How to Help a Friend
While I focus on friends with Mary Sues, most of this advice also applies to family members, art idols, and strangers.
Have you ever picked up a new story, feeling good about its potential to lift you up and alleviate your boredom, only to find that it houses a dreaded Mary Sue?
You stare at the piece of paper. Now what? You aren't pond scum, so you know better than to type "ur chara is a mary sue, u suck, go die in a hole." But what do you say? On the one hand, you don't want to hurt the writer's feelings, or turn them off of writing forever. But on the other, you feel that you have to say something...
This guide wil
Beginnings
What role does this character play?(Storybased):
What inspired you to create this character?:
What does this character represent to you, if anything?:
What goals do you have for this character?:
Full Name:
Pronunciation of their name(first, middle name(s) and last):
Meaning of their full name:
Why did their parents name them this?:
If not parents, what decided their name?:
Why did you, their creator name them this?:
Title(Mr./Mrs./Lord/Lady/Sir/):
Nickname(s):
Do they enjoy these/this nickname(s)?:
History behind nickname(s):
Alias(es):
Before going on with this sheet, take a moment to briefly describe this character as a whole,
How to Write a [Near]-Fainting Experience
Brought to you by Super Editor in 2011, revised 2020
You've probably all read books or seen movies in which a character passes out. The heroine might swoon gracefully and collapse onto the floor or into the hero's arms. People rush to bring water, a doctor, or something to revive her. She then wakes up, rosy-cheeked and a bit distressed, and she fans herself for a while while insisting that she is fine.
Fainting in real life is not nearly so beautiful. Authors, especially ones with no experience, can sometimes fall for such idealized descriptions. I am (un)fortunate enough to have experience in this