Poll results

[ozma914]

Well, on the question of whether an OC (specifically, my watcher Richard Philips) should be involved in a romance with a canon character (specifically, the kinda/sorta resurrected post-Chosen lesbian ghost witch Tara), the vote is

Comments

[redwolf]

I think you'll find that most people new to fan fiction don't understand the difference between original characters and Mary Sues. They are not the same thing.

I've seen a lot of instances of canon characters written as Mary Sues, and there's a hell of a lot more of that writing style than of co-opted original characters.

I would not regard Richard as a Mary Sue. You may feel that he started that way, but he's developed into a well-rounded character that is interesting and enjoyable to read.

I'd like to see where a little flirtation between Richard and Tara leads. It may lead further or it may crash and burn, but it will make for a good read.

[ozma914]

Hm ... first of all, thanks for the compliment. I think you're right -- I've always thought of a Mary Sue as simply the writer putting himself bodily into the story, whether as an original character or in the body of a canon character. While that technically is true with Richard, I worked way too hard on his character and this universe to have him suddenly developing super powers and saving the world. I'm hopeful that if I hadn't told people he was me, no one would have noticed.

In any case, I have four longer stories and three shorter ones sketched out for the future, and Richard plays a major role in just one of them, so his relationship with Tara is guaranteed to proceed slowly. We'll see where it takes them.

[tessarin]

Absolutely makes total sense.:-)

[ozma914]

Thank goodness! I was feeling somewhat fuzzy headed when I wrote that.

[desdemonaspace]

Ach! I've missed so much. I've not read this fic (which I think might be part of that suite of AU fics you've written?) nor did I see this poll. But I agree with the top finding: "Sure, it's your story".

Now where is this fic? I want to read it.

[ozma914]

Try here:

http://ozma914.livejournal.com/tag/mary+stu+got+harried

Yep, all my fics are still interconnected in my post "Chosen" world. However, no one seemed to have too much trouble following the events going on here, and what questions were asked got answered in the course of the story. Even a couple of Oz fans who weren't familiar with BtVS told me they were able to follow the tale, for which I'm very grateful.

[desdemonaspace]

Thanks!

[cbtreks]

I haven't been able to finish your story yet, but I've enjoyed it so far. I've definitely come to like Richard through your other stories and don't think he's Mary Sue-ish at all!

[ozma914]

I'm glad! That makes me extremely happy; hearing he's sort of me and yet not Mary Sue-ish is like having my cake and eating it too. :-)