This rant brought to you by Star Wars: The Force Awakens (featuring Rey, the lady scavenger-pilot-mechanic-Jedi of my heart) and also years of simmering resentment.
Also, Rey is literally just a female version of Luke and Annakin. Are they Mary Sue’s? No. They’re heroes (well, up to a point, re: Annakin)
*clears throat loudly*
OK so it’s only about 2 years ago that @sessifet was with me for a visit and I was talking about how I was always careful with writing Lee Brittner (from Rock Happy) lest she becomes a Mary Sue. Because my 16 years in fandom up till there had taught me that would be very, very bad. And Sess finally broke that whole Mary Sue idea open for me.
I still remember how uncertain and baffled I was! (I remember it clearly enough that I remember exactly where we were walking during this conversation)
It took a while for the idea to sink in, that it was OK to write a female character that was interesting and loved and strong and valued. So yeah. Fuck that Mary Sue bullshit. And thank you, Sess <3
Thank you so very much for this. My perennial concern about the main characters in my novels is that they’re…overpowered or too special or some shit like that because so many people talk about how the Mary Sue is the great boogeyman of writing. And I logically know it’s bullshit–because if they were a guy I wouldn’t have those concerns, something I’ve tested out by writing a few short pieces with guys in the exact place of the young women I prefer to write (because, um, I’m a young woman). But I still have the concern. So, thanks.