerindian?), type (Human? Demon? Centaur? Angel?), clothes, personality, background, et cetera.
It is different from Fanart. Fanart is someone else's OC which you drew, just because you like them that much. -_-
THE OTC
Now, the OTC is short of One True Character. *beams a huge smile* an OCT is an OC, but it's special...
An OTC is a character which you draw to represent yourself. It doesn't need to have the same name, gender, type, et cetera.
FOOOOOOOOOR EXAMPLE. Heck, your name can be Daniel (no offense to all Daniels out there) and you might be an American making an OCT named Vierra (...obviously a female) who is a fallen Archangel who used to be a European dude, and who now resides in the depths of hell. -shudders-
So basically, an OTC is how you would like to see or picture yourself. IT'S ALL FROM FAN-TA-SY~ But like how you can make your OTC ENTIRELY different from who or WHAT you actually are, you are, of course, completely allowed to make your OTC with the same appearance and name as yours. Then again, it's up to you.
...But of course. Because it represents yourself, it would have to possess the same personality traits. XD
That's all about the OC and the OTC. I hope it helped. Even though you can't draw yet, you can make them up in your head and draw them later, just like what I did back then. UNLEASH YOUR IMAGINATION, guys, set free the art!! Thanks for reading, and seeya! :D
~AleXiS96~3896, freelance artist