In Defense of Self-Inserts

I think it’s safe to assume most of us have taken one of those Mary Sue litmus tests at some point. I also think it’s safe to assume most of us have certain qualms with a question or two or three or seventy on those tests. My major qualm is how they usually vilify self-inserts. Yes, most of them have disclaimers saying the tests are only guidelines, and I honestly wish more people would read those before mutilating their characters in order to get scores in the single digits or negatives.

Advertisements

50 Writing Prompts

Would anyone pay if I fully detailed 200 fantasy writing prompts and put them into an e-book? It’d be a cheaper one, $10 at the very most, and it would have five or so examples of where you could go with each prompt.

Anyway, here’s fifty writing prompts. Not exclusively fantasy this time. Some of these have probably been done before, but I’m just throwing out ideas:

Good, Neutral, Evil, and Gray

Gray morality is the best way to write convincing characters, and yes, I’d love to debate that. Gray offers a range of options to both protagonists and antagonists that just isn’t available to the extremes of each side. You can’t claim to have black and white when your villain’s motives are justified, nor can you have black and white when your protagonist burns down a city full of innocents to save someone s/he loves.