‘Like an avatar?’

TV If I hadn't been working I would certainly have been at the Cornerhouse in Manchester yesterday to see Jeanette Winterson interview Russell T Davies. Luckily Paul Magrs did have a ticket and has posted some of the flavour:

"Russell was explaining the idea of ‘Mary-Sues’ to Jeanette, who’d never heard of them. It was all about how people are being put off from writing before they even start by online bullying in writing forums. People – women, mostly – were being accused of creating ‘Mary-Sue’ characters.

‘It’s a pejorative term, apparently. For when people use a version of themselves in the fiction.’

‘Like an avatar?’

‘Yes, exactly. And they’re being told they shouldn't be using them in their stories.’

Jeannette looked appalled. ‘But what else do you have?'

Updated Later On Twitter, James Henry makes a valid point, though:

Russell T Davies kind of gets what a 'Mary Sue' is, but misses out the critical bit: http://t.co/UV7DRsfCqX
— James Henry (@james_blue_cat) February 10, 2014

… which is that a Mary Sue is a stand-in for the author who is better than the main characters at *everything*, and is loved for it.
— James Henry (@james_blue_cat) February 10, 2014

To which Eddie Robson added:

@james_blue_cat They miss that it specifically comes from fanfic: you write yourself meeting your favourite characters and they love you.
— Eddie Robson (@EddieRobson) February 10, 2014

At which point I link backwards to some of my own fan fiction featuring "James Perry" meeting B’Elanna-Torres off of Star Trek: Voyager... (posted here over a decade ago...)