Disclaimer: All characters from the hp series belong to Miss J.K. Rowlling,
not me, and Marry Sue belongs to. I'm not really sure so. She's not mine
either.
But I do own something! ::jumps up and down in excitement:: Mary-Beth and Edith are ALL mine! And also, I own the names for the headlines!
A word. I hope nobody gets offended if I said something bad about the fic he/she is writing at the moment, this just my opinion! Also, know that this fanfic is a guide only to the ppl who are writing a 5th year fanfic. I know it came out long but I just had.how should I put this. Way to much sugar pumping in my blood:-)
Enjoy! Tincerbel the 3rd.
Mary Sues-- Definition:
Technically, Mary Sue is when u put a character in the book that represents you. But like everything in the wizard world this is also a bit different. I'm talking about a hp Mary, usually put in the place of Harry or Ron's (though usually Harry's) girlfriend/love. The problem with Marys is her talent to take over the book; here is what u can do in the search for Harry's love.
Mary Sues -- Introduction:
Mary Sues is the most tempting to put in our fics, why? Because it's fun, because we got a little bored w/ all the old characters, because she adds color, because she's great to open a story with and most of all: Because of JKR! I'm not blaming her for the Mary Sue madness we all witnessed for a while now, when each and every fanfic has one, but you have to admit; it's because of something she did. Then again, she probably didn't think that all of us lot would start writing about her book.
Anyway, what JKR did is what I'd like to call "The Cho Chang Thing".
Mary Sues -- The Cho Chang Thing:
The Cho Chang thing or, "Finding Edith" (the right girl that should come instead of Mary) Are in simple words: CHO IS EVIL! Joking, what I mean is: A situation was made that the thing between Harry and Cho probably won't work out (JKR said in an interview that in the 4th book everybody falls for the wrong people) and so, we need to find someone else to replace Cho ::vicious grin by the thought Cho wouldn't be there anymore:: and that's where most of us make a horrible mistake! We hire dear Mary for the job. And don't think I'm just coming down on u! I'm ashamed to say that I have also put a Mary in my fanfic ('Course I got rid of her as soon as I realized what I have done) so don't feel bad, it happens to everybody.
So now that we know what we are up against, what do we do?
Here are some things that could help u out!
Mary Sues-How to recognize her:
Here are the common signs to recognize a Marry so that we could avoid her from the very beginning:
1.She must be VERY pretty, sometimes, authors give her these tinny faults, trying to show she is still a tiny bit human and not totally godlike.
2. She's always nice and sensitive and brave and understanding. Even if you do manage to make her not totally perfect looking she'll always have a perfect personality and will always be NICE.
3. Usually she's introduced in the very beginning of the book, thought to be a muggle, then Harry meets her again on Platform 9 ¾. If that's what u did to a new character it doesn't make her Marry Sueish right away, but in this case there is a much more serious problem to deal with. Do u really think JKR would want Harry to enjoy his summer vacation?
4. Usually an exchange student, or arrives somehow, so that she'll be Harry's age, and she will always be in Gryffindor (If you did not make her these 2 things, good for u! And you could read about it in Marry Beth, Edith or Evil Marry).
5. She's active in the fight against Malfoy, in the extreme case, knows him from somewhere else or something of that sort.
6. Snape hates her but otherwise she's a good student, likes the same things Harry likes.
7. She has a hidden, so called "horrible secret" that will be reviled, usually "Voldemort killed my friend" or something like that, which makes it all very comfortably touchy.
8. It doesn't matter that it's top secret and it doesn't matter that she has nothing to do w/ Voldemort (Or does she? For that go to Mary-Beth, Edith or Evil Marry) Ron Hermione and Harry will tell her about Sirius right away, because otherwise, how would she be in the big finish, and solve the mystery?
9. Before we know it she becomes a second main character (Not just a sidekick).
And last: 10. She knows what Harry's thinking, she never has fights w/ one of the two (H & R). and BOOM! It's too late; she takes over the story! You start writing about her feelings; not Harry's. Her fears, her wanting. and before you can say Mary Sue, you find yourself telling the story from her point of view. and then it's over. and you need to start all over again.
.This is the simplest and most dangerous situation most people find themselves in. The problem is that it's so simple to fall in Mary's trap. So how do we avoid falling in it? Or how do we climb out?
