In an article for Writer’s Digest, June Gervais says there are 8 things you need to know about tattoos. They include:
- The art form has its own vocabulary. Don’t call it a tattoo gun, Gervais warns.
- A character’s tattoo can say a lot about their personality. “What could you imply by giving them a tattoo in a hidden place—or in a highly visible one?” Gervais asks. “Can you make that tattoo an unusual image that will pique our curiosity and reveal its meaning later?” What your character’s tattoo communicates will also vary by era.
- Not every tattoo has a meaning. Some are just for fun.
- Tattoo imagery has changed over time. “The ‘90s brought a wave of tribal and Celtic tattoos (along with culturally appropriated Chinese characters later revealed to mean “toilet demon” and the like),” Gervais notes. “These days, Pinterest has become a powerhouse for driving tattoo trends—much to the frustration of artists who are weary of feathers that dissolve into a flock of birds, or lions surrounded by roses and pocket watches.”
- The process has changed. These days, there are more options for designs and colors. Also, your tattoo artist probably won’t use the same needle they used on the last guy. And remember, you get what you pay for.
- Tattooing has a complicated relationship with race. “When I first began poring over historic photographs of tattooing in the U.S., I primarily found profiles of white men,” Gervais says. Nonetheless, women and people of color have been recipients and pioneers of tattoo art.
- …and a complicated relationship with gender. See above.
- Tattoo artists have great stories about their best and worst clients.
