A little activity for all you readers out there: Mary-Sue vs. Mary-Sue?

Ehhh Mage Sue... Dang it :/ I was working up ideas for my MC who has magic, trying to think of something cool, and I think she's getting a little close to the all-powerful the One who learns in one day what all the other Masters took seven years to learn. :/

I'd say Mage Sue is the one I see the most often... as long as they're not TOO powerful I think they're alright, but the Misfit Sue can be kind of annoying. But sometimes the Misfit Sue was "beautiful all along" but either had terrible self-confidence (which is saved by the charming boyfriend) or was put down by other girls who were extremely jealous of her. Or she just needed a haircut >.>

BQ - I think I see Punk Sue the least, though it may be because I tend to lean toward medieval-ish fantasy (as in with swords, horses, and the rest). Misfit isn't the most common either, but Misfit's very annoying.

BQ 2 - Hmm maybe... it depends how much you restrict your characters, when there's a super powerful Mage Sue it calls for disbelief, but when it's tuned down somewhat it's alright if the rest of the story is good.

I think victim aka whiny sue is the absolute worst. Perfect example is Bella Swan from Twilight. I can't stand to read about characters with no flaws whatsoever and who are completely helpless damsels who need a male to rescue her all the freaking time.

BQ: Well they all are in some way cliched but I'm gonna say misfit sue because out of all of those they are the most realistic and have potential to become a good character.

BQ2: Yes I agree. A lot of potential writers are afraid that their own characters will be a Mary Sue/Gary Stu but as it has been said a lot of the greatest characters are one but what makes them great characters is the plot and/or their actions. I think writers shouldn't care if their character is a Sue/Stu but write from the heart. A lot of people worry that their work is cliched and get discouraged that their own character is a Sue/Stu

Victim!Sue is the most annoying. I mean, get out there and do something, woman!!

BQ: Misfit!Sue is probably the least cliche, but I'd rather read about Warrior!Sue.

BQ2: Agreed. A lot of people here seem to worry about whether or not their character is a Mary Sue or Gary Stu and list everything about the character like their talent, hair colour, eye colour, etc. Well, that doesn't make a character a Sue/Stu, it's their actions and stuff that happens to them. So take a chance and write!

The Warrior!Sue or the Mage!Sue. Either one is the worst..

BQ: I think the Misfit!Sue! just because you don't see them as often

BQ2: Yes...a lot of authors (me included) are worried about cliches and Mary-Sue(s) they need to be worried about the plot and the story not the things they can go back and fix...

Warrior!Sue OHMYGOD. so. freaking. unrealistic. clearly, the authors who write warrior-sues have never seen actual men and actual women, or there would be no way they would make this mistake. i'm female...and i ride horses about as much as fantasy 'warrior' ever would, and i'm extremely physically fit. with that, a decently normal fit man could still beat the crud out of me in an instant. men are stronger, more powerful, and bigger than women, and thus more physically dominating than the average woman can be...that's just science. i'm all for women's rights and strong female characters, but even a 'warrior-sue' woman CAN NOT just take out a group of armored male soldiers. ridiculous. plus, warrior-sues have the least individuality of the sue-types: they all hate pink, hate men, don't like girly girls, hate skirts, and hate doing anything womanly (cook, sew, *be clean*), love to read, and love their independence to the point of hating anyone who tries to tell them what to do, even if its in warrior-sue's best interest. they're all the same. ugh.

BQ: i think punk-sue is the least cliche, just because they're usually the most realistic. most of the punk/goth/alternative kids i know actually *do* act like angsty on the surface but are actually quite nice if you get to know them. some people in real life just don't react well to their past (even if it wasn't all that tragic) and just get kind of angsty.

BQ2: yes, i agree with statement, no, they shouldn't restrict. if a wannabe writer is so scared of fleshing out a character in case said character becomes a mary-sue, they have no business writing at all because they clearly don't understand humans enough to write about characters. if that scares them off writing, good. spare the world. a good writer isn't 'restricted' by mary-sues because they know how people actually behave...they can create full-bodied characters with no problems. heck, a good writer can take a mary-sue and write about them so well no one cares that the character is a mary-sue!

Probably the Victim!Sue; I can't stand to read about them because they're just so helpless xD

BQ: Hmm... Punk!Sue, because I haven't read any books with the main character like that O_o

BQ2: Not really, because some Mary-Sue's CAN have non Mary-Sue sides, if that makes any sense, and as Daxter Locke said, many of the greatest characters are mary-sues, I agree with that :)

I think Whiny!Sue is the worse. It's the perfect definition of Bella Swan and I wanna punch her, so that makes sense.

BQ: I think Misfit!Sue is the least cliche. How many comedies and dramas are based on her? She's, like, a staple. A benchmark for all who are isolated from society. And then she gets her happy, feel-good ending. It's kind of endearing at the end of the day.

BQ: I agree. When I was younger I watched out to make sure my characters weren't Sues. I checked every move they made for Sue. Eventually I got tired of caring and stopped. None of my characters have been Sues ever since. They're just normal; it's their situations that aren't and I think that's the way it should be.

I hate the victim sue.

But being in the age group mentioned in the punk sue description, I have to say most 11-15 year olds don't think that's cool. They think it's a reason to make fun of people.

Victim and Punk Mary Sue is tied, IMO. Punk!Sue is basically Victim!Sue in goth clothes. They're all the same and garden variety.

BQ:Again, IMO, Misfit!Sue. There's a whole variety ways you can turn them into a Sue, unlike the others.

BQ2: Disagree.

Misfit!Sue is probably the worst and most cliche Sue there is.

BQ: Mage!Sue, I don't see much of her, she's a LITTLE unique.

BQ2: No, they should write characters as they like, but try to add unique qualities as needed.