Mary Sues-How To Fix The Damage:
Here I envy the H/Hr, H/G and H/C (well, maybe not H/C) shipers, because they don't have to deal w/ Mary, they already have Harry's love handed to them on a silver plate by JKR, but not all of us could have that, because not all of us could. Take me for example, I just can't stand the H/Hr not to mention the H/C. H/G I can handle but. To make all u H/? fans like me feel better, all of us Edith seekers don't have to deal w/ the Harry/Ron explosion over H/Hr and don't need to take the daily nausea of dealing w/ H/C.
One Word For H/Hr Shipers:
I was wrong, I said u didn't have to deal w/ Marry, but u do. If u want Harry and Hermione to be together, the better thing to do is to find Ron someone else so it doesn't explode between him and Harry too badly, and don't u give me these vicious grins! I know all about u ppl! Usually u're not only H/Hr shipers but also R haters, ain't I right? Don't forget he has to stay Harry's friend and u know it! I suggest u read the part of finding Edith and get urself a damn good one, otherwise u'll never pull that H/Hr thing off.
One Word For H/G and why there isn't One Word For H/C Shipers:
You H/G fans out there got urself quite a solution, you're usually the people who would put Ron and Hermione together, and that means you don't have to deal with Marry at all. Though u might want to think about what u're going to do with the whole thing about Ron being well. Her Brother. It could get a little weird. Oh, and one warning concerning Ginny: Now that u want her to be a big part of the story u need to make her more of a personality because so far we don't really know her. So please! Don't make her nice or u'll be dealing w/ a horrible Mary.
And. my dear friends. H/C shipers. U might think u got it all, supposedly u don't need a Mary, and u don't even have to deal w/ the weirdness of the Brotherhood. But u are very wrong my friends, u have to deal with a huge, and even trickier Marry- Cho Chang. Yes, Cho is actually a unique species of a Mary, only u have to be much more careful with her. I suggest u try something else, I really don't have an advice for u. Switch, that's all.
Evil Mary:
Some ppl choose the evil Mary or as I would like to call her: Icicle. They make Harry fall for an evil character, and leave the real lover work for JKR to do in the 6th book. I don't like this way, because it means that Harry falls for the wrong person again which means another Cho. But, if u do insist on an evil Mary, make her evil in an interesting way, not just a very young death eater, and do me a favor, make up a good story if that's what u want.
The last solution, my advice to all, is transformation: You got stuck w/ a Mary? Turn her into an Edith (or a Mary-Beth, if Edith is a little too hard), which leads to my next topic:
Mary-Beth and Edith, Make Them Yourself:
Or what I call "Finding Edith", is very difficult and we don't always manage to make a complete transformation. My character for example, was Mary Sueish, and when I found out, I had to change her of course. but I don't think she's quite an Edith yet. If you found out you made your new, soon to be Harry's love character Mary Sueish and you want to change it, here are some suggestions and ideas on how to make your character Mary-Beth or even (if you're really good) Edithlike.
1. I beg you, don't make her nice! Give her a personality. This is the first and most important step, if you leave her godlike she will always be Maryish. Give her some faults, both in looks and in person, make her w/ a bit of a low self-esteem, or a too high one, or something! Give her a pimple once in a while, or make her a little full. Something that would make her whatever you choose, but not just nice.
2. If you could handle it try to make her in Ravenclaw or younger, or older or. something like that. This is not necessary, I couldn't get myself to do it, so I can't tell u to, but if u do something like that, u turn her immediately into a Mary-Beth or even Edith, as long as you follow the 1st rule of course.
3. Making a character that represents you is okay, the problem is that when it's "us" we might accidentally put her as a too main character. The thing you have to remember is that this character should be at most a sidekick, even a little less, don't forget Ron and Hermione because of her.
4. Try to make her personality different than Harry's, I'm not saying, make her the opposite but try to make her with something that will be only for her, don't make her an excellent student like Hermione or jealous like Ron, or brave but insecure like Harry.
5. About Malfoy, she could be against him, but try to make it because of something he did and not like this:
'Ron groaned as he saw Malfoy laughing with Crabe and Goyle. "Malfoy." He said shortly. "I know, I met him on the train, what a jerk. Started laughing at Muggle Borns." Said Mary.
6. I know it's tempting, and I know it will happen along the book anyway, but come on, Sirius. She really doesn't have to know on the first day of school, now does she? Give it time, and if u do choose to make her a part of the story, make it good, don't give me some they killed her parents, so she needs to know about Sirius. think it over.
7. People usually say that if she is from America (especially USA) then she must be a Mary, but that's not true. If u bring an exchange student, pick a reason, try to make more than,
"We just moved to England," She said and helped him up. "From New York."
