Red Maier: "Dear Elsa Sjunneson-Henry: Calling Things a Mary Sue is a Way of Shutting Marginalized People Up"

Dear Elsa Sjunneson-Henry: 

Calling Things a Mary Sue is a Way of Shutting Marginalized People Up

By: Red Maier

            I remember the first time I was told I was writing a Mary Sue six years ago on the now-defunct Miss Literati and I remember being devastated. I had never before read a story that had represented me and had no romantic subplot within my favorite fictional universe so I had decided to write my own. As a result, here I was, being told that it was ‘weird’ and ‘didn’t appeal to the reader’ and that I, to my total chagrin, was a ‘Mary Sue’.

            Mary Sues, you see, were things to be avoided. They were throwbacks to the year 2005 and the wonderful Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way. Recanting self-inserts and distinguishability in favor of being generic, many authors have felt pressured into changing their characters to better suit critics and their opinions. And, of course, the largest critics in the fiction world are often those that feel entitled. They feel entitled to view themselves in every single character they come across and feel personally victimized if they find someone who is different from them.

However, I say, from the bottom of my heart: screw that.

            Writing is supposed to be an outlet for the author, a form of creation. Reading is supposed to be the same, but for the reader. By calling all specific, unique characters Mary Sue’s, you not only limit the writer but also limit the reader. By stifling that expression, you also force the genre to be bland and boring, filled with generic neurotypical, able-bodied ansty white guys that swing swords and get the girl. Historically, any step out of line of the norm has been viewed as an immediate failure. Yet, as we can see by the success of media such as the Percy Jackson series and Black Panther, diversity is a niche that desperately needs to be filled.

            By not calling characters Mary Sue’s, you free the writer and the reader. No longer is the writer forced to stifle parts of themselves in order to sate the masses and no longer is the reader limited to reading stories that they do not quite relate to. In addition, with exposure, diversity becomes normalized and that can assist the breakdown of stereotypes and knee-jerk discrimination. Children who grow up being represented in the media that they consume can become more confident in their abilities to achieve and adults that are exposed to media that represents them can feel more confident in their self-expression and existence..

            However, a thing to keep in mind is the avoidance of extremism.

Do not send hate to people who do write stories that can be viewed as mainstream. Yes, diversity is important but that includes the mainstream stories. Everyone deserves a chance to be represented, it’s just important to promote representation of marginalized groups as they have never had that before.

Do not shut people out, teach them. Ignorance is the fuel of hatred and missteps. In order for people to understand why representation is important, they have to be taught the history and the meaning of representation. If they are just needlessly yelled at, they may foster hatred and disdain for the communities and spitefully lack representation in their work. We are supposed to work together, not against each other.

By discrediting writing as Mary Sue’s, we discourage young new writers who are just starting as well as shut out representation.