Begin with what the character wants now
A useful character background explains a present choice. Name your character, add their role and give one fact that matters: a broken promise, a duty, a loss or a difficult loyalty. The generator connects an origin to a turning point, motivation and current goal, then offers three hooks for future scenes.
Keep the facts that make your OC yours
An OC backstory does not need a complete biography before it becomes useful. Put established facts in What do you already know, including relationships or events you want to keep. Add your own world or campaign setting. Use Directions to avoid for unwanted motifs, such as royalty or a chosen-one plot.
Compare causes, not just wording
The three directions offer a grounded reading, an emotionally intense reading and an unexpected reading of the same input. Choose the origin that gives your character an interesting decision in the next scene. Copy or share that direction, or rewrite one card while keeping the other two available.