Mary-Sue - a fanfic staple

[Christina]

This style of fiction was mentioned in the Literature forum and I confessed to having written some in the past. So I was wondering, what is your definition of Mary-Sue, as fan writers yourselves.

I've always regarded it as the stuff where the author has included themselves in the story as a (usually main) character.

Others have commented that the character always saves the day and wins the lover of their choice. But I personally don't see that as essential to the genre. Do you?

[Holodoc]

Thought Mary Sues more often have a fling and then die nobly, thus affording the writer vicarious interaction and then removal so as to negotiate with future realshow continuity.

Don't see where they would particularly be the main original character in the fanfic. They can just be there on the bridge giving the OPs info if that's what the author gets off on.

It's just that their presence is known. The degree of how much varies from the modest to the major love interest. Remember: It's the writer getting off on the experience. He/She/It has their own personal threshold apart from the typical observers'

[Christina]

*blushing frantically*

I think you got that exactly right. Have you been hacking into my PC? No, don't answer that, I don't really want to know.


exits rapidly

[Holodoc]

;D

[Ana Ng]

I've read my share of fanfic (various genres) and the "Mary-Sue" stories are too oft maligned, IMO.  

I know that in fanfiction, people can get quite venomous if they detect someone writing a Mary-Sue story.  I've never understood this, especially since I've read *plenty* of fanfiction that is a LOT more offensive than a simple story where an author writes him or herself into it.

Besides, isn't it supposed to be all in fun?  I never understood people who fancy themselve "fan-fiction literary critics".  Certainly, I've read some pretty bad fan-fiction, but I've never seen the need to openly bash someone, no matter how much I dislike a story.

[Nolo]

Mary-Sue – a fanfic staple revived

Holodoc on December 18th, 2001, 2:00pm

"All in fun" is relative. When the writer isn't writing with consideration to entertain others but to display some vain exercise in self-gratification, the fun factor is fairly limited.

Also, I think in some regard, people write and read fan fictions in part because they look to them as favorable alternatives to the original show. Mary Sue is perhaps the most clichéd and hackneyed plot element, bringing down the level of quality and appeal of the piece.

But, since ultimately the Mary Sue writer doesn't care because they're in their own little world, they don't realize that too often their target audience is one. Some things are better left to a journal

Christina on December 18th, 2001, 9:57pm

But when you're starting out, just 'trying your hand' at writing, isn't it best to write something you know about? That's the usual advice isn't it?

Some of us just have a more limited imagination than others.

So long as no one confuses me with the real fan writer called Christina who is contributing to Voyager Virtual Series 8.
Honest, no relation whatsoever!

Holodoc on December 18th, 2001, 10:47pm

quote on December 18th, 2001, 9:57pm, Christina wrote:
But when you're starting out, just 'trying your hand' at writing, isn't it best to write something you know about? That's the usual advice isn't it?

We know the show. They know the show. Yes?

Quote:
So long as no one confuses me with the real fan writer called Christina who is contributing to Voyager Virtual Series 8.

Best never to bring up VV8 in my presence. They're a perfect example of the wrong people writing for the wrong reasons and about what they didn't know. People specializing in certain slash or relationships were suddenly called on to write for all the characters, including those they didn't like. And boy did it show!

I almost joined it as a writer and EMH consultant until I read their plots and intentions. I thought to join because it was touted as a sincere attempt to continue the series with utmost attention to canon. It turned out to be the most horrifying piece of shipper-from-Hell, and I ran screaming from the group as fast as I could. They have some vanity names listed there, they get promoted because of who they know, they get incredible royal treatment by the fanfic community, and the results have been TERRIBLE. And I'm not the only one who thinks so.

So can we like - not mention them or Voyager 7.5? It's just too distressing to think they exist and in a position of such prestige for the awful material they've unleashed on a hungry fandom.  

Christina on December 18th, 2001, 10:53pm

I completely agree

Holodoc on December 19th, 2001, 1:07am

*pats Christina on the back

Friennnnd...  

If someone has more on this thread or feel like commenting pleas do so.

[Christina]

* grabs fresh bottle of brandy and dashes back to the bonfire and Chocolate thread*


WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[Holodoc]

Christina said:

* grabs fresh bottle of brandy and dashes back to the bonfire and Chocolate thread*


WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Oh no. All that brandy... she's hallucinating an excessive C/7 fan following.

***Holodoc loads a hypospray with Inaprovalene and runs off in search for the delirious Christina

[Holodoc]

Which reminds me. Someone in that other BBS a looonnnng time ago posted the URL to the following site. Many of us saw it for the brilliant parody it truly is. Do you know how hard it is to write like that?

Anyway, you'll be on the floor: ANALYIAH'S JAKOTA/7 TRU LUV PAGE! is the epitome of bad Mary Sue fan fiction, C/7 fiction, and a true Goddess of Dada (or God for all we know. Whomever it was, they were savvy enough to post many of the stories in alt.startrek.creative. Newsgroups are not commonly frequented by Internet Newbies).

I see Analyiah's since posted her picture.  

Unfortunately, those "other BBS" moderators didn't think it was appropriate to discuss Analyiah's brilliance - or even exchange banter in her unique lingo - and promptly locked the threads up tight. (After all, they were taking the attention away from threads about violating crew members. Talk about selectively enforcing censorship)

Bask in the greatness of badness that is Analyiah, and let's hear which were your favorites.

[Christina]

I read the thread about it, but didn't bother to visit the site. Frankly, it sounded appalling.
If even Americans were complaining about the spelling and grammar, what would I have thought?

I also have a block where C/anything is concerned...(except C/C of course!   )

[Holodoc]

Well it depends on one's sense of humor. It's delightful and reading the grammar is the whole point of it. It's not like these are typos; typos are accidental. These are so twisted that they become a new dialect. It's uproarious.

And they're the epitome of Mary Sue satire.

One can easily forgive the C/7 content because of the nature of these "stories" (does a paragraph constitute a story?). I mean, look at me: I'm HOLODOC. Think I'd tout a C/7 site?

You really should read one of them - aloud. You'll start laughing, and that's a very good thing to do.

[Christina]

Okay, I'll give them a try sometime.

I have a fairly strange sense of humour sometimes...

We'll see.

[Holodoc]

Sometimes?

[Christina]

Okay, I've read the Tuvok one.
And laughed.

But Yuk!

I can't take more than one of those at a time!

Whatever happened to 'his hot breath on her neck' ?

[Holodoc]

Christina said:

Whatever happened to 'his hot breath on her neck' ?

Eh. It's been done.