Technically, I'm an old fan that pops in and out of the fanfiction loop, for the most part, I draw fanart. If you head on over to www.megs.deviantart.com, you can see some of my work.

Anyway, I absolutely adore Darkwing Duck, but find myself hanging around the villains more than the heros... :D I feel like I connect with them better somehow... my fav is Megavolt and then after that it's a pretty good tie, (much to Negaduck's outrage). The only one I really don't care for is Liquidator...sorry Licky!

I do have a story posted based on MV called to Tame a Spark, I'd appreciate any feedback. Which leads me to my topic of discussion.

What are your opinions on Origianl Characters?

It's kind of a loaded question really. I mean, some are done beautifully and really add to the story and I can't wait to read more. Other's weren't thought all the way through and take away from the story, or are self insertions, ex. Mary Sues. But, a very rare few Mary Sues are done well. And I'm going to date myself with this next statement, do any of you remember Tracey Pierce's (who is now married and last name has changed...) Greenhouse? I do! And it was probably one of the most engaging stories for a Bushroot reformation. In fact, because it was done so well, I can't see Bushroot with another character without turning up my nose. So, basically IMHO OC's can be used for good or for evil.

This MIGHT get long winded. I apologize in advance.

On the subject of OC's;

I don't mind them as long as they're well written. Don't really mind Mary Sues either, again, as long as they're well written. Of course if they're well written, they shouldn't really be classed as Sues, but I think every OC will, at some point, be slapped with the Mary Sue/Gary Stu label by someone.

Self insertions seem to be the worst form of Sues. I'm guilty of self insertion, but I also don't post my work for anyone to see. I keep it to myself so I can enjoy it, so its okay. I think if you're going to write yourself into a story, you should write yourself as you really are.

If you're a boring loser with no social life to speak of, your fanfic self should be the same. I mean, if I were going to put myself into a story, exactly as I am right now, I would maybe get one sentence of story time.

I'd be the nerdy girl sitting in the back of the internet cafe, hiding behind a laptop. And thats if I even left my house in the story. Theres no way any canon characters would fall for me. Of course I'm also married IRL, so if I'm writing myself as I really am, I'd be married in the fic as well.

I have a lot of OC's. I've been making OC's for the DWD fandom since I was about 10 years old. Many of them are blatant Sues, but thats ok cause no one ever sees my work. The very first OC's I ever made were girlfriends for each member of the Fearsome Five. Biggest Mary Sues you've ever seen, but back then I had no idea what a Mary Sue was, and I only wrote the story to amuse myself.

As it stands, I try to make my OC's as realistic and well rounded as I can, without making them totally boring. None of them have any special talents to speak of. Unless you count flipping burgers as a special talent. :P

In conclusion.. I have no idea where I'm going with this. I don't think OC's are bad. They CAN be, but its all in how they're written.

On the subject of the Greenhouse;

I loved that site. I think I might have cried when it vanished, but its been so long ago that I don't remember. You can still find most of it through archive.org, I have a lot of the fics and art saved from it.

And I totally know what you mean about the Bushroot pairings. To me, Lily is and always will be Mrs. Reginald Bushroot.

My own character I've struggled with for a long time. I used to be really worried she was a Mary Sue (once I found out what the term was - as I said, I was clueless of all that when I started writing) and started trying to write her as a bit more well-rounded; I personally like to think I've succeeded, but since about half of the stories were written, like, ten years ago and my writing was pretty sucky then I think most people who are introduced to the character in my early stories will write her off as a Mary Sue. Sadness. I used to say it wasn't my fault, that I was just 15/16, but since then I've read some REALLY good 15/16-year-old authors, so clearly it was just me. LOL!

I will try to read your fanfic :) I say "try" only because I have a lot less free time than I like, and I have a lot of fics on my "to read" list. So I'm utterly unreliable, and I'm sorry, but it's not for lack of interest. Hopefully I'll get to your stuff soon. :) As another old fan who pops in and out, I wish I could say I recognized you, but I probably predate YOU for "old fan" since I think I last popped into the actual *fandom* back in... 1997? '98? And the part I popped into was probably not where you were. Heh. I think people knew my name back in or around 1996 and since then, those who remember me think I must have died sometime in the past ten years. :D And as such I'm utterly out of date, but I miss DW fandom soooo much sometimes, so I'm glad there are forums here. :)

I'm chatty tonight; I've had two sodas today, which is two more than usual. :P

My OC WAS a blatant self-insertion since her resurrection, but through various RPGs and practice writing her in different situations, she's become her own person, and I adore her. (Ahh, my brain child.) I'm STILL terrified of the whole Mary Sue label being slapped on her, but I've written her (and AM writing her) the best I know how to at this point, and if people don't like her, well, I still do and that's what matters. I know she has at least a few fans out there! (Thanks, guys! :D)

Anyway, yeah. If anyone hasn't read about her yet, please do so. I promise it won't be horrible. Her story doesn't focus right off with Darkwing and his pals, but it gets there. Trust me. :)

And DO read Megs' fic! She's a brilliant author with GREAT characters!!

Like what pretty much everyone else said, blatant Mary Sues (and Gary Stus/Marty Stus) squick me, unless they're well-written. My big fear, however, is that as much as I've tried to develop a couple of my main characters, it's more than likely they'll be labelled as Mary Sues.

My OCs are twins who were forcefully separated when they were kids. One of them grows up to be Gosalyn's biological mother (who falls into a coma when Gosalyn turns three), and the other grows up to be a semi-psychotic jewel thief. And yeah, a couple of main characters fall for them MUCH later after they're introduced. *sighs* I know, predictable. If I could just get over my writer's block, I just might have the confidence to try and write them well. I just need some inspiration... a muse...

Funny observation here: you can't spell Mary Sue without "muse!"

Yeah, I loved Tracy's website (her married name is "Bailey," BTW). I wish she didn't get rid of it, as it was very beautiful.

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