Yes, I've been on the forums again. I've noticed that this year, a lot of people are obsessed with trying to avoid "Mary Sue" characters. From what I've gathered, a "Mary Sue" is either a character who is perfect in every way or an extension of the author with traits that the author wishes that he or she had. But since I'm one of those people who are more laid back about the whole Nano thing, I'm just thinking that these people are worrying too much. Just write and worry about whether your character is acting realistically or not in December.
But you can rest assured at least that my characters aren't me.
Other people are the types that need pictures of their characters before they start. You know, sketches, photographs, scrutinizing the models in clothing catalogues, etc. In their case, they come up with a character and then try to find the picture. In my case, it's more like I stumble on a picture and say, "Aha! That's my character for this year's Nano." Last year, I stumbled upon a picture of a woman riding the bus on the IMDB website who immediately became Verity. This year, a few months ago, I found a picture on a weblog I read semi-regularly of a woman and a man sitting in a cafe. For some reason, they amused me and eventually the two became Mel and Stuart.
And for those people who must get their excerpts critiqued for feedback (i.e. fishing for praise): November is for writing, not editing, but to each his own, I guess.