And if she's an exchange student, don't forget she can't be from Ireland or Scotland because that's where Hogwarts students come from in the 1st place.
There's another way to introduce a new character that will make a Marry- Beth almost right away. You could go to the 1st book and look for a name of a girl who went to either Ravenclaw or even Slytherin (Not Hufflepuff, they learn too much together w/ the Gryffindors). Put her as a girl he didn't really notice until then, a girl from Slytherin might be very interesting. But that is only if u can take the fact she won't be in Gryffindor.
8. Making them meet before they realize they're both wizards is, nice, but a little unlikely; people come to Hogwarts from all over, and if u make her from around, it could change the whole concept of Harry being alone in the summer which is not a great idea.
That's about it. This is probably the right way to turn ur Mary into a Mary- Beth. An Edith? I don't know, that's a little trickier, but if u do these things really good, u can do it.
Marry Sue- Cho's Good-Bye Kiss:
Now listen closely, Cho's good-bye kiss is in simple words: CHO'S EVIL! J/K
again, but seriously, this is Cho's most horrifying and strongest weapon of all (sound a like a Dementor, doesn't she?) In order for Harry to fall for Edith he needs to get over Cho and you might think it's easy, but you're very, very wrong. This is very tricky and it could turn a perfectly good Edith in to a Mary in a hot second. You can not simply make him forget her or make her move! If you do that, your Edith is as good as a Mary. So what do you do? There are some options, but in here I'll leave each of you on his/her on (to find out what I did read my big fic of book 5, "Harry Potter & The Curse Holders" and yes, this is a hidden commercial!).
Billy Bobs:
Technically, Billy Bobs are the male version of Marry Sue, but actually I think having a Billy Bob in your fic is a good idea, it's defiantly better than having a Marry Sue in your fic. I don't have much to say about Billy, but as long as he doesn't start taking over your fic, he's a good idea.
Mary Sue- A Word Of Conclusion:
Well, that's all I have to say about Marry and Billy, I hope I helped some of u ppl in ur quest of "Finding Edith". Just remember, whatever u do, don't make her nice! Tincerbel
Love it? Hate it? Want more? Any comments? I miss spelled Hufflepuff?
REVIEW! Or e-mail me at adimishnayot@hotmail.com
But I do own something! ::jumps up and down in excitement:: Mary-Beth and Edith are ALL mine! And also, I own the names for the headlines!
A word. I hope nobody gets offended if I said something bad about the fic he/she is writing at the moment, this just my opinion! Also, know that this fanfic is a guide only to the ppl who are writing a 5th year fanfic. I know it came out long but I just had.how should I put this. Way to much sugar pumping in my blood:-)
Enjoy! Tincerbel the 3rd.
Mary Sues-- Definition:
Technically, Mary Sue is when u put a character in the book that represents you. But like everything in the wizard world this is also a bit different. I'm talking about a hp Mary, usually put in the place of Harry or Ron's (though usually Harry's) girlfriend/love. The problem with Marys is her talent to take over the book; here is what u can do in the search for Harry's love.
Mary Sues -- Introduction:
Mary Sues is the most tempting to put in our fics, why? Because it's fun, because we got a little bored w/ all the old characters, because she adds color, because she's great to open a story with and most of all: Because of JKR! I'm not blaming her for the Mary Sue madness we all witnessed for a while now, when each and every fanfic has one, but you have to admit; it's because of something she did. Then again, she probably didn't think that all of us lot would start writing about her book.
Anyway, what JKR did is what I'd like to call "The Cho Chang Thing".
Mary Sues -- The Cho Chang Thing:
The Cho Chang thing or, "Finding Edith" (the right girl that should come instead of Mary) Are in simple words: CHO IS EVIL! Joking, what I mean is: A situation was made that the thing between Harry and Cho probably won't work out (JKR said in an interview that in the 4th book everybody falls for the wrong people) and so, we need to find someone else to replace Cho ::vicious grin by the thought Cho wouldn't be there anymore:: and that's where most of us make a horrible mistake! We hire dear Mary for the job. And don't think I'm just coming down on u! I'm ashamed to say that I have also put a Mary in my fanfic ('Course I got rid of her as soon as I realized what I have done) so don't feel bad, it happens to everybody.
So now that we know what we are up against, what do we do?
Here are some things that could help u out!
