10 Ways to Un-Sue Your Sue

[dwg.livejournal.com]

limyaael writes fantasy rants about...well, everything. She brings up some thought-provoking things along the way, and the latest rant about "ten ways of making all-powerful, unique protagonists tolerable" has me giggling like crazy because I keep thinking about how this relates to Merita

In particular, point 6:

Limit the number of encomiums they receive. An encomium is a formal expression of praise. It may be as blatant as a character dwelling rapturously on the protagonist’s beauty for four pages (why, hello yet again, Elizabeth Haydon’s Rhapsody), or as “subtle” as the protagonist overhearing a conversation in which the people involved talk about how good and brave and darling she is. This is exactly what it sounds like, a chance to exalt the protagonist to the heavens without fearing that she will sound conceited for thinking about her own good qualities.

How many do you get?

One allowed a book. Two if the other characters are thinking to themselves out of the protagonist’s direct hearing, and never actually tell her how wonderful they think she is.

Yes, that’s an arbitrary number. I’m feeling arbitrary today.

I understand that, sometimes, there really is no other way to get the information about this character across to the audience, and if you’ve got a really self-depreciating or depressed narrator, their own self-esteem is skewed. But the best way to get around this is—ready for it?--show the reader your narrator’s good qualities, and flaws, in action, rather than having other characters whisper about how much they wish they were as beautiful as she is, or as smart, or as brave. At least, if you show us this hero acting like a hero, then we’ll be readier to believe in the encomiums than we will if you just have someone start babbling out of the blue.

I'm doubly amused because I finally found my copy of Danse Macabre in the re-shuffling of the study and was flipping through both the Augustine and Requiem Monologues of Why Anita Is So Damned Great.

Comments

[shadwing.livejournal.com]

Could somebody print this out and mail it to LKH?

All of these points are really good and can really apply to Merry/Anita and they NEED it.

[sevariusjr.livejournal.com]

I would do it, if she actually paid attention to any negative criticism. Or any criticism, really.

[delphinapterus.livejournal.com]

All these points apply ot Merita. I think this one is especially apt: Let the events have different effects on the character, instead of blending together into one undifferentiated mass of Dark Past.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

I also like the one about limiting the number of roles - honestly, how in the hell Anita manages to be the sparkly sex goddess of everything and still pays the bills baffles me. Unless she's actually charging her boytoys per ride - goodness knows, half of them are strippers and we know that Nathaniel is an ex-pro - and this whole, "I need an emotional bond with someone before I can have sex with them," is just bullshit.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

Not to mention, all the superpowers that she gains with every orgasm she "borrows" from other characters - that whole thing where Anita can use the power of a vampire that uses the power against her first? HOLY DEUS EX MACHINA, BATMAN! And omfg, it's just so convenient that she can raise whatever superpower needed to defeat whatever she's against due to her metaphysicaly ties with everything.

Doubly so considering that it doesn't work both ways and that none of the people she's bound to share either her powers, or those of people she's tied to. She's simply That Speshul.

[nimnix.livejournal.com]

You know, if she wrote with any depth and thought, JC would probably have discovered that he inherited a form of necromancy, which would most likely have given him the ability to create his own line. Since he already discovered this fact, it would be great foreshadowing. (Maybe in a Real Book someday.) Imagine him able to break other masters' ties to their vampires.

Of course he wouldn't tell Anita any of this, because he is a master manipulator. Richard would probably find his ties to the munin even stronger, possibly allowing him to do things Raina only dreamed of.

But then, I'm reading from the Book That Could Have Been, not the pr0n version. In this book, JC is playing an extremely deep game, binding Anita to him, controlling who she has access to, being the Machiavellian nightmare he was meant to be. Maybe this is why I keep reading. She hasn't completely destroyed the possibility of a plot. She just has major pacing issues. (Sorry, I have these fits of delusion and... it's not pretty.)

[dwg.livejournal.com]

No, no...I think I suffer from the same problem. You and I probably live in the same world.

[nimnix.livejournal.com]

It's an interesting world, a safe haven from the nightmare that is Merita-Sue. Though I think in reality-land, they refer to this world as "medication" and "support groups".

[delphinapterus.livejournal.com]

Unless she's actually charging her boytoys per ride This image has me giggling madly. I'm seeing one of those coin operated kids-rides.

Anita makes "emotional connections" just by looking.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

Coin-operated girl? *sings Dresden Dolls*

[randomsome1.livejournal.com]

Don't make me question where they'd put the coins! XD

[ravenclaw-devi.livejournal.com]

Thank you ever so much for the mental image! :p

[melaniedavidson.livejournal.com]

...

...

*shudder*

[catskin.livejournal.com]

This is such sensible, logical advice. No way LKH would ever pay attention.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

It'd probably be impossible to translate into LKH-speak and keep the meaning. Saying, "Rhubarb, muffin Praetorian" over and over will probably make more sense in LKH-Land.

