Fanfiction Terminology

Mary-Sue

Mary-Sue (or Marty-Stu/Gary-Stu)-- refers to the presence of an original character that represents an idealized image of the author. They are often portrayed as the most beautiful, intelligent, powerful character with whom everybody falls in love and they can fix everybody's problems. They have often also survived some great tragedy that has molded them heroically into being a better person, and we should all bow down before their perfect greatness. *rolls eyes* Essentially, Mary-Sues are annoying and completely un-realistic figures as they have not a single human flaw within them. They are strongly detested by most readers, but most frequently written by young new authors without the age and/or experience to differentiate between an interesting original character and the dreaded Mary-Sue. Thankfully, given time and exposure, such authors usually grow out of the Mary-Sue compulsion within a year or two. (So please be gentle with them, okay? Most of us won't admit it, but when we first started writing fanfic we probably fell into the Mary-Sue trap as well, so we have no right to point fingers.) This can frequently be a squick for many people, so should be listed in the author's warnings, assuming the author is themself able to make the distinction, of course. Interpretation of a character as a Mary-Sue can be subjective, but there are several "Mary-Sue Litmus Tests" that can be taken to judge whether or not your character is one such. Please note, even the professionals have been known to perpetuate this blight on quality in their own canons from time to time (::cough::Wesley Crusher::cough::) so it can be difficult to avoid. In general, aim to create complex original characters instead of one-dimensional Barbie look-alikes and you stand a good chance of being safe.