All Criticism Of Any Character In Any Given Work That Boils Down To “X Is A Mary Sue/Gary Stu” Is

writer: this is one of my male characters! he cares about his guy friends and loves them deeply.

tumblr: oh! so he’s gay!

writer: uh…no, he’s attracted to women.

tumblr: ….so he’s bi!

writer: uhh…no…….he loves his guy friends but he’s not romantically/sexually attracted to them.

tumblr: ….so you’re homophobic.

writer:

Character Mannerisms

Here’s some considerations for the tiny little details that can add a lot to a character. Figuring out these mannerisms can do a lot for conveying character traits through their normal actions rather than just their thoughts, dialogue, etc.

How’s their posture? There are more options than just sitting up straight or slouching a lot. What’s their most comfortable sitting position? Do they have a consistent posture or does it change depending on situation / present company? 

How’s their etiquette? Do they hold the door for people behind them? How do they handle handshakes and other kinds of typical contact? Does their language change or become more formal when speaking to strangers? To their elders? To their superiors? 

In a crowded space, do they get out of people’s way, or do people get out of THEIR way? 

How do they point something out? Pointing their finger? Nodding their head? A flippant wave of the hand?

What are their comfort gestures or self-touch gestures? Common comfort gestures include rubbing the back of the neck or gripping their own arms. Can they suppress these gestures or do they do them often?

Also consider the character’s common reactions to common emotions. Do they whoop when they’re excited? Do they tremble when angry? 

What parts of the body are the most expressive? Do they shuffle and stomp their feet a lot when agitated or excited? Are they a hand talker? Do they have an impressive range of motion with their eyebrows?

How do they sound? Do their car keys jingle as they walk? Do they drag their feet? Do their heels clack resoundingly on hard floors? Do they breathe loudly? Do they fidget in ways that make a lot of noise?

How do they handle eye contact?

Any behaviors they reserve for moments when they’re alone? (Or possibly among family/friends that don’t care?) Do they pick their nose? Do they bite their toenails? Do they sniff their armpits? Or do they not care if people see behavior like this?

Apart from comfort gestures, what else do they do to comfort themselves in trying times? What’s their go-to self care? What’s their comfort food? Where’s their safe space?

What are they doing with themselves as they’re suppressing emotion? Lip biting, fist clenching, and avoiding eye contact are common methods of coping with strong emotions.

Hey! Do you have any tips on how to cope with the loneliness that comes from not being actually able to hold your partner? ;-;

hey there! this is always a tough one and a LOT of people struggle with it in terms of these sorts of relationships. it was really tough for me in the earlier stages of my relationship, too.

it’s different for everyone, of course, but there’s multiple things you can do to bridge the physical gap. “proxy items” are really helpful, i find, and can be almost anything you feel fits. some people have the stereotypical body pillow or plush of their f/o, but others simply associate a plain pillow or soft object with the f/o and hug that. it’s always a good idea to have something soft you can hug, and if you consistently think of this object as some aspect of the f/o or just them while cuddling, it can really help in creating an association and making it feel as though they’re with you.

it’s possible to create that association with other things, too. i wrap myself in a specific blanket that reminds me of my partner if i need a hug, and holding something small to fiddle with like the charm of a bracelet if i’m out and about works for holding hands. ultimately the idea is simply to think of the physical contact you want in conjunction with a specific situation or object until those things get associated in your head and bring the same comfort.

imagination helps, too! just relaxing for a bit and visualizing these things can feel pretty good, especially if you have a vivid imagination. there are techniques for improving your visualizations you can find all around the internet, and they’re great for creating an experience that’s strong, even if it’s not physical.

this should absolutely be taken with a grain of salt, as well, but some people report that lucid dreaming helps with this. in a lucid dream, you’re aware you are dreaming; with practice in cultivating this awareness you can consciously shape the plotline of your dreams and participate in them actively. it’s not for everyone, and it can be quite a process to master it enough to control your dreams. there are multiple techniques of varying ease concerning it, some of which involve attempting to force sleep paralysis (for the record, i wanted to mention this method specifically to say it’s potentially extremely distressing and to avoid it). there are a lot of resources on that, too, if you want to look into it - lucid dreaming is just fun in general, anyway, if it’s a good fit for you!

there are more things than this, of course, but those are what come to mind immediately for me!

