30 Day Writing Meme - Day 8
Jul. 19th, 2011 11:21 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morgynleri8 – Do you write OCs? And if so, what do you do to make certain they're not Mary Sues, and if not, explain your thoughts on OCs.
The short answer - yes, and depends on who you ask.
The longer answer:
I write OCs when they speak to me, in the same fashion I do canon characters. More often for an AU than for something that might fit into canon, but not exclusively. Some are bit players created for a specific story, others are ones that take on a life of their own and more than one story. And that doesn't count the expendable victims in any story involving one or more of the Horsemen in Highlander.
Preventing them from being Mary Sues... well, there are people out there who claim all original characters are Mary Sues and authorial inserts. For me, though, it's a matter of making sure their actions fit within the context of the social structures they're dealing with - and not, generally, at the extremes of it. There are a few of my OCs that skirt the edges of what I consider Mary Sue territory, and I let them. Because sometimes I need a character that's more out there and risky. Emily, Hack, and Alysse all come to mind - and all three are older, more established OCs that I don't write as often.
The short answer - yes, and depends on who you ask.
The longer answer:
I write OCs when they speak to me, in the same fashion I do canon characters. More often for an AU than for something that might fit into canon, but not exclusively. Some are bit players created for a specific story, others are ones that take on a life of their own and more than one story. And that doesn't count the expendable victims in any story involving one or more of the Horsemen in Highlander.
Preventing them from being Mary Sues... well, there are people out there who claim all original characters are Mary Sues and authorial inserts. For me, though, it's a matter of making sure their actions fit within the context of the social structures they're dealing with - and not, generally, at the extremes of it. There are a few of my OCs that skirt the edges of what I consider Mary Sue territory, and I let them. Because sometimes I need a character that's more out there and risky. Emily, Hack, and Alysse all come to mind - and all three are older, more established OCs that I don't write as often.