Mary Sues-How to recognize her:
Here are the common signs to recognize a Marry so that we could avoid her from the very beginning:
1.She must be VERY pretty, sometimes, authors give her these tinny faults, trying to show she is still a tiny bit human and not totally godlike.
2. She's always nice and sensitive and brave and understanding. Even if you do manage to make her not totally perfect looking she'll always have a perfect personality and will always be NICE.
3. Usually she's introduced in the very beginning of the book, thought to be a muggle, then Harry meets her again on Platform 9 ¾. If that's what u did to a new character it doesn't make her Marry Sueish right away, but in this case there is a much more serious problem to deal with. Do u really think JKR would want Harry to enjoy his summer vacation?
4. Usually an exchange student, or arrives somehow, so that she'll be Harry's age, and she will always be in Gryffindor (If you did not make her these 2 things, good for u! And you could read about it in Marry Beth, Edith or Evil Marry).
5. She's active in the fight against Malfoy, in the extreme case, knows him from somewhere else or something of that sort.
6. Snape hates her but otherwise she's a good student, likes the same things Harry likes.
7. She has a hidden, so called "horrible secret" that will be reviled, usually "Voldemort killed my friend" or something like that, which makes it all very comfortably touchy.
8. It doesn't matter that it's top secret and it doesn't matter that she has nothing to do w/ Voldemort (Or does she? For that go to Mary-Beth, Edith or Evil Marry) Ron Hermione and Harry will tell her about Sirius right away, because otherwise, how would she be in the big finish, and solve the mystery?
9. Before we know it she becomes a second main character (Not just a sidekick).
And last: 10. She knows what Harry's thinking, she never has fights w/ one of the two (H & R). and BOOM! It's too late; she takes over the story! You start writing about her feelings; not Harry's. Her fears, her wanting. and before you can say Mary Sue, you find yourself telling the story from her point of view. and then it's over. and you need to start all over again.
.This is the simplest and most dangerous situation most people find themselves in. The problem is that it's so simple to fall in Mary's trap. So how do we avoid falling in it? Or how do we climb out?
Mary Sues-How To Fix The Damage:
Here I envy the H/Hr, H/G and H/C (well, maybe not H/C) shipers, because they don't have to deal w/ Mary, they already have Harry's love handed to them on a silver plate by JKR, but not all of us could have that, because not all of us could. Take me for example, I just can't stand the H/Hr not to mention the H/C. H/G I can handle but. To make all u H/? fans like me feel better, all of us Edith seekers don't have to deal w/ the Harry/Ron explosion over H/Hr and don't need to take the daily nausea of dealing w/ H/C.
One Word For H/Hr Shipers:
I was wrong, I said u didn't have to deal w/ Marry, but u do. If u want Harry and Hermione to be together, the better thing to do is to find Ron someone else so it doesn't explode between him and Harry too badly, and don't u give me these vicious grins! I know all about u ppl! Usually u're not only H/Hr shipers but also R haters, ain't I right? Don't forget he has to stay Harry's friend and u know it! I suggest u read the part of finding Edith and get urself a damn good one, otherwise u'll never pull that H/Hr thing off.
One Word For H/G and why there isn't One Word For H/C Shipers:
You H/G fans out there got urself quite a solution, you're usually the people who would put Ron and Hermione together, and that means you don't have to deal with Marry at all. Though u might want to think about what u're going to do with the whole thing about Ron being well. Her Brother. It could get a little weird. Oh, and one warning concerning Ginny: Now that u want her to be a big part of the story u need to make her more of a personality because so far we don't really know her. So please! Don't make her nice or u'll be dealing w/ a horrible Mary.
And. my dear friends. H/C shipers. U might think u got it all, supposedly u don't need a Mary, and u don't even have to deal w/ the weirdness of the Brotherhood. But u are very wrong my friends, u have to deal with a huge, and even trickier Marry- Cho Chang. Yes, Cho is actually a unique species of a Mary, only u have to be much more careful with her. I suggest u try something else, I really don't have an advice for u. Switch, that's all.
Evil Mary:
Some ppl choose the evil Mary or as I would like to call her: Icicle. They make Harry fall for an evil character, and leave the real lover work for JKR to do in the 6th book. I don't like this way, because it means that Harry falls for the wrong person again which means another Cho. But, if u do insist on an evil Mary, make her evil in an interesting way, not just a very young death eater, and do me a favor, make up a good story if that's what u want.
