I still haven't seen a good definition of a Mary Sue
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| Title: | the essay doesn't have a title, the title used here on Fanlore is a line from the essay that hopefully is a good description |
| Creator: | Cinda Gillilan |
| Date(s): | 1993 |
| Medium: | |
| Fandom: | multifandom |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
I still haven't seen a good definition of a Mary Sue is a 1993 essay by Cinda Gillilan.
It was published in the form of a letter of comment in the first issue of the zine My Name Ain’t Mary Sue!.
Some Topics Discussed
From the Essay
There were four of us at REVELcon that sat there for hours and hours and talked about Mary Sue stories, what people meant about it, and why we didn't agree.
[snipped]
And I still haven't seen a good definition of a Mary Sue, either. And I have now heard the term Harry Stew applied to male characters that are outside the characters of a particular fandom, but who are active participants in a fan story... PLEASE! And I think you're right, outside characters, be they male, female, or even alien, animal, vegetable or mineral, can and do serve to explore the main characters. They add dimensions that are missing in the original series, create obstacles, further the plot... in a nutshell they're a PART of the story. Personally, I'd get tired of reading fan fic with just the original characters. We don't live in a vacuum. Everyone has to deal with other human beings entering their lives, for good or ill.
And all of the characters we write, be they fannish or original will have traces of our own personality. How can they not? We're writing them! I put myself into my characters. I put myself into the fictional characters I choose to write with from television. I'm there. If I wasn't, I wouldn't write them. And if my characters, original or borrowed, get to live out my fantasies, what's the problem? That's why writers have been writing since they developed letters! If I'm not exploring my own ideas, fantasies, hopes, dreams, desires, what the hell am I and anyone else doing writing? I defy anyone to tell me they aren't delving into their own fantasies when they write fan fic, with or without original characters!
I'm with you. We should encourage writers to create interesting people. That's what life's all about — people. So let's see them, get to know them, let them live and grow and act in ways we would like to... what's the problem?
There's only one aspect of the Mary Sue debate that I sympathize with. I don't enjoy characters who are superhuman, unless of course, they're superheroes, but that's a whole other genre. I want to read about real people, but that's not to say that real people can't be very interesting, and have unusual lives, skills, talents, and interests. If the character acquires her/his talents in a logical fashion, how can I argue? Talking with my friends and students I know, I've managed to do more in thirty years than most people I know who are twice my age. I guess that makes me a Mary Sue. Mary Sue, and proud of it!
For example, I met a woman at a conference on Women in the 'Military that was hosted by the Women's Studies Department here on campus. This woman had packed into her thirty-six years a very wide range of experiences and talents because of an unusual set of life circumstances that made them available to her. I took the biographical FACTS of her life and created a character with the same background — different personality. It so happened that this woman, of mixed ethnic heritage was also very nice looking. My character was given a different racial mix, but was also attractive.
I was told by an editor that my character was the "worst Mary Sue character" she had ever seen. This was a REAL woman! Are we that insecure that we can't allow for those women who have achieved in outstanding, innovative, and non-traditional ways to not be ridiculed and rejected? I was told to cut out all references to the character's/real woman's achievements, abilities and descriptions. I did the best I could without destroying the story and erasing the reason why she would even be brought into the story. When I finally saw the story, more had been cut from the story concerning the character, including the reason why she was there!
I should have pulled the story, but I had hoped that after I explained that I hadn't "made her up," that she was a real person, that the editor would feel differently. I was wrong. And I think that's sad.
I write Mary Sues. I write Harry Stews. I will continue to do so, and I hope readers will come to know and like the people I
present. If not, fine.