[catskin.livejournal.com]

Yeah. She'd just write another angst-ridden, self-righteous blog about people not understanding her vision, and nobody should have to endure that.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

But oh, the wank.

"To the person that sent the list of 'suggestions for improvement' - how dare you! If you think that you can write such a thing and hope that nobody will notice the thinly veiled attack upon me, personally, think again!"

But with worse punctuations. I can't quite bring myself to do it in proper LKH-style.

[catskin.livejournal.com]

You missed a few dozen commas out but apart from that, yup, that's our Laurell.

Oh, and there'd prolly be a line about nobody appreciating how much she loves these characters, how she almost buys Christmas presents for them for crying out loud why don't you understands?!!!!!!

[dwg.livejournal.com]

Because they are real to her! They are HER FRIENDS! Albeit imaginary *cough* But they are as REAL to her as some people are REAL to their spouses!!!

Yep, must include that crazy somewhere. Gads, there's too much crazy to keep track of.

[catskin.livejournal.com]

We need an official LKH Crazy Tracker. Like they have those colour-coded national security warning things. Yellow is mild crazy, orange is scary crazy and red is batshit crazy.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

We could use the Sesame Street colour system (http://www.geekandproud.net/terror/)!

[catskin.livejournal.com]

Yes! Perfect.

[sadlikeknives.livejournal.com]

This is yet another place where LKH is the worst kind of Suethor, because if she were presented with the list and didn't go, "OMG you're all just meeeeeeen," she wouldn't think about it. Oh, no. She would rationalize up a lame-ass explanation for how Merry/Anita is totally doing each of the things on that list. And stick to those guns no matter what.

[dwg.livejournal.com]

And that's the scary part, that somehow, it's necessary for Merita to be all those things and the universe will fall apart if she has to change that in any way, shape, or form. Because heaven forbid that she has to do anything quite so taxing as, say, write from another character's POV.

[swiftgold.livejournal.com]

This is a great article! I've spent a lot of time writing an article on making fan characters and fics more original, and I was thinking of doing one on how to un-Sue a Sue as well... but I'm lazy (first essay is not done yet, sigh) so I think I'll have to link to this instead, hehe.

[saadiira.livejournal.com]

[Unknown site tag]'s articles and rants are ALWAYS pretty darned awesome. I'm bookmarking this one myself.

-Dira-

[saadiira.livejournal.com]

limyaael

Grr.

-Dira-

[swiftgold.livejournal.com]

Heh, yes. I've spent so much time over the past couple days reading the others as well. Much food for thought.

[melaniedavidson.livejournal.com]

(why, hello yet again, Elizabeth Haydon’s Rhapsody)

Well, yeah, but... ♥ Achmed. And Grunthor.

[nightangel486.livejournal.com]

Agreed. Good books overall, LOVE Achmed and Grunthor, but HATE Rhapsody. There's just something wrong with a book when I can't stand the main character...

[melaniedavidson.livejournal.com]

I don't hate her, but certain things get on my nerves a lot sometimes. The aforementioned Matchless Beauty, yes, but also her apparently endless supply of forgiveness. Towards that gladiator guy, for one, but especially towards ASHE. That one scene where she's taking a bath and he starts using his water powers and she tells him to stop and he basically says "But I'm not doing anything, tee-hee!" etc., and then she forgives him, they have happy sex, and it never comes up again--that scene pissed me off SO, SO MUCH. And she just completely forgives him (and the lying! All the lying! Truth's supposed to be so important to her, but she forgives him for that, too, and for manipulating her into that thing with his father where she thought she lost her powers) and doesn't trust him any less or think of him differently or anything. Just BAM, forgiven. @___@ And not just because they're soulmates, either--and don't get me started on that--because she does this with just about everyone. I'm sure she'd forgive whatshisname who was chasing her in the first book if he looked like he'd repented.

*de lurks*

[marumae.livejournal.com]

My thoughts exactly, Achmed and Grunthor were endlessly fascinating but when Rhapsody became virgin sex goddess and started causing ACCIDENTS in the streets my hatred spurned out of control and died in a flaming pile of Mary Sue hate.

[fashi0n-mistake.livejournal.com]

If only if only...

Unfortunately the universe would have to turn upside down before LKH paid attention to anything remotely resembling logic.

[ravenclaw-devi.livejournal.com]

Gosh, I love Limyaael's rants!

I think LKH would do well to consider this one, in particular - 7) Put life and interest in other characters.

With an added, "No, 'life and interest' is not code-speak for 'impossibly long hair and a gigantic wang'," that is.

[brandiweed.livejournal.com]

Limyaael has some special shout-outs to LKH in her latest rant. (http://limyaael.livejournal.com/534773.html)