The last solution, my advice to all, is transformation: You got stuck w/ a Mary? Turn her into an Edith (or a Mary-Beth, if Edith is a little too hard), which leads to my next topic:
Mary-Beth and Edith, Make Them Yourself:
Or what I call "Finding Edith", is very difficult and we don't always manage to make a complete transformation. My character for example, was Mary Sueish, and when I found out, I had to change her of course. but I don't think she's quite an Edith yet. If you found out you made your new, soon to be Harry's love character Mary Sueish and you want to change it, here are some suggestions and ideas on how to make your character Mary-Beth or even (if you're really good) Edithlike.
1. I beg you, don't make her nice! Give her a personality. This is the first and most important step, if you leave her godlike she will always be Maryish. Give her some faults, both in looks and in person, make her w/ a bit of a low self-esteem, or a too high one, or something! Give her a pimple once in a while, or make her a little full. Something that would make her whatever you choose, but not just nice.
2. If you could handle it try to make her in Ravenclaw or younger, or older or. something like that. This is not necessary, I couldn't get myself to do it, so I can't tell u to, but if u do something like that, u turn her immediately into a Mary-Beth or even Edith, as long as you follow the 1st rule of course.
3. Making a character that represents you is okay, the problem is that when it's "us" we might accidentally put her as a too main character. The thing you have to remember is that this character should be at most a sidekick, even a little less, don't forget Ron and Hermione because of her.
4. Try to make her personality different than Harry's, I'm not saying, make her the opposite but try to make her with something that will be only for her, don't make her an excellent student like Hermione or jealous like Ron, or brave but insecure like Harry.
5. About Malfoy, she could be against him, but try to make it because of something he did and not like this:
'Ron groaned as he saw Malfoy laughing with Crabe and Goyle. "Malfoy." He said shortly. "I know, I met him on the train, what a jerk. Started laughing at Muggle Borns." Said Mary.
6. I know it's tempting, and I know it will happen along the book anyway, but come on, Sirius. She really doesn't have to know on the first day of school, now does she? Give it time, and if u do choose to make her a part of the story, make it good, don't give me some they killed her parents, so she needs to know about Sirius. think it over.
7. People usually say that if she is from America (especially USA) then she must be a Mary, but that's not true. If u bring an exchange student, pick a reason, try to make more than,
"We just moved to England," She said and helped him up. "From New York."
And if she's an exchange student, don't forget she can't be from Ireland or Scotland because that's where Hogwarts students come from in the 1st place.
There's another way to introduce a new character that will make a Marry- Beth almost right away. You could go to the 1st book and look for a name of a girl who went to either Ravenclaw or even Slytherin (Not Hufflepuff, they learn too much together w/ the Gryffindors). Put her as a girl he didn't really notice until then, a girl from Slytherin might be very interesting. But that is only if u can take the fact she won't be in Gryffindor.
8. Making them meet before they realize they're both wizards is, nice, but a little unlikely; people come to Hogwarts from all over, and if u make her from around, it could change the whole concept of Harry being alone in the summer which is not a great idea.
That's about it. This is probably the right way to turn ur Mary into a Mary- Beth. An Edith? I don't know, that's a little trickier, but if u do these things really good, u can do it.
Marry Sue- Cho's Good-Bye Kiss:
Now listen closely, Cho's good-bye kiss is in simple words: CHO'S EVIL! J/K
again, but seriously, this is Cho's most horrifying and strongest weapon of all (sound a like a Dementor, doesn't she?) In order for Harry to fall for Edith he needs to get over Cho and you might think it's easy, but you're very, very wrong. This is very tricky and it could turn a perfectly good Edith in to a Mary in a hot second. You can not simply make him forget her or make her move! If you do that, your Edith is as good as a Mary. So what do you do? There are some options, but in here I'll leave each of you on his/her on (to find out what I did read my big fic of book 5, "Harry Potter & The Curse Holders" and yes, this is a hidden commercial!).
Billy Bobs:
Technically, Billy Bobs are the male version of Marry Sue, but actually I think having a Billy Bob in your fic is a good idea, it's defiantly better than having a Marry Sue in your fic. I don't have much to say about Billy, but as long as he doesn't start taking over your fic, he's a good idea.
Mary Sue- A Word Of Conclusion:
Well, that's all I have to say about Marry and Billy, I hope I helped some of u ppl in ur quest of "Finding Edith". Just remember, whatever u do, don't make her nice! Tincerbel
Love it? Hate it? Want more? Any comments? I miss spelled Hufflepuff?
REVIEW! Or e-mail me at adimishnayot@hotmail.com