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Hi again! At school a couple of friends and I always chat about writing and we try to help each other out. However, I've noticed that I'm a bit more advanced than them and that they have a lot of bad writing habits. Plus, one of my friends showed me a character sketch for what I am afraid will turn into a Mary Sue (she's got a painfully unusual name even though her sibling's/parents names are normal, she plays multiple instruments, etc). What should I do? Thanks. (Sorry this was so long. :-/)

I should make this an FAQ...

Anyway!

If this person is indeed your friend, then you'll know best how they'll react to criticism.

Some people really honestly don't know that their writing could use improvement and they really honestly want to improve. Be kind and ask them to evaluate their character up against their favorites. Maybe show them some of the really cool character development worksheets online and have them flesh their ideas out a little more. If your friend wants to get overboard with abilities, ask them how their character has time to practice all those instruments, when do they have time to play them, etc. Ask why this character got an unusual name when no one else has one. (An unusual name can be fine as long as there's a good story behind it.) Basically, just take the time to figure out your friend's reasoning and get them to justify their choices. Ask them how they'd react to someone acting like their character does. Hopefully they'll see reason!

If your friend is the kind of person who doesn't take criticism well and "does what they want" then you're best off smiling politely, nodding when they explain things, and trying to stay out of it as much as possible.

#call-it-desire #ask mama yuzu