Post by Emilee Jonson on Jun 24, 2010 23:05:30 GMT -6
MARY SUES
What they are & how to avoid being one.
By definition, a Mary Sue is a character with very little to no flaws. Someone who is not only physically gorgeous, but is extraordinarily talented, popular, and basically perfect in every way. They are usually described in a way similar to this:
Jane is an incredibly attractive sixteen year old girl. Her eyes – a breathtaking blue like that of the purest sapphire – have the ability to stare into the souls of whomever she pleases. Her hair softly cascades down her back in gentle waves like a glorious golden waterfall. Her beautiful blue eyes and plump, naturally pink lips are a perfect contrast to her flawless porcelain-like skin and her bone structure is nothing short of exquisite. Her clothing, always the latest fashions by the most famous designers in the world, only accentuate her amazingly curvaceous body that is the envy of every woman around her.
I'm sure we all know some pretty blondes in our town, but describing them in such a way is extremely over the top. Not to mention that Jane apparently doesn't have a single flaw in her appearance. Not even a pimple.
The best way to avoid this is to simply describe your character as if you are describing yourself or one of your friends. Am I saying that your character has to look like you? Of course not! Just that you wouldn't go around describing your eyes like sapphires, your hair like golden waterfalls, etc. Or at least I hope not.
The same character description toned down a bit:
Jane is a rather pretty sixteen year old girl with blue eyes that seem to light up whenever she smiles. Her hair is medium length, blond, and falls down her back in gentle curls, except for the days when she wears it up in a ponytail. Her lips are naturally a shade of light pink, which she accentuates by always wearing a shimmery lip gloss. Her skin, while occasionally marred by a pesky blemish or two, is usually fair and smooth. You most often see her wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans, which is what she is most comfortable in, except when she is going out with her friends. In those cases, she will occasionally wear a nice skirt that gives her a chance to show off her legs, which she thinks is her best feature.
See the difference?
Both describe the same person, but one of them sounds much more down to earth than the other. The first sounds like you're describing a Greek Goddess and I have yet to see one of those walking around in my neighborhood!
Character histories and personalities are the same deal. Give them some personality flaws...and I don't mean to make them lonely and depressed because they're so extraordinarily beautiful and talented that everyone is jealous of them so they have no friends. That is definitely a Mary Sue.
Mary Sue:
You would think that Jane was constantly surrounded by friends due to her gorgeous appearance, but because she is so beautiful, everyone at her school hates her. She knows that it's just because they are jealous of her incredible beauty, but it still causes her to be lonely. Especially when she sees groups of friends hanging out together and laughing. She wishes more than anything that she could have some friends of her own, but people just seem so intimidated by her that she knows she will always be lonely. Because of this, she cries in her bedroom every night and wishes that one day, some one would see past her beauty and like her for who she is.
Non-Sue:
Jane is usually a sweet girl to those around her, though a little shy and awkward around those she doesn't know. Because of this, she doesn't make friends easily, but she has a few close friends that she would give anything for. She loves music and is a skilled pianist, since her parents started her in piano lessons when she was just five years old. She is also fond of art, though she isn't quite as talented as that as she would like to be. She tried painting when she was fifteen, but soon gave up since her paintings resembled something found hanging outside a kindergarten classroom. She is a decent swimmer and can often be found down at her local YMCA during her free time.
THE ANTI-SUE
Going to the opposite extreme.
Something that can be just as annoying as an overly perfect character is an overly tragic one:
John's parents died in a horrible car crash when he was just three years old. He almost died, but the emergency technicians rushed him to the hospital as soon as they found him and he survived, though he lost his right leg because the front seat had been pushed back into his carseat. All of his grandparents had died before he was born, which meant he had no family members to take him in, so he was put into the foster care system. For the next thirteen years, he was passed from home to home and was physically and verbally abused by each set of foster parents. He ran away when he was sixteen and got his first girlfriend, with whom he instantly fell in love. But a month later, she was shot during a random drive by shooting and Darren was once again all alone with no one to love him. Now he barely gets out of bed - which right now is a cardboard box on Jefferson Street - and constantly thinks of taking his own life.
Not many people are going to want to roleplay with a character that is that negative. Not only because it's depressing, but because it usually ends in their character constantly having to console your character. And after a while, that gets extremely irritating. I've been there.
I am not saying that every character's history must be full of gum drops and rainbow sprinkles, they simply need to be balanced.
It is true that some tragic book characters are absolutely riveting to read when they are written by an experienced and talented writer, but roleplaying is an entirely different situation. Remember, you're writing with a partner, not solo. Your character should be fun to read and write for both you and the person with whom you are roleplaying. Otherwise, your threads are going to die because your partners have decided to go find a more upbeat characters.
It is perfectly okay for a character to have lost a parent or to have been raised in a foster home, etc. But their past should not be so traumatic that they stumble around in every post, considering taking their own life because they're always so lonely and depressed. That's so negative that it really brings down the fun in roleplaying for a lot of people.
Instead, let the character's past have an effect on his personality. For instance, maybe because he was raised in foster care, Darren finds it difficult to trust other people...but he has found one or two close friends that he has learned to trust over time.
Understand?
If you need any help in determining whether or not your character falls into Mary Sue territory, send me a PM.
RECAP
Beware of over-the-top adjectives (exquisite, flawless, stunning, breathtaking, perfect, etc).
Keep their finances reasonable for the roleplay setting.
