Writerly Ways

[cornerofmadness]

I was participating in a writer's thing on Blue Sky for a little while before dropping out (mostly because the one running it didn't like I was an hour behind on putting up my answers but sorry running it at dinner time in the middle of the week what do you expect? Also way to make it user unfriendly to anyone not in e.s.t.) But I had an interaction with the showrunner prior to that when they took umbrage with my comment to the question about characters with quirks, mostly because they misunderstood me.

My complaint was about making a character quirky just to be quirky. Lately it feels like authors have been told everyone needs a quirk to stand out. While it's true we don't want flat boring characters, I swear some of them are quirky just because. It doesn't really add anything to the story. Sometimes it's a distraction and/or equates to the character doing something stupid to put them in danger or driving others away.

I'm all for characters having quirks that add something besides weirdness for weirdness' sake. How do you handle character quirks?

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Comments

[under_the_silk_tree]

I know what you mean. I've read some cozy mysteries that have that problem. Either the main character is quirky to the highest degree or the characters around them are. I don't know if it is part of the trope for a cozy mystery, but I have had to dnf before because I couldn't take how odd for no good reason the characters were.

[spikedluv]

Ahhhhh! *pulls hair out* Overly quirky characters are so freaking annoying! And it doesn't even have to be the main character, sometimes they have a guirky BF and it's just so OTT!

[cornerofmadness]

Okay so it's not just me being annoyed at this. The originator of the question wasn't pleased when I said that but the reaction to this post shows I do not stand alone.

I don't mind a quirk or two but yeah sometimes it's too much

[cornerofmadness]

I've seen it in other genres too but yeah it's common in cozy mysteries and it is frakking annoying.

[spikedluv]

It's like the author can't stop once they start! It's so annoying after a while. (And it doesn't even have to be a LONG while.)

[cornerofmadness]

agreed