Now I'm just going come out and
say it: please raise your hand if you've ever written a Mary Sue or Gary Stu
character. If you're a writer and your hand isn't raised, well you're a big fat
liar and you need to raise that hand proudly. Why proudly raise your hand for
something heinous,unforgivable, and embarrassing? If you can admit that
you wrote the evil Mary Sue/Gary Stu, that means you recognize that it was
wrong and have probably grown as a writer and know better now.
Here's another question for the
readers: raise your hand if you've ever read a story containing a sue/stu. Okay
we've established some common ground here since if you've read fanfiction or
published literature of any kind, you've endured that one story with that
sue/stu that needed to die. But sometimes the authors of these horrible stories
can and have gotten away with it and only until you were finished or halfway
finished with the story did you realize you've been bamboozled. Fear not
because after today you will no longer have to endure this BS with these
helpful tips provided by a veteran fanfiction and original works author like
myself:
1. Related to an already established character
(Fanfiction)- I have never
seen this work in any given fic because it’s unnecessary and stupid. It’s more
commonly done in the Harry
Potter Archives and it will be usually something like
"Harry/Hermione/Serius/Snape's long lost sister/cousin/brother" when
in no way can it be possible because of how the story is set up. If it's
their offspring, it's a little
better but that writer must be able to pull it off to sell it because even that
is walking a thin line of a plot point.
2. Overpowered (Beauty, powers, talents, etc)- In any other
post about signs of a Mary Sue/Gary Stu this is typically the top or near the
top of the list. By overpowered, I don't mean the "chosen one"; I
mean their breath could cure cancer and their beauty could make a blind man
see. Some writers aren't that blatant and have enough
"talent" to bury their sue-ish tendencies by giving them a
personality (brought up in the next sign) but as soon as a hair flip causes a
tornado or their band wins the talent show because the lead singer can make
doves cry, you know to get out of that story while you still can.
3. Stock Personality/No personality at all- This sign is a
little difficult to explain but it's one that's harder to spot but you'll have
a better reading experience and will be able to sort through crap. Twilight (the "story" I despise with all my being) is
the primary example for this sign or even all these signs.
The stock personality is basically like "dumb blond",
"shy nerd", "jock", "drama queen", or any
character from High School
Musical. Also when the author
describes the character not through dialog with words like
"oh she's hyper" or "she's shy with strangers, but once she gets
to know them she's really nice" is telling you, but not showing you, that
this character is that because you told them their personality. Bella's
"clumbsiness" from Twilight is
the best example of this.
The character having no personality is trickier to spot but
it definitely won't bother you as much as the above one will.Having
no personality is basically when the character is going through the motions of
the story and interacting with the other characters. It sticks out more when
they're paired up against someone who does have a personality. *cough* Bella
Swan *cough*.
4. Fan
Art-Anytime the author says "I have fanart of {insert character's name
here} on my profile" shows that the author may be obsessed with this
character and this character may be the author's avatar for wish fulfillment.
This doesn't always apply but it does a good chunk of the time.
5.You’ll
find your sue-y senses going off/you’re becoming increasingly annoyed with the
character-Usually more seasoned authors or readers a like have this
amazingly helpful sixth sense. The main description of this is when you get
that twist in the pit of your stomach or your hand is itching to click the back
button on the computer or put the book down, you know something's not right.
Trust your instincts so you don't waste your time!
6. Looks
are described like: “her lips look like Angelina Jolie” or “(describes dress)
link to dress on my profile”-This is almost strictly for fanfictions or
stories posted online. The title of this sign really tips it off and so when
you see this just turn back because you're not going to like the rest of it.
7. All
important characters end up liking/hating/lusting after the Sue/Stu- This one is confusing in the sense
where it's like "well duh! Why wouldn't the characters that matter the
most have an opinion about this character?". Think back to your favorite
book. Are you thinking about it? Okay, now think about the main character. Got
it? Now here's the real thinking: do they interact with every character in that book series or
just that book alone? 9/10 times they won't and that's usually because there's
no reason for them to interact with those characters or the plot makes it
impossible. If they are able to interact with every character
that usually means it's either a small cast or there's nothing happening within
the plot.
8. “Angsty” Back Story- To say you've
never read a story that has this "important" plot point in it means
you either read and followed the instructions in How to tell a Fanfiction is going to Suck before you Waste your
Time and never stumbled
across it or you're incredibly lucky. To spot this is usually when the entire
story comes to a screeching halt and usually the Sue/Stu is crying and then
explains why because of their angst ridden past which causes them/excuses them
from what they do in the present (explained in depth in next point). This
"tragic" back story is usually the generic dead family, traumatic
event (rape, murder, etc.), or lost love. Some authors can pull off the
generic back story by deepening it and having an amazing character or plot but
don't hold your breath on every author
being competent.
9. Gets away with sh*t no one else can- Let's take a
stroll down memory lane for a moment: You're ten years old and you broke your
mom's favorite lamp because you were playing soccer in the house (sidenote: did
the Berenstain Bears teach you nothing?). Your mom finds the broken lamp and for the sake of the
flashback you are an only child, the soccer ball is laying by the lamp, and
you're in a soccer uniform. You're expecting your mother to scold you and
possibly spank you but instead she says "oh that's okay, I understand why
you behaved like that". Now you're thinking "I don't remember getting
away with that when I was younger" and that's because you probably didn't.
In a real life situation you shouldn't have
gotten away with that and so there is no excuse in any story for a character to
get away with some variation of that. Usually the variation is saying a below
the belt comment ("Your mom's dead!", "You've never loved
me", "I hate you!") or doing an inexcusable action (sabatouge,
murder, some sort of crime or something heinous within the story's lore) and
the character it affected will usually get very mad like a real person. If the
opposite happens and they let it slide, it's time for you to slide out of there
as well.
10.The Sue/Stu is exactly like the character they
are trying to woo- This sign is beyond creepy
and you will never look at
that said character the same way again if it's done to the extreme. The lesser
case is the exact same personality and mannerisms which is eerie within itself
but the extreme is when they look and dress alike. Now that's just plain
creepy, not to mention lazy.
If this article still wasn't enough, here are some links to some
more information on this literary epidemic:
http://www.onlyfiction.net/ms-test.html-
This has helped so many characters of mine become three dimensional and it
will certainty help yours as well.
http://www.englishchick.com/badfic/msinterview.htm-
Maybe all Mary Sues aren't all bad but judge for yourself in this
groundbreaking (and hilariously truthful) interview with one.
http://mhari.fateback.com/sues.html- This
was the one species that Steve Irwin never got a chance to investigate or
wrestle with but the encyclopedia covers all types of Mary Sues/Gary Stues in
all fandoms.
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