-mod moon

imagine your f/o kissing your fingertips

Do you ever read a piece of your own writing and just go oh damn

Wholesome Content

Happy 58th Birthday to Michael J. Fox! ❤

I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence I can reach for; perfection is God’s business.

What is up y’all; Happy New Year! I would like to make this message towards all the people in the OC/SI (self-insert) x Canon communities who are just starting out and/or still young, and spread some positivity and words of welcome.

Now I know y’all have been hearing stuff like ‘how you gotta not make a Mary Sue and make sure run your OC through the Mary Sue Litmus Test’ and let me tell you right now? Those Litmus Tests are straight-up garbage and the scoring system on them is so jittery that if you mention your OC is intended to be a romantic interest, it gives you a massive amount of points against you. So don’t even bother with those tests since all they do is cow you into making a really bland character.

Also, the term ‘Mary Sue’ was coined by a woman named Paula Smith who didn’t like the idea of women having power fantasies and was also responsible for that 1970s fanfic ‘A Trekkie’s Tale’, which was a parody of a self-insert fic. Nowadays it seems to mean ‘literally any female OC put into a canon setting and/or is the romantic interest of a canon character’, even if they’re more on the ‘ordinary’ side. (Heck, look at Bella Swan— she’s intended to be really plain yet people still treat her as a Mary Sue.) Speaking of which…

If your OC has any special abilities, or has an unusual hair or eye color (such as pink or purple), that does not make them a Mary Sue. If your OC has knowledge of other languages, is good with animals, or excels in a particular subject (which are both things humans are capable of as well), that does not make them a Mary Sue. If your OC has a really dark backstory or has had tragedy happen to them, that does not make them a Mary Sue. If your OC does something awesome such as save a life or defeat a villain, that does not make them a Mary Sue. Do not let people make you think any of these things qualify your OC as a Mary Sue. All OCs, regardless of appearance, ability, or backstory, are valid.

Now then, shifting the gears a bit, if people try to argue the existence of ‘Gary Stu/Marty Stu’ and try to hold male OCs to those same standards? You might as well be calling hundreds of male canon characters ‘Gary Stus’ because there’s quite a lot of them that fit the above criteria. So in the end it’s pointless to try and spin that.

Finally, a reminder to people who think it’s ‘acceptable’ to pick on OCs they decide are ‘Mary Sues’… you are wasting your time, you’re bad people, and you need to reevaluate your life. The days of ‘Mary Sue Witch Hunts’ are LONG over— though, such things shouldn’t even have had to exist. Remember those days; when content creators were terrified of making ANYTHING because people were so obsessed with snuffing out Mary Sues? Do you really want to bring those days back? (And if anybody thinks ‘yes’, thank you for letting me know the type of people who should really be pushed out of fandom.) And if you think that sending hate messages, making hate art, and even going so far as doxxing people who do this stuff is acceptable? (Yes, that last thing has happened at least once.) Please, do the entire community a favor and unplug your router, cancel your internet plan, and never show your face again.

Not to mention, a lot of the people making these ‘Mary Sues’ are tween-to-mid-teen girls who just innocently make fun stuff for a fandom, have a favorite character they fell in love with, and want to fit in. If you really think Mary Sue witch hunts should be brought back, you’re basically supporting the idea of driving people nearly half your age away. If anything, young fans who make OC/SI x Canon content should be welcomed in, given a safe space they can spread their content, and encouraged to make more. They deserve recognition just as much as older, more experienced content creators do.

Now with all that in mind, let’s make the OC/SI x Canon community a safe, welcoming place for content creators of all ages, call out the Mary Sue witch hunters, and just generally have fun!

Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads on-stage looks from the 80′s

here's some f/o memes!

feel free to use, but please credit :)