Mary Sue (video)

Mary Sue (known as Chapter 2: Perfect Protagonist) is the second episode of Terrible Writing Advice. It contains instructions on how to write the most unrealistic annoying awesome kind of character, a Mary Sue!

Writing Advice In This Video
1. Write what you know. You know yourself really well, so why not just put yourself into the story?

2. Get rid of all the flaws to make your protagonist an idealized version of yourself.

3. Add some lots of strengths to your character.

4. Add some flaws, but make them good ones like being too kind and selfless.

5. Give your protagonist a tragic backstory for drama. It shouldn't affect them outside of getting pity points with the other characters. For example, your protagonist can have parents who are abusive, dead, or both!

6. Make your protagonist special! Have a prophecy that's all about Mary Sue. All the other characters should talk about her when she isn't around. Another great way to do this is to make your protagonist a hybrid of a buch of different species, like a half dragon half vampire half angel half elven princess.

7. All characters who like your protagonist are good, and everyone who doesn't is evil.

8. Make sure your protagonist never fails and effortlessly overcomes every challenge. Your protagonist can easily beat veteran characters at anything in spite of only having a fraction of their experiance.

9. All villains should crumble before your protagonist in the most anticlimactic way possible.

10. If any villain actually manages to hurt your protagonist, make sure they make the villain suffer a lot more and show no remorse. You wouldn't want your Mary Sue to show unheroic traits like mercy or forgiveness.

11. If your protagonist is starting to look a lot like a villain, just make the villain worse so the audience can tell them apart.