𝖶𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖳𝗂𝗉𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖫𝗈𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗌

𝖶𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖲𝗎𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗉𝗈𝗐𝖾𝗋𝗌

requested by @peaceloveyouforever so I hope this is helpful!

Anyone who knows anything about my writing knows that the one thing I love to write, more than anything else in the whole world, is characters with superpowers. Why? I don't know. It might be my childhood obsession with X-men: Evolution, or my subsequent obsessions with Static Shock, Batman: Beyond, the Justice League, or any other number of cartoon superhero shows. I started writing about superheroes when I was twelve years old, and I have never gone back.
Of course, writing about superheroes (and supervillains!) for over fourteen years teaches you a few things about how to write superpowers - and how not to. A few people have requested that I make a post about what to keep in mind when writing about superpowers, so here it is!

✎ 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 of all, when you're writing a character with superpowers, ignore anyone who says that if you give your character the same powers as another character you're cheating, being uncreative, or whatever else. Listen, there's nothing you can write that hasn't been written, or at least there isn't much. What counts isn't the powers, it's how your specific character chooses to use them! Just because you have a character who is super strong and who can fly doesn't mean that you're writing Superman - maybe your character isn't quite as "Good" or as law-abiding as Superman, or maybe your character is afraid of their own strength and chooses not to use it at all, or maybe they just don't have a lot of control. There's a lot of wiggle room, so don't be afraid to wiggle!

✎ 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗹𝘆, when you give your character superpowers, give them limitations or drawbacks. These don't have to be directly connected to their powers - they can be a part of your character's personality instead. For example, I have a character who can unleash devastating amounts of telekinetic force, but she chooses to suppress her abilities instead of using them because she's afraid that she'll hurt someone - a fear that stems from her past, where she might have accidentally killed someone with her powers. Her fear of her own strength is a limitation on that strength and on her willingness to use it. You can also take this in the other direction and have a character who is so confident that they are helping that they end up doing more harm than good, or a character who so firmly believes that their powers are the answer to all of their problems that they completely miss the simpler solution. There are lots and lots of ways you can do this!

✎ 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 thing to think about, though, is powers-specific disadvantages. Yes, we all know the "Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex" trope/joke, but honestly, most superpowers have some kind of drawback associated with them, especially when they first manifest. If your character is a telepath who doesn't have great control over their telepathy, they might hear things in other peoples' heads that they wish they hadn't, or they might get overwhelmed by the amount of mental "noise" around them. An empath could be overloaded by other peoples' emotions, especially in a crowd, and a pyrokinetic always has to worry about starting accidental fires, of course. Figure out what kind of trouble your character's powers cause for them. This can also be a list of "superpower cons" - reasons why your character might want to give up their powers.

✎ That leads me to my 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 point - figure out how your character feels about their powers! Are they afraid of them? Are they awed? Do they think their powers are super cool, or are they angry that they can no longer lead a normal life? Do they think they need help learning how to deal with them?

✎ In the same vein, figure out who your character can tell about their abilities - every hero needs someone they can trust enough to be their true selves with. It's not good for people, psychologically, to have to wear a mask all the time, even if the mask is invisible. Your hero needs someone they can turn to in times of sorrow or doubt, whether that's a friend or a sibling or a parent or a butler.

✎ Your superpowered character needs to have a life outside of their superpowers, but their superpowers should affect that life, too. What I mean is that there are some things that can't be separated from who we are as people, and superpowers fall into that category. Your psychic character won't only have migraines when they're wearing the mask. Your superstrong character doesn't only have superstrength when they're wearing tights. They still have lives and families and jobs and things that they have to do that don't involve stopping (or starting) the latest crime wave, but their powers don't go away. Show your readers the impact that has on them.

✎ And, 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗹𝗹, when you're writing a superpowered character, think about what drives them. Think about what their morality is, and think about their motivation, and think about how that affects the choices they make with and without their powers. Don't be afraid of the gray areas - sometimes that's where the most interesting stories happen, in the struggle between what a character wants to do and what they know they have to do.

I hope this helps you out when you're writing your superpowered characters. Good luck!

𝗰𝗿; 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