Tragic pasts do not automatically make your character an interesting one to read or roleplay with.
What they are & how to avoid being one.
By definition, a Mary Sue is a character with very little to no flaws. Someone who is not only physically gorgeous, but is extraordinarily talented, popular, and basically perfect in every way. They are usually described in a way similar to this:
Jane is an incredibly attractive sixteen year old girl. Her eyes – a breathtaking blue like that of the purest sapphire – have the ability to stare into the souls of whomever she pleases. Her hair softly cascades down her back in gentle waves like a glorious golden waterfall. Her beautiful blue eyes and plump, naturally pink lips are a perfect contrast to her flawless porcelain-like skin and her bone structure is nothing short of exquisite. Her clothing, always the latest fashions by the most famous designers in the world, only accentuate her amazingly curvaceous body that is the envy of every woman around her.
I'm sure we all know some pretty blondes in our town, but describing them in such a way is extremely over the top. Not to mention that Jane apparently doesn't have a single flaw in her appearance. Not even a pimple.
The best way to avoid this is to simply describe your character as if you are describing yourself or one of your friends. Am I saying that your character has to look like you? Of course not! Just that you wouldn't go around describing your eyes like sapphires, your hair like golden waterfalls, etc. Or at least I hope not.
The same character description toned down a bit:
Jane is a rather pretty sixteen year old girl with blue eyes that seem to light up whenever she smiles. Her hair is medium length, blond, and falls down her back in gentle curls, except for the days when she wears it up in a ponytail. Her lips are naturally a shade of light pink, which she accentuates by always wearing a shimmery lip gloss. Her skin, while occasionally marred by a pesky blemish or two, is usually fair and smooth. You most often see her wearing a simple t-shirt and jeans, which is what she is most comfortable in, except when she is going out with her friends. In those cases, she will occasionally wear a nice skirt that gives her a chance to show off her legs, which she thinks is her best feature.
See the difference?
Both describe the same person, but one of them sounds much more down to earth than the other. The first sounds like you're describing a Greek Goddess and I have yet to see one of those walking around in my neighborhood!
Character histories and personalities are the same deal. Give them some personality flaws...and I don't mean to make them lonely and depressed because they're so extraordinarily beautiful and talented that everyone is jealous of them so they have no friends. That is definitely a Mary Sue.
Mary Sue:
You would think that Jane was constantly surrounded by friends due to her gorgeous appearance, but because she is so beautiful, everyone at her school hates her. She knows that it's just because they are jealous of her incredible beauty, but it still causes her to be lonely. Especially when she sees groups of friends hanging out together and laughing. She wishes more than anything that she could have some friends of her own, but people just seem so intimidated by her that she knows she will always be lonely. Because of this, she cries in her bedroom every night and wishes that one day, some one would see past her beauty and like her for who she is.
Non-Sue:
Jane is usually a sweet girl to those around her, though a little shy and awkward around those she doesn't know. Because of this, she doesn't make friends easily, but she has a few close friends that she would give anything for. She loves music and is a skilled pianist, since her parents started her in piano lessons when she was just five years old. She is also fond of art, though she isn't quite as talented as that as she would like to be. She tried painting when she was fifteen, but soon gave up since her paintings resembled something found hanging outside a kindergarten classroom. She is a decent swimmer and can often be found down at her local YMCA during her free time.
THE ANTI-SUE
Going to the opposite extreme.
Something that can be just as annoying as an overly perfect character is an overly tragic one:
John's parents died in a horrible car crash when he was just three years old. He almost died, but the emergency technicians rushed him to the hospital as soon as they found him and he survived, though he lost his right leg because the front seat had been pushed back into his carseat. All of his grandparents had died before he was born, which meant he had no family members to take him in, so he was put into the foster care system. For the next thirteen years, he was passed from home to home and was physically and verbally abused by each set of foster parents. He ran away when he was sixteen and got his first girlfriend, with whom he instantly fell in love. But a month later, she was shot during a random drive by shooting and Darren was once again all alone with no one to love him. Now he barely gets out of bed - which right now is a cardboard box on Jefferson Street - and constantly thinks of taking his own life.
Not many people are going to want to roleplay with a character that is that negative. Not only because it's depressing, but because it usually ends in their character constantly having to console your character. And after a while, that gets extremely irritating. I've been there.
I am not saying that every character's history must be full of gum drops and rainbow sprinkles, they simply need to be balanced.
It is true that some tragic book characters are absolutely riveting to read when they are written by an experienced and talented writer, but roleplaying is an entirely different situation. Remember, you're writing with a partner, not solo. Your character should be fun to read and write for both you and the person with whom you are roleplaying. Otherwise, your threads are going to die because your partners have decided to go find a more upbeat characters.
It is perfectly okay for a character to have lost a parent or to have been raised in a foster home, etc. But their past should not be so traumatic that they stumble around in every post, considering taking their own life because they're always so lonely and depressed. That's so negative that it really brings down the fun in roleplaying for a lot of people.
Instead, let the character's past have an effect on his personality. For instance, maybe because he was raised in foster care, Darren finds it difficult to trust other people...but he has found one or two close friends that he has learned to trust over time.
Understand?
If you need any help in determining whether or not your character falls into Mary Sue territory, send me a PM.
RECAP
Beware of over-the-top adjectives (exquisite, flawless, stunning, breathtaking, perfect, etc).
Keep their finances reasonable for the roleplay setting.
Tragic pasts do not automatically make your character an interesting one to read or roleplay with.
