Mary Sue Syndrome
What is Mary Sue Syndrome? It is not just your everyday disorder but is instead a trope commonly seen in the writing world, professional or not. For starters, the Mary Sue trope originated from a small short story written in 1973 by Paula Smith. The main character, Mary Sue [shocker], is portrayed as the flawless and exceedingly young attendee working in the same fleet as the infamous cast from the original series of Star Trek. Her actions throughout this story are often for the sake of good, intuition always correct and abnormally logical. Relationship-wise, Mary Sue appears to be a walking attraction magnet, appealing to several characters with her relatable backstory, personality traits, and outward appearance. Although this form of Mary Sue is the most commonly known, it has extended into several different branches, due to the amount of backlash the original had received over a course of time. These extensions can vary, but the most notable [in my opinion] are the ‘jerk’ Mary Sues, who act aggressive and yet is still adored by everyone, and the ‘villain’ Mary Sues, villainous figures whose only downgrading trait is their apparently evil motives. Funnily enough, the legacy of Mary Sues doesn’t stop at fanfiction portrayals and unofficial works; it can be seen in popular novel series and books as well. For example, Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games [written by Suzanne Collins], progresses the games with obvious convenience, opportunities popping up when the time calls for it. The Mary Sue is a simplistic topic with a complex explanation - let’s dive in deeper, shall we?Characterization - the core part of any well-written story. Mary Sues do retain a fair amount of characterization, but still lack in the realism department. A lot of the times, these characters have an imbalance of good and bad traits [or good traits twisted too appear negative]. To name a few, many of these characters are: kind, compassionate, perceptive, and clever. Bad traits are evaded, some authors claiming that, for example, one’s “incapability to deny friends” is considered a negative trait. Characterization is an important aspect of the impact and interest your story may prompt for its readers. Characters are made to be memorable figures, and it can be achieved through avoiding the usage of the Mary Sue. Because of these common deficiencies, characters can easily be dubbed and/or transitioned into a Mary Sue. How can people avoid making their character a Mary Sue? The concept itself isn’t easy to avoid, but it’s possible. Firstly, the characterization of a Mary Sue is a matter of balance, an equal mix of bad traits and good ones. It’s suggested that you begin with the negative traits before moving on to positive, primarily because it limits your choices and helps avoid contradiction. Another choice can be making your character less of a self-insert and more of an individual. Although basing characters off of yourself isn’t uncommon, writing about yourself can be cumbersome [since many have a tendency to unconsciously glorify themselves instead of recognizing their flaws]. Lastly, it’s crucial to emphasize a specific conflict in the story, whether it’d be occurring in the main story or recurring from a past encounter in the character’s life. These ideas should be considered when writing characters, especially because it gives them a special touch that makes them Mary Sue proof.Will you be the author who will create the next Harry Potter, Katniss Everdeen, or Percy Jackson?
