Anti Mary-Sue Character Guide

Copying Cannon Characters - Fanfiction

           

Credit to @ahkmenlove for this idea.

I covered the use of cardboard cut outs in an earlier chapter and this one will build on that idea. I have read a few fanfictions now where the characters are almost replicas of existing cannon characters.

I find that the carbon copies only use the good and badass aspects of the character they are coping, often ignoring the more negative traits. They can even copy the history of the cannon character. For example, a girl from abnegation rocking up into dauntless at the same time as Tris.

It's boring ad leaves an unbalanced, Mary-sue character who is just cringey to read.

When designing an original character that you want to pop into an existing world, I would really recommend changing them up. Don't copy Katniss's or Daryl's bow or their 'aloof and volatile personality'. Or their survivalist attitude. Just be different and enhance a story, not make the reader feel ripped off.

 

One tip is to take a character you like from another series, make sure they aren't too like a main fanfic character and base your OC from there. With a quick name change and appearance change, you can have a fresh model to work from.

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Hey guys,

I hope that chapter made sense to everyone! If not, drop a comment and I'll make sure to get it fixed!

If you have any ideas for chapters, leave a comment or message me. I really do like giving credit where credit is due, mainly because I always wanted this book to be a collaboration between authors.

Also, sorry for the really long wait!